《VRMMO: Am I The Strongest Yet?》 Chapter 1: Retirement "Even before the abyss of a black hole... we still have a choice."Hmmm¡­ A little more. "Humanity never conceals its desire to control the heavens, and I am no exception." Good. And, to complete it all¡­ "Rules, are made to be broken." And with this, he was done. ''It was a long journey.'' He worked since the early ages of his life. He learned, he applied, he failed, and he learned from his failures. There were setbacks, there were times when he just couldn''t get up and start working again, he had faced difficulties throughout the last decade of his life, however, finally, on this day, he was done. "Finally¡­" An attractive apartment room, a bed on the left, a window on the other side. He sat on his desk with a holographic clock present beside him, facing his computer screen, listening to (Crow), a new song he accidentally stumbled upon and fell in love with, a warm smile of relief present on his face. "Finally." On his 360Hz screen, along with some quotes, some descriptions, and some epic narrations, the final page of his last book had ended with a happy ending. His hand left the three-piece keyboard, the pencil and his tablet were turned off, and, he also stopped the timer playing on his simple holographic clock. "Finally, I can retire now." Money wasn''t really a problem for him but he valued his independence above anything else. He loved his freedom, he loved what he could do by being unrestricted, and he loved the way he concluded his last project. "Haaa¡­" He still remembered why he started working even though he had the option to just live a life of comfort. "I can finally rest as much as I want, mom." He remembered why he got a part time food delivering job at the young age of fourteen. Or why he endured all the trouble, curses, pain, and pressure in all the jobs he had worked at. He had no need to endure all the shit those pig bosses put him through. He was a worker at first, but he learned, he earned, he experienced the lives the common children experience, and with his own efforts, he first freed himself from the grunt life. Then he earned more and got to higher positions. He paid his school fees, he paid for his graduation, and he also paid for his diplomas. He got away from the life of corporate slavery. Started a small business, expanded it, made it into something that brought profits, and then, with time, effort, and good decisions, he was able to become a business owner at the age of twenty. And then, he found people that he trusted. Gave them the reins of his business, and went off to the creative side, and started following his passion. He had always been more of a creative person than a technical one. The things that he liked doing in his free time, since a young age, had included photography, videography, a little bit of drawing and a little bit of everything that was related to art. He liked doing many things, actually. "Now that I think about it, ain''t I kinda amazing?" He was twenty four now. And, he was done ''working''. "Not many retire at such an age, hun? I''m definitely pretty amazing then." Young people at his age mostly run around in search of jobs or finish their higher studies. But after all that hard work of so many years¡­ he was ready to retire now. "I can stay in my room all day, play whatever game I want, order whatever I want, and finally, after all these years¡­ I can finally just chill without doing anything, and there will be no one to tell me what to do. Not even you, mom." He liked games, but ever since he started working, he swore to abstain from the games until he had achieved his goal. He wasn''t able to do many things in these past few years. But that will end today. "Alright then, first of all¡­" ============ (Search: ¡ª ¡ª ¡ª.) ============ -Tap. Tap. Tap. -Click. Click. -Tak. He brought up the universal search bar and typed in the name of the website he had built over the past three years. [Welcome, Master Elio.] As soon as he logged in, a little white kitten greeted him with a heartwarming yawn. It was an adorable greeting. His girlfriend made this cute AI for him¡ª right, his girlfriend. -Knock. Knock! "Coming in~." He heard the knock on the door and the one knocking barged in without receiving any permission with a cheerful smile. "What''s my gummy bear up to today~?" He had natural light brown hair and pretty green eyes. His looks were attractive but they weren''t extraordinary or anything. He was wearing a normal oversized shirt, sitting on his throne-like chair, staring at his screen when two slender yet muscular hands wrapped around him from behind. "Good timing, Twinkle. Look at this." "Hmm? What does that- oh! Is that what I think it is?!" He had three monitors if they added his tab, and two side by side without it. So, while the screen with the novel ending was still present on the right one, both of them stared at the screen showing the website both of them had worked on for so long. "Yup¡­ I''m done." She had longed to hear those words. "Yesssssssss~! Finally! Fkin finally!" She was happier by this news than him for some reason¡­ Her long black hair shining under the afternoon light coming from the window tied behind her back, her comfortable white shirt that was twice her size, the black leggings covering her attractive legs, and her deep blue eyes covered by her round glasses gave her a simple yet elegant look. She looked similar to him¡­ not by physical appearance but by their vibes. Both of them were quite simple, approachable people that by the looks, seemed more introverted but simple individuals. And, it was a fact that they looked good as they smiled at one another while looking at this particular PC screen. "Twinkle¡­" Grabbing her hand to calm her down, he gently pulled her closer to him, and even though no strength was used, she followed his lead, and sat down on his lap. "Will you do the honors?" This was as important to them as their friendship. This website was what brought them together, it was what gave him all the fame he had today as well, and now that it was time to close it down, he was giving her the chance to do it with him. "Are you sure?" She didn''t mind doing it for him since she had dreamed of this day for months, even years. But she had to confirm just in case. "I am. I''m sure that the one who wrote the first codes for this ''house'' of ours, should also be the one to lock it down for good." Yes this is a VRMMO novel and there will be a complete, full dive VR game, however, this moment was one of the most important moments of their journey. "Alright then~!" -Click! Click! Click! Click! Click! -Tap! "MewMew~! Initiate master control~! Execute command XII-0~." [Mew!] [Master control initiated! Requesting execution keys!] The kitten that had been sleepy all this time opened its red eyes and a special pink sphere was summoned right above its little head. "Huuuu. I''ve been waiting for so long, man¡­" She took out the necklace around her neck that contained a very small pendant. While he removed his bracelet that had a matching pendant that seemed like it would fit into the one she had. "I''m sorry for being such a bad boyfriend, dear Twinkling star." "I''ll fucking choke you if you call me that one more time." Sparkle was not a nickname or pet name. It was an embarrassing memory that he reminded her of every single fucking day¡­ "Ahem." There was a unique mechanism attached to his monitor. "Let''s do the hot things later." He gave her his part, and she combined both the key pieces before giving him a death glare. "Naughty bastard." It was a big day for them and here he was, playing jokes on her like this. "Ughhh." She questioned herself how the hell did she even fall for this guy. But then she remembered the reason when she looked back at the screen that contained a record of all the things he had created in the past few years¡­ "You''ve worked hard." "Thanks for waiting." "It was worth it." The moment she turned the key, the pink portal that had appeared above the cute white kitten spread all across the Home Screen and, in a matter of seconds, it devoured everything they could see on that website. [Mew~!] [Archiving is successful.] Finally, only their white sleepy kitten remained in the corner of a blank screen on a single white sentence. [The Rank-12 creator: Acheron#1233 has officially Retired!] "It''s done." "You''re free now." She smiled at him, warmly. "I''m free¡­" And he smiled back. "Then." He already knew what her next words were going to be. She wasn''t an easy person to read generally, however for him, she was as transparent as the clear waters of oblivion. "Shall we finally play, darling?" He loved games but he hadn''t played any games in a long, long time. In the last decade, the VR technology had advanced considerably and there was a certain game- an otherworld- that had been the leading virtual reality game for the rest of the world. "Yes¡­" She was also a player. Someone that loved that world much more than this reality. And she had wanted to play along with him for as long as she could remember¡­ "Let''s finally play. Together." sea??h th§× Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He had achieved all that he wanted. He was done slaving, he was done working, he was done with everything one needed to do to earn money¡ª one of the most important resources in this modern era. He was done¡­ So, now, it was time to chill and play around in the ''second world''¡ª in the . Chapter 2: New Origin "Hmmm¡­ I will never understand your obsession with my hands."There were three kinds of men. One that liked the Body, one that enjoyed lips, and then there were ones like this Child. "What''s wrong with hands?" S§×ar?h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. It was early morning now as they lay beside one another, with him playing with her hand, her fingers, holding them, caressing them. "I mean¡­ you have a complete package and you''re nuts about my hands? If it were feet, it would be more understandable-." "Shut up." Placing a finger on her lips, he looked into her deep blue eyes. Her hands weren''t the only thing he loved about her. Those pretty eyes full of wisdom were something he couldn''t help loving. She was the smarter one among them, but she was still a dumb one to him. -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiiish¡­ A fine morning sunlight filled the spacious room along with calm winds. The holographic clock''s alarm had just rang, so both of them were awake now. "Hmmm¡­" Well, he was only half awake, still laying with his eyes open, looking at the pretty person beside him with a blank face as always. "What?" The way he was looking at her though, seemed somehow different to her. She didn''t want to, but she had to ask why he was doing it to quench her curiosity. "You''re sexy," he complimented out of the blue while kissing her ring finger. "Hmm? You just realized that? After all these years?" She wasn''t being sarcastic here. The way he said it sounded so genuine she couldn''t help but be surprised at his silly question. "Yup. I just realized how stupid I was to not admire a hot art piece like this." Saying that, he bit her finger, kissed it again, and intertwined their fingers. "Did you just become a boomer after a few hours of retirement? Will I have to marry a geezer or what?" A smile bloomed on her face at his rare, cute behavior. He was more¡­ crazy, usually. But, he was being all lovey dovey for some reason. "Since when do you hate old people? I thought you were into-." "Shut up and get up now." She knew now that he was in this playful mood, he would waste their entire morning with dumb, cute and useless things. "We have to do a lot of things today¡­ you''re gonna start games again and starting with the best one among them. You might know all that you need to know about it all, but you still need an expert like-." "Oh, that''s right." He suddenly realized something and was awakened completely with his eyes wide open. "Aren''t you a big deal in that game? How are we going to play together if there''s a large level difference between us?" The best Virtual Reality Massive Multiplayer Online of the current day, . It had only been around three years since this game came to life however, the self-operating ecosystem of this game, the highest degree of freedom it provides, and the near infinite world it offers made it earn the title of the ''Second world'' in the short time it had existed in this world. Run by the best artificial intelligence of the era, this virtual world was the same as the many fantasy games that existed today, however, different from them, the kind of experience this world provided was The best. And, she was one of the players who had played it ever since its open beta testing. Some of the few who had been part of this second world''s history even before the ''players'' had arrived on it. She was obviously a high level even though she only played it casually and loved playing it as a hobby. So, he knew it would be difficult for them to play on the same level together with one another like they wanted. "It''s a perfect VR so your game ID is bound by your core credentials, right? And since you''re high level, you also can''t just delete your account and create another one." It wasn''t possible in the first place as to access this ''second world'' one needed their unique biometric identifications that could not be deleted or replaced as one wanted. He had not thought about it since there had never been any need to until now, but now that he was thinking about it, he was confused why she had always wanted to play along with him so badly. She knew him well so she knew he didn''t like getting a free ride or having power disparity between them. She might be stronger and smarter than him, but he was still better than her. He wasn''t going to play with her unless he was on the same level as her¡­ or was at least good enough to stand alongside her. "Hehe, you don''t have to worry about that~!" She loved that other world. And she had always known he would love it as well¡­ "This great and amazing Lady of yours has a way to create an Alt~." "Heh?" Those proud words she said with her nose lifted high confused him. "In ? You can do that?" Creating an alternative account in this game was thought to be impossible but she was saying she can do that? "Yup~. You know how amazing I am~. This is nothing big~." The way she was confidently saying those things made him look at her with a suspicious expression for a moment. However, even after observing her with squinted eyes, he could not find anything wrong with her. "¡­you''re acting sus." He knew there was no way to actually create an Alternate account in this game. Of course unless someone can change their fingerprints, retinas, and DNA code, it is not possible. So, whatever trick she was going to pull was not going to be from outside. Even a genius like her couldn''t do something like that. "Hump. Sussy bastard calling others sus." She pouted her cheeks like a little girl and got out of their soft blanket. "If you don''t believe me, why don''t you see for yourself?" He was still laying on the bed and she wanted to just pick him up alongside that blanket and smash him on the ground, but since today was a good looking day, she spared him. "We have to wash up and eat breakfast-." They had just woken up so there were many things that they needed to do before they get to their gaming room that only she had used until now¡ª but she didn''t want to waste any more time so, when he got out of that blanket, she pulled him, took a quick shower alongside him, reheated some leftovers from last night and shoved them down his throat. And then she dragged him to their gaming room he had never used himself. "Sunday, boot the system! Your other master is finally starting games!" -Oooooooooooooong! The room situated across their hall room they entered was dark at first, however as soon as she said that, first a green light blinked on the ceiling, and then, with a blue flash of light, the RGB lights throughout the rooms were turned on. [Welcome back masters. And a very good morning to both of you.] A male mechanical voice brimming with a unique intelligence replied to her voice and greeted both of them. "Sunday, tell your creator not to drag me around. I can walk on my own, eat on my own- oh, I don''t mind the bath- I can do all the other things by myself." [Creator master. The other master wants you to not drag him around. He says he can walk on his own, eat on his own, and do all the other things by himself. He does not mind taking baths with you, though, the tone recognition detects he wouldn''t mind doing any of the previously mentioned things if it is with you.] Even though the technology had advanced tremendously in the last three decades, it was still surprising to see such a fluent reply from an artificial intelligence. "You programmed him to be like this, didn''t you?" He never liked how he always took her side and how he made anything he said about her into something positive. It might be a good artificial intelligence, but it was still not something that he, as a person of arts, could tolerate for long. "Hehe, he only says the truth and facts~. Don''t blame him for saying what you don''t~." As the room was now illuminated, one could see a wall covered with screens at the end of the room, a good lot of mechanical instruments, and three unique VR capsules that were modified from inside out. "Well, fk the small things. Let''s jump right in~." Someone with the knowledge of Virtual Reality capsules or [Chariots] could tell these were the best modals available on the market that not just anyone could purchase. "I''ll need a day or so in system time to prepare so you should first complete your tutorial and choose [Moongold town] as your starter town. I''ll come to you by the end of today, alright?" She wasn''t usually as pushy as she was right now. She also wasn''t that cheerful and smiley. But, today, the thought of being able to play with him was making her heart racing. He had worked hard all this time. She had only been with him for the last three years, and still she knew how hardworking he was. "Come, lay down." She helped him get inside his VR chariot for the first time with a warm smile present on her face. He was a selfish and mean person. A little arrogant and stubborn as well. But those qualities of his only came out when he was working¡­ "Just follow the instructions of the system and you should be fine¡­ you know the basics and stuff already so, see ya~." He was done working now so, they could finally play the game together like she had always wanted. "Sunday, initiate protocol: Game." -Ooooooooooong. [Initiating protocol.] [Preparing optimal game environment¡­] She was happy. And, inside the Chariot, there was a smile present on his face as well. Chapter 3: Free world [Scanning Bio-data¡­][Confirming Bio-data.] [Ding.] [Confirm registration into the .] "Confirm." [Ding.] [Bio-ID registration has been confirmed.] S§×ar?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [Registering new ID. Please proceed with the Metabody creation process.] "Why can''t you just call it a character creation process instead?" There was a simple way but they chose something different instead¡­ he liked their style. "Cool." Sitting inside his chariot, he was ready to log into the second world for the first time. Everything was ready, he was done remembering his previous efforts, his partner was excited to play with him, so, he couldn''t possibly disappoint her. -Ooooooooooooong! He closed his eyes, the inside systems of the chariot finished their scans and safety protocols, and the next moment he knew, he was feeling his mind leaving his body¡­ [Welcome to the junction of origin.] His mind was transported in a strange white space where he found himself floating in an endless room with no bottom or ceiling. "Is this what they call the character creation space? Where''s that thing-, oh." [Ding.] A gray holographic screen popped up before him, asking him to start the creation process. "Let''s see." It was a realistic game so there was no option to change the original appearance, however, in this space, one could create their game body which would possess their original physical characteristics. [Please enter your Immortal name.] Instead of saying character ID name, they were calling it an immortal name for some reason. "Aren''t you people creative, hun?" [Do you want to set your immortal name as (Aren''t you people creative, hun?)? Please confirm.] "No, lol. Haha, of course not." The game system was funnier than he had expected as well. He liked this. "Change it to Elio." There was no need to make his game name something fancy or different. He liked the name his mom gave him, so he was going to use it in this ''second world'' as well. [Changing the immortal name¡­] [Do you want to set your immortal name as (Elio)? Please confirm.] "Yes. Confirm." [Ding.] The first part of the Metabody creation process, the immortal name creation, was complete. So, he was moved to the second part where he had to choose a dress and some starting equipment for his character. "Alright, let''s see." This was an important part. He had seen many videos of this on YT and he had worked for many videos that explained this important process. "First of all, I''ll take the light clothes and some good shoes." Many people made some grave mistakes in this part. In , the players were given an {Inventory} skill that had a limited space which could be expanded with a special kind of money. It was an innate skill of the ''ones enslaved by destiny'' or the [Players] of this game. Something most natives of that other world could not use. And along with this eternally useful skill, they were given a pouch of rations, a wooden weapon of their choice, and nine stat points that they can distribute freely. "Alex once said I should choose a shield at the start since the tutorial quests tend to be more about survival or hunting." Everyone was given a random tutorial quest by the system that''s mostly about surviving against some strong opponent, or about hunting a set number of monsters, or sometimes, it''s all about reaching a certain point on the map. ''The difficulty varies, but the system does not give quests that cannot be completed by the players.'' Though, if a player dies during tutorial quest by any chance, there is a large possibility that their tutorial quests are changed. "According to the popular guides, the hunting quests are the most profitable for the beginner players since they can receive hunting rewards on top of the quest rewards in it." But, Alexandra, his pretty girlfriend who was a high level player in this game, had told him how there are very rare ''scenario'' quests in these tutorials that give the best rewards to the beginners. And, since he knew this lesser known fact, he was hoping to come across this ''rare'' kind of quest as well. "I don''t wanna kill those things with my own hands anyway. They are alive and they deserve their freedom as well." was a kind of game that rewarded the players with EXP points for all kinds of mundane tasks. ''There was an exp reward for cutting wood, making food, painting, and even just for exploring.'' Unlike other games, this was ''experience'' points in their true meaning. This system was one of the main reasons he also wanted to play this game for such a long time¡­ "Alright then, we will go with the shield." After the weapon choice and clothing choice, it was time to link the game account with the other accounts connected with the biometrics. [Ding.] This game was certainly free to play however, as the currencies that were used in this game world was a limited resource in itself, the money of the real world and the money inside the game were closely connected. [Confirm linking process of bank IDs associated with the Bio-ID.] One can connect their game accounts with their bank accounts and directly trade the money they had inside the game within the real-world market. They can trade the money with other people as well, and just like shares or e-currencies, the in-game currencies of had a deep impact on the real world. ''This whole thing was one of the reasons people played this game.'' Playing and being good at it was now more profitable than doing a part time job¡­ but he''d still stick to the job system rather than this game. ''The investment costs of a Chariot was astronomical for a regular person so People generally used head gears or capsule rooms to enter the virtual world.'' The money one might have to spend to make some good usable cash was not generally small. So, even though people preferred to take the risk and try this new world, if it were up to him¡­ he would choose the safer method. Being logical was the better choice sometimes. Though¡­ he didn''t really have to care about the others anymore. He was retired, so thinking about those stressful things was useless. "Alright then¡­" After the linking process, it was time for the stat distribution. [Ding.] ============ ID: Elio (Level-0) Race: Human (Commoner) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 1 Agility: 1 Endurance: 1 T-T (System stats) Intelligence: 1 Luck: 1 Charm: 1 T-T (Functional stats) Energy: 10/10 Stamina: 10/10 Fatigue: 0/10 (Stat points: 9) {Skills: ¡ª .} [Titles: ¡ª .] ============ The only stats he could increase with free stat points were the physical stats. The system stats, on the other hand, were awarded by the system. The functional stats were three status bars that stayed on the corner of one''s vision. They displayed the current state the player was in through the numbers and a colored bar that increased or decreased with the player''s status. "Strength stat will increase my physical abilities, agility will increase my mental and physical abilities simultaneously, while endurance is completely a mental stat." Players usually assigned these stat points based on what kind of characters they wanted to build, but as an advice from an expert, he just skipped the stat assignment process for now. "There''s no need to do it right now." If he just assigned his stats based on what he wanted to do right now, he might not be able to do well in the tutorial or later when he really needed them. ''The game replicated the physical capabilities of the body of the players anyway so, I''m not going to be particularly weak during the tutorial.'' It was the better choice to not use them from the start anyway. So, skipping this process and finishing up his basic player settings, he moved on to the main thing. [Ding.] [You will now be transported to the tutorial zone.] [The junction of origin welcomes you, Sir Elio.] [{( May the Intertwined destiny be your strength, keeping your journey eternally pulsing. May your energies be forever illuminated, and your ambitions forever trailblazing. )}] With that unique voice encouraging him like every single new hope of this world, the eternal white space around him vanished along with the invisible platform supporting his body. He started falling into a dark space covered in dots of light that seemed like lines to his moving eyes. He wasn''t feeling the wind pressure yet, and he couldn''t feel the certain pull of gravity that he should have felt while falling down, so it was more like the space around him was the one moving instead of him. He was being moved at a fast speed in a vacuum from what he could tell¡­ but, the feeling he had at this time was much stranger than a normal free fall. He did not know what was happening with him. Additionally, as soon as he moved past this endless starry tunnel, he lost consciousness. [Ding.] When he opened his eyes, he had already arrived at his destination and¡­ a quest window was open before his eyes. He didn''t understand what had just happened, however, when his mind cleared up and he looked around him, the attractive realistic scenery overwhelmed his senses. "Damn¡­" He had arrived in the new world. This was the start of his journey. And, he didn''t like the tutorial quest that he had received from the system. Chapter 4: Tutorial quest ============[Tutorial quest: ] : Subjugate 30 creatures higher level than you. Reward: Tutorial exclusive reward box. ============ "Looks like a subjugation quest." Nestled within a peaceful-looking forest was situated a shallow water land, a lake where he had somehow landed for this tutorial quest. "Haaaa¡­" The water surrounding him was relatively clean, and the foliage of tall trees above him blocked significant light from the sun. One could see right to the bottom of these shallow waters, where smooth pebbles resembling jewels of this forest rested. Gentle ripples spread across the lake, shimmering in the sunlight and creating a soothing, rhythmic pattern. "I don''t want to kill." The shoreline a distance away from him was soft, fine sand gently sloping into the water. Here and there, clusters of unique plants resembling water lilies floated gracefully on the surface, their green and blue blossoms adding vibrant splashes of color to this already green canvas. Tall reeds and cattails fringed the edges of these waters, swaying gently in the breeze and providing a home for a variety of wildlife. "Well, it feels good here, at least," he admired the artistry of this wonderful scenery¡­ Dragonflies danced about, their iridescent wings catching and reflecting the fragmented light. Frogs croaked softly from hidden spots among the reeds, while small birds dip down to the water''s edge for a drink. "To think these simple creatures don''t even have levels¡­ this game sure is something, huh?" Surrounding the lake were tall trees, their branches stretching out over the water to create shady, secluded spots. The dappled sunlight filtering through the leaves cast a gentle, shifting light on the water below. The air was filled with the soft rustling of leaves and the gentle hum of insects, creating a peaceful, natural symphony. This shallow water lake seemed like a sanctuary of calm and beauty, a perfect place to escape the hustle and bustle of everyday life. "Fascinating¡­" As a person of art, nature was one of the most beloved things to him. And since he had not traveled much in his life, he never really had a chance to experience something like this. S§×ar?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He had still traveled all around his state for various jobs though, and as a business owner, he had to move around his areas of activity frequently. He had experienced a lot of things and the VR technology had helped him see many things that he could not see in the original world. "Alright then¡­" Now that he was experiencing this ''second world'' himself, he knew why people were so crazy about all this. "This is much better than what I had hoped for." He moved his hands, his fingers, his limbs, and tried a backflip. He could do it in the real world, so he thought he could do it in this place as well since the physical capabilities were replicated here, but¡­ he forgot that he was standing on the slippery lake surface. -Dhum! -Splashhh¨Cshurrrr! He slipped, fell face flat on the water, and ended up wetting all the clothes he was wearing with the water that splashed all over him. "Welp¡­" Things were a little too realistic here. "Looks like I''ll have to light a fire first." He was completely wet now, and in this humid place with such an environment, the chances of him dying just because he was wet were pretty high. ''Alex warned me about things like hypothermia, dehydration, and other nature-affected debuffs are a thing here.'' People actually died here just because they caught cold by wetting their clothes or due to infection from some insignificant wound. "Where could I find the firewood now¡­" The area around him was all part of the lake so he first got out of the lake and went back to the shore. In front of him was a vast lake spreading deep into the forest, while behind him was a dangerous forest most probably saturated with strong creatures that could kill a (Level-0) like him in a matter of seconds. He had no idea where he was, but one thing was clear. "Subjugating 30 creatures¡­" By the simple interpretation, the quest was asking him to kill thirty ''creatures'' or the beings that the system recognized as creatures. Or, simply monsters or something that possessed levels. "Oh, there''s one over there." He had reached the shore and was wringing his clothes when he suddenly spotted something moving a little distance away from him. "Is that a jellyfish?" On the other side from where he had wetted himself in the lake, there was a transparent blob visible on the surface. It resembled the head of a jellyfish¡­ however, there was nothing inside of it. The creature was far away so he first focused his eyes to get a better picture of the thing, when he suddenly noticed something glowing above the creature''s head. ============ [Slime]: (Level:3) ============ "Oh damn. That''s a slime?" [Ding.] [You have identified a creature for the first time. Rewarding Exp.] [Ding!] [Level up!] [(Level-0) > (Level-1).] "Hmm?" In , one needed to focus on one thing constantly to trigger [Observation]. A passive feature that all sentient beings of this world including the players could trigger occasionally. Anything that is closely ''observed'' by the individual, after obtaining some basic information about it, can trigger a different feature called [Identification]. "Didn''t she say I''ll need to focus real hard to trigger [Identification]? This¡­ was pretty easy though?" This situation confused him as well. Just like most VR games, this game also had {Skills}. However, the skills were powerful abilities that were only granted to individuals who knowingly or unknowingly fulfilled certain set conditions. "If this is so easy, perhaps¡­" He tried focusing on the lotus-like green flowers that were growing a distance away from him. He believed that if identifying a creature like this slime was so easy, he would be able to identify the other things around him as well and obtain {Appraisal}, the rare skill that one obtains after identifying 300 things. From the looks of it, he was good with focusing and identification. Thus, He was focusing on the flower in an attempt to test his theory, when he suddenly had to stop as he noticed something peculiar beside the flower. "Wait, is that thing coming here¡­?" It seemed like the slime that was playing some distance away from him was now suddenly swimming towards him. And that too, at a speed he was not expecting. "Hey¡­ hey! Wait! Damn it." He wanted to run away from that place, but there was only the dangerous forest beside him. "Shit." He was naked as well. His clothes were now drying on the low tree branch. He did not have any weapons, only a shield to defend himself against that creature. So, in the grave moment of tension, he first took out the shield from his inventory¡­ and then prayed to the gods of this world for their protection against the creature rushing towards him. He had worked on those tentacle animation stuff as well, so he already had a bad impression of slimes and slimy things¡­ He was never looking forward to seeing one of them right when he started playing this gorgeous game. Chapter 5: Slimes Slimes were a very common lifeforms in these kinds of fantasy games.Some places portrayed them as slimy creatures with no certain forms, while some games portrayed them as creatures with a round form covered by sticky mucus. ''In the the slimes were a special lifeform.'' They were one of the oldest species to have existed in this world and they possessed a unique ability to adapt to their environments. ''They are the only creatures with the most known varieties present in this world.'' There are simple round slimes, there are formless sticky slimes, there are slimes that resemble tentacle creatures, slimes that could use magic, slimes that could use elemental powers, slimes on the same standards as the highest order existences and there are even higher intelligence slimes that have humanoid forms. ''All slimes had the ability to [Adapt] to their environment better than the other beings.'' One of the reasons we could find these creatures practically in places all around the world was the special adaptive powers they possessed. ''I was surprised when that name and level appeared on top of its head all of a sudden.'' There were slimes of all forms and nature. Some were good and friendly so people kept them as pets and companions, some used them as tools and since they were some of the simplest lifeforms possessing only a body and energy core, they were easy to deal with as well. "I thought it was going to attack me when it came running in my direction." But, thankfully, that was not the case. "It looks pretty cute." The colorless blob that resembled the head of a jellyfish was playing around in the same place where he had slipped and fell. There was some kind of green moss floating on the water''s surface and this slime seemed to be eating this green stuff. ''Can it even see me?'' It wasn''t far from him so he thought it would attack him at any moment now. But, instead, the creature was happily enjoying his moss. After his observations, he was pretty sure that the creature surely knew about his existence as well. It knew he was there since it could sense him as well as everything in the water with its unique senses. It was merely a blob that seemed harmless. But, it was still higher level than him, which meant there was a good possibility that it was stronger than him. "I have to kill these things?" He found out with some more time that the lake was actually filled with these creatures. There were nine of them just around this place and with more moss he gathered from the lake surface, more of them might gather around there. "Hmmm¡­" He could pretty much kill them all as easily as he wanted. They were easy to deal with and most of them were only around (Level-3) to (Level-5). He was (Level-1) and, as he had confirmed, he really had a talent for observation. Perhaps it was thanks to all his deep focus and ''Zone'' time with his work that he was able to focus much better than what his partner had expected. "Subjugation¡­" Now, as he waited for his clothes to dry down, he sat on the shore with a few leaves covering his important parts. He kept his shield out just in case something happened, and watched the transparent, cute creatures. "If I had an appraisal skill, I could have seen their actual status windows instead of just the basic identified information." It wasn''t easy to get skills, but some important skills were basic necessities. {Appraisal} was one of them¡­ and yet, not many people had it. "Hmmm¡­" The green lotus that he had found was in fact a rare herb that he had heard about in the past. The trees around him were also infused with Mana¨C a special natural energy that mages use. Even the lake water that these slimes were swimming in and the slimes themselves possessed Mana, making them more special than the normal water slimes. ''This must be some secluded space that not many people know about. Or else the system wouldn''t have thrown me here for this tutorial quest.'' He was in a special place, so he filled his inventory with things that his observation identified as something useful or important. It wasn''t every day that tutorials happened in places as amazing as this one. He had a good opportunity, and he did not wait for anything and filled his inventory completely. Now¡­ the only thing remaining was the tutorial quest. "Huuu¡­ well." He was uncertain, but it did not seem like these slime creatures were dangerous. So, he did something any curious person would do in his position, and walked back inside the lake. "Please don''t hurt me." He walked inside the lake, prayed for his life once again, and reached a spot surrounded by the slime creatures. "Let''s see¡­" He gathered some moss from the lake surface, and as soon as he did that, the slime''s attention was attracted to him. -Shrrrrrr¡­! They all started swimming towards him at a speed that most certainly was not safe! S~ea??h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "No. no no no! Go that way!" He was suddenly afraid that these creatures would crash into him and he would die without even his clothes on¨C he was even more afraid of the possibility that he would get summoned to some other place if he failed this tutorial quest in that state. -Chu-pk! He threw the moss away from him right before the slimes crashed in him, and sensing the movement of the moss, the slimes also changed their direction and ran to where the moss had fallen. "Phew¡­" He thought he was going to die at that moment. Thankfully, he survived. "So you go after the treats just like a puppy, hun?" He watched them eat a bunch of moss, fight for a bigger portion, and finish it in a matter of seconds. -Shrrrrr¡­! Then he saw them swimming back towards him even faster than earlier, got scared once again, and hurriedly gathered more moss to throw at the creatures¨C but he wasn''t fast enough this time. -Dham! One of the slimes crashed into him right before he could throw the moss away. -Shrrr! Sharrrr! Shrrrup! And, just like a skipping stone thrown on a lake surface, he was thrown all the way out of the lake¡­ and crashed into a tree out on the shore. "Augh!" Then he coughed up blood. And was injured internally, as well as physically. "..." After that, he lost consciousness. And was left on the shore, covered in fine sand and blood, naked, with all nine of the Slimes enjoying the food that he had prepared for them. Chapter 6: Recovery "Ughhhh¡­"The hell just happened? "Ahem! Aughhhh!" Why the hell am I vomiting blood?! "Ahem! Ahem!" And what the hell are those damned slimes doing?! "Ahem!" He was confused, so he first tried getting back up. But, his legs were too weak, and the pain in his chest where that slime had crashed into him was just too much for him at that moment. ''Why is that thing so strong?'' Slimes were supposed to be creatures of nature that didn''t have any muscles or organs. They are purely a mucus that moves with the help of the energy in their core. Sure there are slimes that possess a physical body resembling the humans, but they are still slimes made of mucus and a core. They weren''t supposed to be this strong¡­ "Ughhh¡­" But after just one of them crashed into him, he was thrown all the way here and now was on the verge of death. ''Actually, how did I not die?'' He could tell his ribs were broken by the impact, and he also received internal injuries. Realistically, he should have died from that impact but¡­ he was still alive. "Mmmm¡­" He was in pain. His head, his chest, his back, even his limbs were hurting. And yet, he was somehow still alive. "Haaa¡­" He did not understand how this had happened, but the fact that he was still alive was still true. And since he was alive, the blessing that all players possess would bring him back to his optimal state soon. However, he knew it would take some time. ''What are they doing there though?'' He somehow dragged his body and rested it against the tree as he looked at the slime creatures on the shore that had made him like this. They did not have any face or anything so he couldn''t tell if they wanted to eat him or if they were feeling pity, but, one thing he could see behind him was a clear lake that did not have any moss left on its surface. They finished their food, so they might have just wanted him to get more. But, it was not going to be possible. "Haaa¡­" His eyes were heavy. It was already evening so he knew he was out for quite a while now. But, he was sleepy once again. The pain was getting to him, so even though he was in a dangerous place with those creatures looking at him, he had no strength left in him. He never wanted to kill them and he didn''t think they wanted to kill him either. It was an accident¡­ he knew that much. "Ughhh¡­" So, even as he closed his eyes while tightly biting his lips, he did not resent those poor little creatures. It was their fault that he was in that state. But, it was fine¡­ he wasn''t mad at them or his own self for not killing them when he had the chance. ¡­ He closed his eyes and fell asleep. And when he woke up, it was already evening once again. "Ughhh¡­" The pain was still there, but it wasn''t as bad as it was just a few moments ago. ''So this is still a game, hun?'' It was justified with ''having a blessing'' but since players were still players, having them under prolonged physical debuffs made no sense. Not many would want to rest for months to recover from this kind of injury. And, since higher-level players experience even severe injuries during their fights, it would be dumb to have them be bedridden for months. This was a game, and recovery happening overnight was the most logical and realistic thing. "Haaa¡­" He looked around after checking his condition, and the slimes weren''t there anymore. He could see them in the distant waters, but they weren''t here anymore. ''Looks like they were hungry after all.'' He tried standing up. But his legs didn''t have enough strength to stand up just yet. He fell down every time he tried getting up, but when nothing worked, he gave up and rested back against the tree, again. "At least my throat is clear now." S§×ar?h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He coughed up all the blood blocking his airway and throat so he had a good enough breathing space or else he would have choked to death due to blockages. "Let''s eat something¡­" He had the food that was provided to all the players at the beginning. Not many players needed to use it since the tutorial usually only took a few hours to complete. But, in his condition, he needed it. ''Status window.'' [Ding.] ============ ID: Elio (Level-2) Race: Human (Commoner) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 1 Agility: 1 Endurance: 2 T-T (System stats) Intelligence: 1 Luck: 1 Charm: 1 T-T (Functional stats) Energy: 0/10 Stamina: 1/10 Fatigue: 9/10 (Stat points: 15) {Skills: ¡ª .} [Titles: ¡ª .] ============ He did not have any energy to function, and only food could fill that gauge once again. Fatigue will decrease with some more rest and his stamina will start recovering as soon as his condition gets back to normal. "Hmmm?" He noticed it late, but he was somehow (Level-2) now and there was an extra stat added to his endurance. He had done nothing noteworthy until now aside from getting beaten up and enduring pain, so it confused him. "What happened when I was out?" He called up the status window to see what had happened in the time he was unconscious. And it was here that he noticed the previous system messages. [Ding!] [You have experienced extreme impact for the first time! Rewarding Exp.] [You have experienced extreme trauma for the first time! Rewarding Exp.] [You have experienced the [Unconscious] state for the first time! Rewarding Exp.] [Ding!] [Level up!] [(Level-1) > (Level-2).] [You have recovered from physical and internal injuries for the first time. Rewarding Exp.] [For having a strong mind to endure the first extreme trauma and recovering safely, you have been rewarded.] [Endurance+1.] "Wow¡­ I get rewarded for getting beaten up as well?" This realistic game sure had its pros as well, hun? But just one stat point in a mental stat won''t really make any difference. He knew where he had to assign his stats after enduring that kind of experience. "Assign stat points." [Ding.] [You have used Free Stat Points.] [Ding.] [Strength:1 > 10.] [Endurance:2 > 8.] Agility surely affected both physical and mental characteristics, but in this place, if he was going to deal with beings possessing that kind of strength, he needed the power to resist their physical attacks and endure the impact on time. Agility was not going to help him that much in this wetland in the first place. "Haaa¡­ now what?" He was done eating, and after a little more rest, by the time his second night arrived, he had finally recovered completely. "She''s going to be mad¡­" In , time moved three times faster than in the real world, which means a person can live three times longer in this space. Not many games of this era offered this time difference feature, but was the one that did it the best. And, though there was a play-time limit for the headgear users and those who play in the rental stores, those who had high-tech Chariots like them did not have to worry about the connection time out for three whole original days. They can live in this world for nine system days and still be in peak condition¡­ but, he knew she would kill him if he didn''t come out for dinner, or for their regular training sessions, for that matter. "Let''s hope she understands¡­" This quest was important for him. So, now that he had recovered, was stronger, and had a clue about how to clear this quest without getting his hands bloody, he wanted to test out his theory once again. And for that, he needed to stay here¡­ in this exhilarating, deadly world. Chapter 7: Subjugation Once again entering the shallow waters without any of his clothes, with his round wooden shield tied on his back, he looked out for the ungrateful slimes that seemed to have forgotten about his existence.He moved carefully, not disturbing the moss on the lake surface. He now knew these creatures were attracted to the moss and nothing more, so he had already created a bowl-like container to gather as much of it as he could in the short intervals that he would get later, and after finding a right, safe place, he was ready to test his theory. "Let''s hope this works." He did not want to kill these things, they deserved to live and to enjoy their freedom as much as him or the rest of the players who enjoy this world. It was stupid to think that the creatures that players kill on a regular basis had anything like a right to freedom or life. He himself knew that he would inevitably have to kill some beings in the future if he wanted to peacefully enjoy his time in this world with his crazy partner, but he at least did not want to do that with his own hands. He knew it was foolish¡­ but until the inevitable day came, he wanted to keep his hands clean. "Now." From what he had seen, these low intelligence creatures followed their basic instincts and went after food. They had no interest in anything else, not even a human like him. All they wanted was the fine green stuff that grew at the bottom of the lake, a place they could not reach for some reason. They were aquatic species themselves but they could only swim on the surface and not dive inside. That was what he had understood with his observations. And, he also knew that if they were naturally inclined to ignore anything that did not serve them their food, they would also be naturally attracted to something that gave them more food than what they naturally obtained after roaming around the waters. ''The first time it came here was when a lot of moss was gathered on the surface after I slipped.'' And then many of them gathered when he picked out the moss from the ground himself. Now¡­ if they followed their natural instincts, what would happen when they realize he is someone that could give them more food than they might ever gather by themselves? "Come¡­" Taking a deep breath, he first got ready and gathered a large chunk of Moss from the water surface and filled his bowl. The slimes had already sensed the disturbance in the waters so they instinctively moved towards the disturbance at the same deadly speed that had previously knocked him out. But this time, he was ready. -Shrrrrr¡­! As soon as the slimes had reached a certain closeness to him, he threw a handful of moss away from him. -Shrrrrrr¡­! Some slimes followed the moss, but just like last time, there were some that could not stop and moved past his ''safety line''. When this happened, he either dodged them in a timely manner or used his shield to block them, endured the impact that was lessened thanks to his increased stats, and threw some more moss to chase them away. As he predicted, they did not know that there was a big bowl full of moss in his hands and only chased the thrown one that made contact with water. ''Good.'' He repeated this process until the slimes had realized that he only threw the moss when they were a certain distance away from him. When they were outside of that range, there was no moss. And when they were too close or crashed into him, the moss that they received was too little and it was thrown too close to the others who were already having their portion. ''Now, if only one of you realizes it¡­'' He repeated this process until the slimes had learned when they would get more moss and when they would have to compete against the others for the little amounts. He made sure to constantly move, get out of the waters, take breaks, and rest enough in between. Staying too long in water was no good either, so he stayed in only when he needed to and when he was done with his ''training session'' he went out and dried himself with the fire that he had barely managed to light. Another day passed just like that, and though he was not hoping for it anytime soon, something interesting happened the next day¡­ ''Yes.'' A slime Stopped right before his safety line. And it did not follow the others who had run away at the moss that was thrown a distance away. ''Come.'' The slime waited blankly for something to happen. And, surely, when all the others were away, Elio placed a bigger bunch of moss around him. He did not know what kind of thought process the slime might be having or if it was just instincts but, the slime did something he wanted. And it was rewarded for that. He made sure to cover himself with a shield to show the creature that it would not receive the moss if it ran at a high speed like he had done yesterday, and as to have understood his intentions, the slime moved slowly, reached the moss, and started eating the biggest portion without having to share it with anyone else. ''Cute.'' It did its best to finish it before the others who had sensed another presence of this moss around him arrived here, but it was small and failed to finish the big portion by itself. -Shrrrrrrr¡­! -Dhum! The others came running faster than they had done previously, and this time, some of them crashed in his shield, throwing him far back into the lake. "Phew." Thankfully, he managed to maintain his footing even in the slippery lake, and after the slimes followed him for more food, he repeated the process. ''Good!'' He knew that he was close to achieving something. There was a unique feeling inside his heart indicating something unique, so he continued feeding them until all nine of the slimes were following his lead and stopping at the point he wanted them to. They all got their individual big portions of moss when they did what he wanted them to, they enjoyed it without fighting with one another, and by the end of the sixth day in this forest¡­ the nine slimes were following him like trained dogs. Doing exactly what he wanted them to. ''Holy macaroni¡­'' And, by the nighttime on their sixth day, they had even learned not to harm the one that fed him the delicious water moss. [Ding!] "This actually worked, lol." [You have successfully Tamed a (Level-6) Manawater slime.] [You have successfully Tamed a (Level-4) Manawater slime.] [You have successfully Tamed a (Level-4) Manawater slime.] [You have successfully Tamed a (Level-3) Manawater slime.] [You have successfully Tamed a (Level-5) Manawater slime.] [You have successfully Tamed a (Level-4) Manawater slime.] [You have successfully Tamed a (Level-5) Manawater slime.] [You have successfully Tamed a (Level-5) Manawater slime.] [You have successfully Tamed a (Level-3) Manawater slime.] [Ding!] [You have successfully tamed a creature for the first time! Rewarding Exp.] [You have earned an achievement!] [Tutorial tamer (Rare) has been achieved!] [Achievement box will be added to the inventory.] [Ding!] [You have made your first achievement! Rewarding Exp.] [You have made an achievement during the tutorial, earning an achievement!] [Special Rookie (Common) has been achieved!] [Achievement box will be added to the inventory.] [Ding!] [You have subjugated nine creatures through taming.] [Subjugation target: 9/30.] [Ding!] [You have tamed more than one creature simultaneously. You will be rewarded.] [Intelligence+3.] [Charm+1.] [Level up!] S§×ar?h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [(Level-2) > (Level-6).] "Well, isn''t this great?" Two achievements and a jump of almost four levels. Four system stats, one point in the rare stat Charm, and even the solution to his predicament. His efforts these past few days surely paid off. And to top it off¡­ "Bling." "Blong." "Bling." Now, He also had nine fellows that he can play around with until he finishes this rather difficult quest. Chapter 8: Explain -Ptsssssssss¡­-Sch-rick! [Playtime: 50:04:17 Clock hours. 150:12:51 System hours.] [Welcome back, second master. Master has been waiting for you.] The door of the chariot capsule opened and as soon as he looked outside, a Warm smile was greeting him. "Hello darling~. Did you have fun~." Alex was smiling at him warmly right outside of his game capsule. He knew he was going to get trashed after wasting her entire afternoon, and then not showing up to where she wanted him for six whole system days. He knew she must have been waiting in that town by herself, and also that she would be angry that he did not show up for so many days. He knew he was going to be scolded but the look she had right now was more of rage than anything positive. "Alex¡­ I can explain." "Ho? You can? What do you want to explain though? That you got too immersed in gaming that you stood up your girl for not a few hours but six fucking days?" She was still smiling warmly and the way she was talking so calmly right now sent shivers down his entire body. "I¡­ well, you see¡­ the thing is¡­" He wanted to explain to her why he couldn''t show up or what he was even doing in that situation. He wanted to explain himself, but she just kept looking at him with that Warm smile without saying anything for a solid five minutes. "¡­" "..." She wasn''t saying anything and she wasn''t doing anything either so the tension between them got so bad that he had no choice but to just make a move himself. "..." "I''m still stuck with my tutorial." He got out of the chariot while saying that, surprising her with his sudden words. "What do you mean you''re still stuck with the tutorial?" In this gaming room of theirs, there were a lot of expensive equipment and many of them cost a fortune. Some things here like the capsules that they used were one of a kind and were practically invaluable. He could not engage in combat in this place. They had a dedicated room for conflict resolution so, without saying anything more, he just moved to that room first. "What do you mean you''re still stuck with the tutorial?!" As soon as they were in the special room created for physical combat, she asked the same question again while jumping at him from behind. "As I said¡­" But he was already prepared for that, so he jumped up and performed a backflip before landing on her head with one foot and jumping once again. "I''m still doing the tutorial." It had been more than two days in the real world and six days in the game. It was more than enough time for anyone to finish even the difficult tutorial quests or even some of the scenario quests. "Did you receive some kind of special quest as well?" For a moment, she was happy thinking he got the rare quest that even she had not received at the start. She moved quickly, used a nearby stepping rod dug in the wall to jump up, and before her boyfriend could react, she aimed her slippers at his chin. -Dhum! "No. It was just a subjugation quest. To subjugate 30 creatures higher level than me." He blocked her attack with his forearm fortified with his other arm to absorb the impact. As he did that, he was in midair so it was a little difficult and he was thrown a few feet away from her due to the strong impact of her punch. S§×arch* The N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Ughh." She was strong. Way stronger than him physically¡­ but, he still survived against her every time. "The fuck are you doing then?! That''s practically one of the easiest things out there!" She was a veteran so, the moment she heard the quest was actually about subjugation, a switch flipped in her head and she moved even faster than him, closed their distance, and grabbed him by his collar when he tried running away. "What''s so difficult about killing a bunch of weak-ass things at bottom levels?! Your opponents wouldn''t be higher than (Level-10) anyway!" When he was in her hands, he knew his current position was one of the worst he had ever been in. -Slap! She had a strange habit of slapping things¡­ and just as he knew, since he was already in her hands, she slapped him before anything else. "Subjugation tutorials are so easy even the worst trash noobs clear it in three or so hours! 30 creatures isn''t even that many!" She first slapped his face, and then she slapped his head. Then, she played brutally and punched his kidneys, and after that, realizing he was in pain already, she stopped, looked at his helpless face¡ª and almost got emotional when he did not play any tricks like he usually did. "Tell me honestly¡­" Removing her hands from his neck, she hugged him first, got emotional, did not feel sorry for what she did, but instead got worried that something unexpected might have happened to him. "Explain, please." He was smart and knew all about the creatures that might appear in the tutorial quests. She had told him all that he would need to know and as someone who had worked with countless content creators famous for their special content about this game, he had much more knowledge than some normal newbie. "Well¡­" She was worried that something so unexpected happened to him that- despite his wish to not kill anything with his own hands- he had faced something unavoidable. "How about we talk over dinner?" She was hugging him tightly¡­ so tightly that he was having difficulty breathing. Her slender hands did not justify her strength. Her entire body which looked more natural rather than muscular did not justify just how stupidly strong she was either. Even for him, it was sometimes difficult to deal with this one. So, he first made her release him, and then after reassuring her that he was fine and nothing too serious had happened with him, he grabbed her hands and led her to their dining hall. She was the one that made their meals and she had prepared another attractive feast for them tonight. She was lovely. Even with her little complex characteristics. "So¡­" Sitting at their dining table beside one another, he told her everything that he had experienced in these past two days while enjoying her delicious cooking. And, contrary to his expectations, she really was surprised at the end of his story¡­ Chapter 9: Rare situation "You managed to identify a slime after just looking at it for a few seconds?""Yes." "And then a slime smashed your ass, made you bleed for the first time and then you passed out for a day?" "...yes." "You somehow survived that, made a plan, and tamed those slimes to subjugate them? And earned two achievements in the process?" "That is correct." She looked at him as if she was looking at some stand up comedian from the first row right after an inappropriate joke. "Damn¡­ aren''t you an amazing crazy bastard?" "I''m your amazing crazy bastard, if that means anything in this situation." Then she glared at him for a second for his cringe reply, and rolled her eyes at him. "Shuddup." What he told her surely was not something she would hear from any ordinary player playing a VR game for the first time in their life. It wasn''t even something she would hear from the experienced players of the game that had already done many things and passed higher levels. "A lake with Mana, a strange forest, and a lake that has (Jade Lotus) growing in them. Hmmm¡­ you sure are lucky that there are only slimes in that place." From what she knew about the unique flowers that he had encountered in that lake, she knew that many dangerous creatures lived in the areas with that kind of herb. From high level snake monsters to even strong reptiles, araneae, and anthropoids. Waters with Mana attracted all kinds of creatures and basic slimes were only one of them. "Well¡­ there''s a forest there. And the lake seems to be quite big so who knows what I might encounter if I try going away from-." "Don''t be stupid." The system placed him in that particular spot for a reason. She did not know why there were only slimes when there should be all kinds of creatures in those waters, but the slimes were much better than any other kind of creatures if he wanted to get past his tutorial without killing anything like he wanted. "Just stay there, attract the slimes with the slimes that you have tamed, ask them to go around and see if there is anything dangerous out there, and even though you can''t communicate with them directly, now that they are your tamed creatures, you should understand a few things that they want to share. From the sound of it, these slimes are pretty smart so use them and just stay where you are." She was worried that he would get killed the moment he tried going away from that place. It was neither safe nor logical. So, as she finished her dinner, she glared at him once more to see if he understood what she was saying. "I''m not messing around here. If you die and lose this chance, your achievements might get revoked as well." S~ea??h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "But isn''t that unlike-." "I just told you to shut up, did I not?" Achievements were a special recognition feature of NO. The system evaluated various actions and the way they were performed in order to reward the players. Every one of the achievements were unique and special and just having one achievement by the time you reach level-10 was considered a big thing. Players who have an achievement in their tutorials are called star players with great potential and all the guilds around the many countries keep their eyes on all these possible star players. "Right. What level are you anyway?" Achievements awarded achievement boxes. And these achievement boxes were one of the most valuable things for the players as well as the natives of that world. It was said that the achievements are in fact a way the ''gods'' of that world recognize some certain actions of the individuals. Though, it was not proven just yet. "I''m (Level-6)? Well, looks like I will reach (Level-10) by the end of the tutorial-." "Phuuuuuuuuu! What?!" She was having water, but she ended up spitting nearly all of it on his face. "You''re (Level-6) after taming merely nine slimes?! What the hell were you actually doing! Tell me everything again!" According to her veteran knowledge, even the people who played hunting tutorials of the highest difficulty and had to hunt hundreds of creatures only reached (Level-6) after defeating tens of creatures. The Exp requirement for each level increase increased significantly after each level so mathematically, one needed to kill a hundred and fifty slimes of (Level-3) to (Level-6) or a hundred goblins with average (Level-5) or fifty creatures of average level of (Level-6) to reach (Level-6) themselves. It wasn''t easy to level up in this game so even the talented players needed a week of real world time to reach (Level-10). Hardly anyone reached (Level-10) in their tutorials¡­ But he was saying he casually reached that level after only getting beaten up playing with some little blobs? Surely, there was something wrong here. "...what the hell?" He complied with her orders until now since he was the one in the wrong. But that was not the case anymore. They were done talking about why he was late and now they were talking about the levels. "How dare you, you little¡­" He first cleaned his face with a blue handkerchief and looked at her with an angry look. "What are you doing!" He then shouted at her, catching her off guard. "Sit down." Then he ordered her to sit back down, and with a still stunned expression, she did as she was told. "What''s so surprising about reaching (Level-6)? It''s nothing that surprising anyway." He looked at her with that angry gaze but, instead of saying anything, she just looked back at him with a blank expression. Her face was blushing for some reason, but as she continued looking at his unhappy look, she got back to her senses and shook her stupid look. "Ahem." With a fake cough, she got back to her serious self and explained to him how it was rare for someone to reach that kind of level after just a few days of playtime that did not involve any kind of killing. He had only worked with famous creators until now so he did not know the things that common low level players or those who are just starting this game go through, so she told him things that were new to him. "It''s not easy for people to identify something, it''s even rare to have a tutorial in that kind of rare place. Plus if you were to kill those slimes the moment you discovered them, the chances are greater that you would have died from their defensive attacks. And even if you were to succeed in killing them, the chances of getting Exp to reach that kind of level would be near impossible." Regardless of their kind or levels, slimes that live on the water surface and eat moss must be lower grade creatures with nothing special about them. And, even after adding all the experience points that he received for the other things, taming creatures did not give that kind of Exp. At least, taming simple slimes with the help of some lake moss should not give that much Exp. "Well, it could just mean that I''m special, right?" He looked at her with a smirk on his face. One that annoyed her beyond help. "Of course you''re special! Aren''t you the protagonist destined to be the hero that saves the world?!" She shouted, and was just about to flip their dining table, when she realized it was a costly piece. And clenched her fists. "Damn bastard!" She had put a great ton of time and effort into this game even though she was so smart and was called a genius. She never had things this easy, she had to struggle to cross every level and gather enough Exp to level up at those lower as well as higher levels¡­ and here he was, saying stuff he was special and shit. "Bastard¡­" She stomped out of the dining room and went straight to their bedroom. "Haaa¡­" He knew now that she was like this, his entire night will be spent consoling her¨C or fighting with her. "Fudge." He knew how sensitive she was when it came to things related to this game and yet he played that prank¡­ He slammed his foot on the ax himself this time. And it was going to cost him a happy, peaceful night''s rest. As well as some cuddling. Chapter 10: Tamed creatures [Ding.][Ding.] [Ding.] A few status windows popped up before him right when he logged back in the next day. ''Haaa¡­'' Not only did his mistake yesterday cost him a good night''s rest, she also did not make any breakfast for him and he had to order in. "Even the best restaurants in the city are no match for her cooking." He was the more artistic one and cooking was an art, and yet, she was somehow so good with it that he still could not understand how the hell she puts all those flavors in those simple things. "Haaa¡­" She was mad at him for now, but that was a regular occurrence. He knew she would get back to her normal self after a few days. And actually, now that she was upset, he knew she wouldn''t disturb him while he was playing this game. "Bling." "Blong." -Splash. Splash. Splash. "Hello guys." The moment he came back to his tutorial area in the same forest, before the same lake, and on the same ground from where he had left, he was greeted by his new companions that seemed to have been waiting for him in the waters of the lake shore. "Did you all wait for me?" He removed his clothes and put them in his inventory as he entered the lake waters. Then he counted them one by one and called them by a name he had given them during their training. "Az, Bobo, Can, Do, Em, Fi, Gg, Hu, I¡­ Looks like everyone is still alive and well." All nine of them were here. And yet, when he did the headcount, he found not nine but twelve slimes present around him. "Hmm? Why are there more of them? Did they have babies in the time I was gone?" That could not have been the case since he knew even creatures with fast reproductive rates like Slimes did not grow as big as their parents in a few days. He was confused for a moment, but then he realized that he had received a few messages from the system when he logged in and called them up. [Ding.] [Tamed Manawater slime has subjugated a (Level-3) Manawater slime.] [Tamed Manawater slimes have subjugated a (Level-7) Manawater Poisonous Bug.] [You have received a portion of Exp as the tamer.] [Tamed Manawater slime has dominated a (Level-3) Manawater slime.] [Tamed Manawater slime has dominated a (Level-2) Manawater slime.] [Tamed Manawater slime has dominated a (Level-2) Manawater slime.] [You have received a portion of Exp as the tamer.] [Ding.] [Your Tamed creatures have formed a (Family).] [Your Tamed creatures have dominated creatures of the same kind and added them to the (Family).] [As the tamer, all Exp obtained from the (Family) under your command will be increased slightly.] [As the tamer, you will receive extra Exp from creatures that were added to the (Family) by a creature you had tamed previously.] [Ding!] [Level up!] [(Level-6) > (Level-7).] [Subjugation target: 11/30.] "..." In the concept of classes was surely a thing. There were sword users, there were mages, there were people who did miscellaneous things, and there were people who just explored the world. The natives of this world referred to the Players as [Foreigners]. People who were cursed to revive upon their deaths. Just like every other game, they had an but it was only one of the many associations that the players could join. Basically, these associations offered a path to the Players just like it did to every other native. "You guys formed a family on your own when I was out?" If someone wanted to pursue the path of sword, there was a knight''s association. If someone wanted to practice magic, there was the mage''s tower. If someone wanted to explore the world without having to get access permissions from the other nations every time, they joined the adventurer''s association. There were no restrictions to what association one could join or how many they could be part of at one time, however, after becoming part of these places, many services that only these places could offer became available to them. one of the important aspects of this world, was only possible after one became part of these associations¨C or somehow found a native that could teach them directly. But finding independent natives like them was near impossible, so players opted for the associations. "Bling!" "Blong!" was one of the rare professions, but not as rare as or who also dealt with the creatures of this world. "Wow~. Aren''t you bunch amazing?" Much like in the real world, there were many creatures in this world that could be tamed through various means. Those who tamed the creatures, the beasts, the monsters, or even the ''slaves'' were called Tamers. "Bling!" "Bling!" He was feeding them more moss now that he was here. But, just like before, he was giving them their own portions individually. "Bing?" The three new slimes had no idea what the rest of them were doing or what this strange being was. But they knew instinctively that if the others weren''t harming him, then it meant he was not to be harmed. "..." Seeing so much moss stunned them and they wanted to jump at the big portions, but they did not dare do that when the rest of them were eating it. S§×ar?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. They were new to this system and did not know much about it, but after a few hours of teaching and support from his already tamed slimes, the three new ones had also learned how to react to his clues. "Can you show me the poison bug you all killed?" "Bling!'' "Blong!" They were jumping on the water surface which produced a funny sound. And, if one listened closely, these sounds were distinct from one another. Something that almost acted like their voice. "It isn''t far, right?" "Blong!" Through the previous messages, he had learned that the creatures that they killed were counted as his subjugations as well. However, the creatures that they dominated were not counted as the creatures that he subjugated. It simply meant that he could use their help in the subjugation process and finish this quest a little more easily. Which made things pretty easy for him. There was apparently no time limit to this tutorial, which was rare. However, even if he could stay here for a little more, he had to get out of here and reach the starter town where she had been waiting for him. He had obtained good enough subordinates for now which will help him clear this quest. So he had to hurry and prepare to leave now. -Shrrrrrr¡­! "Hey, hey. Slow down! I can''t swim like you all!" Through the notifications earlier and from the warnings of his girlfriend, he knew the slimes weren''t the only creatures in this mana filled lake. There were many more. "Wow. That''s a big bug, alright." And unlike the adorable, harmless slimes, these other kinds of creatures were just as dangerous as one might expect to find in a deep forest area like this one. "Yak." And surely, neither their alive bodies nor their dead selves were something one might want to look at for long¡­ Chapter 11: Finishing the tutorial "Hmmm¡­"They made a mess out of the creature so even he could not make heads or tails out of what was left of its body. "It should have been around one meter in length and seeing the wings, it should have been similar to a grasshopper by design, but like a big goose by size." The system called it a poisonous bug, but that should be just what the system calls creatures like these. There should be something else players and natives call them, but he won''t know about it anytime soon. "Seeing the jaw structure, it seems like they are carnivorous." At this moment, a little further away in the lake but not too deep that the shore would become invisible, he was looking down at the butchered body of a dead poisonous bug. "There should still be some poison left in its poison glands so let''s take it along." Unlike usual games, creatures did not disappear after getting killed in . They also did not drop any items either, since their entire body was left after being killed. Though, in very rare cases, some creatures left behind a [Spirit orb]. Something that contained a power that the creatures possessed. Successfully absorbing these special orbs granted one a {Skill} of that creature. However, those things were pretty rare in this game. "Hmmm. Should I have the other things as well? Do you eat anything other than that moss?" He was asking his slime friends, and the slimes instinctively understood what he was asking as well so as if to say ''no'' they stayed still in their place. As he had observed, when they agreed with something he was saying or wanted to answer positively, they would start jumping. When they wanted to say something mundane, they would move their bodies in a certain way¡­ though he yet did not know what they all wanted to tell him with those movements. "You don''t? Well, looks like you have adapted to that moss for some reason." Well, that was fine. If they did not want this creature that they had hunted themselves, he did not mind having it all for himself. "Though, where will I put these things now?" He got what he wanted and moved back to his camp. The creatures did not come out of the water even now, so he had confirmed that they were only limited to the water surface. "Hmmm¡­" His inventory was already filled with those Jade Lotus and some other things that he found catchy. The inventory space that one receives at the start was limited and he will have to reach the town before he could upgrade his inventory. "Well, let''s leave them here for now." He had selected all the things in his inventory after careful consideration and he had also talked about them with Alex so he knew it was better to have them than some byproducts of a creature. It surely wasn''t like this was some very special bug that could only be found in this lake, so there was no need to pay too much attention to the things related to this. "Anyway, do you all know if there are more creatures out there? Can you lure them here?" "Bling!" "Blong." "Bling!" Some of them jumped enthusiastically while some did not show any special reaction to his question. "So Az, Can and I know what I am saying? Can you three bring some creatures, preferably weaker than that bug here?" "Bling!" "Bliing!" "Blingg!" They jumped again, as if replying to him positively. "Alright then, let''s do something like this¡­" He knew what he had to do now that he was done with nearly everything he wanted here. So he explained to the slimes what he wanted them to do¡­ interracial communication wasn''t possible normally unless both beings knew a common language, and when it came to creatures, things were even more difficult. Few creatures were smart enough to understand what someone was saying. Even fewer could respond back to the speaker in some way. Even the tamed beasts weren''t any different from the normal creatures of their kind. They were merely trained by someone to follow certain instructions and give certain responses to those instructions. It was simple classical conditioning, pairing of a stimulant with a random action. Slimes did not get smarter or become special after being tamed. They were still the same slimes, however, the tamed ones recognised the tamer and knew what kind of actions would earn them a snack from their tamers. "Alright go." "Bling!" "Blingg!" S~ea??h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. -Shrrrrr¡­! The three ran away deep in the lake waters while Elio and the rest of the company prepared for their return. This time, he was wearing clothes. The shield was still in his hands, but he had climbed the tree and was now on a tree branch, watching the slimes that were still on the shore waters. They all waited for a while, and thankfully, they did not have to wait for too long. -Shrrrrrr¡­! After only a few minutes of going away, the three slimes were back. -Splush! Splush! Splush! And right behind them were three creatures that, once again, did not look like anything one would want to look at. "What is that thing now?" Possessing legs resembling a frog''s while a body that resembled a fish''s, the creature that they had brought back with them was one of the most disproportionate things he had ever seen. "Damn¡­" There was a strange uniqueness to this creature. Something he had not seen before and perhaps also something he might not have ever even imagined the existence of if he had not seen one like this. [Ding.] ============ [Brown tree Brass]: (Level:30) ============ "...wait, what?" He stared at them a little too much so he ended up Identifying the creature. And when he did, he knew this thing was not something he was supposed to mess with. "Abort! Abort! Go away! Hide, damn it!" He could clearly tell they had somehow lured these creatures here after messing with them. From the looks of it, the fish-frogs weren''t happy right now and the way they were chasing the slimes did not seem good either. There were two of them and both of them were (Level-30). They most certainly weren''t something he was supposed to mess with at his level even though they were only as big as a big dog. Who knew what kind of abilities these creatures had¡­ and he had no intention of finding it out for himself either. "Alex was right." He sighed as he threw some moss in the distance as a signal for the slimes to hide in the locations they had decided previously. The slimes thankfully reacted to his signal and hid away in time, and even though the fish-frogs were angry, after a moment of stomping their feet and messing up with water, they went back to where they had come from without causing any big scene. "Looks like I''ll have to show them what ''weak'' means for this to work." These innocent creatures did not understand what he meant when he asked them to lure weak creatures here. ''They perhaps brought the strongest ones they could find.'' It''s absurd how things like them live so close to this place. ''It''s not safe to stretch things for long¡­'' He knew he had to end things now. So, as soon as he confirmed that the frog-fish had gone from his higher position, he came down and gathered his slimes once again. He was going to make sure they knew what weak meant this time so that they don''t make a dangerous mistake like this one again. It was dangerous this time. Who knows if he will live if something similar happens again. Chapter 12: Departure The diversity of creatures around this lake was much greater than what he had expected.============ [Green grass slime]: (Level-6) [Starfish lizard]: (Level-7) [Lightning Axolotl]: (Level-7) [Softshell pointhorn]: (Level-8) [Moss slimes]: (Level-9) [Yellow beaked Mall]: (Level-9) ============ Some creatures that the slimes lured in were big and much weaker than how big or dangerous they appeared, while some creatures were small and yet so strong that the slimes had a tough time dealing with those enemies. They were blobs that lived on the water surface who happened to be very fast swimmers, so the main attack they used to deal with the enemies was a swift tackle directly to their bodies. They did not have fancy skills like the creatures that they had brought back with them did, so with their limited combat abilities, it would have been difficult for them to deal with these creatures. Thankfully, they were not alone. "Good job, Bobo! Now! To the back!" They had the support of a tamer who knew great tactics and had experience dealing with various combat formations, with various attack and defensive strategies, as well as a good eye to keep track of all the situations on the ground. "Az! Now!" -Shrrrrrrrr¡­! -Dang! "Strrrrrrr!" They were facing a (Level-10) creature that resembled a bird, but at the same time, instead of having wings, tail, or a beak, the bird-like creature had gills, scales, and a fish''s body. Surely the legs it had and the physique it possessed all resembled that of a bird, but this creature was in fact something in between an aquatic and ground life form. It''s name was [Mud Heron] but it did not have any resemblance to either a mudfish or a Heron. It was among the creatures that could not be tamed with simple means either, and they were dangerous creatures that attacked him the moment they perceived him. "Rush!" -Shrrrrrrrrrr! -Bang! -Dhum! -Shrrrr¡­ He was fighting alongside them in the waters, supporting them with a shield, blocking the blunt attacks when he could while leaving the rest of the work to his slime friends. "Strrrrrrr¡­!" They somehow managed to flip the fish-bird and with their coordinated attacks and when they managed to turn the creature upside down, with strong clashing attacks of the slimes that once made him vomit blood, they finished off the creature after a twenty four minute long battle. "Phew¡­" It was the longest fight they have had in the past three days. And this one was the strongest opponent they had fought as well. "Bling!" "Bliing!" "Blongg!" The slimes were happy to take down the strong opponent while he was happy to see the cheerful nature of his teammates. "You all worked hard." [Ding!] [Level up!] [(Level-9) > (Level-10).] [Subjugation target: 30/30.] [Ding!] [You have completed the tutorial objective.] [Evaluating results¡­] "And with this, it looks like we will have to part ways now." Ever since he first met these creatures, he had realized one important thing. "Bling!" "Bliing." "Blong¡­" Even though they were smart creatures and had learned faster than most of the other beasts would have, they were still at the end of the day, creatures of these special waters. They were no simple slime creatures. They were special, could only live on this special water surface infused with Mana, and most important of them all, they could not live on the ground. "I will have to go now, you see. And even though I would love for you all to join me, you cannot live with me." It wasn''t possible for one to place alive creatures in the inventories. Tamed beasts were also different from summonable beasts as they were creatures that one tames¨C creatures that are with someone existing on the same plain of existence as them. "Bling¡­" "Blong!" "Bliing¡­" They were his tamed beasts so he will have the option to take them all with him, surely. The system was not cruel enough to separate a [Family] from its master. ''But the system would also never jeopardize the lives of any of the beings of this world without any reason.'' It was complex and logical. But at the same time, unlike most games, the [Laws] that this world operated on made the [System] a unique entity that followed the collective will of this world. There were deep moral orders, values, and higher logical units that kept the work functioning even with the ''eternal change'' that followed all premises. S§×ar?h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. All beings had an inherent right to live. And, he was not going to risk the lives of the first family he had made in this game by taking them all with him to a place that would not be proper for their survival. He had braced himself to leave them. "Bling! Bling! Bling!" "You want to come along?" But there was one slime among the fifteen that were now a part of his ''Slime Family'' that was jumping angrily as if protesting against his words. "Bling! Bling! Bling!" It was jumping on the water surface again, as if answering positively to his question. But Elio''s only response to this positive answer was a bitter smile. "Az¡­ you cannot come with me, dear." He recognised this simple transparent blob as the one that had made him throw up blood, the one that was also the very first one to understand his intentions during their training, as well as one that was perhaps even more special than the rest of its companions. "Bling! Bling! Bling!" The slime that had once hurt him was now protesting against him. ''Shouting'' to take it along with him. "Look here, Az." He had come out of the water to prepare to wrap things up as the system evaluated the results. But seeing the protest of the slime, he entered back into the water and gently held the protesting slime with both his hands. "The rest of them understand what I''m saying. They know their natural limitations. These waters are your home. I don''t even know if you will get any place similar to this one if you come with me. You cannot live out of these waters. Just look at this¡­" He tried placing the slime on to the ground¨C however, the slime''s body naturally rejected the touch of the ground and it instinctively jumped back onto the waters. "See? You cannot even live outside the water. What will you do if you come with me? I don''t want you to suffer because of me¡­" He had been with them for more than half a month now, and unlike his own expectations, he had now become too attached to these innocent creatures. [Evaluation complete.] [Rewards will be given after one exits the tutorial area.] -Ooooooooooooong! A spiraling blue portal with nothing visible beyond it opened up before him. "Looks like it''s time for me to go." He looked at his companions with a one last look of affection and, picking up the bowl containing the last bit of Moss he had gathered today, he threw it as far away from him as he could with all his strength. "If fate allows it¡­ let''s meet again, everyone." They were his first family, and they were going to retain what he had taught them in their short time together. "It was a little painful at times, not easy at all, certainly exciting, and a lot more fun than I had expected before starting this game." Some of the slimes¨C the ones that were dominated by the nine that he had tamed himself, following their instincts, ran to where he had thrown the moss first. The nine did not stop them, there was no reason to since they also wanted to go there and enjoy the moss like them. But they stayed behind and looked at him, as well as the portal behind him¡­ "I had fun. A lot of fun." With a last smile, he placed his worn out wooden shield on one side, put out the fire that had been burning for a few days now, and put on his worn out, slightly burned clothes. "See you again, little ones." Looking around the lake, at the trees around him, at the clean lake water, at the familiar beach that had been his house these past few days, and the creatures that had become his Family¡­ "Haaaa." He sighed. And then he turned around, facing the portal leading to a different place that he knew might not be as pretty as this one. ''What starter city did she ask me to choose again? Was it golden leaf, silver snow?'' He had finished his tutorial. And now, it was time to step into the real vast world beyond this serene green foliage. Chapter 13: Evolution -Oooooooooooooooong!He was about to step inside the portal, but he suddenly stopped and looked back with a surprised expression. "Bling! Bling!" Az, his rebellious slime, was jumping on the water once again. "Bling!" It was trying to jump out on the ground on its own, trying to be on the ground that it innately rejected. "Bling! Bling!" It was trying to go against its primal instincts and do something it naturally should not, doing something a creature of nature would not do naturally. "Bling!" "You should stop now, Az." It was struggling. He could feel the kind of distress it was going through to deny its natural instincts. "Bling!" It was a creature of nature and there were some rules that this nature had imposed on the beings of this nature. These Manawater slimes were very good at swimming on these shallow waters. They were the fastest among all the creatures he had seen until now. They did not have any special skills like the other creatures did. Nature did not give them the ability to be on the ground or go under water. They did not have the poison like some of the bugs here did and they did not have the ability to climb trees like some fishes were capable of. All they had was their ability to swim fast¨C so fast that a hundred miles per hour was nothing to them. Of course though, these small creatures could not maintain that speed for too long. They had limited energy, but they had adapted to use the speed they had in crucial times. They were creatures of these waters'' surface. And they belonged here. "It''s fine, Az. You will be happier here." But the little rebellious slime did not accept that fact. S§×arch* The NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Bling! Bling!" It was not listening to him. "Bling!" It waited for a moment, and tried again. But its body bounced back inside the water as soon as it touched the ground. It tried again, and failed. But it did not give up. It tried again, and again, and again. And still, it failed. "Just stop, Az." He turned back and faced the creature struggling like a mad artist trying to deny their own nature. "You will be happier here, with your people. Don''t you want that? Isn''t this place more fun than that unknown world beyond this portal?" He couldn''t understand what was going on with this creature or why it was doing it. However, he at least understood what this little creature wished. "Bling! Bling! ¡­bling!" Elio could not understand what this little creature was saying, but he understood what it wanted to express. "If you want to come along, you have until the sun sets. After that, even I don''t know if I will be able to stay here." This unique creature wanted to come with him not because it liked him or because he had taught him. The only reason it wanted to deny its nature was because it wanted it. "Try again. Come on." He sat down right before the portal and looked at the creatures he had trained with his own hands. "Bling¡­" And the slime who understood his intentions tried again. "Bling¡­" Of course, it could not stay on the ground for more than a few seconds. But, it did not stop. The other eight looked at this one''s foolish attempts. They first ridiculed him and did not understand why it was even doing it. But after a few minutes passed, after an hour passed, something was sparked inside them as well. "Bliing!" "Blingg!" "Blong." They could not bring themselves to try what this one was doing, but at least, it seemed like they were cheering it on. "Bling¡­" They supported it with their cheers, they shared a portion of their own energy with it so that it could keep going, and some of them brought it some moss so that it could continue what it was doing. "Bling!" But the rebellious slime rejected the moss as well and continued trying¡­ "It is almost sun down, Az." But it could not do it even until the light coming from beyond the blanket of leaves above them had turned golden. "It was an honor knowing you." He got up, and signed with a disheartened expression. It was time for him to depart. "Bling!" Which, for the slime, indicated its last chance. "Bling¡­" Stopping for a moment and becoming still completely¡­ as if to gather all its will, the slime waited for a moment. "Bling!" -Splash. And then, it jumped out of the water. "..." It endured its urge to go back to the water, denied the touch of water, denied the Mana that was the strongest on the surface of that water, and tried accepting the Mana that was in the atmosphere instead. "You can do it." He sensed something from this last attempt, and waited for one last time. "..." He watched the struggling slime, and even though the portal behind him seemed to be fading away slowly, he continued watching the struggling slime instead of worrying about the portal. -Ooooooooooooooong. And, his wait bore fruits in the hours of his last twilight in this forest. "..." -Ooooooooooooong! The transparent slime that had been merely a blob of mucus was now glowing with various magical colors. [Ding!] He could tell something was happening, though he did not know what exactly it was. So, the system explained it to him. [A Manawater slime belonging to your [Family] is evolving!] Within this nature, evolution was a continuous process that went on perpetually. All creatures within this nature except a few unique ones were subjected to evolution, though it was a timely process and did not happen spontaneously in normal cases. It happened naturally over generations where the creatures adapted to their environments to increase the survivability of their kind. [Evolution] was a perpetual and natural process¨C but in rare cases like this one, it was also spontaneous and irregular. [A Manawater slime belonging to your [Family] has successfully evolved into a Mana slime!] "Mu!" The small blob that had been only the size of a volleyball had now grown as large as a basketball. It''s surface had now become more white but it was still translucent. There was a unique shine to the surface of its body, and though he could not sense Mana, he could tell there was something different about this one. "You did it." Rules are meant to be broken¡­ Az proved that today. [Ding!] [One of your tamed creatures has evolved into a greater lifeform!] [New achievements have been detected!] [Tutorial results will be re-evaluated!] "Muu!" The now grown slime jumped up on the ground excitedly and reached its master. And then it stopped right before him. "You''re not going to crash into me like the first time?" It had just evolved so it must have grown a lot as well¡­ he knew how strong the evolved species were so he was expecting to receive another injury this time. However, the creature stopped right before him as if it knew what would happen to its master if it acted rashly. "Aren''t you a smart one?" His heart had suddenly become warm after seeing this. There were tears at the end of his eyes, but he just smiled at the little creature and picked it up just as gently as he had done when it was still a being of these waters. "Thanks to you, I won''t be lonely for a while." "Muu!" Now that it had evolved, it somehow was able to produce a unique kind of voice that he somewhat understood better than their jumping on water. "Alright then¡­" Now, it was truly time for them to depart. "See ya, everyone." He was leaving his first family behind, and he certainly did not know if he would ever get the chance to see them again. But he was not going to forget these little creatures wherever he goes. "Bliing!" "Blingg!" "Blong!" They said their final goodbye. -Ooooooooooooong! And holding the rebellious one who ended up becoming the companion for his future journey, he entered the spiral portal that first asked him which starter town he wanted to go to, and then transported him to a blank space before the start of his true journey¡­ [Ding.] He had worked hard these past few days. And he was bound to be rewarded for all the things that he had done until now. Chapter 14: Tutorial rewards "Now where''s this place?"Just like his Metabody creation space, he was now in a darkplace that did not have any up or down, forward or backward. It was a complete blank space, and he was once again floating. "Muu?" The only difference here was the slime that he was still holding. "Do you know what''s going on, Az?" "Muu?" It seemed like the slime had no idea what was going on either. [Ding.] Well, the system was thankfully here to answer his questions. [Sir Elio has completed their tutorial.] [Tutorial rewards for all the achievements and evaluated actions will now be distributed.] "So, this is the reward space? Wasn''t the reward merely a tutorial exclusive reward box? Or is there something more?" He was confused for a moment, but then he just shook his head. Things did not make that much sense in games anyway. "It would have been nicer if things were a little brighter." [Ding!] -Ooooooooooong! As soon as he said that, lights suddenly appeared all across him out of thin air, and he was momentarily blinded by all the lights. "The hell?" First, things were too dark, and after he asked for them to be brighter, they became too bright. "Can''t you make them a little dimmer? This is too much. Just keep three of the lights and remove the rest." [Ding!] -Oooooooooooooong! It seemed like the system made random places for this unique reward distribution. He didn''t know why this was happening, but he did not mind it. It was unique, and he liked it. [Ding.] [For using your tamed creatures effectively to fight against creatures higher level than you and defeating them, you will be rewarded.] [Intelligence+6.] [Charm+2.] [Luck+1] [Ding.] [For teaching combat techniques to Manawater slimes and ways to gather food for themselves, you will be rewarded.] [You have earned an achievement.] [Combat teacher (Common) has been achieved!] [Ding.] [As a reward for encouraging your tamed creature''s evolution, you will be awarded.] [You have earned an achievement.] [Caring master (Rare) has been achieved!] [Ding!] [Total Experience point accumulation has been completed.] [Level up!] [(Level-10) > (Level-13).] [Ding!] [For not killing any creatures during the tutorial yourself and creating a family consisting of multiple members with one evolved creature, a title will be awarded.] "Wait, what?" [Title has been awarded.] ============ Effect 1: Increased familiarity with tamable beasts. Effect 2: Tamed creatures and friendly species will be attracted to you. Effect 3: The title will grow with the user. ============ "Wait¡­ what the heck?" [Ding!] [You have earned your first title! Exp will be awarded.] [Ding!] [You have earned a title during the tutorial, earning an achievement!] [Titled special rookie (Rare) has been achieved!] [All achievement reward boxes will be added to inventory.] "..." He was stunned. And speechless as well. For a moment, he thought he was seeing things wrongly so he called out his status window as he tightened his grip around the cool blob in his arms. [Ding.] ============ ID: Elio (Level-13) Race: Human (Commoner) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 15 Agility: 7 Endurance: 14 T-T (System stats) Intelligence: 10 S§×arch* The N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Luck: 2 Charm: 4 T-T (Functional stats) Energy: 20/20 Stamina: 20/20 Fatigue: 0/20 (Stat points: 12) {Skills: ¡ª .} [Titles: .] ============ "It''s true¡­" He looked at the new status window and thought about his time in that tutorial space for a moment. He knew that place surely existed somewhere in this world, and there should also be a way to get to that place. "We shouldn''t leave the rest of them alone for long, right?" "Muu? Muuu. Muu!" The slime, Az, was happy to hear that. It also wanted to meet the rest of its friends again. "We will search for it with Alex''s help then." "Muu?" He had not told the little creature about his partner since he wanted them to meet first directly. And now that he had received the rewards for his tutorial as well, he was ready to move on to his starter town. "Haaa¡­" The rewards were quite surprising to him. One simple tutorial, three rare achievements, two common achievements, one title, and a special companion. This tutorial surely gave him a lot more than what common players usually get. [Final tutorial evaluation has been graded.] [You have received: Grade evaluation.] [Tutorial reward box of Grade will be added to your inventory.] "I''m in the top 1% of the luckiest people to receive this grade, it seems." He still did not compare to the second ranked player in the unified rankings who became a in his tutorial and received an abnormal tutorial evaluation grade. That person was considered the Luckiest player of this game, as well as one of the luckiest in the world. [Otherworlder privileges will now be unlocked.] He had received all his rewards now, so his vision faded once again and along with some system noises, he experienced space-time transportation once again. [Feature: Friendzone, will be activated.] [Feature: Forum, will be activated.] [Feature: Otherworld market, will be activated.] His transportation this time was not that difficult. In fact, it was pretty smooth and finished in the blink of an eye. "How are you doing~." "Hey! Did you see that program yesterday!" "I heard the Terror of the hunting ground is still around. Is that true?" "The PKs are increasing these days¡­ and so are the prices of good food items." "I''ve heard there''s a new seller in town? A friend of mine working with the knight order saw the captain placing a big order and being awfully polite with them." Every starter town or major city of this world had a certain plaza where the people who traveled through the system''s Space-time passages ended up in. Be it the players who revive after dying, players using transportation scrolls and items, players using the big city''s services, or the players starting their journey after the tutorial¡­ all of them ended up in the main plazas of these towns and cities. "Moongold town¡­" There were famous starting towns that players selected and there were less popular ones based on their positions and resources. Moongold town was one of the towns that was not too popular nor was it one of the least popular ones. There were some good things about this town, and some things that players did not like. If one had to say from a player perspective, this was a pretty average town. "This is fabulous." But from the perspective of a player visiting it for the first time, this place was nothing less than a pretty paradise¡­ Chapter 15: Moongold town As Elio stood in the central plaza of the bustling town, he marveled at the blend of life surrounding him."Only the clubs and bars of our city are so bustling at night." The plaza itself was a vast, circular space paved with intricately carved stones that glowed faintly with a soft, green light. At its heart stood an old looking fountain, sculpted from old marble, with water cascading in mesmerizing magical patterns, reflecting the moonlight in a dazzling array of gold and yellow. Sear?h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "She asked me to meet her at (Woodleg inn) located straight from the central plaza in the direction of the tall belltower¡­ oh, that way." Around him at a distance, vibrant market stalls and charming shops lined the cobblestone streets, their canopies fluttering in the gentle breeze. Merchants called out their wares, offering everything from exotic food and enchanted gears to freshly baked bread and shimmering fabrics. Some were even offering items with special effects that enhanced stats and equipment that all players would require. The air was filled with a medley of enticing aromas, blending the scent of blooming flowers, roasted meats, and sweet pastries. "Exactly what I expected a night market would look like¡­" Above the stalls, the town''s architecture soared with an elegant grace. Buildings of special and unique stones, adorned with intricate carvings or unique artistic patterns and shimmering metallic accents, stood proudly against the star covered sky. "I want a camera¡­ well, everything is being recorded so I can take the screenshots later, but still¡­ a camera would have been nicer." He could see some towering spires and turrets that reached toward the heavens, some draped in ivy and blooming flowers that added a touch of nature''s beauty to the man-made splendor. "Are those the magic tower and association buildings? So cool~!" In the distance, he could see the majestic silhouette of the Grand Library, the main attraction of Moongold town, its colossal doors adorned with old words and flanked by statues of wise, mythical creatures. The library''s windows glowed with a warm, inviting light, hinting at the vast knowledge and secrets contained within. "We are going there second thing in the morning Az." "Muu~." The plaza itself was alive with activity. Adventurers, performers, artists, players who had no interest in fighting and townsfolk mingled, their conversations creating a pleasant hum that filled the air. Children ran and played, their laughter ringing out like the sweetest music. Street performers showcased their talents, from skilled jugglers to musicians playing enchanting melodies on their instruments. He had only known the life of work, the life of someone who lived in cities where people did not have time to even stop and look around their surroundings. He himself had worked hard all his life, but still, whenever he got the chance, he stopped¡­ and looked around for a moment. ''Happiness, joy, and freedom¡­'' He was an artist that understood emotions better than most others. His most famous pieces showcased some elements that everyone knew but few understood. In his career as an artist¨C as a photographer, videographer, designer, and landscape artist, the main themes had always been emotions¨C with freedom being at the center of them all. "We should thank Alex for this, Az." "Muu?" Elio took a deep breath, savoring the rich sights, sounds, and scents around him. This town, with its blend of magic and everyday life, felt like a living, breathing entity¨C a place where dreams and reality intertwined. It was different from the world that he had known until now. In this world, he felt a new kind of freedom than what he had always known. And he certainly did not dislike it. "Is this the place?" On his way to the inn, he had felt many eyes on him. Most people that saw him were wondering why he was wearing those worn out starter clothes or why he did not have any equipment on him. The rest who kept watching him were looking at the simple slime in his hands. It was not common for people to walk around with a slime in their hands, certainly not while wearing that kind of clothes. "Let''s go in." Some thought he was robbed already while some who were interested in the slime and possessed {Appraisal} lost all their interest when they saw the being was only a (Level-1) creature. It also only had two skills and even those skills were not that special from what their names suggested. The player was also only a newbie (Level-13) player who seemed to have been robbed on the field. -Taa-ring~. Players could hide their titles so he did not gather much attention as he reached the location she had asked him to visit as soon as he was here. But when he entered the wooden three story establishment, the scene that met his eyes was not something he was expecting to see in this rather simple looking inn. "Aughhhhh! Oooooof! My leg!!" "Stop! Please¡­!" "I didn''t even do anything¡­" The inside of the place he entered was a complete mess. Tables were destroyed, chairs that the customers sat on were shattered to pieces, the wooden walls on both sides were covered in deep dents as if heavy things were smashed on those walls. There were many people in this place, but every single one of them were standing. "..." The entire place was silent, and all eyes were focused on the front, right before the front desk where the young receptionist was hugging an older woman, fear evident in her eyes, her face covered in tears. The older woman had anger on her face as she looked at the people that now lay on the ground, beaten to a pulp, their faces deformed, and their blood covering the wooden floor of the establishment. ''What the fudge¡­?'' There were ten people on the ground, some of them unconscious while some screaming while holding their now crushed limbs, six by the wall were all unconscious, four with their heads dug in the wooden tables weren''t even trying to get their heads out, and one of them¨C probably a player with good looking equipment that all seemed to be fairly high grade¨C was held by the collar by the person who seemed to be the one behind all this destruction. "It''s perverted parties like you that I hate the most." The man was still conscious when she was still holding him, but right after she said that, she smashed the man''s head directly on the ground without making it seem even a little difficult. "Next time we meet, it will be a PK war instead of an arrest." Covered in what seemed like a mix of a normal dress and a light armor, a unique looking sword resting on her waist, her long black hair dancing with the little wind coming from the ''window'' that was created by one of her smashed walls, her deep blue eyes looked down at the now unconscious people with utter disgust in her eyes. "Haaa¡­" He was frozen the moment he entered this place, but after he saw the person that was the cause of all of this, he was proceeding to slowly slip out of this inn¡­ but, he was late. "Hmm? El? Is that you¡­?! Darling?!" She noticed him, and even before he had any time to react, she appeared before him and hugged him from behind. "You''re finally here~." She was awfully heavy in that armor and with all those things, but he knew the moment he said that, he would be one of the people on the ground, or on the wall¡­ or on the table. "Hey there, Alex¡­" He wasn''t expecting their first meeting in this other world to be like this. But he would have to live with this memory for the rest of his time here now¡­ Chapter 16: Guard captain "So¡­ these people started harassing the young daughter of the inn owner first, asked her mother how much she would sell her for, then when the owner asked them to get out, but they started causing trouble and breaking the chairs?""That is correct, sir." The guard captain who had now arrived at the crime scene was a little stunned, a little confused, but he also had the same disgusted expression on his face as she did after beating them up. "You happen to sense some commotion so you came downstairs and saw the situation, and dealt with all these bastards yourself? Just by yourself? Alone?" The guard captain looked at the person she was standing with. And Elio only looked back at the guard captain with a helpless smile. "Why would I need help to deal with these little thugs, sir? They are trash that belong to trash and those with the strength to take out trash should always do so at every chance they get." The guard captain was glaring at Elio but her words caught his attention all of a sudden and he looked back at her with a new surprised expression. The guard captain was a two meter tall muscular man in a formal guard uniform that looked intimidating on him. His toned muscles were all visible on his shirt while his clear intimidating face and deep green eyes seemed like they could see through everything, even their truths and lies. "Taking out trash¡­" There was a distinct smirk on his face when he heard those words, and after looking up and down at both of them, he nodded with a new smile. "Certainly. It is the duty of the strong to take out the trash¡­ however, doing it while not making this kind of mess and property destruction would be better." He took out a piece of paper and a pen¨C not a feather pen, but a pretty looking fountain pen, and wrote down some things on it. "You will receive a warning for the extreme actions as well, so come and meet me tomorrow evening in the guard office. You will have to pay for the damages you have caused, but you will be compensated for dealing with these Trash. The inn owner is extremely grateful to you as according to her, this was not the first time these people had done something like this. So, she will be seeing you after she gives her statement. She is a nice lady so make sure you fix what you broke¡­ the guards will take care of the trash from here." He gave her the piece of paper and she nodded at him with a smile. -Thump. "Thank you for the great work as always, sir." Then she tapped her right foot on the ground, and got into the attention position while saluting the guard captain. "May the eternal order be maintained." Her actions surprised the guard captain a little since he wasn''t expecting this salute. -Thump. "May the eternal order be maintained." However, he saluted her back as any guard of this great town would, looked at her with a surprised expression one last time, looked at Elio, looked at the slime in his hands, and then.. He walked away to the rest of his party. "Did you just get a quest?" That last look on the guard captain surprised him a little. "Not yet, but we are gonna surely get one tomorrow." She looked at him, and smirked ear to ear as if saying she was amazing. "Being a veteran surely has a lot of perks, hun?" Now that both of them were here, together with one another, they surely were surprised. "It''s just the basic things. Quests in this game generally originate from those holding authoritative positions." "That so?" After they met, the first thing they did was to add each other in their friend list. Then, they shared their status information with one another so they knew exactly at what level the two of them were at. [Ding.] ============ ID: #### (Level-21) Race: Human (####) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 33 Agility: 24 Endurance: 18 T-T (System stats) Intelligence: 6 Luck: 0 Charm: 2 T-T (Functional stats) Energy: 24/30 Stamina: 24/30 Fatigue: 3/30 (Stat points: 0) sea??h th§× Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. {Skills: Sword intent, Energy infusion, Blink.} [Titles: <####>, .] ============ There surely were some things that he was still confused about, things like her censored ''immortal'' name, the thing beside her race that indicated one''s social standing on the world level, or the first title she possessed. It was all strange, but as she had said, she was not a high level player anymore. She was pretty low leveled even though she was higher level than him and from the title one only gets after single handedly wiping out all the creatures of a beginner forest at least once, Elio already knew that she got bored and did a massacre in the forest when he was stuck with his tutorial. He knew her level drop and loss of all the skills and titles she might have possessed had something to do with that hidden title, but he did not mind all that. He knew she would tell him about all that if she wanted to, or if she did not tell him, then it would mean she did not want him to know all that. "You were right. You surely are special," facing him and looking down at the unique slime in his hands, she blushed a little and looked away in an attempt to not stare at the little creature. He already knew that she was going to like this little fellow. She liked cute things generally anyway so a cute little blob that made funny sounds was undoubtedly going to be something she adores. But, the fight that they had a while back after he joked with how he was special made her a little hesitant. He had not told her all the things that happened in the last few days and how they cleared the tutorial and the rewards that he received, but after seeing his absurd status window all those stats that certainly did not suit someone who had just come out of the tutorial, she knew he had achieved extraordinary results himself. She knew taking the slimes that he had tamed, slimes that could only live in water would be impossible for him, and yet, he was holding a slime¨C one that she actually recognized as a (Mana slime), one of the rarest kinds of slimes one could ever obtain after an evolution. These creatures weren''t natural. Among the people who knew enough about them, they were considered one of the anomalies that seldom comes from a slime''s will to deny their inherent nature. "Haaa¡­ Alex. I''ll apologize again if you want but can we let that one go already?" looking at her with a desire to get back together with her, he held to slime in his hands before him. "Muuu?" And she accepted it with another blush on her face. "If you give this one to me, I might consider-." "Yeah, no. That''s not happening. Az is mine." They had not been together for long but this one evolved just to come with him. There was no way he was going to hand over his precious friend to her just because she liked it. "You can be friends, but he is mine." He was determined, she could see it in his eyes that he was serious this time. "We will see about that." But she was also not going to back down either. She liked this little, cool, clean, pretty, soft, jiggly little slime. It was the perfect pillow for a peaceful night''s sleep. "Muuu?" She wasn''t just going to let him have such a fun pet all by himself¡­ Chapter 17: Madam Rin and Misha "Ummm¡­ I''m sorry for-.""Oh young lady~. There''s no need to be sorry about these little things. You didn''t do it on purpose or anything. Huhuhu, you were just trying to teach those thugs a lesson~. I''m truly grateful for your help." She was trying to apologize to the inn owner lady, a mature looking older woman with a slender yet tough looking physique that resembled the people who had lived in the harsh environments of the mountains. Just from her height, which was a little taller than both of them, it was easy to tell she was no simple person, and she was pretty attractive looking, but not certainly as attractive as her young daughter. "Ummm¡­ b-big sister! Thank you for¡­ for beating those bad people!" According to what Elio understood, they did not come here to harass her for the first time. The owner had dealt with them previously when they were only in a small group of a few people. But this time, their entire gang had come and the other players or the natives did not want to deal with them since they were all higher level players who were apparently also famous in this town. They could only stand there and watch as they caused the commotion but then Alex came and they were dealt with. "You should have told me about these little flies earlier, Misha. I would have stayed down here to deal with them, hump." She was still angry at the people who did not stop doing the dirty things even in the game. The imprisonment and the restrictions it imposed in real time was not enough to deal with these people. They were bastards who should be killed every time they were seen in public. "Haaa¡­ the guard captain told me I''ll have to pay-." "There''s no need for you to pay for the repairs. We can manage things on our own¡­ besides, you have helped us enough." Alex had just taken out a pouch of money from her inventory when the owner lady shook her head and placed her hand on Elio''s shoulder. "Besides, now that the person you have been waiting for almost half a month is here, you two should spend your time chatting instead of thinking of small things." The mature lady with long red hair and simple black eyes had felt quite off to him since the moment he first saw her, and her daughter who had her red short hair but profound gray eyes made her the perfect model for a twilight portrait. He wanted to ask them if they were interested in helping him a little, but after this incident, it was not the best time to talk about something like that. She seemed like a nice lady, so he at least greeted her properly and smiled at the younger girl who seemed to be in her teenage years. "You''re quite a daring person to have made such a pretty young lady wait for you for so long. She looked lonely, you know?" She tapped his shoulder, and he could definitely feel the strength behind those rough hands. He knew she was at least a higher level than him. "I¡­ have no excuse for that. I was engaged with my first trial and it took a longer time than either of us had anticipated." There was sadness in his eyes as well. He did not like how he had to make her wait for so many days and he was certainly sorry for that. But in his position, there was nothing else to do. Or, perhaps he was just too stubborn and selfish to try something else. "Yes! He''s the worst, madam Rin! He''s the worst!" She squeezed the little slime in her hands as she shouted that. Thankfully, the slime did not feel pain or most of the other physical sensations. It was slime with unique senses that worked in a different way from the humans so even though it could perceive the surroundings, the thermodynamics, and simple sensations or touch, it did not have a complex sense system like the humans. It was merely a creature of nature. So, it was going to be fine even in the deadly hands of his partner. "We should all punish him, Madam!" Hearing her say that, Elio suddenly got goosebumps all over his body. He had suffered enough with the slimes already so he had thought his time in the city among the people would be a little peaceful¡­ He was not looking forward to any more battle just yet. "Huhu, doesn''t look like it will be needed, young lady." She tapped on both their shoulders after seeing the look on Elio''s face. And then with another laugh, she grabbed both their shoulders. "You should go back to your room now. It''s night, and there must be a lot you have to talk about, right?" S§×arch* The N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She was a nice lady. He could see why she chose this inn out of tens of others present in this town. "That''s right. We surely have a lot to talk about¡­" He still had to tell her about his reward distribution and the title and ask her a lot of things about Az. She was the more knowledgeable person here so he had to rely on her for a few more things. "We have to do a little more than just talking." She looked at him with puffed cheeks as if he was forgetting something important. And seeing this interaction, the inn owner, Madam Rin, could only chuckle at the young couple. "Yes, yes. You have to do a lot of things and the night is still young. So, go now." She turned them around and pushed them towards the stairs. "Go show him your room." She said she would take care of the damages, but Alex still wasn''t going to just let her take care of the mess she had made. So, before she went upstairs with Elio, she threw something from her inventory at the inn owner. "That should be helpful with a few things." It was a magic item, a scroll with repair magic recorded in it. "This is too much, young lady!" The store owner knew even one of these scrolls was around thirty silver coins, which was a lot from the standards of this world as well as the original world. Just selling it would make them enough to repair everything to a better condition and she just threw an important item like it was nothing and walked up with a smile. The owner lady was surely stunned, but she knew she wasn''t going to win against that person¡­ She knew her for a while now, so she knew how stubborn she was. And, since she knew her well, she could tell the one that could handle a person like her, would surely be no ordinary man¡­ Chapter 18: Night of the virtual world A simple wooden room of the inn with a single bedroom present at the end of the hallway on the third floor, the very top of the three story inn.There was a window on the other side, a bed in the center, a table on one corner, and some decorations around the room. Curtains danced with the low winds flowing into the room, the light of the golden moon illuminating the place along with only one magical light. "You went through a lot, I see." They had some bread earlier along with some warm soup so they weren''t hungry anymore. "Thanks for waiting." Sitting on the bed with both hands held together, they looked at each other like they usually do at nights in the real world. "I had my difficulties, but they weren''t as bad as yours. I''m already experienced with this world and how things work here, and I also did not have to train some slimes and fight with them while holding only a wooden shield." Az the slime was now resting on one of the small chairs reserved for small pets, while the white sword she was carrying and rest of her heavy equipment were resting on a different corner of the room. "I went ahead and leveled up a little, and yet you''re not too far from me. And besides, how the hell did you get so many achievements? Even I only got 3 after clearing the entire forest, for learning skills at a low level, and after defeating a boss mob ten levels higher than me." Elio had obtained two common achievements and three rare achievements¡ª something that was even more surprising than his rank (S) in the tutorial. Obtaining achievements was a difficult thing so even someone like her had only obtained three achievements when she played her tutorial. She even obtained the highest possible tutorial evaluation rank for all the things she did, and even though her partner had an assessment rank two levels lower than hers, he had more achievements than she did. And, to make things even more complicated, there were three rare achievements. "Well, I was lucky this time." He genuinely did not do much to obtain all those achievements. He just did what he was supposed to do and what he wanted to and yet he ended up with all those achievements, so it was surprising for him as well. "Well, you have two points in Luck, four in Charm, and ten whole points in Intelligence. So of course you got lucky¡­" Or perhaps the system was treating him like the youngest and most spoiled child. That might just explain why he was getting so many good things. "We should go to the mages tower after visiting the registration office tomorrow." Intelligence points were very important for the mages as this unique stat along with the special power called Mana was what defined them. There were many kinds of mages, but all of them could use the power of Mana and if they have a certain amount of intelligence to comprehend and control various spell structures, they could use what the humans called magic. "I wanted to go visit the library though-." "That won''t be possible, man. There''s a special event coming so the library is temporarily closed. Why do you think I told you to come to this town of all the other places?" "¡­is this ''special event'' important?" "Of course it is~! Just know that we will have a loooooot of fun~." He had no idea what this event was or, just how special it could be that she was so excited. He wanted to go and see this great library as soon as he could but, at least seeing her so cheerful made him happy. "Alright then. Let''s go to the mages tower." He laid down on the bed with an exhausted look on his face. The day was not simple. It had not been long since he fought the last of the creatures with his slimes and defeated them. "What are you doing, closing your eyes like that?" Sear?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She laid down beside him and looked at him with a confused look. And she kept looking at him until he opened his eyes and looked back at her with a burdened look. "What now?" It was night and sleep was important even in this game. He had been awake for a while now and after everything that happened today, he was exhausted. "What do you mean ''what now''? The night is young, we just met, it''s our first night together in this world-." "And you want to Have Fun? Even in the game?" It wasn''t like they did not do it enough in the real world that she was asking for it in this game world as well. was one of the very few games that actually allowed lewd things since it was made to be completely realistic, so it wasn''t going to be much different from reality. But still, things were pretty different here since this place was in fact just the game world. "I''ve always wanted to Have Fun in this game. You made me wait for more than three years in real world time so faults all on you." Looking deep in her blue eyes shining under the magical lights of the room, he could not help but sigh once again. "So all this time, you were only pushing me to play this game so that we can fugk? That''s it?" He smirked at her with a smile that was making fun of her. But she did not notice that as she had broken out a blush in embarrassment. "W-wh-what do you mean?! Bastard! That''s not true!" "Of course that''s the case. That red face is all the proof we need." The smirk in his face deepened along with the redness on her light toned face. She was rarely embarrassed like this, but now that she was like this, he couldn''t help but think how good it would have been if he could click a picture of this beautiful girl. "No! No no no no no! No no no! Don''t say things like that!" She started smashing him with the pillow that thankfully did not hurt him as much as he thought it would. The sounds of night were calming, there wasn''t much light pollution in this world so the sky was much more beautiful than what he had seen in the city areas, and most of all¡­ his partner looked happier in this world. "Accept it. You''re just a-." "Shut up! Shuttttt uppp!" In the real world, she normally had three kinds of expressions: Tired, annoyed, or stoic. She wasn''t too expressive most of the time, but here¡­ she seemed like a completely different person. "Hahaha~. Hey! That''s not fair!" "Shut up! It''s all your fault!" He loved the person she was in reality. And unexpectedly, he was also falling for this new side of hers. She looked much happier than he had ever seen her. ''Dumb girl.'' So now, he wanted to tease her even more. Chapter 19: Dawn in the town Dawn broke gently over the horizon, painting the sky with a gradient of soft, pastel hues.The inky darkness of night gradually gave way to deep purples and blues, which then melted into shades of pink and gold. The first rays of sunlight peeked over the landscape, casting a warm, golden glow that spread slowly across the land. "Mmm¡­" It reached the windows of the room where two certain individuals had spent their first night in this game as well¡­ "Hmmm." The air was crisp and cool, carrying the fresh, earthy scent of the town''s morning and blooming human interactions. S§×ar?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. A serene stillness enveloped the world, broken only by the gentle rustling of carriages and the distant chirping of early birds greeting the new day. "Morning, pretty human." Elio awoke to the first light of dawn filtering through the small window of his room at the inn. And unlike usual mornings, he greeted his partner first. "Why are you¡­ ughh." She was not happy to see his happy, smiling face first thing in the morning. She was used to seeing his still asleep face that she adored so much, seeing him up early did not go well with her. "What''s up?" She was trying to get up after seeing his ugly face the first thing on this fine morning, but she could not do so and fell back with a painful expression. "Aww¡­ aw aw aw. Why the hell is my back hurting?" For a moment, she was confused. She could not understand what was happening all of a sudden¡­ but then fuzzy memories of their Games returned to her. And, she understood the reason for her current condition and looked angrily at the bastard smiling at her. "Don''t look at me like that now. You wanted it, and I warned you. Thrice." He looked a little too happy. It wasn''t like he was merely enjoying her expression, beyond that anger, he could see the regret hidden behind those pretty blue eyes. It was an even rarer occasion than her previous embarrassed expression so, he found this a little too fun. "..." But she kept looking at him with that warm angry expression, thinking back to everything that had happened a few hours ago in this room that had become a mess now. Most of the things were wooden here, but thankfully, nothing broke down after all those Things. Their bed survived as well¡­ "Wanna go ag-." "Shut the fuck up dude." She obviously knew he was teasing her but even though she would not have minded it, she was in no condition to play around once again. They had a lot of things to do today, and she needed to at least walk properly without a hunched back. "Ribbons were a bad idea-." "Half of the things were a bad idea. And I warned you, Thrice." He was still smirking at her, finding this new kind of morning a little too fun. "And doing all that with Az present? Man you were loud-." -Dhum. She pushed him out of the bed and got up from the bed while enduring all that pain. "You''re chatty today, hun?" Then she looked down at him from their bed, the upset expression still present on her face. But the pleasant smile did not leave his face. "Don''t you think something''s wrong with this situation?" "Hmm?" She did not understand what she was saying all of a sudden, so he smirked again and elaborated. "Shouldn''t you be the one on the floor? After all-." -Dhum! He shouldn''t have done that. "Ughhh!" He wouldn''t have had to take a kick directly to his chest from a higher level player if he was a little less chatty. "Just fucking stay on the floor, bastard!" Alex got out of the bed while holding her lower back. She was in pain as well, but unlike the one on the floor who could only endure the pain, she had ways to feel better. -Ooooooong. She took out an (Intermediate) grade potion that healed physical conditions from her inventory and downed the entire vial. She stretched around a little and not long after, she had returned to her peak physical condition. "Ughhh¡­" Her boyfriend, though, was still struggling on the floor while holding his chest. "That''s why being higher level and overgeared is important." She pitied the poor guy and helped him get back up on the bed. But she did not give him any potions to help him. She knew that the kick would have only affected him a little and he would get better in an hour or so. There was no reason for her to waste her potions on him, and more than that, she wanted him to suffer a little as well. "Just take a nap, we will be back with some breakfast." She got back into her clothes, cleaned up the room a little and repaired a few things with the help of basic (tier-1) scrolls before picking up Az¨C the innocent little slime who ended up witnessing a little too much last night¨C and walked out of the room, leaving her suffering partner all alone. "That girl¡­" Elio did not like pain and yet he had suffered a lot of it throughout his life. Pain did not leave him alone in this game either, but at the very least, he was not going to endure it when he had no need to. ''Open otherworld market.'' [Ding.] Various kinds of currencies were used in the real world but with the growth of digital currencies, in everyday life, [V-coins], a digital currency that was now almost used all over the real world, had become a prominent common form of money. It was also used on large scales in the virtual markets to purchase the currencies of this other world and to use the Otherworld market for item purchases, he first needed to get the currency that was commonly used in this world. ============ [UniQuinn bank: ] Total funds: 120,000 V *** [Lion Internationals: ] Total funds: 60,000 V *** [IPC: ] Total Funds: 150,000 V ¡­ ============ He had various bank accounts and all of them were connected to his Bio-ID. Though, he still did not keep too much funds in any of them and preferred having them invested in various profitable areas. ''Hundred thousand should be good for now¡­'' He had no need to purchase game money with his real money since he just wanted to enjoy this game with Her but he wanted to invest a little in this game just in case he needed to spend it somewhere. He knew he could not be with Alex all the time, so in case he needed money to purchase things on the marketplace, or in the shops around the town, he placed the first order for his in-game currency. ============ Copper: 140 (Exchange rate: ~200V: 1Copper) Silver: 40 (Exchange rate: ~1800V: 1Silver) Total: 100,000 V. After Tax pay: 109,890 V. [Confirm purchase: Yes/ No.] ============ "Yes-." "Oh, I almost forgot my pretty sword." Right when he was about to place his order for his initial funds, Alex suddenly came back and saw her boyfriend, who should still have been grumbling in pain, playing with some status windows before him. "What¡­ are you doing?" She was confused for a moment, but it did not take her long to realize what he was up to and a new angry expression clouded her happy face. "You little mosquito." He couldn''t purchase his coins afterall. And instead, had to endure another round of pain for the next few minutes. Chapter 20: Reward boxes "I told you there''s no need to add your own funds but, no. We don''t listen to the ones who know better."They were now downstairs with one side of his cheek red. "I didn''t want you to add funds not because I want to be your sugar mommy in this game but because of a very special achievement that you can only get if you use the money that you have earned yourself." She had asked madam Rin to use their kitchen and after getting fresh ingredients from the market, she made them breakfast herself. And, she made some extra for madam Rin and Misha as well, so all four of them were enjoying the delicious food on this fine early morning. "You never listen to me. Why do you do that?" "I listen to you alright¡­ you''re just used to listening to me more. That''s all." She slapped him a little too hard and it hurt more than when she had punched him. He was in pain again, and she pitied him so she gave him a little pouch of ice. "Huhu, you sure are an interesting young man, mister." Madam Rin liked the food Alex had made and she was quite interested in learning cooking from her even though she had much better experience with cooking. Even Misha liked how well cooked and well seasoned some of the things were. She could tell the spices that Alex used were not something they can find on the market but even without them, the things she had made with the simple ingredients of the market were quite delicious. "I''m nothing special, miss. It''s just that I happen to be blessed to be with this pretty lady." He held the ice pouch with one hand while his other hand was patting Az as the little guy enjoyed its own food¨C the rare Mana stones that are sold quite high priced on the market. According to what he had learned from Alex, Mana slimes were unique existences that were pretty special in this nature. Not many players had them and all those who did had a unique kind of Mana slime that possessed special skills that were unique. They were different from the skills their kind possessed or they themselves possessed prior to their evolution so, just having these slimes as one''s summonable creature, or Familiar, or slaves was a rare thing. However, he had tamed this one when it had not even evolved, so it was an even rarer case. Still, it was not as rare a case as the player on unified ranking 11¨C the man who married a Mana slime which later evolved again into a completely new kind of existence. "Hump, buttering me up isn''t going to work." "Of course it won''t after how much I buttered you-." "You want another beating?" "No ma''am." Misha didn''t understand many of the things they were saying, but her mom had a smirk on her face which seemed to understand even the things they did not talk about. She was an experienced person so, it wasn''t surprising for either of them that she understood what they were talking about. They did not mind her smirk, but Alex still wanted him to stop his teasing since it wasn''t going to work anymore. "Anyway, don''t buy coins with your own money. I sent you some so use it if you absolutely need to, but you should be alright after we get you registered." They had many things to do today, and the first thing they were going to do was to visit the registration office. "Oh. Are you two going to the registration office by any chance? Is mister Elio really a new foreigner?" "Of course he''s new. This dumbass just somehow got lucky with his first trial." She looked at him with another annoyed look and shoved another spoon of soup in his mouth. Since he was holding the ice and patting Az, she had to feed him. She did not mind the feeding part since they often did that for each other but she did not like how he tried to go against her request and buy his own money. "Hmmm¡­ for someone new to this world, mister Elio sure is interesting." S§×ar?h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Every player had to register with the Registration office when they finished their tutorial and arrived in the starter town. Only after their registration with the registration office that worked as a central organization maintaining all records of the players and natives can players join the various organizations. If someone fails to register though, the chances are high that they will be put into jail if they are caught inside public or private properties. Yet, there are always players or people who do not register with the Office and live their lives in the wilderness. "Hey, Madam Rin. if you''re interested in this bastard, please know that we are pretty open-." "Ahem, Miss Rin. She''s a dumb girl so please don''t listen to her." Taking care of her alone was a tough task so there was no way he wanted a hot looking mother with a daughter that would soon be of age. He was content with his life so¨C this one headache was enough to him. "Hey! Weren''t you the one-." "So, now that I can''t buy money, should I open one reward box and see what I get?" She was talking a little too much, so he first ate the food in her hand, and then placed the pouch with ice on her mouth. "Mmmmm! Hey!" Her hands weren''t restricted like his so she took the ice pack away and was just about to shout at him¡­ when he took out the bronze metallic box with a smooth surface from his inventory and placed it on the table before them. "Oh! Is that a reward box!" "Mm-hmm. Has Misha seen this before?" "Yes~. The foreigners sometimes play with them while eating~!" The system was common for both the players and the natives, just that there were some things that ''players'' could do similar to some things that unique native species of this world could do. However, the achievement system was the same for everyone. And, seeing these achievement boxes was a pretty common thing. "But¡­ the ones I''ve seen are mostly silver." Misha was a normal kid so it did not seem like she knew much about the world and the common things like the reward boxes. "They are common boxes, Misha. This one on the other hand, is a level higher than those common achievement reward boxes." Thankfully, the knowledgeable big sister of hers was here to tell her about these boxes. "There are six kinds of reward boxes that are granted for six kinds of achievements that go from: Common, Rare, Epic, Heroic, Legendary, and Mythical. People usually only achieve common achievements but the uncommon ones, like gaining a title during your first trial, or having a [Family] of slime that also has an evolved slime in it is something of a rare achievement." Alex smiled at her, looked angrily once again at her partner, and told him something through their eye contact before looking back at the younger girl with a smile. "We can call reaching (Level-100) an epic achievement that everyone hitting that level obtains, or clearing a high difficulty dungeon by yourself could also earn an achievement of that level. But beyond that, all achievements become a little unique." She told her how there are unique conditions that one had to meet in order to obtain achievements better than Epic ranked. She even told her how becoming a Dragonslayer, A Swordsaint, Archmage, or gaining the [Recognition of worldly elements] could lead to a Legendary achievement. "Then, big sister, what is the Mythical achievement?" But she could not answer this question for her. "That¡­ we do not know yet." In the three years that this world has existed for the players, only the fact that an achievement rank higher than the Legendary rank exists has ever been revealed. People call it Mythical achievement because the achievement by nature could only be a myth if the conditions to achieve it were so complex they went even beyond the grade of the near impossible. No one knew what they needed to do in order to obtain this achievement¡­ but, there were many players who were constantly in search of it like madmen. They had dedicated their entire lives in search of that absurd achievement or even some kind of clue about it¡­ she used to be one of those mad people as well, but she did not care about all that anymore. "Go ahead now. Open it. Quench your curiosity¡­ we have to go do stuff after that." She had opened many boxes like this one so she wasn''t that interested in it. It all depends on luck, so she knew since he had some points in luck, he would at least not get something as shitty as the things she got. She was cursed by luck perhaps so she did not rely on it, but he was different. Luck played a big part in art¡­ and as an artist, he knew how to use what he already had. Chapter 21: Mages tower "I can''t believe you got an item from a rare box just like that.""Is it that uncommon to get something like this from a rare box? I mean¡­ isn''t this just some item?" He looked down at his hand that now had a thin metallic bracelet, a purple accessory made of a thin metal thread that did not feel anything special. "Just some item? Did you just say¡­ ''just'' some item?" They were walking out of a tall building that almost resembled a castle and covered one of the largest land masses in this town. There were few buildings as great as this one, and even among them, this place held a special meaning to this town, to the townsfolk, as well as to the players. "It''s VERY rare to get any kind of item from the Rare reward box since it gives money. People only open it with the wish to obtain a few silver coins that would let them have a few good means and if they are lucky, some people even end up with tens of silver or hundreds of bronze. That''s what people normally consider to be a great stroke of luck. While getting any kind of item means obtaining something that one can use, or something they can sell at a fairly high price." She shook her head with a sigh as she looked at the Bracelet in his hands. "When a sword user gets a good sword, they are happy. When a mage gets a good spear, they are a little disappointed but not sad. However, regardless of the class, social rankings, or levels, when someone gets an Accessory item, they know they have struck it big time." The accessory items were the hardest to come by in this world, and the good ones that possessed a skill were even more rare. And yet, the thing he had obtained on his first box along with Three silver coins and a little experience was something that shocked her big time. "Just look at that item and tell me it''s not good." They were finished registering Elio and connecting the in-game accounts the two of them had¨C which was almost the same as marriage where one could access nearly everything that the other had permitted them access of, but since the [Marriage] existed in people only considered connecting accounts something like showing their trust in the other person. Well, of course there were cases where people betrayed this trust of their partners, but after years of experience, the players have learned what they should do in a virtual relationship and what they should not. "I never said this is bad." Elio looked at the simple yet pretty bracelet on his hand with a happy smile. ============ [Brocade key] ¡ï¡ï¡î -Intelligence +3 -Slightly increased energy regeneration. {Skill: Light chain} ¡ªCreate a chain of Light that heals non-lethal wounds by consuming Stamina/Energy/Mana. (Healing will be proportionate to input power used.) ============ When they got this item, Alex was only a little surprised. But after she used a (High) grade appraisal scroll to reveal the details of the item, she herself got stunned by the presence of a healing skill on the accessory. "That right there is what I''d call one of the best things one can get from the Rare grade reward box." Healing skills were rare in this game and had to be learned from the Temple. Normally, it took someone a few months just to learn a simple healing skill so people avoided it, which made the presence of Priests and Paladins even more crucial. Good healers were hard to come by and since one needed to leave the starter town to become an official priest, one hardly found a healer in the beginning stages of the game. "People will come running if they know about that skill so don''t be careless with it and cherish it. You can easily use it until (Level-100) and probably even after that." "Yes ma''am." In the later stages where the wounds one received gets highly difficult to heal, this item was not going to be that useful. There was an inherent limit to all items and, when someone of a higher level uses a simple item like this, the chances are very high that they will end up breaking it instantly. That''s why he would have to be careful with it. She had pressed this warning on him ever since they got out of their inn, walked to the registration office, and then walked all the way to the mages'' tower. "This place looks quite something¡­" "It''s the mages'' tower. Duh he looks amazing." But she had seen some of the grandest structures of this world. Something as simple as this towering triangular brown tower that had many people coming in and out of it was not nearly enough to surprise her. "Let''s go in. I''m excited to see if you really have the qualities of a mage." She smiled at him excitedly as a sigh escaped his mouth. "Why is it that not everyone can become a mage in this game? Why must they make it so that people with only the ''inherent'' qualities of a mage become one?" In everyone including the players had to first check if they had the affinity for handling Mana. Only the people who possessed the talent to become one are officially granted permission to go through [Mana infusion] a process that opens up the Mana circuit in their body and opens up the ability to use Mana. "Doesn''t this just make it like the other luck based game where one might have the talent for it and someone might not?" It wasn''t like people who did not have the talent to become a mage could not go through Mana Infusion, just that they would have to pay more for it and the chances of their deaths increased significantly. The natives of the world only had one life even if the players could revive back so the Rules were made to fit everyone equally. "The ''talent'' in this game isn''t based on luck, El. It is directly derived from the physical body of the players and is more than just something based on luck. With the portable gears, it is difficult to track everything but even with the simplest chariot, it is possible to completely scan the physical body and they use a complex data recreation method that even I don''t understand yet. And besides, it''s not like those who do not have talent to become a mage could never become a mage or have no chance of ever using magic." There was a lot of freedom in this world if there was a lot of realism. Even if someone could not go through the [Mana infusion] or fail many times, they could use external means to use Mana, use magic items, or become wizards or some other kind of magic user. There were a lot of options and becoming a mage that used Mana was not the only one¡­ people just had to either stubbornly follow the path they liked, or search for the one that suited them the best. "They should have made it like the other games where one can just choose the path they want." sea??h th§× Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He was never very happy about this aspect of . But, he found it comforting to know this pretty and happy world also had flaws like these. "No world is perfect, mister artist." And this was a virtual world. If anything, she knew very well just how far this place was from the utopian ''perfect'' mortality wished to be part of¡­ Chapter 22: Reception In the heart of the town, in an open plaza, stood the impressive Mage''s Tower. Its tall, tubular structure made it the most striking building in the area.The tower was built from smooth, polished brown stone that glowed warmly in the morning sunlight. The base of the tower was wide and surrounded by well-kept gardens. There was a magical air to the atmosphere around the tower, and magical creatures roamed the safe area without hurting anyone strolling through the gardens. Some creatures belonged to the mages, some were creatures that the magic tower protected, while some creatures were necessary for the daily activities of this spectacular tower. These gardens were filled with rare plants as well, adding a touch of beauty to the area. "The inside is just as impressive as the outside." Ivy and flowering vines climbed these terraces and the exterior, adding splashes of green and color to the brown stone. At the top, the tower ended in an open observatory with a large, glowing globe. This globe pulsed with magical light, casting colors into the sky that not everyone could perceive. The Mage''s Tower, with its brown exterior and tubular shape, stood as a symbol of knowledge and magic in the town. Not only was it a place where players learned traditional magic, this place was also one of the few places in the town that sold magical items, scrolls, and the very rare Spirit orbs of the creatures. "It''s nothing compared to the (Six capital towers) of the Capital of the kingdom of magic¨C Lohefalter." If the mages'' tower looked attractive from the outside, it was even more attractive on the inside. The space inside was even larger than what one could see from the outside, something that seemed to have been the result of Spatial magic. There were desks all across the vast space, while in the center of it all, there was an elevator connecting all the twenty one floors of this tower. Each floor was divided into three divisions with each side of the triangle handing a unique task, and there were many people present all over the tower. There were magical elements present all across the place, the colorful complex magic circles that the mage workers were using to help and aid the people were something that caught Elio''s attention and the whole vibe of the place was so unique that he could not help but be amazed. "If this place alone is this good¡­ I wonder just how amazing the six capital towers would be." He had worked with many creators but since his specialities lie in the combat and movement related videos, he had not really seen the special places present all across this virtual world. He had especially not known much about hidden places like the capital of magic as not many people had been to that place. It had not been long since the existence of the kingdom of magic was revealed to the players and to the real world so, not just him, people did not know much about places like that in general. "We will be traveling a lot so don''t worry. We will visit that place one day as well." She was the experienced one here so she had been to many places throughout her life in this world. She was also a solo player so she had been to some very unique places that only a few or no other player had any knowledge of. "I''m excited to see what more amazing things this world has¡­" He was smiling. And seeing that smile on him, she could not help but sigh with a smile of her own. "Yeah, yeah. Be excited~. We are gonna have a loooooot of fun~." However, before they travel, they at least had to get used to this starter town and understand how this world and the various elements actually worked. "Let''s see¡­ that place looks pretty empty." They were here for the Mana compatibility evaluation for now and also to test if he had the qualities to become a mage. Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And for that, they had to go to the very front side at the end of the hall they had entered. "Hello~. How may we help you today~?" The receptionist was no elf girl or even a lady. Alex deliberately chose the most normal looking man among the various pretty looking mages and walked up to him. "We want to do a Private magic evaluation." There was a reason she chose this person¨C this simple looking man with dark brown hair and dull brown eyes. He was wearing the same uniform as the other receptionists as well, but Elio could tell there was something different about this person with his keen eyesight. "Hmm? A Private magic evaluation? We do magic evaluation under the-." "Let''s cut the small chat." She took out a certain silver ID card from her inventory, and placed it before the receptionist in a way that no one else could see it. "We don''t have long, so it would be better if you could move your hands quickly." The silver ID card belonged to the Mages'' Association, the central organization that all the mages affiliated with any tower throughout the world had to be registered with. It was the association that held the greatest authority among the magic towers, so if someone was directly revealing an Identification related to that place, a mage of a small town like this one had no other choice but to panic. "Oh. I understand. Please, follow me." The mage was clearly in distress but he did not show it on his face. He was one of the few trained individuals that attended to the special guests of the towers. The two of them were obviously uninvited guests that were visiting unannounced, so the receptionist had no idea who they were. But the fact that despite being foreigners, they somehow possessed a legit ID of the association made things complicated for him. Something like that was not needed to access a basic special service like the one they were asking for, but it was more than enough to grant them access to this special facility. [Ding!] "You sure are something, hun?" She had somehow become a low level player but it seemed like she still possessed a lot of items that she had when she was still a high level player. He did not know how she did it still, but it was convenient this way. "We will move to the sixth floor testing area." [Ding!] They climbed a special magical elevator in the center of the room among the many others that were already crowded with other people. This elevator seemed to be something only reserved for the staff, but the two of them accompanied him to the sixth floor and reached the area where all kinds of testing was done. Az had been amazed ever since they came here and the mage that was accompanying them seemed to be curious about this strange slime with them¡­ but he was a little too worried to pay attention to things like that. His job was perhaps on the line right now. Chapter 23: Magic affinity There are three kinds of magic users in including the players as well as the natives.The beings who are born with the ability to use magic are called [< Sorcerers >]. These individuals are chosen by magic, and not the other way around. It is their birthright, an inherent power of their bloodline, or a unique power that they had created due to unique supernatural circumstances. Then there are [< Wizards >], individuals who have studied extensively to understand the true nature of what is known as magic and natural magical phenomena. These individuals, different from the people who cast spells directly with the energy that is channeled from nature and environment, are bound by various catalysts. Be it some spellbooks, some artifacts, some items, or something like a companion creature, they can only use the magic that they have studied for long years with the help of these objects. ''Wizards are some of the toughest classes to raise, so the player spends money and goes for a forced opening of their Mana channels even if they have to die many times.'' Very rare players could use Magic naturally without needing to to open up their Mana channels. [< Mage >] is thus the most famous magic class among the players since most of the time, the otherworldly people possess at least some chance to open up their Mana channels if they try enough times. ''Becoming a summoner is costly and becoming an elementalist requires a lot of time, or a lot of luck. So, just going to these common magic towers present in all towns and cities is the best way to get access to magic.'' They were now in the testing room and if it was confirmed that He had the talent for magic and was in the clear, the Mana infusion process would not take long. "For the Magic-type affinity check, please place your hand on each of these glass plates." The room they were in was not too big. It was almost only a little bigger than their inn room. There were all kinds of complicated things present around them, but the three of them were standing before three unique magic plates that possessed a unique colorful glow to them. "Elemental magic, Unique magic, and Natural magic. Let''s see what my artist darling has." S§×ar?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The magic in this world was broadly divided into three categories. Of them, elemental magic was the most common kind of magic one could use. Unique magic was something that belonged to individuals and they had to find it for themselves, and natural magic was something that was famous on the same scale as elemental magic. "I just have to place my hand on them?" For Elio, the progression since he met her was a little too easy. If it wasn''t for her, he would have had to do the registration by himself, wander around without much knowledge of the things here, and he would not even have known about the event in the library and had wasted his time on a useless trip. Not that he would have minded it since he was playing this game to be with her and explore the things like he wanted to, but still, he wanted to go around the town on his own. "Huuu¡­" "Muu! Muuuu~!" Though, going on his own was not going to be possible for now, he knew that so he decided to be in the moment and his partner, the little slime cheered him on. "Right. We also have to go to the tamers guild and other places." When he saw the slime''s cheerful behavior, he remembered there was a lot he had to do today, so hesitating for this simple thing was not a good thing. He wasn''t going to disappoint her even if he does not have any affinity for magic, he knew that. So, with a deep breath, he handed Az to her and placed his hand on the first plate that tested an affinity for natural magic. -Oooooooooooooong! The plate was glowing with many colors like the other two plates but after he placed his hand on it, it glowed with a unique golden color that was warm in nature. "Hmmm¡­ you have a (Basic) [Rank-1] affinity for Natural magic." The affinity ranks were graded in Basic, Uncommon, and Advanced and all of them had three ranks. Even a basic affinity of the first rank was a good sign for someone who had never had any practical experience with magic since with time and efforts, these ranks could be advanced further. "Woh, amazing." Just the fact that he had an affinity for Natural magic was a big thing so, there was a smile on Alex''s pretty face. But as someone who had seen this simple result many times in his career, the person that was taking this test did not have any special expression. "Then, the next." A person could certainly have an affinity for more than one kind of magic so it was basic to check for all three kinds. "Hmm¡­" He moved on to the Unique magic plate and placed his hand on it. And this time as well, it glowed with a bright light that had even more diverse colors than what was already present on it. "Oh? It seems like you have a [Rank-1] Basic affinity for Unique magic as well. That''s pretty rare." Though the ranks were the lowest, just the fact that he could use magic of a unique kind, something only he will be able to do, brought a bigger smile to her face. "Yei! I knew you would be great!" He did not want to kill anything in this world, she understood his wishes. So the fact that he had an affinity for some unique kind of magic on top of natural magic was just too exciting to her. "Then lastly, Elemental magic." The mage now had an interested look on his face. People rarely had an affinity for more than one kind of magic, so if there was someone who possessed affinity for all three kinds of magic, he would have to report this to the tower master immediately. There had been players in the past with affinity for all three kinds of magic and recruiting them was the top priority of the tower. Unique magic users were rare already, and those who could use both natural and unique magic usually could also use elemental magic naturally. But, it did not seem like he was one of those special players. "Alright then¡­" Elio placed his hand on the final glass plate as well¡­ but sadly, contrary to the other''s expectations, the glass plate did not react to him. "Well, looks like you don''t have an affinity for elemental magic. That''s a bummer." The elemental magic was the most common type of magic but he did not have any affinity for it. It wasn''t something bad. Having affinity for two kinds of magic was more than rare enough already. "Alas. Well, we should now move on to the next part." The test taker seemed rather disappointed. But he quickly shook his head and turned around to activate the other devices. "Oh, wait. We still have to check what magic affinities Az has." But Alex stopped him and smiled down at the creature in her hands. "Muuu?" Now that they were done with El''s evaluation¡­ it was time for the special little slime to see if it had any talent for magic. Chapter 24: Az: The unique slime "Miss¡­ you want to see if this slime has the talent for magic?"It was not everyday that someone asked him for a magic talent test for a creature. There surely were some creatures in nature capable of performing magic, wielding special powers, and controlling the power of Mana, but not all creatures possessed enough intelligence to create the spells. There were only rare cases of creatures who even understood what the other intelligent beings like them even wanted to say. There were great restrictions on those creatures of nature. But still, some surely overcame those restrictions and mastered the special power of the intelligent beings¨C magic. "Yup. I''m paying for this anyway so there should be no problem with it, right?" "Well¡­" There surely was no problem¡­ other than the simple fact that the creature in question was a mere slime! "We could certainly do it if you wish, ma''am." There was something strange about this slime, he knew that ever since he first saw it. It was different from the slimes that they had in this tower. It interacted with the two of them and made sounds as a reply to their questions. More than that, he had this strange feeling while looking at it that¡­ he could not explain with words. It was just strange. But, all that had nothing to do with this slime having affinity for magic. It was a slime, the simplest creature of nature. There sure were extraordinary slimes in the world capable of many things, but this simple slime with no special skills or that low level seemed nothing like those legendary creatures. He did not think there would be any reactions from the magic plates when the lady placed the little slime on the glass tablet associated with Elemental magic. He did not even seem interested in this, until¡­ -Oooooooooooooong! The magic affinity detection plate that only reacted to someone''s magic capabilities started glowing with a brighter light than what they had seen a moment before. "...what?" He was confused for a moment, and he was stunned as well. He stayed in his place, frozen. And even after Alex took Az away from the glass tablet, he stayed in that frozen state. "Can you please place the slime back again?" He could not believe what he had just seen, so he had no choice but to ask them to place it back so that he could confirm it again. -Oooooooooooong! And just like before, when she placed the slime back on the tablet, it glowed with the same intensity it had done before, making the mage look at the slime with wide open eyes. "That slime¡­ it has a [Rank-3] Uncommon affinity for elemental magic?" He could not believe this result. It was just too absurd that a creature possessed magic affinity, but the added fact that the creature in question was a slime and had an abnormally high magic affinity rank shocked him even more. He was stunned for a moment, but then he looked at the master of the slime. "Is that a Familiar by any chance?" The only explanation he could think of right now, was this. S§×arch* The N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Do either of us look like a (Level-100) to you that we would have familiars? Az is just His tamed partner." Alex understood exactly what was going on with this person. That''s why there was a smirk on her face when she said the slime was just a tamed creature¡­ and she emphasized the fact that its tamer was Elio and not her, making the mage look at him with another stunned expression. "Anyway, if you are done with checking this one, let us move on. We do not have the whole day, you know?" "Ah! Of course!" He was in a daze, but her stern words brought him back and they tested Az for the other two categories as well. "Hmm. Looks like you can''t use unique or natural magic, Az." "Muuu¡­" It was strange how a slime, a creature of nature, could not use natural magic. But since it was now confirmed that the slime in question was in fact that Uncommon Mana slime, he was not that surprised. He had received enough shock today that he was done being surprised. So¡­ they moved on to the second part of the test: Elemental affinity test. "As we all know, there are six Main elemental affinities." Elemental magic followed elemental affinities, and natural magic also somewhat relied on elements so it was possible to guess what kind of natural element one possessed affinity with through this test. "These crystals here react to the elemental affinity so just holding them will make them glow if you have affinity for that element." Unique magic also sometimes relied on elements but it was unique by nature, so it was not reliable to use this specific test for testing what kind of unique magic one possessed. One had to find out their unique magic themselves with time and experience. That was just how it worked. "Then, let''s get started." Of the Six elements: Darkness, Earth, Water, Fire, Wind, and Light, it was pretty rare to have affinity for even more than two of the elements. -Ooooooooooooong! But, in the hundreds of years that this magic tower was standing, there had hardly ever been any cases of someone possessing an affinity for all six elements. "Is this rare?" Especially someone that did not possess any affinity for elemental magic. It was just absurd how someone could light up all six elemental crystals. And that too, at an intensity so intense it almost blinded an official mage''s eyes. It was just absurd to him as someone who was witnessing it for the first time in his entire life. "Rare would be an understatement to that, El darling." Even Alex was stunned right now. She was exactly opposite to him in this manner, so this absurd situation right now was giving her a mixed feeling. On one side, she was smiling at him. And on the other side, she was squeezing the innocent slime so hard that its round shape¡­ had now become something closer to the Klein bottle. Chapter 25: Mana infusion Earth, fire, water, wind, light and darkness.They were called the six primary elements of nature. Everything else was derived from them and it was pretty rare for some mage to have affinity for all of these elements of nature. "Looks like Az has an affinity with water and light elements. Even that is rare." It was not particularly a good thing that he had affinity for more than one element, but instead of being something good, having multiple affinities was considered to be a bad thing by the players. "We will move on to the Mana infusion and then do the Magic series test." The mage in charge of these tests was already tired of getting surprised. sea??h th§× N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He had seen enough today, so he just wanted to finish this and return to his Normal work. "Muuu?" "Don''t mind him. He''s just surprised." They had confirmed that the two of them had affinity for magic, so their work here was coming to an end. All that was left here now, was the process of opening His Mana channels. "Then, please come here and hold these two crystals." When someone had only one elemental affinity, it was easy to master the magic related to that element. However, when it came to practicing magic of various elements, it was a different task altogether. Elemental affinities of opposing natures did not go well with one another. Water was not great with fire and earth was not great with wind. Light and darkness were polar opposites of one another, and when someone has affinity with all of them, they mainly choose to master one of them to make things easier. "Alex. Why don''t you have any affinity with these elements?" "Who knows?" She could not use magic of any of the affinities. And she did not have any affinity with any of the six elements. She could not wield Mana at all. Her body naturally opposed Mana¡­ that was the main reason she had no choice but to become a weapon wielder despite her superior intellect. In all her time in this world, she had wanted to become a mage, someone who could use magic, but she realized with experience that that was not the path she needed to walk on. And she was happy to have realized that¡­ perhaps, they might not have been together had she not been like this. "Magic is fun, and I like it. But holding a sword and slashing things has a completely different kind of fun to it." She naturally opposed Mana so, she had a great affinity with the second most famous natural energy of this world: Aura. A great power that only those who have mastered their weapon or understood it to a great degree could command. If magic was a birthright and a result of intelligence, Aura was the world''s answer to one''s countless hours of dedication and hard work. Not everyone who held a weapon could use Aura. it was a privilege of only those who had dedicated their mind, body, and soul to their Path. "Well, even though I can''t use magic, now that we know you can use all six of the elements on top of not having affinity for elemental magic, things will be even more fun than what I had expected." She had a mysterious smirk on her face that gave him the Chills. He did not like how she was looking at him as he grabbed the colorless crystals attached to a complex looking machine in the corner of the room. He could tell this was not as simple a thing as it looked, so¡­ when he grabbed the two crystals and the mage activated the device with a magic spell, a unique feeling washed over him. [Ding.] A screen popped up before him right when he started feeling that strange sensation throughout his body. "It might be a little painful but please endure." His eyes were open but all of a sudden, everything went blank. -Oooooooooooong! All he could see was a dull darkness that one sees when closing their eyes. Along with that light gray screen¡­ [Mana is surging through your body!] There was some pain inside him, it felt like his blood had suddenly become thicker. It was not a familiar sensation. [The stagnant Mana channels are forcefully being opened!] It surely sting a little, but he did not feel as much pain as he had felt when the Manawater slime first hit him and he had coughed up blood. In fact, this sensation faintly felt familiar to him. [Mana channels are reacting to a familiar environment and equilibrium is being established between inner and outer environments.] He could tell something was changing inside of him. Something was starting to flow inside of him and at the same time, he could feel that same thing in the environment around him. [A new homeostasis is being established¡­] The darkness that was present all around him was now clearing up and instead, strange small particles of sand or what seemed like star-like dust was now appearing all around him. [Ding!] He found it strange at first, but after a moment, he felt a completely new kind of refreshment than how he had felt until now. [Congratulations! You have gained access to the Natural Energy: Mana.] [You have acquired Skill: {Mana sense}. You can now sense the Mana in your environment.] [You have opened the Mana circuit in your body completely, earning an achievement.] [Treading on the path of Mana (Common) has been achieved!] "Wow¡­" He felt a new kind of energy running through his entire body that was not present there a moment before. There was a unique kind of strength running through his body as well. It was as if he had just become even stronger. But more than that, everything he could see, everything he could feel with his senses had just become so much better that it seemed like a completely new world had opened up to him. "I''m not even surprised at how you opened up your Mana circuit completely and acquired {Mana senses} during the infusion process. Haaa¡­" Not everyone could open up their Mana circuits completely during the infusion process since it was just the basic process of letting them be familiar with this energy. They gain the senses to perceive Mana in their environment much later as well since one had to first get used to a Mana rich environment. But, he obtained them just like that. "Seems like you''re special as well, El." Alex was sighing with a smile on her face and Az looked happier for some reason. "Az¡­" And now that he could see Mana, he could see the slime that seemed just like a blob to him previously, in fact looked even prettier. "We should finish the magic series test now, and you can register as an official mage-." "Oh, no. We will do the Series test on our own." All she wanted to see was what kind of magic affinity he had and what elements they might be able to use. Their main objective for coming here was opening his Mana circuits. They didn''t need the tower''s help for practical tests. There was an entire hunting area for that. "But, miss¡­" "I know I''ll have to pay six Silvers to skip this process but that isn''t much. So, let us get moving~." They had to visit the Tamers'' association to register Az but that was a short process. Now that he could use Mana, she was excited to see just what different types and series of magic these two special ones might be capable of. Chapter 26: The hunting ground "Muuu~! Muuu!"There were many hunting grounds around the Moongold town but of them all, she brought us to the beginner forest that had the most dangerous creatures. "There are six series of magic that are also called Types of magic." She had a magic scroll in her hand right now and there was a big (Level-15) wild boar before us. "The first series is, obviously: Destruction." When she activated the magic scroll by tearing it in half, the magic circle that was encoded in it was activated and the earth attribute spell that it contained materialized in the form of a large rock spike. -Swish! -Shuuuu¡ªrrruk! "MHIIIIIIII¡­!" It was not easy to control the spells from the magic scrolls but she controlled it precisely so that the spike would only hit the hind legs of the giant boar. It was a one meter tall creature so it was in no way something as simple as the pork people eat in the real world¨C or this world, for that matter. "The second series is what defines the healer mages: Abundance." We walked closer to the creature and though it was dangerous, she used another scroll and this time, the magic that was cast created a green magic circle around one of the legs of the creature that, with a green light, miraculously healed the injured leg of the wild beast. "Muuuuuuhiiiiii¡­!" The creature was obviously angry to see people standing before him, and knew they must have been the ones to attack him as well. sea??h th§× N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. So the wild boar attacked them with its front legs as soon as it saw the chance. "The third is Preservation. The magic that creates protective barriers¨C as well as different kinds of other barriers." -Oooooooooooong! When she used another magic scroll, a translucent blue shield was created around us and the creature that had attacked us with great force, instead of dealing any damage to us, was thrown back with a great rebounding force. "The fourth type is Restriction. The magic that applies debuffs to the enemies." She was already using a lot of expensive scrolls that cost more than a few silver coins. They were not something anyone could buy with a little money, and instead were something that players used as a hidden card in case they came across something difficult. But she used them as if they were nothing. -Oooooooooooooong! Thankfully, to show us what Restriction type magic was, she used an Item with the magic imbued in it instead of a scroll that could only be used once. It was a rare kind of item that had certain charges that could be used more than once, and some rare ones that had these magic stored as skills could even restore these charges. "There are various kinds of debuffs that one could naturally receive in . But, magic debuffs are more powerful since they could not be cured with physical cleansing potions." The moment she used the pendent like item, the boar that was running back at us with a new kind of anger was abnormally slowed down. It was as if time had slowed down for this creature¨C something so unique that it brought some confusion to the creature in question as well. "The fifth type is the opposite of the debuffs¡­ magic of buffs, Grace series." She picked up a twig from the ground and used another magic scroll on it, giving it some kind of buff that she said was called (Toughness). "And lastly¡­" She moved past the protective barrier in an instant as if to have teleported, and reached right beside the point where the slowed down creature had reached. "The Physical series which caters to the set laws of the world and the reality that we live in." -Dhum! -Crrrr! She slammed the twig right on the forehead of the angry creature and the crisp sound that was created, it was obvious that she had broken the skull of the creature. -Thud. The way the big creature fell to the ground was obviously something cool, but the fact that she was looking back at us with a smile while still holding that fortified twig was something else¡­ ''Why''s she so cool, damn it.'' She must have used {Blink} to move so fast that it almost made it seem like she had teleported. ''She told me it was one of her favorite skills that were pretty easy to learn but very difficult to master.'' Blink was essentially a magic that could move someone a set distance away from their current position. However, it was very difficult to control how far within a ten meter radius one would go and where they would end up. ''That''s why mages only used it as an escape ticket to get out of dangerous situations.'' There were many creatures that possessed this skill as well, so with right hunting or by spending a few hundred silver, one might certainly get the Essence that contained this skill. It wasn''t that difficult to obtain it, but it was a kind of magic skill that, according to her, was more precious than people generally knew. "Physical magic is not just something that follows the laws of physics, it could also go beyond it and make impossible into reality." From how much I knew about her life in this world, I knew she loved physical magic series the most. Of course she could not use magic or even Mana herself, but that was probably the reason skills existed in this world. "Three kinds, six core elements, and six type series. Magic of this world is pretty simple if you put aside the difficult things one might have to learn and understand in order to cast these magic spells. Though, as long as one has enough creativity and understanding of the magic they want to cast, with enough Mana and focus, they should be able to cast the spells that they want." Magic was not limited to elements and elemental magic. Fireball, ice lance, earthquake, illumination, dark sphere, wind cutters¡­ these weren''t all there was to magic here. People could create, destroy, recreate, edit, explore, and go beyond what was simply possible with the magic of this world. "So then. What type of magic do you want to cast first?" Unlike affinities of elements and Kinds of magic, anyone can learn any type of magic if they try hard enough. But still, it was better to start with the type that one was the most suited for. "Muuu~!" And both of them were excited for it. "Let''s start with the easiest." Though¡­ since he did not have any affinity for elemental magic, checking the series that he was the most suited for was going to be a little difficult task. The same, on the other hand, was not true for the little excited slime. Chapter 27: Magic casters "I¡­ have to study this thing?"She had handed me a thick book with a metallic silver cover with a lot of complicated things written in it in a language that I could not even understand. "Of course not, silly. You can''t read that script anyway so why would I even bother giving you that thing." Looking down at the special looking book with a little confused look, I flipped through the pages first and saw the magic circles that were drawn after very few pages. "Just try memorizing the magic verses associated with the spells or memorize the spell structure. Understanding the spell itself is the fastest way to learn it, but since you don''t know how to read it, memorizing should be enough to give an idea about the spell''s affinity." "So¡­" She simply meant I just had to chant the incantations or recreate the spells in my mind to cast them. "Seems simple enough." Being an artist meant having a good imagination. And though I do not have as great of a memory as hers, what I have developed with my experiences in various fields is enough for something like this. "Let''s start with the simplest one in the book." She gave Az a simple looking magic scroll for a water attribute spell and the cute slime was ''feeling'' the scroll since a while ago, trying to comprehend the spell''s structure somehow. It was doing its best, so I also had to do the same. "Natural Magic: Earth attribute: Restriction series spell¨C Grass binding." Natural magic was a little different from elemental magic since it was not derived from the independent elements existing in nature but from the elements that were part of nature itself. ''Normally, to cast a (Fireball), one would use the fire element''s power directly from the nature when they use Elemental magic. It is simpler and more direct. However, when using natural magic one has to rely on the natural elements.'' To cast a fire element natural spell, a naturally lit fire is necessary. To cast water elemental natural spells, water sources of nature: Lake, rain, rivers are necessary. And just like them, to cast an earth attribute natural spell, the earthly elements are necessary¡­ "Focus and think about the spell structure." She guided me through the process with her hands on my shoulders. "Think about how the spell looks, what it is about and how it might feel if you touched it with your hands." She was holding one of my hands with some soil between our hands. "Do it from the inside out, just the way you do it." Forming the center of the spell first, I drew the spell inside my head and connected the lines just the way I remembered them. "Now, Channel the Mana inside of you and try to move the Mana in the atmosphere. Lead the Mana and draw the spell the same way you drew it inside your head." -Oooooooooooooong! I had no idea what I was supposed to do to move the Mana inside me so I just followed the lead of her other finger which was moving from my chest area- around the place my heart was- to the end of my finger, where I was supposed to manifest the circle. "Take a deep breath." "Huuuu¡­" I didn''t really do anything, but as if it was instinct, something inside of me followed the path she had shown and followed the lines I had made in my imagination. "When the spell structure is on point and when the Mana input is enough¡­" -Ooooooooooooooong! I could feel a new, warm sensation before my hand so I opened my eyes¨C and saw a spell manifestation of my own for the first time. "Magic, is born." Just like I had seen in the book, there was an attractive looking magic circle before my eyes. It was my first spell¨C a (tier-1) basic spell of Natural magic. "And when the spell is released¡­" She moved my hand to an empty area away from where Az was ''working'' with his magic scroll, and moving her face closer to mine, she said something completely unexpected and inappropriate that the concentration I had on my spell was broken instantly. -Oooooooooooong. "Alex!" I was angry at her for doing something so unexpected so out of the blue, and thanks to her, the spell that I had made with such difficulty flew away to the place it was pointed at. "...It creates the phenomenon that it was meant to." -Oooooooooong! I did not see it before, but the place that it was pointed at had a small plant growing¨C which, when the spell manifested, was instantly covered in strong looking, long blades of strange grass that did not belong to this environment. "Congrats on casting your very first spell, dumb one." She smiled at me warmly and resealed the hand with the soil that she had been holding since earlier. [Ding!] [You have cast a basic (tier-1) spell for the first time. Rewarding Exp.] [Ding!] [Level up!] [(Level-13) > (Level-14).] With the Exp I got from the reward box earlier, this level up was at least within my expectations. So it was not that surprising. "Looks like you can cast the Restriction spells-... hun?" But, what both of us did not expect was what happened right after I succeeded in casting my magic. -Oooooooooong! "Shrrrrr¡­" [Ding!] [Your tamed Mana slime has succeeded in casting a spell!] [Your Mana slime has obtained the skill: {Magic comprehension}.] [You have earned Exp!] [You have earned an achievement!] [Master of magician beast (Rare) has been achieved!] "Wow¡­" Az, who was working with its water element magic scroll had somehow created a small fountain of water that did not seem anything impressive from a general point of view¡­ but the fact that it did it with magic, with a spell that was supposed to create drinking water, made all the difference. "Looks like I''m going to be working with two magic geniuses, hun?" "Muuu! Muuu~!" The scroll that she gave to Az was nowhere to be seen so she could tell how the slime might have gained the knowledge of magic after only a few hours of ''practice''. "This one''s special as well, hun?" Az was different from the other Mana slimes that she had seen. It had skills that she has not seen even in other slimes all over the world, much less in the other Mana slimes. ============ [Mana Slime: Az] (Tamer: Elio.) (Level: 3) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 5 Agility: 6 Endurance: 4 Intelligence: 9 T-T (Functional stats) Energy: 8/10 Stamina: 5/10 Fatigue: 4/10 Mana: 15/30 {Skills: Curiocity, Emotions, Magic comprehension.} ============ It was not a simple slime. "Muuuuu~!" Just the fact that it could cast magic made it Very special, but from an understanding of someone who understood these creatures, from an understanding of someone like Alex¨C this simple blob that was now jumping joyfully with half of its Mana gone, was a unique existence even among its unique kind. S~ea??h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Now then, let''s check the other types as well and quickly go on hunting~!" Alex had now become even more excited and though it was not there before, there was a new kind of spark in her eyes. ''A spark that one could simply see in anyone excited for the most sought after activity of these kinds of games¡­ hunting.'' She knew I was not going to kill anything. But, since she was here, we knew I would not need to do the killing myself¡­ Chapter 28: Hunting Elio could use Restriction, Grace, and Physical magic. While too weak right now, Az could use Destruction series magic.Both of them could not use the other series very well at the moment so they were going to work with what they can use first until they could use it well, and then move on to the other series. Despite equal effort, they realized that their magic from other series was ineffective and would be of no use in practical life. Even if they tried to manifest the spell and were perfect with their execution, the spells did not manifest. Which simply meant they needed to put some more work into the process though, and keep practicing. "That''s our first prey." "...really?" They were now hunting, and since Az was not going to be of much help, it was up to the two of them now. And, even if she could hunt like a professional with her higher level and strength, he had neither experience nor enough strength to go against a creature like this one. ============ [Green horn Rabbit]: (Level-21) ============ "That''s a (Level-21) creature." "Hmm? You can tell that?" He somehow got better with his observation after he obtained his Mana and he could observe things even faster than before. S~ea??h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He only needed to glare at them for a while and after he had looked at them for long enough, their observed status appeared before him. "You might be able to face it¡­ but we are Not going there to fight it with you." In the first place, this creature looked much more dangerous than that boar they just defeated. It was two freaking meters tall even though it was called a RABBIT! It was currently eating what seemed to be a big deer, some other dangerous creature, had blood all over its face, and the teeth it had seemed more like sharp blades of a saw! And there was blood on them! The eyes of this thing were completely black, deep dark black! There was a strange green horn on its head while its body was completely brown¡­ and there was blood all over its body! Calling that thing a Rabbit was already cheating¡­ but it was also several levels above him and looked strong enough to split him in two with its bare hands. It was absurd! "Hmm? Are you afraid of that cute thing?" But to Alex who had faced ancient monsters and primordials, this was practically just a cute little thing. "Cute?" He looked at her with a little shock and a little doubt. For a moment, he thought she was just joking. But when he looked at her for a moment longer and there was no result to her look, he knew he had been with the wrong kind of person for the last few years. "Anyway. You don''t have to fight. I''ll do the fighting." Experience gained through hunting could be divided equally within a party and since they were in a party right now, they did not have to worry about the fighting aspect of the hunting part itself. Since there was a person with equal level as the creature present, things will not be that difficult for them. He did not like this, but since he will be helping out in hunting, he was fine with it this time. "When I go in, immediately cast (Speed up) on me. And when you see the rabbit going berserk and preparing its energy cannon-." "It''s what?" And this creature can go berserk as well? He was very confused at the moment. "Just do what I say, dummy. Don''t overthink things right now." She wanted him to cast the (tier-1) Grace spell (Speed up) and then use the (Grass binding) spell of Restriction series to temporarily restrict the rabbit''s movement. He had not decided to solely walk on the path of a mage so he did not have a certain Mage class but one did not need a class to be able to cast magic. Magic was a power available to everyone. As long as they could master the spells, have enough Mana and mental stamina to cast those spells, and meet basic requirements, they could use any kind of magic in the world. One just needed to meet the basic requirements and usually, this task got more difficult as one approached the higher tier spells. "Alright." With an excited smile, without saying anything more, Alex jumped out of the bush they were hiding in and used {Blink} to close the distance between her and the creature. "...!" The giant rabbit already sensed her presence when she had reached near him, and it was going to attack her with its swift attacks as well. But, right before it could do that, her body glowed with a unique yellow color and she moved even faster, reaching right behind the giant rabbit. -Swish! Then, she used a short dagger to make a lunge and shoved it right inside a certain point of the rabbit''s elbow. "SKEEEEE!" The rabbit screamed as if it was in extreme pain after that ambush, something which might not have been successful had Elio not used the wind elemental natural spell in time. He was afraid of miss-release as well since if the spell was to be used on the creature instead, things would have gotten a lot more difficult than what they already were. -Swish! Thankfully, her first attack was a critical hit, and after that, she moved faster with her enhanced speed and used a short sword to make various cuts throughout the giant body of the creature. "SKEEEEE¡­!" She was deliberately targeting those certain points which seemed to induce more pain than damage, and not long after, the entire brown body of the giant creature started turning red¨C a classic sign of berserk. "What the hell is that girl up to?" The rabbit was bigger so it was not difficult to aim a spell at it. -Ooooooooong! When the creature went berserk and was just about to attack her with its increased speed and strength that was so great that the ground beneath its feet had already been crushed by the sheer force of its rawness¡­ he manifested his Restriction spell of earth element and new grass sprung out right beneath the rabbit''s feet. "SKEEEEEEE!" It seemed like the rabbit had gone mad already. It knew nothing going on around it. Its eyes were only following the one that had put it through that great pain. "SKEEEEE¨C..." It could see its enemy right before it so it tried to move as quickly as it could and catch her with its new, boiling strength. -Dhum! "Perfect. Sadly, the saying: "The bigger they are, the harder they fall." was applied here and with merely a few grass blades that were nothing compared to the creature''s great size, it fell to the ground. "Ba-bye~." And when it was on the ground, she precisely shoved three new daggers around the green horn of the rabbit. "SKKKEEeeeeeee¡­" The rabbit tried to struggle, but that struggle lasted only for a moment. [Ding!] Its soul had already left its body when she shoved those daggers in its head. Now, only a dead body with no blood of the Rabbit present anywhere in the green surroundings was left on the ground¡­ Chapter 29: Change of plans "Wow."She knew they would take the rabbit down but she did not expect it to be this easy. "Man this was too easy!" She looked at the downed rabbit, retrieved her daggers and put them back into her inventory, and checked the condition of her hunt. "Was it easy?" Elio came out of the bushes with Az who seemed happier after seeing the dead rabbit. "Yup. It usually takes me a few minutes to hunt one of these in this perfect condition." There was no great damage to the rabbit''s body, there were no visible wounds on the dirty hide either. The only blood present on it was from the creature it was eating earlier and even though it had gone berserk, now that it was dead, its body had somehow returned back to its natural state¨C something should not happen in normal circumstances. "It was too easy with the speed boost. And that restriction spell timing was just perfect." After checking the condition of the hunt, she walked back to him and looked at him with a smile on her face. "We actually make a good team, you know?" With a playful look on her face, she first kissed him, and then she admired his still surprised expression. "I don''t know about making a good team, but that sure seemed easy." Each of his simple spells cost him around Five units of Mana. At level-14, he had around 20 points of Mana and unlike the creatures who increase their Mana capacity as they level up, the players had to increase it with either special items or through training/achievements/enlightenment. For players, Mana was a functional stat that increased with the level of players¨C or by 10 at each ten levels in simple terms. "Right~. I know we make a great team~." She was happy after hunting this creature, but she was nowhere content just yet. "Let''s hunt till evening~." Contrary to him, she loved hunting. She did not do many life activities inside the game and focused more on exploration, hunting, and finding more fun places to hunt in. She also liked learning about new things so she also spent a lot of her time in the libraries of this world, but since she had mostly been by herself, she did not have many acquaintances or friends. "Ummm¡­ I don''t seem to have any choice anyway so, sure?" He had to level up anyway. And since they did not have anything else to do until the evening, they just went to their next target. S§×arch* The N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Which was a big brown peacock. "Alex¡­ this one''s pretty." She did not want to kill this creature since it was just minding its own business in an open area of the forest. It was a Brown feathered peacock of (Level-25). A high level creature that most certainly was also rare. "It tastes delicious though. I know you''ll like it when I cook it so don''t worry about the small things." She just told him to cast a Speed boost spell on her like the last time and a Movement speed reduction spell on the peacock. It was a fast one and since it was also not that big, it would be difficult to aim the spell. But, even though he did not like it and wanted to stop her, she had already run away. "Muuuu." "I don''t like it." The big and scary rabbit was one thing but this simple and harmless looking creature was a different kind of being altogether. They were rare creatures but not too rare so people hunted them whenever they got the chance. The creatures themselves only had their superior escape tactics and skills so they mostly managed to escape from the hunters¡­ but that was not going to be possible against someone like her. He knew that. -Ooooooooooooooong! So, he used the movement speed reduction spell on her right when she closed in on the creature, and by using the grass restriction spell, he created a kind of wall between them so that the creature could not attack her. "Pyaaaaaa!" And since it could not attack the sudden attacker, the creature just screamed, spread her beautiful brown wings, and vanished from the open grass area. "Muuu?!" Even Az was surprised how his master used the spell on his own partner. Though, of course, he knew the consequences of doing something like that. "You¡­ hypocrite." The basic spell''s effect did not last long on her. But as if to have expected this kind of event, she came back to him with a sad look on her face. "I''m sorry¡­ it was just-." "Pretty?" She knew he was crazy for pretty creatures. She knew there would come a time when he will do all he can to stop her from killing them if it is not necessary. But at least, she didn''t think he would interfere even for a simple creature like that one. "Crazy bastard." He took this game a little too seriously. That''s why he was perhaps better being something other than a hunter or a kind of player that needs to kill other things. "Haaaa¡­" He knew she did not like it, but, well, there was no changing what had already happened. He did not like it, and this time, he could not help himself either. That creature was too pretty and too precious to just eat¡­ they could buy the pea-cock meat from the market if they just wanted to eat it but killing it with their own hands was a little too much. And yes he was crazy to stop her from doing it as well, but since he was helping her in this, he was indirectly doing it as well. "Alright then¡­" He had known him for years now and knew he was not going to stop doing it just because she did not like it. He would either just return back to the town and leave the hunting to her- something she did not want- or keep getting in her way of hunting creatures that gave good Exp but looked attractive. She could not have that either. Unlike him, she had her reasons to get stronger and get back to higher levels as quickly as she could. But since she wanted to be with him as she did that as well, she also had to focus on his levels while she did that. "Change of plans." Since she had killed every single kind of creature one could find in this hunting ground once already, she knew most of the higher level ones that gave good Exp were good looking creatures. It was the problem with the beginner hunting grounds. The creatures here were not as ugly as they were outside of the beginner areas. "Let''s go hunt down the field boss." "What?!" If he was not going to let her kill the pretty ones and if she wanted to power level before they go and do the Guard captain''s quest, they both at least needed to be (Level-20). And he was not at that level just yet. But she knew that would change if he gets all the Exp for killing the field boss of this beginner area¨C a (Level-35) creature that even she had not attempted yet. "Oy, Alex. We are talking about the same field boss that I know, right?" He was confused and stunned right now, so the logical thing his mind thought was how he must be misunderstanding something. "Yup. You know what I''m talking about." But just from looking at that excited smile she had¡­ his heart already knew that she was up to another absurd thing now. Chapter 30: Field boss A field was a vast area with many monster or creature camps located in close proximity.These special places sometimes even had some pretty rare creatures that one might not find anywhere else in that area. Of course though, there was also a Boss monster of this field. A creature that was above every other creature present within that field. "Can just the two of us take down that creature?" "What do you mean ''two of us''? You want to fight as well?" Even if he technically wanted to, he would be a dead weight to her. So, he also knew he was just better as a support. "Then¡­ are we going to use some higher tier magic scrolls as well?" "Do I look like someone who''d use a high level magic scroll against a mere beginner area''s field boss? Do you think these things are chocolates?" Every scroll was precious, something that could save one''s life. So, using it when it wasn''t even necessary was just dumb. And besides, however resourceful she might be, there was a limit to her resources. She might have a few hundred lowest tier scrolls, a few higher tier ones, some good ones, and a few that could destroy a city or bring down divine grace, there was still a limit to how much she had. And, she for sure was not going to use it all carelessly even if she wanted to. "I''ll give you three destructive spell scrolls, three barrier scrolls, and three Physical magic scrolls along with a few Mana regeneration potions. You will use them, cast debuff spells on the boss and buff me with Physical and Grace spells. I''ll fight, and Az will help us distracting-." "Wait wait wait wait. What did you just say?" This was not what he was looking forward to. "Why would Az distract anything? In the first place, who says it will be joining the battle." If Elio was a weak (Level-14), Az was merely a (Level-3) slime that was just starting to learn new things. It was an innocent creature that knew practically nothing about anything, and just like a kid, it got happy at things that it found fun, and acted like any child would in any situation. If Elio was putting his life at risk by going for the field boss with a single party member, then Az would be attempting suicide by going before that high level creature. "Relax. He''s perfect for this job." He didn''t want to put his little friend in harm''s way so he was not going to let her use Az. But the way she explained him, the way she convinced him that this was not going to be anything dangerous for the creature, was just too believable. "You''re sure about this¡­ right?" "Of course I am, damn it. There are places in this world where (Red Hobs) of even higher level live in big communities. We aren''t even talking about an Ogre, an Oni, or an ugly troll but merely a special kind of goblin." She was saying that but Elio still had his doubts. And when they reached the deepest part of the forest area covered by rocks on three sides, with a single big cave entrance visible in the center of it, he was convinced this was a bad idea. "Alex¡­ I think we should go back." "Nah, too late." Just as she said that, they felt the ground beneath their feet shaking a little and a strange stench filled the area around them. This strange stench was getting worse as each second passed, and not long after, they saw two orbs of red shining from beyond the cave''s darkness. "That''s¡­ a goblin?" "Don''t act like you are seeing one for the first time, lol. The people you''ve worked with used to kill these things when they were merely Level-10." Unlike her though, most of them were still top rankers famous all over the two worlds. As someone who had directly worked with them¡­ this one should be nothing much to him. "I''m not like those people! They are all crazy! Just like you!" He knew how she also killed many (Level-30)+ creatures in the time he was not here. She even killed a (Level-13) creature when she was (Level-3), earning an achievement. Though, he had no idea how she had done that. "Heh. Crazy, you say? Darling not wanting to kill creatures and stopping someone from killing them is the crazy thing, not what us enthusiasts do." She was observing the creature with pale red skin, a humanoid body, muscular physique, and two distinct horns of their kind on its head. Its eyes were entirely white, there was only a dirty cloth wrapped around its private part and the rest of its body was naked. There was a big bat made of wood in its hands, a weapon that was completely stained with dried blood of the things that it had killed before. Its feet were giant, the leg muscles strong looking, the face of the creature was ugly, and the pointed nose made it look even uglier. Still, one could feel great strength just from looking at this creature. And, the fact that this creature was a field boss made it one of the stronger creatures than the normal boss monsters that had simple enhanced stats. "Alright. Shuu. It must be going to find some food. This is our chance." A field boss was meant to be hunted by the many players together since it gave a lot more Exp than the other kind of bosses and had more chances of dropping an Essence. There was a better chance to obtain a skill by hunting these creatures, so they were pretty famous among the bigger parties and guilds. "Az, you know what you have to do, right?" "Muuuu~!" "Then go. And if you think it will be dangerous, use the Light magic you learned and get out of there as quickly as you can." "Muuu!" The groups and guilds were afraid to come to the deeper parts of the forest since there was a strange rumer circulating among them that some kind of ''nightmare'' had appeared in this place. It was a creature so dangerous that it had already beaten many people almost to their deaths and people had only survived it by running away from It. The rumors were going around for a few days now, and it would soon clear up¡­ so, they had to take advantage of the opportunity while the iron was still hot. "Don''t use debuffs on me this time, please." "Don''t worry, love. The world should be better without something like that." He knew he was a hypocrite to discriminate between what had the right to live and what did not, but, he was still a human at the end. And, as a human, he did not like that hideous thing. "Then let''s start." S§×arch* The n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He knew this was going to be dangerous and she would be the one in most danger, but he was prepared for something unexpected. He had his magic scrolls, he had ten whole basic Mana recovery potions and he had his magic. He knew even if something does go wrong, the three of them will at least somehow get out of this damned place. Chapter 31: Red Hob -Shrrrrrr¡­On a fine afternoon, the field boss of the beginner forest, a normal old Hob that had been living a mundane life in this forest by himself, went out of his comfortable house to get some brunch. Just like yesterday and the day before, he had been getting a pretty good sleep with no interference from the flies like humans that harassed him every other day. "Gurrrr." He did not like him. They always came to bother him when he was either eating or sleeping. They were already weak so they could not even put any decent fight against him, but they didn''t even let him live peacefully. "Gurrrr¡­" He did not like them. They were flies that even made it difficult for him to get some good food. It was only because of them that he could not enjoy the fresh meat that liked. They were just unbelievable. -Shrrrr. Shrrrrr¡­ "Gurrr?" He did not know why but he did not get any intruders for the last few days now and was living a peaceful life with more food than he usually found. Surely there was a day when he had to sleep on an empty stomach, but after that, he had been living a life of luxury. -Shrrrrr. Food was everywhere, there was sweet meat, there was juicy meat, there was even some new kind of meat that he had not seen in his territory before. His mundane life of wake up-hunt-eat-fight-sleep had become not just easier but more exciting since a few days ago. He was eating all he wanted, he was sleeping all he wanted, and he did not even have to fight against those bugs that did not even know how to fight. His life had become blissful. "Gurrrr!" And it seemed to be getting even more blissful as food was now walking to him instead of him going out to find it. -Shrrr¡­ This was the first time he had heard any kind of movements around his house in the last few days. And, since he could not smell the flies around, he could tell this was not another one of their dumb tactics. -Thump. Thump. Thump. "Gurrrrr~." He ran with its giant feet, shaking the ground with every heavy step it took. And thanks to its large size, it did not even take him a few seconds to cover tens of meters of distance. He was happy that now food was even coming to his doorsteps. But sadly¡­ "Muuu." S§×ar?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Gurrr?" The food that had walked up to his house was merely a blob of slime, a creature that the giant red hob, a natural predator, was well aware of. "Gurrrr¡­" He knew this creature. They did not have any taste to them. They were sticky, difficult to chew, tasteless, bloodless, and there wasn''t even any benefit of eating these little things. -Shrrrr¡­ They were just dumb yakky things that made one throw up. Something he did not want to eat once again. "Gurrr." They were worthless and did not deserve attention from a strong being like him. There was a lot of meat in his paradise so, he was better off searching for that instead of this disgusting thing. -Thump. Thump. Ignoring the worthless creature, he turned around and walked back to do what he had been up to¡­ -Swish. He shouldn''t have done that. "Gurrr?" He felt a strange sting on his back right when he had walked a few steps away from the slime. And, when he turned his head back to see what it was¨C he sensed a new presence out of the blue as his eyes widened. "Gurrr¨C." -Shurrrk! Sadly, it was already too late. A sword had already pierced through his shoulder. "Tsk." He realized this was an ambush. But, before he could turn his head back and take a look at the ambusher, he felt a change in the air around him. -Swiiiiiiiiish! It was sudden as well, and from how the winds started moving abruptly, he knew instantly that this was the magic tricks of those human bastards. -Ooooooooong! Sadly, by the time he realized that, it was already too late. "Gurrrr?" He wanted to move quickly and block the attack that he could sense coming at him, but when he tried to move his body, he felt like his entire body had been submerged in quicksand. "Gurrrrrr¡­!" He could not move like the way he wanted to, and the opponent that he was fighting was moving absurdly faster than what he could react against. -Swish! Swish! Swish! On top of that, with each passing moment, he could sense strange stinging sensations all over his body, as if some big bees were stinging him. It was not the slashes of swords but something close to a thorn''s sting. It wasn''t even painful¡­ -Swish. Swish. Swish. And yet, after a few moments of enduring their attacks, he felt as if his strength was leaving his body. As if something strange was entering his body¡­ Something that made his blood colder. Something that he was well aware of¡­ "Gurrrrrrrrrrr!" -Oooooooooooooong! The enemy had been attacking with poison all this time. And he was dumb enough to not even realize that until just now. [{ "Is that the second phase?" }] Elio used their party chat to telepathically talk with Alex on the field as he gave her another movement speed enhancement buff. He was already out of two Mana potions, but since it seemed like the creature was entering the second phase, their actions until now seemed to be pretty effective. [{ "Yes. It will start using its skills now. This one was {Physical enhancement}. The {Frenzy} will begin shortly so make sure you time the restriction spells." }] [{ "Yes¡­" }] According to what she explained, this creature had three phases. In the first one, it usually attacked the players with its Bat and when players dealt a certain amount of damage to it, it used its {Physical enhancement} skill to enhance the physical aspects of its body, making it not only stronger, but also more resistant against debuffs and poison. The Physical debuffs still worked on it, but right when it activated the other skill {Frenzy} it healed a significant portion of its wounds so dealing physical damage until it entered that state was not advised. "Gurrrrrrrrr!" [{ "Now!" }] A Red Hob mostly only had six skills, and even among those skills, only three really mattered to the players¨C The enhancement skill, the frenzy, and the last one was called {Blood reinforcement}, something it uses in the last phase of the battle. -Oooooooooooong! One needed to deal a set amount of damage to it to make the creature use that skill, however, there were also other methods and ways one could force it to use this skill. "Gurrrrrrrrrr!" [{ "Is this supposed to happen right now?" }] [{ "Nope." }] Elio did as they had planned. He gave her the buffs while debuffing the creature. Their first part of the plan was a complete success and the poison she had used was supposed to be a potent one that would kill the creature with enough time even with the skills used. In the second part of their plan, he just had to do something similar to what he had done with the rabbit. [{ "Looks like we fucked up, El." }] He used his restriction skill and just when the creature was about to move, he used the grass binding to make it fall down. And since it was so big, it was supposed to fall down as well. But¡­ It somehow managed to handle his weight by supporting his body with its giant wooden bat, and in the process, he ended up kneeling right before Alex who had stopped because of her {Blink} skill''s cooldown. "GURRRRRRRR¡­!" It had not even been a few seconds since it entered the second phase, and somehow, the creature was already using its {Blood reinforcement} skill¨C which was not good for either of them. [{ "Welp¡­" }] She was not supposed to face this form when it still had so much strength left. [{ "New plans." }] But now that things had come down to this¡­ she had no choice but to face it head on. Chapter 32: Battle -Swish![{ "Forget everything else and just keep giving me buffs. Please be careful with your aims and just shoot them a few meters to my right. I''ll get them." }] When a Red Hob enters its final state and uses the unique skill, a condensed cluster of energy that it stores by eating and resting is released explosively. "Ghrrrrrr¡­!" This energy makes the creature as dangerous as an Orc who are natural born warriors. The strength that they gain is not something just a few people could fight, that is why it is recommended to have at least ten to twelve party members of (Level-20) or above to fight this particular field boss. And, the importance of strong tanks is crucial. [{ "What do you mean by that?! What are you going to do?!" }] [{ "Just do as I say!" }] When the Red Hobs enter this last form, they are not like the berserk creatures that lose all rationality and only care for their predetermined target. This is a natural enhancement skill that provides an explosive power to the creatures that they could only use once before completely exhausting all the energy they have left in their body. It is like the final card and a double edged sword¨C something that might very well hurt them severely in the process as well. But, they do not care about it after they are in that state. S~ea??h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. They just fight with more strength, more speed, more explosive raw power that the skill provides. [{ "ALex!" }] Since the Hobs are natural fighters, have a relatively agile physique, and are buffed by their status as a ''field boss'' in this case, it is never suggested that a player fight them all by themselves. -Swish! "Gurrrrrrrrrr!" But instead of backing away, she was fighting it. Alone. With an absurd smile on her face on top of that. "This girl¡­" He knew she was crazy but he did not think she would go so far as to even fight an opponent like that all by herself. -Ooooooooooong. [{ "You better win." }] [{ "Of course I will. Just help me." }] It was too late to back out now anyway. So, he used the buff spells that he found would help her the most in her position and though he knew it might be dangerous, he cast various restriction spells to give her openings that she might use. -Swish! Swish! Swish! With the help of his movement skill buffs, she moved faster than what her normal stats might have allowed her. Her Blink skill had a cooldown of ten seconds, so she couldn''t use it continuously just yet, and there was also only one charge to her blink at a time so it wasn''t that effective. But, it worked when she wanted it to. "Gurrrrrrrr!" -Dhum! Dhum! Dhum! The Hob had become stronger than her. When it smashed its bat on the ground, it created deep craters that seemed to be produced from an impact tens perhaps hundreds of N heavier than what it seemed capable of. The pale red skin that it had was now glowing with all its body covered in pulsing blood vessels. Its completely white eyes it had were now glowing red just the way they did in the darkness. The two horns on its head, the small horns that didn''t seem anything special before, were glowing with a darker light than its body and there was a strong heat coming from them. It had become an even ferocious monster as it effortlessly tracked down her agile movements and smashed the ground right where she was on each moment without error. With sharper senses and stronger body, it was not an opponent that the players would want to face all by itself. And yet, as she fought the creature with a simple steel sword in her hand, there was a distinct smile on her face. -Dhum! -Boooooom! There was destruction all around her. The ground was smashed and craters were overlapping one another. Due to the heat of the attacks, the ground was becoming hotter and stepping it was getting difficult. She had to use the trees in the surroundings and the rocks to step on as she avoided the attacks of the strong opponent and slowly dealt small blows with certain openings. -Ooooooooooong! Elio used his Grace and Restriction magic to help her as well. And he made sure to inform her when he was about to use destruction series scrolls so that she can avoid the blow. "GHAAAAA!" The creature was strong, the wounds it had were not affecting it much, and the way it was fighting without caring about the poison that had now spread throughout its bloodstream was unbelievable. [{ "Three o'' clock." }] Both of them coordinated their attacks and magic, and dealt damage until the Hob''s pulsating blood vines had turned green from the poison. [{ "Careful. It''s coming that way." }] The creature was not dumb. Even though it did not have as good of an intelligence as Az, it still had lived a long life and had sharp instincts. It knew the one he was fighting was not the only opponent he was facing. His opponent was a Swordsman. A fighter that used sharp objects that made cuts. Throughout their fight, there had been moments that made the creature realize that this sword wielder was not the one that used the magic which constantly changed the nature around them. It knew there was someone else so it pinpointed the change and detected the hidden opponent. Sadly, by the time it attacked the place where the attacker was attacking from, the mage had already moved its base. -Ooooooooooooong! -Boooooooooom! Going there was a mistake since Elio had already activated the remaining explosive magic scrolls in that area before using the (Blink) scrolls to move away. [{ "Leave the rest to me." }] When the creature was unexpectedly hit by the strong explosions and still survived, Alex took the lead and started attacking the creature for real this time. -Swiiiiiiiiiiiish~. She used movement techniques supported by the buffs of her partner, moved around with the tree branches as support, avoided the ashes and debris that was produced by the explosion, and used multiple swords to thirst inside the weakest spots of this creature. "GHUATTTTTTTTTTT!" She used her {Energy infusion} skill in the sword to make them stronger and sharper since without them, it would have been impossible to penetrate the fortified enhanced skin of the strong creature. [{ "El!" }] She fought while maintaining a certain distance from the enemy, but it was not easy. She still received many minor injuries all over her body, but she continued the assault and after using twenty seven swords¡­ -Ooooooooooooong! After using many spells, many Mana recovery potions, and three hours of work¨C they were left with a destroyed area, an incomprehensible exhaustion, and, of course, the reward of their first battle as a party. [Ding!] [You have defeated the Field boss: Red Hob!] "Gurrrrr¡­" Wounded and poisoned, with many of its internal organs turned into a repulsive mess¨C covered in wounds, and cuts, tens of swords still dug into its body, the dull red skin completely turned green, the creature''s red eyes returned back to being white¡­ Though, they did not have any light inside them anymore. [Ding!] "Haaa¡­ haaaa¡­" On one side, she lay on the ground with half her clothes torn and burned. Wounds covering her entire blood covered body. "..." While on the other hand, he lay on the ground, completely exhausted, with max fatigue, no energy to move, or any Mana left inside of him. He was not covered in blood like she did, but¡­ "Ugh¡­" After using all those spells in such quick successions, the kind of aftereffects he was experiencing was¨C were actually even worse than the worst pain he had experienced in this world until now. Chapter 33: Battle rewards The sky had been painted gold by the time he regained consciousness and somehow survived the hellish headache, internal pain, and the strange shivering of his muscles all over his body."Haaa¡­" If it was not for the Mana recovery potions that were still left on him, and the help from his Mana, he might not even have been able to endure that kind of experience. He even had put down all of his remaining stat points into Endurance to survive that experience. The food they packed before departing from their inn helped him regain some energy as well. It was an experience more painful than when the Manawater slime injured him in the tutorial. And, he even earned some more Experience points from it. "Haaa¡­ you¡­ look like a mess." He was still tired though, so he somehow dragged his body to where she had been with the support of some tree branch that had been laying on the ground around him. "Look who''s talking¡­" She was still on the ground, covered in injuries and blood. "Haaa¡­" She looked at the upside down face of her partner while he looked at the miserable state that she was in. "There¡­ was no need¡­ for all this, you know?" "But this was fun, right? You were so amazing as well-." "Shut up, woman." She looked like a mess, but he did not have any energy to argue back against her. So, he just laid down beside her. "It was so fun¡­" He was tired, while covered in wounds, she was smiling happily as if this was fun for her. "I''m not¡­ doing this again¡­" Seeing her like this was certainly not something liked or appreciated. She looked miserable and he felt guilty for that. Had he been stronger, or better even, she would not have been in this position. "Hahaha, of course we are doing this again. We will have to, actually. There will be opponents that we cannot avoid as we travel out of this town." The sky was prettier today. "You¡­ bi-." "Oy." His throat was still hurting after all the blood coughing he endured, so he could not speak properly just yet. On the other hand, though she did not look fine at all with all that blood on her body, she was practically still well. Just that she did not have any strength to get up and do anything yet¡­ "Haaa." He wanted to curse at her, shout at her, scream at her and then, if possible, ask for her forgiveness. He did not like how he was so weak, but at this moment, the thing he did not like the most was the pathetic appearance of his partner. "Stay¡­ still¡­" He grabbed her wounded hand and intertwined their fingers. -Oooooooooooong! And then, he activated the healing skill of his bracelet {Light chain} on her. "There''s no need to use the skill for these small scratches dear." The smile on her face warmed up as she felt warmth spreading throughout her body starting from the hand he was holding. "They¡­ might be scratches¡­ for you, perhaps. But they look ugly on you." A thin layer of bright light covered her entire body as the wounds and bruises present all over her body started closing down and disappearing. The process was slow but warm, so even though it only lasted for a few minutes, she felt much more at ease from it than she might have even after taking a high level healing potion. "That''s a precious skill." She had felt healing skills before, but few were as gentle as this one. That healing light had a special warmth to it as well. "Yes¡­" Clouds moved with the winds and the sun moved beyond the horizon. The cheerful town would start becoming busier as people would start moving to the streets for shopping and entertainment. The creatures of the forest will go to their dans and nests to spend their evening and night with their families. The night will approach shortly, and with it, the day of the nocturnal creatures would arrive as well. "We should get moving now." It was going to get cold here, so they had to start moving now if they wanted to make it to the town in time. "Give me a minute." They had stayed like that for around half an hour now so his throat was a little better now. But, he still needed a moment to get his mind and body in sync. "Haa¡­" The battle they fought was not easy. But at the end of it all, they came out victorious. "Do you want this essence?" As a reward of this battle, they got a skill essence of the Red Hob though it was not either of the three main skills it had. "I don''t think I will need¡­ the {Smash}. It''s better for those who use blunt weapons." The skill increased the force of any blunt weapon when smashing. It was a conditional skill from what the appraisal scroll revealed, so unless they did not have something that could be considered a blunt weapon and the action performed could be considered ''smashing'', the skill would not activate. "Hmmm. Then, I can have it, right?" "Sure. if you want." He didn''t think he was going to use weapons now that he had picked up magic. A Blunt weapon was a different thing altogether. The skill was better for someone who was accustomed to physical movements so he didn''t mind if she had it. "Thanks~." She seemed happy to have that simple skill. And he was happy to see her smile as well. Besides¡­ [Ding.] S~ea??h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [Level up!] [(Level-14) > (Level-21.] Thanks to all the Exp from defeating the monster that he received alone, his level had shot up considerably. The Level increase was pretty unbelievable, but they had just taken down a (Level-35) field boss. The increased Exp that he alone obtained obviously was no joke. He was happy with this much already, but they even received an achievement in the process. [Hunter Duo (Common) has been achieved!] They both receive the matching achievement for taking down a field boss of ten or more levels higher than them by themselves. It was the first common achievement both of them had received and though it was only a common achievement, it was a big thing for the two of them. "Alright. I''m fine now." As he got up after finally getting back to a good enough condition, he had a happy smile on his face. She was happy to receive another skill while he was happy with his level up. He was a little stronger now, and now that both of them were of the same level, they can finally share the Exp equally between themselves. "Though¡­" Since a while back, Elio knew that he had been forgetting something important. Something very important¡­ He knew the thing was very important but he could not put his finger on it. "Is that Az?" "Right! Az! Where is Az?!" Thanks to her sudden confused voice though, he finally remembered how they had not seen Az even once ever since they sent it away to distract the Hob at the beginning of the battle. "There¡­" A sudden worry had overwhelmed him when the thought of something happening crossed his mind, but Alex just pointed at the distant entrance of the cave from where the Red Hob had walked out from. "Why does it look in such a hurry though?" Elio was a little relieved to see his little friend alive and fine but Alex was surprised by how Az was hurriedly jumping towards them. It seemed like it was running towards them¡­ or, perhaps, running away from something entirely different. Chapter 34: The cave They were surprised for a moment and from how the little slime was running at them, it seemed like someone or something was chasing it."Muuuu! Muuuuu!" Thankfully that was not the case. "Az! Where were you?!" Elio was worried how it was coming out of the cave and looked worried. He could tell something was up just from that, but before he asked it for what was going on, he checked if the little one was hurt or anything. He checked its status window, then picked it up when it reached them after jumping while ''screaming'' and checked it around. Thankfully there was nothing that he needed to worry about so he finished his check up and looked at the slime with a worried expression. "What''s going on, Az? Did something happen?" "Muuuu! Muuuu!" The slime was shouting, trying to tell them something. And though they could not understand what it was saying, as the master of the slime, Elio could guess what it might be trying to tell them. "The cave? You want us to go into that cave?" "Muuuu!" S§×arch* The novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The slime wanted them to go inside¡­ they never told it what to do after it distracted the creature so they thought it would just find a safe space or come back to Elio. But that did not happen. The slime just disappeared and they forgot about it in the moment¡­ which was not something he was proud of as its master. "Alright. Then, let''s go see¡­" They were wrapping things up anyway and were going to go check inside the cave for anything that might have been left behind by the players that came to fight the Hob before them or something else. "Muuuu!" Alex had already finished storing the giant body of the creature inside her inventory and cleared the area. Nature would clear the mess they had left behind this time, so they did not have to worry about the craters and the pool of blood that was left behind. It was a natural fertilizer¡­ but not all blood from the creatures was the same. "Did it find some injured creature inside?" Alex speculated the little slime might have found some injured creature that the Hob might have been saving for later. This specific slime was special and different from the other intelligent slimes and possessed a unique skill called {Emotions} so it might very well be worried about something that was inside. "If that''s the case¡­" And if there was some injured being in there, Elio couldn''t leave it alone. It needed help, and since they had the means to help it, they did not waste any more time, and ran straight to the cave. "Muuuu!" This cave was made on a cliff that was covered on three sides, so they always thought it would be a small place with enough room inside for one creature. The boss monsters and field bosses were cursed existence that somehow repeated the same kind of life they had lived previously as if to be trapped in a time loop, so the hunters and players must have already searched the place. "It''s unexpectedly spacious¡­" They did not think the place inside would be so large. There was enough space for more than one of the Hobs to fit. It was practically like a large cave from inside. Though, it was still a closed off space with walls or a boundary on all sides. "Muuu! Muuu!" Or so they thought as well. "Muuuuu!" "You want us to go that way?" Az was pointing them somewhere, but they were reluctant to move to that place. "Are you sure little one?" Even Alex did not want to go towards that place. "Muuuuu!" This place used to be the house of a field boss, a Red Hob, a creature that mostly ate meat. It hunted creatures and ate nearly everything that had meat. The rest of the materials from its prey? The Hob threw it all away in a corner and left it there to rot in a pit it had dug. "Guess we have no choice then." It was a creature that had become adapted to the contaminated air and the reason it had such a strong stench to it was also because of the trash which had ultimately become a pool of poison. It was not harmful to the Hob or something that did not have the same kind of organ system as them, but they sure were vulnerable to that poisonous mess filled with bones, skin, and god knows what different kinds of other things. "El, cover your face with this." "Ah, yes." Alex gave him a small scarf that had a purification enchantment attached to it so that they don''t get affected by the contaminated air around that corner and followed Az''s direction. "I don''t think there''s anything here man¡­" Alex did not have any good feelings about this. They might very well be walking into some trap or something, but at the very least, through this experience, they would be able to evaluate just what kind of creature their little friend actually was. "Muuuu!" "You want us to go around it?" "Muuu!" "But there''s just another pile of trash there¡­" "Muuuu!" Elio couldn''t help it when the little creature was insisting so much. They just believed in it, and walked around the pool of the amalgamation of the bodily elements, and around a pile of bones and skin of various creatures situated right behind the pool¡­ unexpectedly, they saw a dull light. "What''s that?" "It is something, alright~!" This time, though Elio was confused once again , just seeing this unexpected light excited Alex. "Muuuu! Muuuu!" And from the looks of it, it seemed like the little slime was also pointing them towards that dull light. "It''s behind the pile of bones¡­" The pile of bones was big as well and there was also only enough specs for a small creature like Az to pass through them. The only way they could clear this mess up was through clearing the bones. And, Alex found this to be the perfect opportunity to test her newly obtained skill. "Back off a little please." She took out the sheathed White sword she had always carried around with her but never used until now, and held it by the handle. It was a strange white sword that seemed unusual. But at the same time, old and interesting. "Huuu¡­" He didn''t know the lore behind that sword just yet or why she did not use it all this time, but since even right now, she was only using it while it was still inside its sheath, he could not help but be curious about it. -Swish. Anyway, she jumped up in the air, used the wall as a support to jump up once again, and then, holding the sword with both her hands, she smashed down with the sword. -Swiiiiiiish! -Booooooooom! She made sure to precisely aim for the ground in a way that it would not destroy this part of the cave or disturb the pool of mess that was on the ground. This was not something someone without experience could have pulled off, but she was a master. "Hmmm. This is unexpected¡­" Her attack cleared up the entire area and the bones were either thrown away into the pool of mess, or were all pushed back from the source of the blue dull light that they were seeing. "Muuuuu!" Az got excited seeing the cleared up space and jumped off from Elio''s arms. "What is it, Alex?" He couldn''t see what that light present inside a small cave was, so he also walked ahead at where she was standing and where Az had jumped off too¡­ and, he was surprised to see the scene before him as well. Chapter 35: Crystal gecko "Is that¡­""It sure is." "But, how¡­?" What they were seeing before them right now could be described as a¡­ crystal. "Dunno how it got here but, it should not be here. That much I know for sure." This crystal that they were seeing before them was a precious Being. It was not some Mana gem that would be sold for hundreds of silver or even in gold. And it was not some rare kind of material that they could use to create some special item. "Muuuu! Muuuu!" It was a creature. A small creature made of crystals. "Do you know them, Az?" "Muuu~! Muuu!" Az seemed to be familiar with them. Elio could almost tell how the slime wanted to tell him the little creature was in fact its friend. "It seems to be suffering." "This environment is obviously not something their kind could survive in¡­ but then again, just the fact that they are above the surface is a concerning matter." Resembling a reptilian beast with a body made completely out of crystals that contained condensed Mana, a small lizard-like creature only a size of their palm lay in the small, Clean hole. Its light that should be brighter than what it was right now was fluctuating, indicating the danger the creature was in. "We have to get it out of there first-." "Don''t be stupid." A unique Mana-beast and creature found only deep within some special underground dungeons¨C [Crystal gecko]. A beast that possessed condensed Mana inside of its body, something that Humans who weren''t that sensitive to Mana mostly failed to understand the seriousness of. "You touch that creature and you will get (Mana poisoning). You might die within minutes if the Mana inside of you goes berserk." In general, they weren''t aggressive or harmful beasts. But their mere constitution that was deadly to any ''weak'' being not possessing Mana circulating powers, or someone with ''weak'' Mana circulating powers made them a kind that the players did not get involved with when they were inside of a dungeon. Outside the dungeon, these creatures were only seen as accessories and materials since most of the time, they were dead when found outside of their natural habitat. But that was not the case with this one. "We can''t just leave it like that though! Don''t you see it''s in pain?!" He was worried about the creature while his own life would be on the line by merely getting in contact with it. "You dumbass¡­" She could see the creature was suffering, and she could also see the chances of it surviving were pretty low. If they were just a little late, this creature would be dead already and the only thing they would be seeing instead of a creature, would be Materialized Mana crystals that appear after these creatures die. There was no way to save it in the first place since they did not know what was up with this creature, so there was no need to risk their lives. Death penalty was an entirely natural day in so, not being able to log in for three days after experiencing this amazing world was just¡­ bad. "You can stay away if you want." He didn''t wait for anything else and picked up the little creature in his palms. "Muuuu!" Az was fine on its own so it jumped ahead of them and the three, along with a fourth one, left the cave and walked a little away from the area where they had fought with the giant creature. "Ughhh¡­" He had just experienced and survived a near death experience caused by his excessive Mana usage with his inexperienced body, so at least by the time they reached outside and found a place to place the creature down, he was able to endure the pain caused by the dimming Mana of the gecko. "Haaa¡­ try wasting the excess Mana with some spells. It should help." The status abnormality people with Mana get from getting in contact with this creature made their Mana gathering rate abnormally higher. The excess Mana that one accumulates in their body might result in a dangerous condition called (Mana overdrive) and the kind of pain this condition brings¨C before it makes the physical body of the players or natives explode¨C was widely infamous. -Oooooooooong! Thankfully, he did not fall to that state and was able to calm down the poisoning debuff with some Very expensive potions and her help. But, the risk had not ended yet. "What can we even do for it, El?" The creature was still suffering¡­ and to her demise, this little lizard was abnormally attractive. "..." Elio was not some altruistic saint but he was just crazy for pretty things and the things that he somehow found attractive. She knew how obsessed he was with the things that caught his attention. And just looking at the sad look he had as he looked at the suffering creature, she knew he would be heartbroken when he understands there are some things that they just could not do anything about. "We at least have to do something, right?!" He was getting angry, but that was just his helplessness shouting. "What do you wanna do then?" He was in a position where she knew her words would not reach him. That''s why she just wanted to let him go through this experience. S§×arch* The N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "..." He knew about these creatures and he knew they weren''t the same as physical creatures. Potions were not going to work on them. The spells were out of question as well since the thing happening with them was not related to debuffs but an actual Physical condition. -Ooooooooooong! He did not know what to do in that situation, but at least, he had to try something. So, he used the item on his waist, the healing skill that had helped Alex a while ago. "Elio¡­" It was a healing skill that healed wounds. Not something that cured physical abnormalities¡­ only a (tier-3) or higher level Grace spell that cleanses physical conditions could do it¡­ or a skill with the same effects. "It''s not working. Why is it not working?!" He tried using his magic, and he emptied both his energy and Mana to help the creature, but there was no effect. The sun was setting down on the horizon and the light of the creature was getting dimmer and dimmer. "This¡­ is not working either¡­" As time passed, the look on him darkened so much that it became her first time seeing him in this kind of condition. It¡­ seemed like he would break at any moment now. "Why do you want to save it so badly? Even if you save it, you know you cannot keep it, right?" The creature itself was nothing like some endangered species. Players kill them with different tactics to get the special Mana crystals that appear after they die. She herself had killed countless of its kind. This one was just a baby as well so what they could get from it wasn''t much. There was no reason for her to save it just because he wanted it. And besides¡­ he needed to learn some lessons before they move out of this starter town. "...Az found it." He looked up at her, knowing full well she was deliberately holding back even though she could help the creature. "Az said the gecko is its friend¡­ so¡­ wouldn''t it be sad if its friend dies?" "..." She wanted to curse at him for saying that kind of stupid nonsense. ''A slime will be sad?'' What the hell kind of statement even was that? They were talking about the lowliest kind of creatures of this world! "Muu¡­" She looked at the little slime that was looking at the creature without moving. It seemed to be concerned- even though it was a slime- and though she wanted to believe it was just her imagination- she could somehow also tell the little creature would be sad if the gecko dies. "What the fudge¡­" The sad, broken look he had and the sad, broken look Az might have would directly be due to her inactions. "Haaa¡­" She could not help it. He was on the verge of crying now. "You owe me, Elio." The way to treat this one required a special kind of magic scroll, which she did not have. So, instead, she had no choice but to use one that might have been useful for a more meaningful task. "...wait. Why are you taking that one out?" Unlike the other scrolls that were mostly only skin or brown colored parchment papers, this one was a metallic golden plate with not magic scrolls, but inscriptions carved on it. "Use this." Elio was shocked just seeing this thing in her hands right now. But, she was telling him to use something like that in this situation¡­ which, even to someone who desperately wanted to save the little creature, was an absurd suggestion. Chapter 36: Spell tome If the magic scrolls are items that the regular players only keep to use in the emergencies, there were some unique items like the scrolls that the guilds or bigger player groups used in times of necessity.These items contained powerful spells or could do things that the players normally cannot, and the thing that she handed him was one of those unique things. "It has a (tier-5) Grace spell of light and water attribute, (Pearl Cleanse). We can use it three times a month, so¡­ don''t ask for something like this again." A spell tome- an object that has a certain kind of powerful spell engraved on it which could be used multiple times. Though, they weren''t items that one could find just anywhere. "Alex¡­" Any spell above the (tier-4) was considered a high-level spell. And, since the tomes were scarce items that were used to contain powerful spells, they were mostly only used to store destructive spells or barrier spells or restrictive spells. One cannot find many of these tomes containing a healing spell, specifically one that cleansed physical ailments was a near impossible thing even in this age. "Thanks." He knew as a special high level player who had traveled one of the most among the existing players of this world, she possessed things that not even some of the rankers knew the existence of. She was just a logical person that did not see the worth of helping a creature like this one, and yet she was giving a precious item to him. "Huuuu¡­" He was grateful for her help. Their relationship and this game had nothing to do with each other so it was perfectly fine that she wanted to keep her things to herself. But, she was helping him for his stubborn and dumb request. "Muuuu!" And he was thankful for that. -Ooooooooooooong! He used his Aura to activate the item, and since his Aura was only needed for activation, he did not die of excessive Mana drain. He was still a beginner and did not know much about magic just yet, so he did not have even a fourth of Mana required to cast a spell of this level. If he had tried to use something like this while he was still far from being strong enough, he would have died instantly. But since spell tomes gathered the required Mana for the spell''s activation from their surroundings, anyone who could activate it could use these objects. -Oooooooooooooong! When activated, the verses on the spell tome lit up first, and after each of the words in that unknown language were glowing with the arcanian light, the tome itself started glowing up as Mana from all over its surrounding started being sucked towards it. -Zaaaaaa! A magic circle unlike anything Elio had seen in the book they studied a while ago materialized on top of the spell tome¡­ "Aim the spell right!" He had to hold the time with both his hands because of how it was vibrating. His grip on the tome was almost the same as the grip of someone hanging by the last thread of hope. -Ooooooooooong! He had aimed the magic at the little creature and though suffering, the creature''s open eyes could see how this person, this unknown being was doing something with that strange object. The creature did not know what was going on here, but¡­ it did not have any strength to even move, much less do something to avoid what was going on here. "Now!" The spell circle that finally materialized was three times the size of the magic circles that Elio had used until now. It was even bigger than the spell circles that appear after using the magic scrolls. -ZAAAAAA¡­! Even for a (tier-5) spell, the spell that they were seeing was more complex and detailed¨C and there was something ancient to it. Something that the magic of today could not compare to. "Muuuuuuuuu!" The spell that was created somehow produced a condensed fluid in the air right before the creature on the ground, and¡­ when the golden drop that resembled the mythic heavenly elixir touched the now nearly lightless body of the gecko, a new golden light exploded! -OOOOOOOOOONG! -SWIIIIIIISH¡­! Winds started blowing from all directions with them in the center but they did not touch them, for some reason. The lightless creature that seemed to be on the verge of death slowly regained its light, and the blue light inside of it started growing brighter! The golden light that had exploded had illuminated a large part of the forest around them. And in the evening of twilight, this golden light seemed like the second sun to the creatures of nature. "SHCEEEEEEE!" -Thudam! Thudam! Thudam! Surely there was a distress all around the forest with some creatures running away from the sudden light, afraid of its mere existence. While some nocturnal creatures that were just becoming active were somehow attracted to this strange light. -Ooooooooong¡­ S~ea??h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. However, at the end, the creatures could not find the source of this light since it only lasted for a few moments before disappearing completely, leaving the four of them¡­ as well as the small crystal gecko that had regained all its light¨C and had obtained golden spots all over its body in addition. "Miu?" The creature did not know what had just happened, however, it could surely open its eyes once again. "Miu!" It did not feel the pain that had overwhelmed it just a moment ago, and now it was suddenly feeling all better. Additionally, it strangely also felt something new that it had never felt before. But, it was still unknown to it. "Muuuuuuuu!" Seeing the now fine creature, Az jumped up excitedly and reached the little gecko. It seemed happy to see the little creature with that bright smile. "Miu!" And, somehow, the gecko was also excited to see the little slime. "Miu!" "Muuuu!" The smile on the gecko''s face had widened and become even more brighter after seeing Az. And, as Elio could feel, his familiar creature was the happiest he had ever seen it. "See?" The interaction of the two creatures was a special sight, even to someone who had been in this world for almost a decade now. "You were right." Alex could not help but sigh with a helpless smile on her face as she accepted the spell tome back from her partner. He was right this time as well. If she had let the little creature¨C Az''s little friend¨C just suffer and die like that, the slime that she liked so much must have been sad. She didn''t even know what might become of it if the sadness of losing its friend right before its eyes helplessly had stayed with it for long. Unlike Elio, the slime was not a human but a creature of nature. It might possess Emotions, but they were not as complex as what the humans did. It was merely a tamed beast, one that could also use Mana and magic so, there was no telling what it might have ended up doing had it lost its friend because of her inactions. "Muuuu~." "Miu!" Well, things turned out well at the end. And now the two friends were happily greeting one another. "Anyway, what are those golden dots?" Now, if she could only get the answer to that, she would be able to go back to the town with a peaceful mind. Chapter 37: Commotion in the town [You have succeeded in helping a helpless creature in a dire situation! Rewarding Exp!][You have successfully healed a Mana beast: Arun crystal Gecko from a deadly condition! Due to the title the beast will look up to you favorably!] [For dealing with a crisis within your family and seeing the situation through to a positive end, a title effect will be added to the .] [Ding!] ============ Effect 1: Increased familiarity with tamable beasts. Effect 2: Tamed creatures and friendly species will be attracted to you. Effect 3: The title will grow with the user. Additional effect #1: Every time you save a tamed beast from a dire situation, three stat points will be distributed randomly. ============ "I didn''t even do anything¡­" Elio was a little sad to see these rewards when he had not done anything here in the first place. And just like him, Alex was feeling a little guilty after receiving rewards that she did not deserve. "I got another common achievement, and the free Exp pushed me to (Level-22)." She did not want to help this little creature, but now that things had turned out like this, she was at least happy to see the brightly shining creature. "It is almost night, so it seems like we will have to go see the guard captain first before we have dinner." "I''m starving already¡­" She did not understand it before, but after using an appraisal scroll on the creature and searching through her personal [Data gallery] she finally found out the reason there were those golden dots present all over the gecko. "First a Mana slime and now a mutant. You should just become a tamer at this point instead of a mage or some kind of artist." "Miu!" "Muuuu~!" They were preparing to go back to the town now and the crystal gecko that they had saved was going to accompany them¡­ though, since the light it produced attracted a lot of attention, the gecko would be traveling inside of its friend, the slime. "Haha, I don''t want to be anything specific anyway. The class will just get in the way." In the first place, he was happy with how things were right now. He did not want anything more, or anything more complicated. "Haaa¡­" Since the slime itself was a translucent Mana creature, the light from the gecko did not get out of the slime. The small creature inside of the smaller creature seemed just like a normal gecko. And, since the gecko was also a Mana creature that was essentially also made of crystals, it did not need to breathe or eat like they did. "Miu!" Since it was inside of Az, they could carry both of them around and there was no threat of Mana poisoning. And since the creature was a mutant, a special one among its kind, it was also pretty intelligent. "I guess you don''t know where your home is then, hun?" Somehow, after the creature was back to normal, it had started acting friendly towards him. It wasn''t just because Elio had saved it, but it seemed like the gecko had been excited to meet him since a while ago. It was smart and, after he received the messages about the addition of a new effect to his title, he also received notification about how this little creature wanted to be ''friends'' with him. System obviously classified it as him taming the creature, but Elio knew this was a little more than that. "Muuuu!" Now, both the little creatures were excited to go back and Az seemed to be looking forward to showing his friend the new things outside of this forest, or the messy trash place where they had found it. "Shall we?" They were too deep inside the forest now, and it would have taken them half a day to get back to the town. Which was not a good idea when the sun was down. "Yes." So, they were going to use a return scroll to the town. "Let''s go, you two." Elio picked up his two friends in one hand while wrapping his other hand around his partner''s waist as he kissed her neck. "...?!" Which was of course out of the blue, and Not something she was expecting. "Thanks." But from that soft voice, and that hand around her, she understood the sincerity this boy of hers wanted to convey. "As I said, you owe me one now." -Oooooooooooong! She used a group return scroll and the four of them vanished from the forest¨C reappearing all the way into the center of the town, in the main plaza where Elio had appeared when he first arrived in this town. "Let''s go quickly see that guard captain. I''m starving~." She was tired after all that they did today and wanted to have a nice long sleep with her beloved, however¡­ "Hmm? What''s happening here?" When they appeared in the plaza, they did not find the kind of public that they usually do. In the distance, even the stalls seemed to be empty for some reason. Many of the stalls even seemed to be completely empty¨C as if they were sold out already. "Did something happen?" There was an eerie quietness in the atmosphere around them¡­ but at the same time, they could hear the distant murmurs of a large crowd. "Let''s go." Alex knew the feeling they had right now. As a veteran player, she recognized this quietness, these distant noises, this familiar sight of empty plaza at such an hour. She knew instantly what might be happening and where they needed to be, so she grabbed his hand and ran straight towards the town hall, the main building of any town of any state structure of this world. "Yes, I know!" "I was in the mages tower at that time!" "The mages there suddenly acted like that dude! I was buying some stuff and the mage suddenly screamed on my face!" "Did you hear? They say there are some kind of strange movements in the forest now." "I knew it¡­ I knew it! This is all because of that nightmare! I knew it was real!" S§×arch* The Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. When they reached the town hall, the majority of the players of this town had gathered here. The guards were here as well and along with them, the few knights present in the city, along with the experienced mages who could use (tier-3) and even (tier-4) spells, along with the important people of various organizations, and even the most important person in this entire town¨C the mayor. "Well, wow¡­" The two of them had only come here to look for the guard captain, but now that they were seeing this sight¡­ they knew something even more interesting than a simple question was going to unfold here. "What''s going on here¡­?" But Elio was still confused right now. He did not know what was happening and aside from knowing this was a precursor to a Town-level quest, he certainly was oblivious to everything going on in this plaza. { "Foreigners and protectors of Moongold." } The others did not know exactly what was going on either, but now that the highest authority of this town, the mayor himself had spoken up¡­ they knew they were going to find out what was going on soon. Chapter 38: Town quest { "Some happenings in the great forest had been concerning us for a few days now, however, despite our investigations, we had not found anything that could threaten the safety and integrity of our Moongold." }The town mayor, Roland Lan Hunter, was around a forty year old man that had a sharp face, a thick mustache and among all the people present in this plaza, only he was dressed like a proper high standing person. His appearance was distinct from the other natives of this world, it was Elio''s first time seeing someone as unique as him ever since he came here. { "The rumors of a ''nightmare'' being present in the forest was but a rumor, and the individuals that caused trouble for the other foreigners will be investigated as we find more concrete evidence of their alleged actions." } His hair was blue, even his mustache was. His eyes on the other hand were deep green¡­ the people could see a unique faint glow inside them as well but, they did not think much of it. Just the way he was dressed made him seem intimidating and since all the individuals present here knew about his status, they could not help but look up to the person chosen by the great lord that governs this entire northwestern lands of the great kingdom this town was ultimately part of. { "However, we face a greater threat today and I want all of you to hear us out in this grave time of urgency." } There was a unique seriousness in his eyes, and even though Alex and Elio had just arrived here, both of them could guess what all of this was about. "They are talking about a light." "I think you''re thinking the same thing as me." Elio didn''t need many details to know the light that alerted the mages of the magic tower coming from the forest was in fact the same light that was sparked when they used the spell tome to heal the little gecko. "Then¡­ is this because of us?" He looked up at the Mayor, the highest authority of this town that possessed greater charisma than anyone else in this plaza. He was a simple human, not a mage or a knight, and yet the kind of aura that this person had stood out even when the strong knights and mages of the magic tower were all present in the same plaza as them. "I¡­ don''t think that''s all." Alex was thinking about a certain thing since earlier¡­ "You see how they are talking about this ''nightmare'' thing?" Elio looked at her while the Mayor had paused to take a look at the people who had gathered at his urgent notice. There was a certain confusion on her face, a kind of expression that was confused about something deeper than what met to one''s eyes. "You mean¡­ you''re not the nightmare they have been talking about?" "Um-hun." She was confused how even though she only beat up a few people, there was so much commotion happening about some kind of nightmare being present in the hunting forest. It was the biggest hunting area of this town so even though she had wiped out every single kind of creature of this forest at least once in her half a month she had been here, she did not engage with the other people much. The most she had done was to teach a lesson to the thugs that she sent to the prison, and deal with a bunch of nobodies that would not have such a profound impact on a town as great as this one. Her actions had always been calculated so she would not be the center of a rumor as widespread as this one. So¡­ Something else was definitely the cause of these rumors. And, this same something must also be the reason why a field boss that should always be fighting with the players had been living such a lax life, or why a creature as unique as their new gecko friend was suffering inside the cave of a dirty Hob. "Let''s see¡­" This whole situation was unexpected as well since just a bright light inside the forest that one could not say for certain belonged to a (tier-5) unique magic of a lost civilization, would not attract this much attention from the mages. And, ultimately, as she knew, the mayor of this town was one of the most qualified people in the northwest. He would not gather almost all the players and just the most elite forces available in the town for something as simple as a bright light of an unknown origin or a or, for some rumored nightmare''s investigation. "He should explain the situation now." With a complicated look, she looked up at the mayor and, though worried about his new friend, he also focused on the Mayor. However¡­ what the mayor revealed next shocked not just him or her, but to nearly all players currently present in this plaza. { "We have confirmed that a dungeon of our territory- the Deep Cave of Arrbo, has fallen into the hands of a dark magician." } "...what?" "Hun?" "Hunnn???" "A Dark magician?!" "Wait!? What?!" This new revelation came as the most unexpected news to the new players who had just joined this game or had always been a resident of this town. "It all makes sense now¡­" Alex joined the pieces together from that simple piece of information and knew exactly what was going on right now, as well as how their simple time in this town was going to become a little more exciting than what she had expected. S§×arch* The nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. { "It is shocking news, I understand as well. However, some of our bravest and most talented friends lost their lives to confirm this information. And I do not want their sacrifice to be in vain." } As all players familiar with the world of knew¡­ as every single person who knew about the [Six Main scenarios] knew, the name ''Dark'' magician was not something as simple as someone who used dark magic. The dark magicians of this world were the same as what one would understand as ''Demons'' of the underworld. They were entities far beyond the simple mages, and were worshipers of evil beings¨C not demons, but evil beings who had nothing but evil in them. { "Additionally, the mages of magic tower unanimously sensed a great explosion of dark magic in the northern part of the forest." } The northern part was completely on the opposite side from where the two of them had been when they used the magic tome to cure the gecko. { "And just now¡­ we confirmed that the dark mage would soon initiate an assault on Our Moongold!" } There was a great anger in the calm eyes of the Mayor that every player present in the vicinity could feel right on their skins. "This is unexpected¡­" But this very situation sent a smirk on Her face. { "Thus¡­ I ask for your great help, foreigners." } [Ding!] There were many types of quests in but the one that she liked the most was not where one had to fight a strong opponent. No¡­ There were many strong opponents present in this world already that were beyond anyone''s imagination. And she was well familiar with them. [A unique Regional-quest has been issued!] She had already fought many unfathomable creatures and ones that she could not defeat even with her strength. So she was not interested in them that much. "Alex?" What interested her, though, were the large-scale quests that had a boss monster that one needed a large group of people or an army to take care of¡­ "Looks like we will have to finish the dinner quickly, El darling." She loved these kinds of quests. And, she loved doing crazy things during these already crazy kinds of event quests. Chapter 39: The dark mages ============[Regional Quest: ] : Town Mayor of the Moongold town, Roland Lan Hunter has confirmed the presence of a dark magician, a worshiper of evil, in the surrounding great forest. Many talented individuals sacrificed their lives to bring the existence of evil to light and later this evening, the Mayor confirmed that the dark magician had raised an army of dark creatures in the dungeon: Deep Cave of Arrbo. As a threat to humanity and all creations of nature, the dark magicians are the cancer of this world. Their forces had once succeeded in taking over the world however, with the great efforts of the heroes of this world- The Guardians, their adavent was stopped in its wake. However, remnants of their forces still exist throughout the world and one has appeared in the Moongold town. Objective: Help Town Mayor Roland Lan Hunter in the subjugation of the Dark magician''s hideout. Reward: Achievement [Defenders of the town (Common)], Increased familiarity with Town Mayor depending on the contribution. (Additional rewards will be given based on the Quest contribution.) Failure conditions: 1) Death of Town Mayor. 2) Fall of Moongold town. 3) If any of the Dark Mage''s minions successfully kill a certain Important individual, the quest will be considered a failure. ============ "What do they mean by a certain ''important'' individual?" Elio ate his dinner with a calm expression- in the real world- as he looked at his partner for any kind of reply. However, she was busy surfing through the community database for the answer to the very question he was asking her. "I have six candidates in mind for now." She was eating her finely made dish- which was made with some kind of gravy and some kind of meat base that Elio did not understand at all- with one hand with a spork instead of proper utensils while surfing through the three hologram screens before her. The bracelet-like device that she was wearing was glowing as it produced these floating windows and even though it seemed pretty unbelievable, the way she was going through such information at such speed, was just another normal sight to her partner. "This important person might just be Mayor, obviously. And if not him, it could be either his wife or his daughter. The quest specified it''s only a single individual so we should believe that it''s only one person for now. If not them, it could be the Librarian of the great library, but I don''t think that person will bother with a single dark mage when he has the history of slaying entire legions of those bastards. Aside from all of them, the prime candidates that might be the person specified in this quest would be either someone visibly completely unrelated to the quest that might somehow affect the [Grand Flow] of this world in a twisted way, or it could be someone that is closely connected to this whole incident." With her research on the Moongold town, she had confirmed that throughout history, there had never been any incident like this where a single dark mage would have aimed for this rather simple town. The only attractive thing in this town was the great library and even that place wasn''t as attractive to those crazy bastards as the greater lads even closer to nature. The dark mages by nature were bad people that were considered one of the main antagonistic forces of this world and one of the forces that had been the central theme of the Third Main Scenario. They followed evil and though they came from all walks of life and had all kinds of various powers, in a simpler manner, they were individuals who had gained powers from the evil after giving their entire existence to their great cause¨C the ultimate destruction of this nature. Though they were once simple mortal beings that lived common lives in their societies and cultures, after becoming a Dark Magician and falling to the darkness, they gained the power of Darkness¡ª something far different and far more evil than the pure element of darkness. "The Merchant who sells fabric on the third street, the vegetable shop owner that has a stall in the central street left to the central plaza, the guard captain, a mage named Lox, A certain silver cat that people have spotted around the back allies of the west side, and lastly¨C the oldest player who has been in this town, ID: Aloha." According to her, these six people were the ones who somehow were the ''Important'' individuals mentioned in the quest. And she surely had her reasons to believe why they would be so important that the system would consider one of their deaths as serious as a failure condition to a Regional quest. "Hmmm¡­ well, we are already deep into this anyway so avoiding this is not an option anymore." "No shit man. Who knew the guard captain would ask us to join the guards'' reconnaissance unit with him." When the Mayor had finished announcing the quest and the players went haywire with excitement of the kind of amazing rewards the quest was offering. They went away to start preparing for going out and many even went out to call their guilds and groups. The mayor had suggested that they first gather information on the situation and select the individuals that will go to the dungeon and the ones who will guard the town gates so there was a festive atmosphere among the players. And in the middle of it all, a guard informed them that the guard captain was looking for them. "He was surprised by the sudden level increase. Who knew he might also guess the ones behind that light of the (tier-5) spell was in fact us?" S~ea??h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Nah nah. Don''t give him that much credit. He didn''t really know it, he was just asking us if it was us¡­ your expression gave it all away, hump." Ultimately, they would now have to pay a fine and meet with the mayor to give him a letter of apology as a formality, which wasn''t really good for a player in their position. They were a big reason behind the distress in the town so he wouldn''t be happy to meet the people who used a high level spell in such a small place. A (tier-5) spell that could produce such strong light would logically be a destructive spell and there was no creature, not even a field boss that could handle a destructive spell of that level in this area. He might have first logically suspected them to be connected with the dark mage, but thanks to the guard captain''s offer to join the recon team, they will have a presentable image to the mayor. "Still¡­ to think he would vouch for us after meeting us just once." "He seems to have high expectations of us even after all this." They did not know what the guard captain saw in them to go to such lengths for them, but thanks to him, they were now going to go ahead and check out the dungeon and the forces of the dark mage before the others. Elio found it pretty uncertain and also pretty concerning, but since Alex was so excited about all this, he was happy to observe her excited state, and the way she reacts when she is serious about something as well. Chapter 40: The Recon team Struck with the sudden news of the presence of the Dark mage, the entire town became worried and by the night time, everything had become dead quiet.The streets were empty, the lights all around the cheerful town were dim, there were no children playing around the town, and there were not even any people on the streets tonight. There were lights of the streets illuminating the now empty streets, some bars were still open but there was no noise around. The presence of a single dark mage was so great that an entire town had fallen quite even before the arrival of their forces. Sear?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. People were worried, there was a certain pressure in the air around the town, and even the players who were not interested in fighting were all hiding in their houses and inns. "We will depart shortly. Get ready, all of you." The town''s mage tower had sent their best mages, while the knights of the town had also gathered to take down the evil mage. A lot of people had gathered in the central plaza now, and various teams were preparing for their missions under the commands of the group captains. [{ "Since this is only a beginner town, I think the Dark mage will be higher than (Level-60) but not more than (Level-100)." }] [{ "But isn''t that too much already?" }] The Moongold town was bigger than many of the beginner towns, but the overall combat power of the town was still not that great. There were only around fifty mages from the mage''s tower that could fight in a battle like this one, there were only six proper knights that could use the power of (Aura) among the elites, and the guard captain was the only person here that was (Level-75), the highest level among the natives of the town. Even the knights were only around level sixty and though the Mayor was a capable person, he was also only around (Level-60). The guard captain was mainly in charge of keeping the city free of the thugs and bastards and dealing with the excess monsters, and since he was in charge of the other guards, he was also a good leader. "Hey¡­ the community forums¡­" "I saw that. And it makes a lot of sense, you know?" "The people in charge of these people have to do a good job. Elder Fin was worried about the town and his family." "This town has given us a lot already. We better protect them well." [{ "We should be able to deal with someone lower than (Level-100) with this much force. Besides, there might be many high level minions and dark creatures with that mage. We don''t know pretty much anything about their forces." }] [{ "I guess that''s why this Recon team is so important." }] In the entire town, aside from the head of the mages'' tower and the Librarian, only the guard captain was the one known to possess the highest level. Not even the knights that train their bodies to the limits or the experienced mages who can cast many (tier-3) magic spells effortlessly had a level as high as him. It was actually unusual since the upper level limits of the natives of a small place like this one was in the lower sixties. Meeting someone with such a higher level was a rare thing, and that uniqueness was one of the reasons she had counted the guard captain as one of the candidates for the important people. But that was not the only reason she had speculated him to be one of the important people candidates. "Who are they though¡­? I know the people in charge of the other five but, who are those two? How did they get so close to the guard captain?" "Shhhhh. Don''t you know her? She''s the one who beat up the Pus party." "They say the one with her is her boyfriend or something and they met the guard captain just yesterday for the first time¨C actually, I''ve heard that the boy with her was only a newbie (Level-13) just until yesterday." There were various leading groups or players that were now guarding the six people she had speculated to be the one mentioned in the quest. And most of these people were higher than (Level-35). Some were even members of big guilds and were higher than (Level-40). [{ "Recon is important. Information is a very important factor of this kind of quests." }] The average level of the player in this town or in any town was around (Level-30). People left for the cities when they reached around (Level-40) to get a class or to learn more about the things that they were interested in. The high level players who had not chosen the town as their starter town or had already registered some other place as their residential affiliation weren''t permitted in the beginner town so even if the (Achievement hoarders) wanted to get here, they were all restricted by the system. This was the quest for the beginner players of this town and the residents, so there was no need for outside interference. [{ "Let''s do our best on this Recon mission then~." }] [{ "Haha, of course." }] The oldest player that was here since the beginning of this game was the owner of the most famous salon of this town. A respected elder who spent most of her days doing what she liked. She surely was the only player in the town to be over (Level-100) but she did not fight. And she never wanted to either. Alex had her reasons to believe how her death might also affect the quest in some manner¨C but just like Elio, the other players did not understand it. She was a player at the end, and she would revive even if she died. There was no reason for a dark mage to aim for someone like her¨C but the viral community post that Alex had made explained her reasons in such a believable manner that even though there was no solid proof of her claims, the players had no other choice but to pay attention to it. "The Recon team will depart now! All members! Gather at the west gate!" There were various people now assigned to these people, and most of them were from influential parties or guilds or groups that the other players did not want to mess with. This was a quest and this was a chance for them to earn an achievement, extra rewards, favor of the Mayor, and even affection of the town folks. They could not miss this chance¡­ and even though many had their doubts, they did not mess with the girl and boy who were in the Recon team with the guard captain and a few other higher level players. All the players could tell the ones closest to the guard captain right now were the two of them, and they were also working closely with the natives. Many players did not like it, many from their group also were the same, but they couldn''t do anything about that anymore. The operation was starting now that the Recon team had departed¡­ and the mages could sense already, the evil was closing in. They had to get started now. Chapter 41: The night forest The forest at night.A forest filled with dangerous creatures. Filled with creepy night noises. Filled with predators of night that wait for their prey and hunt them with their unique powers. The great forest near the Moongold town was one of the places that people, even players, avoided at night since the main creatures that give good Exp were all mostly only daytime creatures. They avoided the night forest mainly because of the night and the presence of the dangerous creatures that were more adapted to the darkness than the players and the natives. Only a few people and players wandered through the forest at night and knew the paths that one needed to take to reach certain places. Alex was not one of them¨C she did not mind day or night as long as there was something to hunt in a hunting ground but still, she had only been here for a few weeks. She should not have known about the night paths that one needed to avoid the creatures of the night that would attack the players or the group at these hours. There was a certain kind of creature in this place called (Mantis bat), a nocturnal creature that especially enjoyed the human meat, but they were territorial creatures and did not come out of their houses even if they were driven out by the external forces. Unless one intruded into their areas, they were pretty useful creatures that the guards had used many times. They were experienced with this place, but even they did not know what might have happened to the forest after the dark mage''s intrusion. They were going to take it seriously and be careful with each of their movements. -Swissssssssh¡­ The Recon teams were divided into three parties with each party having no more than nine individuals. They needed to avoid the fights or any kind of external interaction as much as possible and since they were only the recon team that knew what they were doing here, they had to avoid the eyes of the minions of evil and the dark creatures that the mages could feel the presence of. They were going to be as covert and stealthy as possible, that was one of the reasons the guard captain had chosen not the high level players that were strong, but the relatively lower level players that knew how to move through the terrain. The main reason he recruited Alex was certainly because of how good and unique hse was with her strength control. If she could beat up people tens of levels higher than her and even had some way to possess items containing strong spells, she was indeed an invaluable key to the operation. And, though he had not thought there was anything special about Elio at first, the fact that he was carrying around a Mana slime during their first meeting and then a Mana beast during their second meeting certainly made him even more special than the girl he was with. Additionally, if the two of them were able to deal with the Red Hob as they had reported to them, he knew they were capable of much more than what he had expected. He wanted to give them some tasks to test them out, but this happened out of the blue and somehow, both of them were closely connected with this incident. [{ "Area 3A." }] [{ "Wait for team-3. Team-2 will wait in Area 3B." }] He was gambling by taking them on the recon mission, and he was gambling even more by taking responsibility for both of them¡­ he knew the chances of getting something in return were small, but that was just how gambles were. Sometimes you get something, sometimes you get something good, sometimes you get fucked over, and sometimes you hit a jackpot. [{ "Team-3. Arriving in area 3A." }] And his gamble this time had hit the jackpot. [{ "Reporting surveillance from Area 3B." }] The girl that he thought was merely a strong foreigner was in fact an experienced leader- one even better than someone like him who had decades of experience. She asked him if she could take charge of the teams all by herself and explained to him an unorthodox method that he was impressed by just listening to. She suggested that she would take the complete charge of the situation, take charge of all three teams, and assign one ''captain'' each team. These captains will relay her commands to the rest of the teams, and follow her instructions. They will do as she says, and she explained to him in detail how by doing the things that she was suggesting, by taking the paths that she was suggesting, and by following her instructions¨C they could avoid any manner of fighting and directly reach their target area for the surveillance. The way she assured him that they can do this without any kind of loss or any kind of casualties seemed like a joke to him at first, the kind of authoritative spirit she had, the kind of eyes she had and the kind of plan she had devised for the entire battle afterwards was¡­ well, he could only describe it as something unparalleled. Working with her the first time did not feel like he was working with some inexperienced newcomer who knew little about this world. This was one of those rare cases where he was seeing the eyes of a person who knew more truths about this world than he might ever be able to. The eyes are as bright as the guardians who had stopped the advance of these evil dark mages and much more in the past. [{ "The dungeon entrance is open, however it is a trap. It seems like the real dungeon entrance is hidden by a strong illusion barrier, and there are beasts surrounding the entire dungeon area, suggesting the possibility of an ambush. The footprints on the ground and the scratch marks on the tree suggest that they are beast type creatures with non-elemental skills. S§×arch* The N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The way they are set up in a triangular formation suggests they are expecting guests. And from how roughly the front ground has been cleared, it seems like there are bigger creatures with a little too much strength behind it. We should be ready to fight a pack of Hobs, or at the very least humanoid creatures like Green goblins that we find in the dungeon of Arrbo." }] They were using the party chat since it was a feature that the natives could use as well. And the one relaying all this information was Elio, not Alex. [{ "From the data we have, we know of a secret entrance to the northeast of the dungeon. There seems to be six beasts gathered in that area, so team-2 will distract them, team-1 will go there first and open the secret entrance, and then team-3 will join." }] The guard captain did not expect Alex to be such a great leader, but what he expected even less was how Elio, the one with two unique creatures, was in fact a very great observer and strategist. If it was thanks to Alex that they were able to work so organized despite being made up of individuals from various areas, it was thanks to Elio that they were able to avoid most of the undetectable traps of the dark mage. He had saved their life a few times already, but since they were finally at the dungeon, their main task was just starting now. Chapter 42: Dungeon Surveillance The deepest part of the dungeon that, from the knowledge of the players, was the home of the green goblins and one of the simplest humanoid creatures to deal with, was dark and damp, with rough, uneven walls.A musty odor born from the unhygienic and dirty diet of the goblins hung in the air, mingling with the scent of wet earth and stone. The dungeon was deep like a cave or a natural structure created over hundreds of years of natural process. The goblins dominated this place, but this was not their home. -Shrr. Shrr. Shrr. The green Gobs were creatures that though dirty and repulsive, were still one of the simplest and easiest creatures that the players could deal with a little bit of experience. They lived in big communities and were guided by the higher authority figures like the Red Gobs, or other kinds of unique goblins. But the ones that lived in this dungeon were trapped here like the field bosses and were doomed to rise anew every time they died. They were merely here for the player''s to farm them and get stronger. They could not take their bodies out but, when they kill the creatures, if they take some parts of the goblins and save them in their inventories, they could take them with them. -Swiiiiiiiiiish¡­ Generally, that was how the dungeon worked. [{ "Looks like we all made it." }] Green torches lined the walls of the inside, their eerie light casting flickering shadows. [{ "Good work until now, everyone." }] They had somehow made it inside from the secret gateway that some player had once found while playing around this dungeon and was relatively unknown to the general public. Only a handful of people knew about this secret passageway and Alex was one of them¨C though, to obtain this information, she had to spend twelve silver coins. Something she was going to get back as soon as she got her hands on the bastard information seller. [{ "We will recuperate first." }] Even though they used some unique tactic to get to the secret entrance, the disturbances that they made sure to keep to the minimum had caught the attention of the creatures. sea??h th§× N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. They avoided them and somehow reached their destination, but they knew they had alerted the new owner of this dungeon. [{ "No, we will keep moving." }] In the center of the cave was a large, dark magic circle etched into the ground, filled with glowing symbols and arcane words. The circle pulsed with a sinister energy, creating an unsettling atmosphere. Standing in the middle of the circle was a figure in a dark hooded cloak, surrounded by a swirling black aura. The hood hid the person''s face, adding to the mystery and fear they exuded. The aura seemed to absorb the torchlight, making the figure appear even more menacing. The cave was silent except for the occasional drip of water and the low hum of the magic circle. The air was thick with tension, hinting at dark and powerful magic at work. This was a place of shadows and dark secrets, with the hooded figure at its center radiating an ominous presence, and not far from them were the group which had just entered the territory of this being. [{ "We have to keep moving. We can rest all we want when we get out of here." }] They were a recon team, not a great advanced party that was planning to deal with the creatures of this dungeon. There might just be innumerable creatures present in this cave and she certainly did not want to engage in a battle that she could not win. The reason she had gathered so much information and formulated this complete strategy was to get the highest contribution in this whole thing, and it was not going to work if they messed up and started fighting a being as strong as a Dark magician with just a few of them. Elio wasn''t even going to fight so his presence made things even more complicated for her. [{ "Alright¡­ we shall move." }] The guard captain had decided to follow them and he was going to see it through. Her suggestion this time made sense to him this time as well. [{ "Let us divide in triangle formation. Gather back here in exactly twelve minutes." }] [{ "Yes." }] If she was here to actually see what they were going to face, the guard captain was here to fulfill his duties as the head of the guards- the protectors of the normal citizens of the town. However, different from both of them, Elio was here for a completely unique reason. "Muuuu¡­" "Miu¡­" From what they understood, the only possible habitat for the crystal geckos around this town was this dungeon. There was no other place where these creatures could be from except some unknown area that was not discovered in nearly the decade the players had been coming to this world. But chances of that were small, and the dungeon was the prime location so¡­ Elio was here to find his new little friend''s parents. That was one of the reasons he had asked her to divide everyone in a triangle formation. Since by doing only this, could he go on along with her and the guard captain to the place where the little creature used to live. [{ "I swear I''m going to break up with you if you keep doing these crazy things. This guard captain will kill us before we find the gecko''s house if he finds out we are playing him, ughh." }] All things on one side, since the little gecko could also tell this place was somewhat familiar, it seemed like they were in the right place. [{ "I''m always thankful for everything you do for me. It''s always cute." }] She wanted to beat him up for being so stubborn and so crazy with the things that did not need to be anything complicated. The little Gecko was young and it must also have parents somewhere in this dungeon. Their kinds lived in families and groups so it was always strange how a single creature was inside the cave where a strong creature like the Hob lived. [{ "For fuck''s sake at least¡­ don''t call it cute." }] They managed to get this far even with the dislike of the other higher leveled players in this group since she showed how dignified and capable she was¨C and here he was, calling her cute. The only reason the players did not complain and just continued following what she was saying was because the guard captain was following it. He was doing what she suggested throughout the way here and even right now, he was with the two of them as they walked towards the path that the little gecko was showing¡­ If he was gambling on the two of them, the two of them were gambling their life here just so Elio could help the little creature get back with his family. They did not know where they were going or if they would find anything there either¡­ but somehow, their gamble succeeded. [{ "Oh¡­ lord." }] By following the lead of the gecko and passing through strange small tunnels in the cave, they reached a place that was somehow pretty high up in the ceiling. A small opening that was just as big as a window. [{ "The dark mage¡­" }] According to the gecko, this should have been the house where it used to live¡­ or at least some palace its instincts were taking it. They did not know what they were going to find at the end, but they had not thought they would see the main villain that they had to defeat. [{ "What¡­ is that?" }] And they most certainly did not expect to see a dark magic circle so sinister both Elio and Az who were sensitive to Magic and Mana, would freeze just by witnessing the scene before them. Chapter 43: The follower of evil The moment they reached the deepest part of the cave, from the high dark ceiling of the cave, they were looking down at the dark scene before them.The cloaked figure surrounded by the dark, murky aura was standing in the middle of a sinister looking magic circle, there was a dull purple pulsating energy oozing out of this magic circle, and just by looking at it, one could tell it was not something natural. [{ "It''s a summoning circle." }] Alex had seen these kind of magic circles so it was not difficult for her to identify them. She knew instantly as she saw it that the star that was enclosed in a circle in fact belonged to the Unique series of magic, one that did not run on elements but purely on the power of the evil that was used by the Dark mage. [{ "But¡­ how did he make it in this dungeon?" }] Alex had fought these bastards in the great war a few years ago so she knew that they needed a lot of resources in order to create these magic circles. These creations were essentially what gave them power and what summoned the minions that followed their orders. The summoning circle was also the core of many of their powers so if someone somehow deals with the core magic circle that is mostly hidden somewhere, they can deal a significant blow to the mages themselves. But¡­ Since one needed a great amount of Mana crystals or many sacrifices to create this kind of magic circle, a lot of mages shared the power from one magic circle and accepted the power from the evil they served through the connection of the summoning circle with the (Sealed world of beyond). [{ "I think I might know the answer to that." }] The guard captain was stunned by this discovery. Contrary to his suspicions, there was actually only one dark mage here. But, unlike what he had thought, the mage had succeeded in creating a magic circle that was now directly connected with the veil world. He was constantly accepting power from the other world and was summoning minions of darkness¨C short humanoid spirits that did not have a physical body, a creature that was a pain in the ass. Dealing with them was a very difficult task, so even the presence of a bunch of them was considered to be something dangerous. But from what they could see here, there were around a hundred of those minions alone in this cave, he wasn''t even counting the creatures that the mage might have dominated with the dark energy. It was common knowledge that the mages of evil were capable of various kinds of evil magic, and most of them were destructive. Even the weakest of them were as strong as a (tier-4) mage with decades of experience. The magic they used was different from the natural magic and was so dark that it corrupted nature wherever they used it. Normal people could not stand this magic, and if they anyhow get in contact with the area affected by these dark spells, the chances of them going Mad and succumbing to the dark power increases exponentially. Players were pretty resistant to the basic effects of the dark energy and the trained high level natives were as well so they needed to keep these agents of evil, as well as the dark beings connected to them away from the common people. [{ "The mage needs high concentrations of Mana to activate these magic circles. Or many sacrifices and soul energy." }] Elio was glaring at the magic circle. It wasn''t visible at the start since the whole damn thing was covered in dark murky evil energy but, if one looked close enough, they could see shards or fragments of shiny crystals that seemed to be disappearing as time passed. These crystals must be Mana crystals, and the creatures- the minions that were being produced by the magic circle- resembled reptilians for some reason as well. [{ "Oh¡­ damn¡­" }] It did not take Alex long to guess what guard captain might be hinting at or why Elio had such a grim expression. [{ "We know there used to be a Crystal Gecko habitat in this dungeon." }] Being Mana beasts, the unique Crystal geckos produced Mana crystals upon their deaths. The older they are, the more precious Mana crystal they produce will be. They did not have many combat capabilities and did not eat anything, living off on the natural Mana in the atmosphere their entire lives. Now¡­ why would a dark mage that might have chosen any place in this entire area, would choose a certain dungeon with mere goblins as his hideout? [{ "That bastard¡­" }] People avoided the crystal geckos but they also killed them many times. She had done so many times as well¡­ but massacring the creatures just so you could use their souls and materials left behind by their deaths to summon minions of evil and get stronger was something too wild even from her perspective. It was an act of evil, something that only someone like these crazy bastards would ever do¡­ "Miu¡­" But that was not the concern right now. [{ "I''m sorry¡­" }] He brought the little gecko here so that he could be back with his family, but now, from the looks of it, nothing remained of its family. This passage that the crystal geckoes might have used was now completely empty. They could not see anyone other than that dark mage in this cave, there was no light in this place either other than the dull light from the torches covering this area and the light from the magic circle. [{ "Elio¡­" }] sea??h th§× ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He was upset right now. But, his eyes were still fixed on the mage ever since earlier. They were watching him. Observing him, his actions, his movements, how he was moving his hands, how he was controlling the dark power, and what it was that he might have used to kill his little friend''s family. His eyes were fixed on him. They were not blinking. They were observing him closely¨C the dark mage was his observation target, and the two with him figured out what he might be up to right now after how he did not say anything for a while. They waited till he finished observing or at least gave up¡­ and the remaining time they had passed just like that. [{ "All teams will move out and disperse through the same routes. We will regroup in area 12A." }] Both the guard captain and Alex had to order the others to get out of the dungeon while they both gave him a few more minutes. Appraisal would not work on a target like that dark mage, and even if it did, the mage would detect their presence if they tried using magic scrolls instead of a skill. Thus, observation was the most useful way to get a basic idea of the strength of the opponent that they might be facing. Alex wasn''t very confident in her observation use, and the guard captain was the same. So, if he was trying it and she was believing in him, the guard captain waited as well. [{ "Got it¡­" }] And their faith in him was not betrayed as Elio, even with a drop of blood cascading down the corners of his eyes, succeeded in what he was doing. ============ [Dark mage: Summoner] (Level-99). ============ But the results that he obtained from his successful attempt were not something anyone, not even his partner was going to like. Chapter 44: Battle against the evil "Level-99?! That''s surely not possible¡­ right?!""And did you see?! They are saying the mage has over a hundred minions! This is absurd!" "The hell. Even minions should all be over level-60. How are we going to fight those things?!" The natives as well as the players were all panicking right now. The situation was not good. The powers of the mage that they had estimated was much, much greater. S~ea??h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. They would have to fight against a being that was practically more than fifty to sixty levels higher than them as well as a follower of evil¡­ a task that seemed visibly impossible from any logical or unrealistic point of view. "Everyone, calm down. The guard captain has confirmed it with his own eyes. We even have a legit screenshot!" There was proof of this fact so the things that people could say in opposition to this were very little. There wasn''t much that could change this fact and since there was no one else that had a better explanation to what they had gathered from their recon, this outcome just made sense to them. "In addition to the hundreds of minions, the dark mage also has an army of around three hundred dark beasts¡­ this is just absurd!" In addition to the information that the guard captain had brought directly, the other members of the recon team also brought crucial information from the dungeon that they had somehow managed to infiltrate. And the overall result of their search was not something anyone in the town, not even the mayor who was looking at the citizens and foreigners in that kind of panicked state could ignore. Presence of an enemy just a step away from (Level-100), a stage where one receives their first awakening and are recognised by the system for the great achievement, was not something any player could ignore. They surely could come back to life but it was not some instantaneous process. They had to wait for a long time- and entire day- to come back to life. Some of their equipment that they had on them would drop upon their deaths as well, and they would lose thirty percent of their current level''s Exp. For the newer player, this was not that great of a penalty since they could just take a break from the games and regain the lost Exp with hunting or with the things that they liked, for the players of higher level, death meant as worse of a fate as the real death. For the rankers who fought with their lives on the line every day to maintain their levels, and positions in the rankings, not being able to be in this world for three whole in-game days was the same as being thrown out of the rankings. They had to constantly farm and keep their status up, and for that, they would have to survive no matter the situation they are faced with. { "Please calm down, everyone." } Rankers who wanted to keep their rankings and reputations mostly avoided fights where the chances of loss were greater. None of them would even think about fighting an opponent that was fifty or sixty levels higher than them. Most certainly not the creatures who had also received their second or third enlightenment and were so powerful that they possessed enough power to destroy small towns like this with merely a slash of their hand, or with a sigh¡­ or with a single skill. The creatures that one faces after crossing hundred, or two hundred, or perhaps three hundred levels are on a completely different dimension than the creatures that the players of beginner town might ever face¨C but a Dark mage summoner of (Level-99) was the same as those unfathomable beasts to these new players. { "Though the situation is dire and we are facing a great threat right now, panicking does not resolve anything. Right now, what we need is not the concerns for what will happen, but the courage to face what we already know will be coming." } The Mayor was not losing any hope even in this situation. He was still just as resolute as he was when they all first saw him earlier. There was the same kind of light in his eyes as he did when he was telling them about the quest. The quest was just starting now. They had information on what was to come and they already knew the forces of the dark mage had left their stronghold so they were going to fight the dark creatures soon. -Ting! Ting! Ting! Bells throughout the town had started ringing already, announcing the arrival of the evil forces from all directions. { "The enemy is here already." } The evil was here and with it, the start of the quest was going to be marked. { "Though you all are outsiders that also value your life¡­ I ask you for your help once again." } [Ding.] The quest contents were updated and a new reward- (Coins in proportion to the contribution) was added to the whole of the quest window. Nothing much had changed aside from addition of the information that they knew already, so the players had something new to look forward to now. { "Please. Help us save the Moongold." } If push comes to shove, the Mayor would use his last resort and ask help from the mage tower master. He knew the librarian was not going to be pursued until half of the town was destroyed, so there was no need to waste his time with that old man. There were knights and the guard captain that he trusted the most here, and with the help of the players who possessed strong items beyond what even he knew about, there might be a chance to deal with this evil. He knew it was too much to ask help from the materialistic otherworlders who mostly only did something if there was something in it for them, so, he had no choice but to issue a reward that he would have to pay with his own money¡­ but he was fine with it. The finite lives of the citizens of his town were much more important to him than his wealth. He was ready to go bankrupt if it meant they could repel the evil that was aiming for their town. He had reported to the Viscount already, so his forces should be on their way now. If they could just hold on until they get here, there is also a good chance they will be able to resolve this crisis. He just had to be careful since he knew how materialistic the foreigners were. There was no telling when or how they would jump sides and start doing something¡­ evil themselves. Chapter 45: Mourning "We don''t know if they are alive or not in the first place.""..." "Dude? Are you really concerned about the parents of some creature that you saved just because it was friends with your little slime? Will you really just sit there when the whole town is about to be engulfed in a fucking war?! The forces of the dark mage are here already!" Alex was concerned about what was going on outside and wanted to go out there and prepare for the battle. There were a lot of contribution points on the line right now so she had to do all she can to deal as much damage to the enemy so that the contribution points she earns are enough for a good reward. More than the reward itself actually, she wanted to fight those creatures and try and defeat the dark mage even though she knew it was pretty much impossible already. But with the right conditions and with the strong knights, mages, and the guard captain on their side, this was not going to be a big problem. With enough things and with support from the players, this was a pretty doable quest in itself. That was the main reason instead of the fight, she had focused more on the failure conditions. "..." "At least say something, damn it!" "Yes." "Hun? What do you mean, yes?" S~ea??h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Yes." "Hun?" She already informed the guard captain about all her strategies and wanted to go and help him with the executions of the plans. But, before she does that, she needed to take care of this greater problem before her. "Damn you, Elio. You''re ten times more sad about the death of its parents than the gecko itself!" Logically, the parents of the gecko as well as all of its relatives that lived in the dungeon were dead now. The dark mage had used them all to create the magic circle that was their top priority right now, and they were gone from this world. The gecko was already registered as his tamed beast so there was no reason for him to mourn like this. The gecko wasn''t alone. It had a friend named Az and the two of them as his family. It was a creature of nature so it understood the inevitability of death already, and had accepted the fact that it might never be able to meet the people that it might have been with all its life. It was more mature than this baby who mourned for the death of the gecko''s parents, had made a small monolith in their memory even though he had never met them, and was giving them the prayers since the last THIRTY MINUTES! Players had already gone ahead and were now fighting the first wave of the dark creatures, but here they were, at the graveyard on the outskirts of the town, mourning the death of creatures that they practically did not even have any connection with. "Yes." And even though she was shouting at him, he was just repeating the same word with his eyes closed, and his hands joined together. "Haaa¡­" This was just a game. And he was no caring, soft, altruistic person. She still could not understand why he would do such drama for a small creature that barely even understood what he was doing right now¡­ but he was genuinely sad. That much she knew. And she could not leave him alone in this condition even if she wanted to. "I''m sorry, Miu." "Miu?" The gecko''s voice sounded like the word ''Miu'' so he had named the little gecko from its distinct voice. The creature could tell what its human friend was doing because it was a show of kindness, so it at least understood his feelings and was happy. But it still did not understand why this big human was so sad. "Let''s go." He placed the shining blue flowers that resembled the normal Crystal Lizard''s light before the monolith, and stood up along with Az. "Muuuu?" Az was confused since he did not wait till Miu was inside of it, but when Elio placed his hand before the small lizard and asked it to climb up, Alex''s eyes widened with shock. "Hey!" She did not understand why he was doing it. They had a battle to fight and he was going to get himself poisoned right before that? She found it completely absurd! "Miu~!" But this small invitation was something the gecko could never refuse, so it climbed his hand and though it was difficult, he endured the new flow of Mana and placed the creature on top of Az. "They are my responsibility." He looked at her with the light of Mana fluctuations present in his eyes¨C with a warm smile. "I have to look after them, right?" These small creatures were both unique and had their positives and negatives. But as their tamer and their friend, he had to look after them. They did not have anyone else around them anymore. Alex was here, but she was also someone he had to look after, so she was his priority. But these creatures who left their house to come with him¡­ who were coming with him even though they were going to face the one who killed its parents, which was going to be dangerous, he could not neglect them anymore. They were his friends. So, he had to take better care of them. "You¡­ dumb donkey." All this drama was already pretty cringey to her¡­ but there was nothing she could do about it. He was a unique donkey so her lacking words weren''t going to work on him anyway. "Let''s go kick some dark asses..." "Yes~!" "Twinkle." "Yes~! Let''s¡­ wait. What did you just call me?" He understood this was a game and what he was experiencing, what he was seeing, this whole world and these things were not real. But logically, they were just as much real as the ''Real'' world that they knew. Just that it was different¡­ "Did you fkin call me by that disgusting name, AGAIN?!" He understood why people called this game the ''second'' world. But, even after all these experiences, he still knew there was a lot more that he needed to see and learn, and experience. "What do you mean? Did you think I just called you Twinkle? Do you want me to call you that~?" "You¡­! You f-!" She was pretty funny when she was angry at a small thing like this. He found this little reaction pretty effective to get some rejuvenating breeze of fresh air. Chapter 46: Progression of the battle Goblins. Everyone knows these green creatures that have small humanoid structures, a wild personality, high reproductive rates- and no, they don''t do anything sexual with females of other kinds¨C though it would have been pretty fun to see them do something like that¡ª or not, anyway, they were goblins.They were one of the simplest creatures that players killed and since they gave good Exp, people raided their villages in the forest pretty frequently. They were found in the dungeon of Arrbo as well, so the dungeon was frequented by the players on a regular basis. The Goblins weren''t that great fighters or that strong creatures, but they knew how to set traps so they were sometimes a big headache to the players who had no experience with their tricks. There is a saying that if one meets the wrong kind of Goblin pack, they would be humiliated before they get killed. Or, depending on the pack, they might even earn some great loot along with a good amount of Exp. They were famous mobs, and just like slimes, since there were many kinds of goblins in the world, even the high level players went after the more advanced and evolved versions of these creatures. Still though¡­ "Ghrrrrr¡­!" -Ooooooooooooong! -Booooooooom! -Swish! Swish! Swish! In this battle, the creatures that they were facing surely were the same goblins that they knew- but after being corrupted by the dark energy, they had fallen to the control of evil. They had lost all sense of their original nature, and were now monsters with a little bigger, even tougher bodies. Their weapons were enhanced with the dark energy that had completely overtaken them, and the green bodies that they had were all turned black because of the dark energy. They had become slaves to the dark energy and there was no way to save them. Only deaths awaited them. -Swiiiiiiiiiiiish! -Booooooooooooom¡­! They weren''t simple goblins anymore so even though it took more than a few players to work together to take care of them, they were merely big chunks of Exp for the players. "Dieeeeee! You bastards!" "Kill them! Kill them all!" "For the empress!!!" Players were shouting funny things as they cast their spells, used their weapons, and cut down the enemy''s forces. A completely different atmosphere had clouded the entire town of golden moonlight. The central fountain in the plaza was empty once again. The walls were full of the defenders, the players, and the natives who were trying to protect their town from the invasion of evil. S~ea??h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The dark magician was nowhere to be visible, but the dark energy was surrounding the town on all sides. Players fought and killed the goblins but there were enough of them for the players to not get bored of them. The higher level players were dealing with the goblins in smaller groups while the lower level players were helping out in whatever way they could. The walls were being guarded and inside of the town walls, the important people that the players were supposed to guard were also being looked after by the certain chosen players. A great reward was on the line right now so the hundreds of players of the moongold town were having fun taking down the enemy, earning rewards, and gathering contribution points. -Booooooom! -Swiiiiiiiiiiish¡­ Players using long range weapons, bows, magic spells, magic scrolls, items that threw projectiles from the town walls were all helping out to deal with the goblins and the occasional minions that appeared out of nowhere. Those little black things were the main problem that the players had to deal with. If they got into the town and somehow managed to kill the important person mentioned in the quest, they would lose everything they had fought for and would not even gain anything in return. It wasn''t something the players would ever want, so they were doing their best to keep the black goblins of darkness away from the town. But of course, Light only existed where darkness once prevailed. "Aughhhhhhhh!" -Swish. -Click! -Swash! Swash! Swash! Tempted by the greater benefits offered from the dark side, some players would always act to disrupt the flow of this kind of large scale quest so that they could get the best kind of benefits all for themselves. Doing the same thing as everyone else was old fashioned already so if they do what the others were doing as well, they would not be anything different from them. Thus¡­ all over the world of [Trolling] prevailed. Player Killers at least had some kind of self respect since they killed the player just because they could do it or wanted to do it for benefits. Trolling on the other hand was an act where the players betrayed one another and did things that were not morally or ethically right. In quests of this scale, there were always players who aimed for the failure of the quest so that they could obtain unique rewards from the system. It was much better than sharing the reward with such a large group of players, so the incident where the players themselves aimed for the failure condition of a quest was not that rare. Alex as well as the other experienced players already knew Trolling would be inevitable this time as well, so she had already set out countermeasures against it. "I didn''t even-." -Oooooooong. -Puchak! In the town of Moongold, just like any other town, city, or nation, there was an underground organization here as well. As long as these people were getting paid enough, unlike the players, they would do anything to satisfy their customers. They did not know what the trolling was as the natives but they knew the bastards who mess with their turf and indirectly help the evil that even they despised, were better off dead. So, with the help of the guard captain and the Mayor, she hired the best help she could and along with some players that the mayor and the guard captain trusted, they had assigned them some areas with the mission of cleaning up the rotten apples. "Aghhhhhhhhh!" -Boooooooooom! They were also looking after the important people and keeping an eye out for the minions'' actions and movements. The covert operation that was taking place throughout the town wasn''t known by many since every unit had their individual tasks that they needed to take care of, so only a handful of people actually knew everything that was going on inside the town. The Mayor was looking at everything going on in the town from the highest position in the town, the high bell tower present beside the central plaza. "Yes¡­" The guard captain was out in the forest, dealing with the dark minions and figuring out the current location of the dark mage who most certainly was present somewhere in the forest. The mages were supporting them from the town walls while the knights and the other guards dealt with the others and protected their companions. Casualties were inevitable but they were dealing with it in such an efficient way that the death toll was kept to minimal. "Protect her!" "...life begins death!" "Ahhhhhhhhhh!" Thanks to orders from authorities and an extra reward promised from the guard captain as well as some ''unknown'' merchants, a hidden reward for saving the native lives was going to be issued. They did not receive a system message about this, but the sources were solid. So¡­ the players were prioritizing the native lives over their own, protecting the ones that they wouldn''t usually even care about. [{ "We are back to this damned place¡­" }] Players were materialistic, but in the end, this was all for the contribution points. Everyone was doing what they could to help the Mayor defeat the dark mage. But, unknown to most of the player''s knowledge, the ones who were playing the biggest part in all of this, were two certain low leveled individuals. [{ "How will we destroy that magic circle?" }] They announced that they could shut down the Dark mage''s magic circle by themselves. An absurd statement that even the guard captain and the Mayor found unbelievable¡­ It wasn''t something someone could just do as they wanted anyway. The dark mage''s magic circle was unlike the normal magic circle. It was a directly connected gateway to the evil''s dimension. Normal humans like them would die the moment they get too close to it. Shutting it down without the help of a high priest who possessed holy energy of great purity was impossible. That''s why the guard captain knew they would have to fight the dark mage in his strengthened form. But her announcement just changed everything. And though it was absurd, they believed in the two of them one more time. [{ "You will have to help me with this one, El darling." }] The two of them were back in the house that belonged to Miu, the little gecko. And¡­ they were looking down at the sinister grand magic circle on the ground once again. Chapter 47: Dark spell circle [{ "How can I help you? Tell me." }]He was ready to do anything right now if it meant they could destroy this dark magic circle. He loathed the bastard that killed and used all the relatives of his dear little friend and he was not going to just sit there and watch when he had the chance to screw over the xx dark magician. [{ "There are two ways to destroy the dark mage''s magic circle." }] He knew about the two methods already. One needed to either possess a strong holy power of high purity, or enough power to directly destroy the connection of the circle with the connected world. [{ "We don''t have holy power, so, we will go for the second method." }] Holy power was a resource similar to the Mana of the mages or the Aura of the knights. Just that the ones who could use it were the believers and priests with strong Faith. It wasn''t necessary that the ones who could use it had to be devoted to some god or connected to some religious organization, but merely having strong beliefs allowed one to access this special power. Alas though, neither of them possessed this special power and had no way to cast a spell that would be powered by the divine power. She knew how to deal with the dark magic circle of this scale with the help of even the basic holy power user. But since they did not even have someone like that, they had to resort to the brute methods. [{ "I want you to cast this spell. Can you do that?" }] She took out a certain book from her inventory, a golden book that was just as metallic from the outside as the silver book he had learned the basic spells from. [{ "They are special spells of nature series. You will have to cast three spells maintaining each one consecutively. It will be a little difficult, but do that and I''ll take care of the rest." }] The spell she was showing him did not look easy. And since this great lady of theirs told about it only after they were here, he did not have any time to practice in this place. They were putting themselves in great danger just by being here since this place wasn''t completely empty. The magic circle was important to the dark Mage so there were still some minions guarding this place. They were strong beings that weren''t going to fall for some simple distractions like the dark goblins did or the hounds outside did. They needed to be extremely careful with these monsters. But she knew how to take care of them as well. [{ "It looks doable." }] Elio knew what kind of risk she was taking here so he did not hesitate this time. He observed the spell formation a few times, tried making the same ones in his head, and when he was done with his versions he compared the one in his head and the one in the book, finding any difference between the two. It wasn''t perfect yet, so he tried again. And this time, he did not succeed either. It was a complicated spell that needed to be made from many points in the inside instead of out from the core of the spell. It wasn''t easy and took him a few tries. But, after a while, he opened his eyes and looked at her with a confident look. [{ "Go." }] She knew he was confident about this. He knew what he needed to do. So, with a simple nod at one another, Alex jumped down. And at the same time¡­ Elio closed his eyes, silently chanted the spell in his head, visualized the three spells that he needed to cast, channeled his Mana, and with an impeccable image in his head, he materialized three spell circles simultaneously. -Ooooooooooooooooong! "Gurrrr?" The minions of darkness that the dark mage summoner had summoned walked on two legs and resembled lizards covered in completely black scales. S~ea??h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. They were black from head to toe, their eyes were deep black as well, and even their tongues were black¡­ it wouldn''t be racism to call them minions of evil in this situation. Still, as simple looking as these creatures might be, every single one of them were above (Level-60). They weren''t something either of them would be able to defeat even if they somehow singled out one of them. They weren''t their opponents in the first place, they just needed to deal with the spell circle so that they could weaken the mage. That was all that they needed to do here. So, when he had prepared the spells, he just fired them in the points where she had asked him to earlier. She had jumped down from the ceiling area and wasn''t visible to him anymore but he had faith in her. She knew what she was doing so without worrying about her much, he followed her plan, and right when the dark red spells that Elio cast reached the places where she wanted them¡­ -Swish. -Click. Out of nowhere, she appeared before one of the spells, slashed the circle with an unknown red sword that Elio was seeing for the first time, and vanished once again. -Swish. Swish. -Click. Click. She did the same two more times consecutively and, since all of it happened in fraction of a moment, the dark minions did not perceive her, or the spells. -Ooooooooooooong! But after she had slashed the spell circles positioned in a reverse triangle around the spell circle with a star, the red spell circles with a strange slash on top of them glowed with a chaotic light. -OOOOOOOOOONG! It did not take the spell circles long to start sucking in the energy in their surroundings. -Zaaaaa¡­! It was strange seeing the red magic circles sucking in the black energy of the dark magic circle, but the more unique thing here was the slash that she had made¡ª one that seemed to be the actual reason behind this phenomenon. [{ "Prepare to leave. The mage will come here anytime now!" }] She somehow climbed the ceiling and reached the cave where Elio, Az, and Miu were. She looked extremely exhausted all of a sudden, and even her blue eyes were glowing with a strange golden light, but there was no time to pay attention to something like that. -Booooooooooooom! The three spell circles that she had cut down had somehow absorbed enough energy from the dark circle that the dark stable magic circle became completely unstable and was now on the verge of collapse. [{ "Yes!" }] There was no time to wait and look at this whole process since they both could see how this whole thing was going to blow up now. The unstable magic circle was going to be lethal when it blows up since the energy that it would spew out will be that of impure darkness¡ª one that they will not be able to handle at this stage. They needed to get out of there as soon as they could, so they started running with the little slime in his hands. The inside of the cave was going to collapse when the spell exploded, even the evil minions knew that. But unlike them, they were going to stay there and do something about the spell circle since that was their duty here. But they weren''t going to succeed. The spell execution was perfect. -BOOOOOOOOOOM¡­! Whatever they did, they weren''t going to save the spell circle. It was going to explode and it was going to take down everything in the area along with it. Chapter 48: At the same time... In the forest¡­A sea of fire had manifested. "Aghhhhhhh!" "Get away from me! Get away¡­!" -Swiiiiiiiiiish! -Booooooooooom! The gates of the city were still being attacked by the creatures of darkness but most of their numbers had already been eliminated. There were only a few of them left here now so the players had started going inside the forest to look for the other forces since according to the logs, only a hundred or two creatures had died until now. There were still a lot of them left and since they weren''t coming out anymore, the players, along with the elite troops had to go in. They knew there were still many of the evil minions left, so they weren''t just going to stop doing everything when the creatures were still present. The boss monster, and the main target of the quest, the dark mage was still hiding somewhere in the forest so at the very least, they had to look for it and deal with it as well¡­ so, they went inside of the forest with the basic intentions of looking for the dark mage. However, they ended up falling into a stupid trap. "¡­" -Zaaaaaaa¡­ The minions of evil mage were all waiting for their arrival not too deep into the forest. They were physical damage dealers but they were carrying magical items that the dark mage had handed to them. These items- mostly resembling small magic rocks, contained magic spells that sealed off the players into a barrier. Once sealed, since they would not have any outside support, the minions easily defeated the advanced party made up mostly of players of high ranks. There were a few guards accompanying them, but many of them managed to get out of their positions and survived the sudden ambush, but not everyone was as fortunate as them. "Graaaaaa!" S§×ar?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Many natives, guards for most parts, also fell victim to this sudden attack and the one who profited from it, the dark mage who had been observing this whole situation from the back, was still unhappy at the current state of his plans. He had prepared more than enough troops to take down this small town, and since according to His knowledge, there was also no one who would stand in his way in this town, the fall of the town and gathering of enough sacrifices for the summoning ritual was a matter of time. He did not even have to make a move himself so he was just observing everything from the back, looking at the non-futile attempt of the mortals who did not understand the purity of the evil that he followed. "Gurrrrrrr!" They were dying by the hands of the creatures that once belonged to nature, creatures that could not resist the great attraction of the darkness and now had fallen to the grasp of evil. Surely the Fact that they were merely dead weight to the name of evil, and were nothing more than tools to help a true chosen one like him in his great endeavors was eternal. -Oooooooooooooong! But since the ones they were after today were merely some mortal low level town folks and other worldly people cursed by destiny, he did not have to make a move and waste more of his energy than it was needed. He had already worked hard to prepare for all this, so he deserved some rest. [ "Haaa¡­" ] Though, from the looks of it, it did not seem like he was going to get the rest that he deserved. -Booooooooooooom! [ "Useless dirty beasts." ] The beasts that he had prepared with the blessed energy of the higher beings that he served the assistants that THEY provided him were now on the verge of collapse. The ones that should have surrounded and attacked the small town and overtaken it completely now lay dead in the certain areas that seemed to be prepared beforehand by the weak mortals of this town. He remembered there were some flies that had managed to see him and discover his existence in the forest, but he did not think they would have reported it to the Mayor in such a timely manner. They were already dealt with by him so there was no question about their lives, but, since things had fallen out this much¡­ the only thing he could do now was to make a move himself. [ "How bothersome." ] He had made these creatures and obtained these assistants so that he could deal with the certain individual that THEY wanted him to get rid of. They had enough power to crush the entire town and kill the guards, knights, mages, as well as the mayor in the process. He just needed to deal with that certain individual and for that, he could just destroy this whole place in the process. It would be much more effective than searching for that individual and dealing with them systematically. That was only possible when he had the complete force that he had prepared. But now that he did not have that, all that he could do was¡­ "Captain! That way!" "I hear screams. Everyone, prepare!" "Get in defensive formation!" Coming out of the special space that he was hiding in all this time, he stood before the most advanced party led by the highest ranking individual in this town himself. [ "Oh? Is that the guard''s captain?" ] The guard''s captain was accompanied by the knights and the best mages of the town so, even as they faced the evil boss that appeared out of the blue- the goal of the quest, the party did not feel any fear. [{ "Mages! Prepare!" }] The enemy was alone while on the other side, they had numerical advantage. All of their members were some of the highest level individuals of this town, as well as some of the most formidable in their fields. There were knight tanks with him that were sturdy and known for their strength, mages who had years of battle experience, knights with the power to wield Aura, and though they did not have a priest with them, they had mages specialized in grace, and healing spells. The guard captain knew how difficult this challenge might be as he stood before the humanoid being with ashen pale skin, deep black eyes with no whiteness in them, and someone completely covered in a thin layer of a murky dark energy. But, even though words of that certain girl to not engage in a fight with the dark mage without them resonated in his head, he could not do anything when faced with the evil. [ "Kekekeke. To think you would walk right before me on your own feet, hun, captain." ] The mage was already aiming for this person from the start since he knew he was one of the strongest in the town. Dealing with him would mean dealing with one of the major forces of the town, so, when the guard captain appeared before him, a delighted smile had appeared on his three mouths as well. Chapter 49: Clash with evil -Oooooooooooooooong! S§×arch* The nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.The mages created a barrier around the shield holding knights in the front, while at the same time, buffing them with strongest grace spells that they could. There were twelve people in the guard captain''s party: Three knights, six mages, himself, and two archers who could wield Mana. The arrows that fired all contained Mana and some arrows that they had were even enchanted with the spells of the mages. They were in no way a weak party. Perhaps, among all the parties currently fighting the force of evil, they are alone with the strongest ones. The only thing that made even their composition futile though, was the one that they were facing right now. [ "Boring¡­" ] The assault started with the guard captain holding his greatsword at the very front of the group. -Oooooooooong! The mages fired their spells, the archers fired their Mana imbued arrows, while though the knights wielding the shields waited for the attacks of the mage, the sword of the guard captain was aiming for the Neck of the enemy. -Snap. But, unbothered by it all, he merely watched them with a bored look and snapped his finger. -Sprrrrk. -Oooooooooooooong! And when he did, red-black sparks appeared in the air, a red shield that materialized right before the sword of the guard captain threw him off, and at the same time, dark smoke rose up from the ground. "Ughhhh!" -Tsssssss¡­! The mage wanted to take care of just one person here¨C The guard captain who held more strength than the others. He was the only one that he even wanted to kill. The rest of them were merely standing sacrifices in his way. "Captain!" When the guard captain was thrown back because of the shield of the dark mage, he carefully handled his large body even though it was covered in heavy armor. From his one attack alone, he knew that the opponent that he was facing was much stronger than what they had initially expected. The spells of the mages did not work on him either. The red barrier covering him completely blocked off the spells and it seemed like the black sparks that were covering the shield were eating away at the spells on contect. -Ooooooooooooong! But the mage still covered the guard captain and continued attacking the mage with strong spells. -Swish! Swish! Swish! The guard captain was not going to be enough to deal with this dark mage. He was too strong. So, the knights summoned their Aura power and joined them as well. -Swish! -Booooooooom! Just one sword slash from the knights'' Aura covered weapons created a kind of destructive force that the area they were in, the ground beneath them was all turned upside down. -Thum! Thum! Thum! -Swiiiiiish! -Boooooooooom! The power of Aura by nature was destructive. When it hit the ground beneath them, it created craters that seemed to be results of some strong destruction spells. They were the only things strong enough to affect the strong shields of dark mage. With their attacks, the shields somehow got cracks and were almost on the verge of shattering. [ "Hun." ] But the mage was still unbothered by all of it. -Oooooooooong¡­! He just continued attacking the knights with the dangerous destructive attacks that they could barely survive thanks to the buffs and shields of the mages from the back. -Ooooooooong! If it weren''t for the strong mages, they might have lost the battle in a matter of moments. And, perhaps after exchanging a few blows and losing one of his shields, the dark magician seemed to have realized it as well. -Ooooooooooooong! With a strong blow of dark winds, he first threw every one of them away from him and covered himself in a new shield. [ "Flies should just die." ] -Snap. Then, he gazed at the mages at the very back with his impure black eyes, freezing the blood running through their bodies with his evil powers. "Aghhhhhh!" The sudden chills that they felt were not merely something imaginary that they were feeling in their heads. That was not the case here. The blood running through their vines had actually frozen due to the dark magic of the evil mage. The clash of the pure mana of the mages and the dark powers of the mage was chaotic. He was not affected by their Mana but the same was not true for the mages on the guard captain''s team. "Ughhhh!" When the evil Mage directly used a lethal spell to actually freeze their blood, he was aiming for the Mana vessels in their body as well. -Oooooooooong! The sudan injection of the dark energy into the body of someone who possessed Mana vines without a strong enough mental fortitude to handle his presence was the same as the most lethal poison was to the humans. -Ooooooooooong! The Mana inside of their bodies went berserk all of a sudden and became so uncontrollable that¡­ -Pu¨Ctchak! First the eyes, then the head, and then the rest of the body of the brave mages who had assisted the guard captain and the rest of the knights until now popped off like a balloon¡­ spraying the now black insides, frozen body parts and, their last bit of pure crystallized Mana that had become the reason for their deaths. [ "Now that the flies have fallen quiet..." ] With a simple movement of his hand, the mage summoned a minion of darkness that the players all around them were fighting against now, and then turned the evil creature into something that resembled a sword. [ "Guard captain? How about you get serious?" ] With a simple movement of his hand that did not even alert the knights with the power of Aura and heightened superhuman senses, the dark sword floating right beside the mage moved at a speed unbelievable to human eyes. -Srrrush. Srrrush. Srrrrrrush. And, in just a few blinks of an eye, this sword came back to his side¡­ -Thud. Thud. Thud. Just that when it reappeared, there was blood dripping down its blade. "...?!" From how the strong knights who had trained their bodies and minds with years and decades of training fell to the ground lifelessly, the guard captain instantly knew what was going on before him. He was not facing an opponent that he could fight while holding back. There was no way to defeat this opponent. He would destroy this town if things went just like they were going as well¡­ "You¡­ Evil¡­" It was his duty to protect the people of this town as well as the town itself. As the guard captain, he must not let this evil mage get past him. "Skill¡­" The brave knights and the mages that had passed while protecting this town¨C he had to honor their sacrifices and deal with this evil even if he had to pay a great price for it. "{Guardian spirit manifestation}." He was prepared to die here, on this very battlefield. Revealing the secret that he had been hiding for a long time was no big deal in this situation anymore. Chapter 50: Confusion "Hun? What the hell?""Shouldn''t the place have collapsed or something?" She was confident that the spell circle would explode and the whole place would collapse. But, nothing like that was happening even though we had come out of the place. The whole dungeon was still perfectly fine and, even though they were outside now, there was no great commotion that would alert the guard dogs outside. They were still in their positions even though we were outside. "Well, what the fuck?" Alex was confused right now. She knew she did it right and that the spell circle was certainly destroyed. But then, why wasn''t anything happening? The dark minions didn''t have enough intelligence to stop a dark spell circle from exploding. They should have died with the explosion. But, why wasn''t anything happening? "I think we should go back and-." His sentence wasn''t even finished and she was walking back inside the same place she had walked out of. "Oy." She wasn''t stopping, so he ran behind her. The inside of the dungeon¡­ they did not enter through the secret entrance this time but directly from the front entrance that was still covered by a strong illusion barrier. S~ea??h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Elio was surprised how she walked towards the front entrance, but as he walked behind her to stop his mad girl, he was also stunned to see the now empty dungeon. There should have been many guards at the entrance, inside of the cave, there should still be tens of the evil minions present in the cave, throughout the cave, there should have been some traps here at least, creatures hidden for an ambush. And yet, there was no one guarding the inside of this place anymore? "What''s happening here?" Elio questioned what was going on in the cave, but Alex only answered with a continued silence. "Miu?" "Muuuu." Even the little creatures with him were confused right now, but they just followed behind her inside the dungeon. The inside of the cave was dark, but at least, thanks to the torches present inside of the cave, there was enough light for them to see around them. The pathway inside was narrow, but not so narrow that not even three people could pass through it. It was good enough, so they just walked behind her and somehow, reached a fork. "Miu? Do you know which way your house is from here?" Usually, there should at least be guards in a place like this one. But there was nothing here either. Which made her suspicions even more certain. "Alex. What is up with you? What''s going on here?" This whole thing was getting creepy now. "We were wrong, El." But her words made things even more confusing for him. "Hun?" She walked back and took the slime from her hands without elaborating further. He was going to find out soon enough so, there was no need for her to explain things here. "Miu? Miu." "Muuuuu¡­?" The little gecko knew where they had to go, so it showed the way with its light. And they followed according to its directions. They were inside the cave where these creatures had lived for most parts of their lives, so navigating inside was pretty easy for them. And, it did not take them long to reach the core area that they had seen twice just today. "Who¡­?" "I knew it." But the inside situation in the cave''s core was pretty different from what they had expected. The magic circle that they needed to destroy, the circle that had almost been destroyed was still there. The ground on which the spell circle existed was fluctuating and there were reactions from the ground right now. There were sparks coming out of the spell circle still, and there was a strange vibration present all around this core area. There were no minions in this place either. There was just a strong red-black light present throughout the place and, the origin of this light was the spell circle¨C upon which an individual stood with an uncomfortable expression. [ "Ughhh¡­" ] "The Mage really had an assistant." In the core of the spell circle, in the very center of it, a figure wearing normal black clothing¨C someone that seemed to be a mage was standing with a tough expression covering his face. His hair was white, his face young, the clothes that he was wearing looked pretty good for a mage, and there was a thick darkness present all around her. He seemed to be strong, but more than that, he was in pain right now. [ "You¡­ you were the ones¡­" ] When they walked in, the individual saw them as well. And an enraged expression sparked on his ''normal'' face. "An aspirant¡­" The person that was standing in the center of the magic circle was not a dark magician or a follower of evil. He was a human, a human mage. [ "You¡­!" ] Actually, it would be better to say he used to be a normal, human mage until just now. "He seems to be in his early thirties." "Did he¡­ help the mage?" "It looks like this one is the main reason the dark mage is here in the first place." In the center of the magic circle, he had positioned as the core since the actual core was on the verge of breaking. There was a thick darkness surrounding him. A kind of darkness that did not belong to him but was something that belonged to the dark Minions that were present in this dungeon until just now. "..." [ "Who¡­ who are you¡­?!" ] His eyes were slowly turning black, his skin was becoming paler, and he was losing the faint traces of Mana inside of him. The darkness that was around him was consuming him. He must have somehow assumed the position of the core and tried stopping the core from getting destroyed. He must have known that if the core was destroyed then the dark mage would lose a significant part of his powers as well. He did not understand the darkness much from the looks of it, so he must have tried to stop the spell circle from breaking apart by taking the risk of forcefully stopping the spell circle''s destruction. And in the process, he must have used up the Minion''s darkness energy as well since he himself did not possess any evil dark energy yet. [ "Did you do this¡­?!" ] The darkness that was now surrounding him was slowly turning him into something that was neither a human nor a dark magician. The power of evil darkness that the dark magicians have was granted by the evil from the other side. One could not obtain it as they pleased. Chapter 51: Darkness’ corruption Darkness from the dark minions was a fragment of the power of those evil beings but it wasn''t something that could grant one the power of darkness."Let''s get out of here, El." The mage must be someone who wanted to become a follower of evil and was helping the dark mage with something. She did not know for certain yet, but he must also be someone responsible for the dark mage''s presence in this town. "...let''s go." From what they understood, the mage that was helping the dark mage wanted to become a dark mage and was serving him. He might have pointed him to this town, thinking it did not have many strong individuals and was an easy target. Then when the dark mage went to deal with the town people, he must have stayed behind. It takes a lot of sacrifices and conductors to open the windows on the other side and produce a fellow dark mage artificially. The birth of a dark mage is a natural process, but there surely is a way to obtain that abundant power of evil. And this one might have been after that as well, and the dark mage must have done all this to make him a follower as well, since it would prove his faith and grant him greater powers. "...Miu recognizes him." "Then it makes more sense." The mage wanted power, for that the dark magician needed to succeed, for his success this circle was important, and he thought he could prevent it from being destroyed. That did not happen. And seeing him with the magic circle, the Minions instinctively attached themselves to him in an attempt to ''help'' the process¡­ or in an attempt to be one with the darkness that they had come from. They did not have anything like intelligence so instincts were everything for them. In this instance though, their instincts made them do something crazy. "Did you kill the Crystal lizards?" Alex looked at the mage who was being consumed by the darkness of the minions, the darkness that was purely an energy, something opposite of the Mana. [ "Ughh¡­!" ] The mage was dumb to think he could handle the dark magic circle as merely a (tier-4) mage. And the minions were dumber to unanimously attach themselves to the mage. "Doesn''t seem like we will get any answer from them even if we talk." "..." What they did made the energy inside of the mage''s body clash with the darkness. The class of two energies created an unstable environment that produced strong power. This at least gave the mage the power to stop the spell circle from falling, but at the same time, the darkness that overflowed in him was corrupting his body. He would die soon, and that death would be more terrifying than he might have ever thought about. ''Dying from the powerful darkness. He sure would experience the worst pain in his last moments.'' Alex did not spare him any more glances and walked out of that place. sea??h th§× N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He wasn''t even a dark mage that was trying to repair the spell circle but merely a dumb mage that would die a horrible death. And since the darkness would slowly corrupt his pure soul as well, even though he was a native, he might never experience a peaceful afterlife. These were his last moments¡­ "Miu." "Muuu." And even though Elio wanted to kill him with his own hands for being the one to kill the geckos of this cave, he walked back with Alex and got out of the cave. [ "Hey¡­! Wait¡­!" ] Neither of them looked back at the mage¡­ and the darkness continued surrounding his entire being. The spell that he was maintaining was now working with him as the core, but that lasted only for another moment as the darkness had turned the body of the human mage into something that resembled charcoal. -Ooooooooooooooooong¡­! He had stopped breathing a while ago, but now that his lifeforce was exhausted as well, nothing was left of him. His position as the spell circle''s core had become useless as well. So¡­ -BOOOOOOOOOOOOM¡­! When they came out, a ground shaking explosion boomed from deep inside of the cave. The dungeon''s core was completely destroyed. The cave must have fallen down, and from the sheer force of the explosion that must have been perceivable even far away from here, they knew what they were here for had already been achieved. Now, all that was left was for them to defeat the dark mage and protect the ''certain'' special individual in the process. "Get ready-." "I know what I have to do. Don''t tell me every little thing." "Oh?" She looked at his confident and angry expression. She didn''t know where his ''not wanting to kill anything'' spirit was since she could clearly see killing intent in his eyes. But, it seemed pretty valid for her at this point. He had friends that had been with him for special reasons and if he didn''t do anything, there was a good chance that he would lose them. He had to become stronger. Perhaps so strong that even while not killing anything, he would be able to protect everything that was his. This was just a game for them, but for the creatures of this world, this data world was their reality. And their artificial intelligence was their real selves. -Boooooooooooom! The matter with the dark mage''s magic circle, an element of his boosted strength from the evil side was already taken care of, so they thought they would be able to take down the dark mage with the help of the guard captain and the knights. The mages would play a big role in her plans and since they were strong individuals who possessed certain great qualities, they were going to be a great assistance to her. She was confident that under her assistance, they would win this battle. It wouldn''t be that difficult for them to take down someone like that dark mage if they utilize their power in a proper manner. She was confident¡­ [ "Oh? Was there someone still left?" ] But when they reached the area where the most commotion was happening, they witnessed a scene that almost froze both of them in their place¡­ Chapter 52: Downfall The area where a fierce fight was going on a few moments ago was turned into something that could only be described as a Mess.The ground was completely covered in blood of the natives, the knights and mages who must have done their best to fight against someone like the dark mage. It wasn''t easy to become a knight and receive the power of Aura. One needed to devote themselves to their training and understand their weapons more than any normal sword wielder. The one who could not obtain the Aura even with a lot of training were many not just in the cities of the kingdoms but even in the greater empires. That was also the reason that just like the archers that were with the guard captain, many who trained with weapons also opted for Mana. Mana was a kind of resource that generally anyone qualified enough can get access to. But, at the same time, even training in Mana was a difficult thing. However, the knights that accompanied the guard captain were all Aura users, powers that were so rare that even a large town like this one only had a handful of them. And yet, all those who had accompanied them had become one with nature¡­ [ "I knew someone messed with the magic circle. That dumb mage bastard was never the right choice." ] sea??h th§× n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The ground covered in blood, rubbles was still flying all around. Bodies either crushed mercilessly or obliterated from inside out lay on the ground. The insides of the body were filling the ground¡­ The gruesome scene that they were seeing right now almost made Elio noxious, but he handled himself as he glared back at the black eyes looking at both of them. [ "Well, I don''t know how you two did it, but your efforts don''t mean anything." ] The knights were dead, the mages'' body had become a messy pool of organs, the archers were dead as well¡­ the only one alive before them was the guard captain, who also hung on the last thread of his life. [{ "I told you all to wait, didn''t I?" }] Alex could not help but curse at the guard captain as she saw the miserable state that he was in. [{ "We¡­ should have done¡­ that." }] He was covered in scars and deep wounds from head to toe. His body was covered in a unique green light that was so distinct that Alex recognised it at a glance, but that did not concern her at the moment. [ "Well, well. You two seem intriguing. Unfortunately, our time for idle chatter has run out." ] Glancing at the white sword around her waist and the creatures that Elio was trying to hide under his shirt¨C something very ineffective, the dark mage with ashen pale skin and dark eyes resembling the abyssal pits, smirked. "Get away, dumbass!" -Swish! Swish! Swish! The very next moment, dark spikes rose from the ground where they had been standing, however thankfully, with her quick reaction, Alex was able to avoid the attack while pushing Elio away. He was lost for the scene before him for a second. He had known these people- people who were not in this world anymore- and he knew they were pretty good people. But they were dead now as well, and there was nothing that could be done. [{ "Do we fight him?!" }] He was thankful for her help once again, but he did not use any unnecessary words at the moment. He knew the severity of the situation and just asked her what they had to do. [{ "Do you see any other option?! Of course we have to fight!" }] The opponent was still a (Level-99) dark mage. Thankfully, all the killing he had done until now did not push his level any higher or else it would really be impossible to defeat him in the short time they had left. [{ "Help me!" }] -Bling! -Swish! Swish! Swish! She used {Blink} and while avoiding the spikes that were springout out of the ground all around them, she grabbed Elio along with Az and Miu and got some distance away from the mage. The fight was inevitable, so she first told him what she wanted him to do and, without waiting any further, she reappeared before the area where the dark mage had been. [{ "Sir Mayor! Please tell us what is going on!" }] She reached the messy area and the first thing she did was to use a powerful (tier-4) offensive magic scroll that even the dark mage could not avoid. [{ "Not good. It seems like some of the minions have managed to infiltrate the town anyway." }] The Mayor recognised her voice on this private channel so he did not dwell deeper and just answered her question. -Swish! Swish! Swish! At the same time, she used enchanted throwing knives that contained strong spells that the dark mage''s magic barrier could not stop. He thought his defenses were absolute. Even the knights and the guard captain had barely managed to shatter it a few times until now. Even after using his hidden power, the guard captain had only managed to deal a little damage to him. There were some scratches that did not mean much. They would heal with his enhanced regeneration powers so the mage did not pay any mind to them¡­ however, the attacks from her mere daggers was a different story altogether. [ "You¡­! Why do you have these¡­?!" ] Enchantment was not a commonly practiced art. In the current age, one could not find an enchanter easily. Moreover, the kind of enchantment that was required to bypass the barriers made of the dark energy was not something even the experienced enchanters could apply on simple weapons like these knives. -Swish! Swish! Swish! The level difference between them was not small. It was more than severity levels, which was a lot even from her standards. But, it was still not impossible. She had gone against beings over a hundred levels above herself. She had not come out victorious in all of such fights, but she was confident this time. The opponent was a single dark magician so, even with the many problems, even though the dark minions had managed to infiltrate the town, even though a lot of players and natives had died protecting the town, even though the conditions were still not in their favor¡­ it was still possible. [{ "Get ready, El." }] There was one key element to this quest that none of them knew about until just now. [{ "You might only get one minutes at max." }] But after seeing the green light around the guard captain, she was able to recognize it instantly. There was no way she would not recognize the distinct light of the special skill that birthed the current No.9 of the unified rankings¨C one of the strongest exorcists of this world. As well as someone she had fought alongside many times in the past main scenarios¡­ Chapter 53: Key to the victory -Swish!Avoiding the incoming attack of a dark wind, she first used a powerful protactiv Mana shield item to take the least amount of damage, and used a sword imbued with the properties light to attack the dark mage. Her level was still low and her Mana levels weren''t sufficient but she could still use a few of the items that she had. The general items like accessories and the scrolls were one thing, but she mostly did dealt with the attackls of the dark mage using her high evasion rate. She was agile even with her comparatively low stats, and even though she had used some potions and buff spell scrolls to temporarily boost herself she was not going to last against the dark mage tens of levels higher than her. [ "Damn insect." ] She had many restrictions on her, many of them being from her ''trial'' so there was a lot of limitations on her. -Booooooooooom! She couldn''t just use some high level magic scroll or the holy sword that she had in her inventory. If she could use something like that, there would be no need for her to even go to such lengths and engage in a joint fight with the others. She would solo kill this little dark mage and that would be it for it''s efforts. However, she was limited to the simple items that she had one star items in her inventory. -Ooooooooooooong! Still, she was somehow dealing with the attacks of the mage, dealing some kind of damage that accumulated over time, and using many debuffs on him so that the damage would at least stack over time. [ "Ughhh! What is this now?!" ] The DoT strategy as people called it might surely have been effectiove against this one had the debuffs and the accumulation sumilative percentage was decent enough, but at her level and with her limitations, all that she could do was to push the mage away from the place they were in and engage in a brief fight until it was done with her little plays. -Swish! The mage was overcvonfident and lazy so she knew it was just conserving his strength for the bigger things that might apper, so she had to take advantge of his carelessness and buy as much time for them as possible¡­ She was only acting as a distraction afterall. The real key to this quest was the guard captain. So Elio''s role here was very important. "Hey! Guard captain!" When Alex dragged the dark magician away from them all, Elio carefully made his way to the guard captain through the pool of blood, organs, grusome stuff, and dead bodies¡­ "Hey!" The guard captain was unconscious, so he slapped his big face. But he still did not wake up. The green energy around him was fading away so, Elio thought he was on the verge of death. And he did not want to do CPR when he was covered in blood like this. So¡­ he placed Az on top of the guard captain and asked the little slime to cast the magic of the sub category of light attribute- (Volt). "Muuuu~." It was a small spell that produced some little sparks of lightning, something that wasn''t really used as a CPR substitute, but in the kind of state he was in, the guard captain needed more of a quick shock rather than the touch of another man''s lips. "Go." "Muuu~!" The slime was still new to the whole magic thing but there were around nine spells that it could cast after the little training they had done until now. The spell (Volt) was one of the simple spells that was actually pretty difficult to use even for the people who had the affinity for lightning attribute directly. But, even with the light elemental affinity, the slime could use the spell. Which, in their current situation, was nothing less than a blessing. -Oooooooong! Mana gathered on the white translucent surface of the slime as it produced the spell the same way it had felt it. "Muuuuu¡­" It was very quick. The way Mana particles gathered and condensed into the shape of a spell circle and then materialized as a few sparks of blue lightning around the surface of its white mucus, was an instantaneous process. -Zap! It ended up with a small electrical discharge that made the entire large body of the guard captain jerk upwards. "Ghaaaap!" -Ooooooong! "Ahem!" His eyes opened wide right after the shock and as if it was on instinct, the guard captain took in a mouthful of air before coughing up some blood as he stood back up while channeling the Mana in his surroundings. "Have this!" Elio hurriedly handed him the high grade potion bottle that he had received from Alex a moment ago and without thinking about how this small vial of potion costs a whopping gold coin, he just gulped it all down his throat. He knew already that the time right now was not right. He had to go back and fight the dark mage¡­ -Clank! Clank! Clank! He could see even with his blood covered eyes that in the distance somewhere, someone was fighting the dark mage with still a significant power level. If this boy was here, then the girl that he had been trusting a little too much until now must be the one going against that dark mage¡­ but, she was nowhere near strong enough to even fight against him. He knew just how weak both of these young ones were right now¡­ so, he had to go. "Please wait, captain." Elio knew what the guard captain wanted to do. She already told him how he would try to hurry and go help her after taking that high grade potion and recovering a portion of his strength. It was Elio''s job to make sure the guard captain reached her as soon as possible as well¡­ but before he did, Elio had to make sure of one more thing. "Take these. She said you would know what to do with it." Alex knew the kind of unique skill the guard captain possessed. In the entire world, there were rarely any individuals who possessed the innate talent to borrow the powers of the guardian spirits, the natural spirits that were different from the elemental spirits. "You¡­ how do you-." "We don''t have time for the explanations, captain." sea??h th§× N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He was tending to him but his eyes had always been focused in the distance, at her and the unfathomable opponent she was facing right now. There was no time to chit chat, so the guard captain had to do whatever she wanted him to do as quickly as possible. "...alright." The things that she had asked Elio to hand over to the captain included a condensed Mana crystal, unique fruit from the east that contained Mana- something one rarely found in the west where they were, and lastly, something that Elio had obtained during his tutorial. A green glowing flower that possessed a much more ethereal glow to it than what he had seen in the tutorial. There was a strong natural Mana stored inside of this Jade Lotus, something that now that he could perceive Mana, seemed unrealistic and etherial. "Thanks." This flower was something much more important and special than what he had expected. And in their situation, in the hands of someone who understood its value better than anyone else, these things were practically invaluable¡­ Chapter 54: True powers of a skill [ "You insolent insect!" ]Even though she told him she would buy him three minutes, the dark mage ended up seeing how the boy that was with her a moment ago was now doing something with the guard captain that he had almost crushed. They had given him some trouble already, time was being wasted, there was a lot that was happening right now and, despite her consecutive attacks, the evil bastard was fine even right now. Thanks to the spells that he used to counterattack and block the many attacks that she was using with the help of her costly items, she still could not manage to deal any damage to the dark mage. She just ended up angering him further. -Ooooooooooooong! He was enraged now that he had also figured out she was merely playing with him all this time. Elio was doing something important but even she did not know how he would wake him up and give all those things to him in the short time they had. -Boooooooooooooom! She was betting a lot on him right now, so even when the dark mage got enraged and used a strong spell to attack her, she barely managed to survive the attack by evading most of the fatal impact and blocking it with all the charges of her consumable Mana shields that she had. -DHUM¡­! She crashed in a tree trunk. And even though the shields absorbed some impact, she still was hurt. "Alex¡­!" Elio rushed to her side, knowing full well she had not only exhausted herself in that short instance, she even used a lot of things that she initially did not want to. [ "Futile efforts¡­" ] The dark mage frowned at the two of them, the disgusted look on him an evidence of his dislike towards their kind and their pureness. [ "One cannot step away from the perpetual bounds that THEY are the masters of." ] He did not think anything special about this person. The girl merely used some tricks and jumped around a little so there was nothing too special about her. She was just trying to trick him, distracting him so that the one insignificant insect with her could do something that was also just going to be as futile as anything else they would do. Their fates were sealed the moment they came here. Nothing but a painless, blissfully dark death awaited them¡­ "Ahem!" "Bastard¡­!" "Miu!" "Muuuuuu¡­!" The three of them around her could do little to comfort her and ease the deep pain she might be feeling after that impact. There was a chance that she must have also received some dangerous internal injury because of the shock but Elio only had some normal potions to help her in that condition. Nothing else. "Did you¡­ do it?" She was hurt, but even in that condition, even with blood coming out of a corner of her mouth, she was asking if he succeeded or not. S§×ar?h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. It was her typical serious behavior. Not caring about herself in situations where much more was on the line. She would not have anything to worry about if he had succeeded. "Yes. He took it." The guard captain had already take the things from him, which meant he she had succeeded with what she needed to do. "It''s alright then¡­" -Oooooooooong! [ "Foreigner insects." ] The Dark magician was done preparing the next spell that would most definitely kill them this time. This was the end for both of them. There was no card left up their sleeves. [ "Tsk." ] Even though the dark mage was looking at them with the disgusting intent to kill them, they just stayed there. She had no reason to move anymore since she had already used up all the cards she had, and since she was there, he could not just get up and avoid that attack by himself. He hid Az under his shirt once again, even though he knew it would be of no use, even though he knew it was just a dumb thing to do, but he still did it since he also knew they weren''t going to get hurt anymore. [ "Just die." ] -Swiiiish¡­! -Boooooooooom! A strong black condensed ball of wind came at them with a boom, and they were just there. He was hugging her, but he was still afraid so his eyes were closed. On the other hand, even though she was hugging him back, she was looking straight at the ball of wind coming at them. { "[{(Prakriti)}]¡­ that''s what they used to call nature in the primordial language." } A strong, very strong Mana voice resonated throughout the area around them out of the blue, and a smirk appeared on her face. "There it¡­ is¡­" { "Do you know why they called it as such, follower of evil?" } -Ooooooooooong! A green energy surrounded both of them, as well as the black ball of winds that came stright at them. [ "...?!" ] The demon was stunned by what had just happened. The kind of force that he had used in that attack was something meant to kill even someone far stronger than those children. It was meant to obliterate them¡­ yet, it just vanished? { "Do you know, oh miserable hater of nature¡­ what [{(Purush)}] meant in THEIR time?" } That green light was something he had already witnessed a few moments ago. The guard captain had used it as some kind of secret weapon of his, but in the end, it was just some petty tricks. It was nothing compared to the great power bestowed upon him by THEM. Yet¡­ now, that great power just disappeared? And that too, by the same strange green power that he had already defeated once? { "Do you know¡­ oh mortals." } The evil dark magician was confused, so it turned his head to the direction of the center of that strange echoing voice. { "Do you know what a [Truth] is?" } And at this moment¡­ for the first time he had been here, for the first time after killing all those players, natives, and things¡­ for the first time, there was an emotion other than joy or happiness in those completely white eyes. And this emotion¡­ [ "...how?" ] Alex knew very well how it was called ''primal fear''. Something an ''evil'' would always recognize instinctively. Chapter 55: Creation There are many stories of origin in the world of . However, players, or those who come from beyond this world alone, know how the world was actually created by many complex artificial intelligences by closely replicating the ''philosophical'' origins of the real world.They did not create the world based on scientific origin¨C following the [Big bang] principle and starting the world from an original starting point. The Creators of these AI models, the [Creators] of Twelve [Origins] of the world of did not stick to a certain ''Genesis'' story that the scientists have speculated over the decades and centuries and went beyond it, took inspirations from the lores, myths, epics, philosophies of ancient times, and instructed the Superior, highly complex AIs with ''learning'' capabilities to create a world that was as real as Reality, while at the same time, was as fantastical as the human heart''s desire for freedom. In the end, the models created the world based on some core philosophical principles that independently as well as collectively were necessary for the existence of this unique world¨C [Truths] as they are known today. The natives who were originated at the end of an unknown time period''s [Creation], [Destruction], and [Recreation], started their lives in a unique world, ''evolved'' similarly to how the human evolution had taken place, and after a long time, they reached the point where the players entered their world¨C where the otherworldly beings who would not die even after being killed entered their worlds. Unlike them, they did not age, did not get tired the same way they did, got stronger faster than they could, and after only a few months of their lives in this world, they got adapted into the societies that already existed there. They were adaptive beings that the natives could not understand, but as time passed and the [Open beta] ended, they got used to these ''Foreign'' visitors cursed by destiny, doomed for a more miserable life than the natives. With time, the world evolved as well and when the regular players started visiting this world, it was easier for the natives to adapt to these unique beings. There were some difficulties at the start, some conflicts that the players had to deal with by themselves, but¡­ they were outsiders in a different world. They needed to adapt, evolve, and do various things to also become a part of this world¨C and to assist them with it, to assist all natives in various ways, the [System] propagated by the [Origins] existed. The [Truths] that this world followed were paths for the players. Walking on these paths granted them {Skills}, (Powers), , and most importantly, a [Class]. The [Origins] who maintained these [Truths] were close to an owner of these truths, the ones who maintained various worldly functions based on these [Truths]. [Nature] was one of these truths, [Individual] was another truth¨C factually, there were more truths in this world than there were [Origins]. Thus, the [Freedom] to walk any path one desires, the freedom to do anything one wants without being restricted to one [Truth] was achieved. And since the [Truths] existed, the world¨C under the ''maintenance'' of the supreme beings, or [Origins]- existed as well. They were creators, they were maintainers, and they were the destroyers. { "Answer me, oh follower of evil." } When a player reached a certain level, or achieved a certain feat, or performed some unique actions that caught the attention of the [Origin], they were given the chance to obtain powers directly from them. When a player willingly walks on a certain path, with time and right efforts, they would naturally reach a stage where they are able to access the [Truths] and gain powers from those universal laws. And, since this is a game¨C if one is lucky enough, they can kill dragons even if they are at (Level-0), Go down to hell and come back at their will even without the qualifications or any Authority, or¨C become a god themselves. The endlessness of possibilities was possible thanks to the [Truths]. But¡­ understanding what this actually meant layer by layer would be more fun instead of something like this. "The Guardian spirits of nature, beings who had received powers and immortality from [Nature] and reside in the world of spirits after their departure from the physical world¡­ there is only one kind of skill that allows one to borrow the power of those beings." No one knows why some individuals possess these skills, what the conditions to acquire these skills are, how one can grow it, or what one needs in order to use the full potential of these skills. Aside from the one possessing these skills, no one even knows how important certain items are to realize the complete potential of these skills. But, there are some people who do possess these skills. And, possessing these skills allows them to borrow powers of the Guardian spirits who reside in a different realm. [ "How¡­ how can something¡­" ] If the power of evil is something that is meant to destroy this nature, the powers of Guardian spirits is what preserves this nature, and protects it against the evils of this world. "The key to defeat the Mage was the guard captain." She had a pleased smirk on her face right now. The guard captain who looked just like a normal person, a tall and strong looking normal person akin to an experienced knight, had now turned into a tiger. Yes¡­ a green tiger. { "If you do not even know the [Truth] that has blessed you, oh follower of evil¡­" } A green spirit beast, a creature that was three meters tall and so big that it was covering half the ground where the dead bodies of their fallen comrades were Thrown. [ "No¡­ no!" ] The tiger was merely made of a green energy with the guard captain being inside of him, holding a floating Jade lotus in his hands. There was a Mana crystal on the forehead of the creature. And right under this forehead, the creature''s sharp eyes that seemed to be seeing right through the souls of all living things resided¨C a unique anger currently visible in them. -Ooooooooooooooong. The tiger was glaring at the dark magician. And the dark magician knew that when he tried manifesting the strongest magic he had used until now. "It is futile." sea??h th§× N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. { "...what even is the meaning of your existence." } "Everything is futile now." She had seen the world defining powers of the person in the unified rankings, a player¨C a kind soul who weeped for the departed. She was one of the strongest not because she had high stats, unique gears, or vast knowledge about this world¡­ but merely because she possessed that one skill and had mastered it like no one else. { "What does your vast powers even amount to?" } -Swish. The guard captain was using that same skill in true meaning now. There was no way a mere Dark magician of such a low level would ever be a match for it. Especially, not a dark magician¨C an opposer of nature. Chapter 56: End of a dark magician [ "No¡­ this cannot happen!" ]The spirit guardian appeared before the dark mage and looked down at him with enraged expression. The dark magician was trying to gather all the energy he could to cast any kind of magic, but everything was futile before the green energy that was oozing out of the tiger. There was fear in the eyes of the black magician. The eyes that had only been looking down at the creatures lower than him were now glaring at the being that had a look of not disgust but disappointment in his angry eyes. { "The Nature of [Ashuddha] is that of impurity. When it grants its powers to a being, it impures them." } -Ooooooooooooong! A green smoke appeared beneath the dark magician. { "The reason the impurity is against nature is not because the nature holds purity¨C [Shuddh] is a different [Truth] altogether." } The green energy that had appeared in the form of smoke covered the dark magician. S§×arch* The NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. It slowly covered his legs, his body, and soon, the green energy was covering the dark mage completely. { "It is because of the nature of [Ashuddha] that it tries to impure what surrounds everything." } The green energy slowly started getting darker, and the light it produced started getting brighter as well. "Wow¡­" Elio was stunned by the sight before him. He was not expecting to see a being like this, a being that made his heart calm down just by its presence. He was looking at the scene before him, he was looking at how the dark mage who had been the reason for the suffering of everyone in this place, the one who caused so much destruction, do many deaths, and so much bloodshed¨C the very being that was smoking at them until just a moment ago, was now the one suffering. "There is a lot you haven''t seen yet, Elio." Alex was fine now. The green energy that had protected them from the attack of the dark mage earlier had healed her as well. She was fine now, and she was looking at the scene before them with her three adorable companions. "Muuu¡­" "Yes. They are beautiful." "Miu." They were lost in the greatness of the scene before them, but she knew all of them were listening to her, and so she finished her sentence. "This is just a fraction of what true Powers of this world are capable of. We still have a lot to see here." The light from the green energy had become almost blinding. So, both of them had no choice but to close their eyes. -Ooooooooooong! { "If you do not even understand what power you are using¡­ you have no right to wield that power, oh follower of evil." } The light vanished soon, and along with the light, the evil dark mage had vanished as well. All that remained in the place where he stood was black ashes¨C which soon disappeared with winds as well. [Ding!] [The Dark magician has fallen!] The system notification that appeared before every individual throughout the Moongold town stunned them for a moment. However, after a moment passed, they grasped what the appearance of this new notification meant. [Regional Quest: Cleared!] It was over. After the loss of so many lives, after shading so much blood, after seeing deaths of so many natives and players, after a battle that lasted the entire night¡ª as the first sunlight of dawn graced them, the long battle came to a halt. The dark energy that was covering the town from all direction was also vanishing. "Did we din?" "Who killed the dark mage¡­?" "Better question is¡­ where even is the dark mage?" "Even better question would be¡­ why is the dark mage?" "A better one¡­" The players who were still engaged in fight with the dark minions watched as the minions of evil vanished- burned away with the new light of dawn. Their summoner had perished, so there was no medium through which they could exist in this world anymore. The remaining creatures- goblins under the power of darkness also fell down lifeless without the power that they had following all this time. This was their end, and¡­ along with them, this was an end to the sudden crisis that the moongold had faced. "It''s over." Alex sighed a breath of relief and dropped her head on his shoulder. "Yes¡­" And he dropped his head on hers. It was tiring. They just wanted to go back to their inn and have a good long sleep. He was not feeling well, and even though she was healed, she was not feeling so good either. Rest was important. They were also sleep deprived, so they had to seep. But before they do that¡­ { "It is very rare to see someone following a trial, even for beings like us." } The tiger that had finished the dark magician that they did not even hope to defeat with their current strength, walked in their direction. Their elegant walk was refined, unparalleled to the simple walk of the felines found in nature. { "It is even more rare to see an object such as that." } The tiger''s eyes were fixed on Alex as they spoke to them. { "Young lady¡­" } There was a unique curiocity in them, as well as a kind of care they did not have when they looked down at the Dark magician. { "Is it possible to know your Immortal name?" } The tiger had a look similar to that of respect in his eyes. With the light in the Mana crystal on its forehead getting dimmer, his astral body was fading away as well. But, the curiosity and respect was still present in his deep eyes. And seeing this reaction, Alex had a nostalgic smile on her face. "I cannot tell you my Immortal name, child of Kohaku." She spoke simply, but her words caused a storm in their respectful, curious eyes. "However, THEY should know . Ask her when you return." The way she was talking to this guardian spirit seemed quite unusual to Elio, as if a majestic being like this one was nothing unique to her. She was unfazed even in their great presence, she was looking directly in the eyes of a being that had just killed a dark mage without even lifting a finger¨C or paw in this case, or a nail of that paw. He knew she was a high level player before but, wasn''t she using an Alt right now? Or, as he had expected, did she just really somehow leveled down? He did not know what she meant by most of the things she was saying, but he could tell from the surprised look of the creature before him that whatever it was¡­ it was no small thing. Chapter 57: Leftovers of a battle { "I did not expect to meet someone who knows the great mother when I heard the desperate calling of this child." }There was a new surprise in the eyes of this being, as well as a fading smile on its face. { "Very well¡­ oh, enlightened one walking the turbulent path. I shall remember thy blessed title as I depart these mortal lands." } The giant tiger that did not even look at the dark magician properly, at the end of his time in this world, bowed down before a completely normal low level player, surprising the one beside her. "Tell her I will be back for my stuff please." Not even the disappearing tiger knew what it meant, but he smiled and kept his head to the ground, on his front legs, as it vanished into fine green particles at the crack of the dawn. -Oooooooong¡­ The body of the guard captain that was the core of the giant tiger''s body fell gently to the ground at the disappearance of the creature, and the Jade lotus that had been floating in his hands also vanished along with the creature. The guard captain was unconscious, and since they knew they would need four to six people to bring him back to the town, they just stayed there, in their positions. "So, how much do I not know about you? The past you from this game, to be more precise." He did not want to ask her how she lowered her level so much. The guardian spirit also spoke of trial or something so he had his doubts. But instead of asking about her present self, he asked her about her past. A past that he did not seem to be well familiar with despite being with her for all these years. "Well¡­ let''s say you don''t know a lot of it. Even I don''t know that much since I''ve been here for over a decade so, even if I tell you everything, it won''t be everything." Her statement was simple and easy to understand. "Though, if you want, I''ll tell you everything little by little as we travel together and see new things. How about that?" And the question was nothing difficult for him to answer. "I''d love that, yes. Knowing this side of you has turned out to be much more fun than I expected¡­ and I''d love to continue it." The unexpected quest was over now. They had cleared the quest. The guardian spirit defeated the boss monster and since it had manifested from the skill of the guard captain, most of the contribution would belong to him. But still, since contribution was calculated based on a lot of various things, she knew they would at least get into the top five contributors. "It''s settled then~." Now that the quest was complete and she was utterly exhausted, she was happy. Not being able to kill the dark mage with her own hands was sad, but she did all that she could. And the results of it were fun. "Let''s wrap things up." Soon, the event of the library that she was here for would take place and since they had experienced such a quest already, she was planning to depart for their next destination as soon as she was done here. On the travel path that she had designed, there were (Twelve destinations). Starting with Moongold, they were going to end all the way somewhere to the other side of this world¨C a place that she would be visiting for the first time. She knew it was going to be a fun experience for both of them, so¡­ she signed happily now that the first big quest of their game life had come to a close. "Muuuu¡­" "Miu¡­" She wanted to finish things and go back to the town to meet the Mayor. Soldiers and the remaining guards would be here to pick up the guard captains and the remains of the fallen comrades, and clean up this blessed battlefield where they had fought with their meaningful lives on the line. They will be remembered for their sacrifices¡­ and the town folks will mourn for them. The players will go back to their daily lives, but for the natives and the players who had been nothing less than a native of this town will express a great sorrow for the lives of their friends, their partners, their family members¨C their fathers and their lovers. For the next few days, the atmosphere of the moongold will remain gloomy, she knew all of that. "We weren''t strong enough to save them, El." But still, seeing the sadness in the eyes of her partner as he watched the gruesome scene before him, as he watched the fallen bodies and the bodies that did not even have a ''body'' left anymore¡­ as he watched the life that had extinguished, the only emotion he could feel was self loathing. "This is not your fault, or mine, or the guard captain''s, or anyone else''s." Things could have been different but they were not. What had happened had already passed and there was nothing that they could do to change it. It has become the past already. "I know¡­" And he knew this bitter fact. "I know." There were tears at the ends of his eyes but they did not come out. He was burning from inside, thinking how he might have saved all of them if he had strength, if he could have done all that he did in a better way, if he had not stopped at the cave and gone back to check on the dark magic circle¡­ They made mistakes. And it cost them lives. "I know." sea??h th§× N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Lives that were lost forever now. "Haaa¡­ you''re getting too invested in this game, El." She hugged him, kissed his cheeks, and got up from the ground. "And the reason for that is someone who used to have a great epic noble title of ." "Miu!" "Muuuu~!" The two little creatures liked the sound of it, but he was just mocking her. And for that, he will be punished later. "Get up now. Let''s clean up a little." The guards and the people from the town will be here soon since they knew the final battle was happening here. They were too deep inside the forest so no one must have noticed many things going on here, and since the dark minions were blocking this place prior to the death of the dark mage, the others must have had difficulty getting past them. "Haaaa¡­" The top elites were the only ones who crossed the defensive line of the dark minions, but those very elites and brave individuals were now¡­ gone. "May the departed find the guides, the lantern holders on the waters of afterlife. May their sins be judged lightly, for they fell on a battlefield, like the warriors they aspired to embody¡­" It was the prayer of this kingdom that was offered to the ones who pass away on a battlefield. Elio was hearing it for the first time. But, it resonated with him deeply¡­ Chapter 58: Peaceful sleep "I heard you two were fighting for us as well? Are you hurt anywhere?"They were back to their inn and since it was early morning, there weren''t many people around on the ground floor. There weren''t many guests in this inn in the first place, so the two of them and Miss Rin were chatting while they had a morning coffee as Misha cleaned up the place. They knew what had happened yesterday and they were inside all the time it was happening. Misha was still a teenager so she did not have any experiences of her town being attacked, but as someone who had lived a long, difficult life in many towns and cities, she knew how getting attacked by external forces felt. She was worried when the two of them came back. This was her first experience with something like this, so she thought the sister that had saved them from those thugs and the brother with that slime would have gotten hurt. But thankfully that was not the case. "Thankfully, we are fine. Though, it has been a long night and we are exhausted." "Oh, then do you want to take a bath? Should I prepare some warm water for you?" "Oh. That would be great." She made some coffee for the two of them and since their relationship with the inn owner and her daughter had improved so much, they could now use the kitchen however they wanted. They were already tired, so taking a bath and having a nap was going to be great. ''The Mayor will make the announcements in the evening.'' A while has passed since the battle and the cleanup process was finished as well, the contribution calculation should have been done as well¡­ but since the nature of the quest this time was unique, the contribution will only be revealed when the Mayor announces his own rewards and thanks. So until then, they wanted to sleep. "I want to¡­ yawnnnnn~. Just lay down and sleep." Sleep was an important part of the game, just like real life. One can overdose on caffeine and block the sleep for a while but there is no way to completely stop sleeping. One needed to sleep to keep functioning well in this game as well or else they would be debuffed. "Madam Rin, we shall take our leave now." "I will be there shortly." She could see the exhaustion in their eyes and in their movements. She could tell they must have run around quite a lot, used many magic items and spells and were exposed to the dark energy for a long time. She understood the severity of their situation but she was aware of their nature. Both of them were extremely unique individuals. And seeing how they were caring around a dangerous mana beast inside of a Mana slime as well, she could not help but be more interested in this young couple. "Yaaaaawn~." "You''re tired as well, hun?" "Nah. We can still have some fun in the bath if you want." "Crazy bastard." They weren''t going to have any fun today anymore. Perhaps at night, in reality, but not here. Here, she will sleep. And he will cry¡­ she knew that, and she wasn''t going to come between him and his tears. He could cry however much he wanted while cuddling me, but she was going to sleep. After using that Crimson sword on that dark magic circle, she had no stamina left in her. If he knew how she was surviving on negative stamina right now, he would be shocked and drag her to some clinic for a detailed checkup. "Good night then¡­" She just laid down on the bed as soon as they were in their room. And, just a moment later¡­ she had fallen asleep. "Miu?" "Muuuu?" Both Az and Miu were confused why she suddenly fell asleep like that, but Elio knew just how exhausted she had been. He had seen her falling asleep out of the blue like this in the real world before, but this was his first time seeing it in the game. "Good night, Miss Twinkle." But he was familiar with it, so it did not come as a big surprise to him. He just laid off beside her on their bed¡­ and strangely, he also fell asleep. -Knock! Knock! "Excuse me." Miss Rin came without receiving permission, hoping to see some steamy young stuff¡­ but she only found two exhausted people peacefully sleeping together. It was a better view than what she had expected, but it was pure. So with a warm smile on her face, she just left the two young ones alone and left their room, closing it as gently as she had opened it, without making any sound At All. "Muuu?" "Miu." The little slime and gecko were confused what to do now, and they knew letting the gecko out would be dangerous, so Az asked miu to get inside of him, and the two jumped out of the room. Since Alex and Elio were sleeping, they did not have anything to do here. And since they didn''t need to rest as much as them, they were free to do something else. -Bing. Bing. Bing. Az had gained some levels after all their trouble today, and so it could live on its own around the safe area. And it knew some magic as well so they weren''t going to get in too much trouble if they just stayed inside of the inn. "Hmmm? What are you doing here?" But before they could even go around the inn, they were caught coming out of their room by Madam Rin who was still around the corridor. "Don''t you want to sleep or something? Or are you two bored just sitting in your room without your friends?" Miss Rin was pretty interested in the slime already but now that there was a Mana beast inside of this slime as well, she was even more interested in these creatures. "Muuuu!" "Miu! Miu!" "Hmmm?" She knew the slime was a pretty intelligent one. But the fact that even the Mana beast inside of it was smart enough to respond to her question was a fascinating instance for her. "Huhu. aren''t you two interesting?" She came closer to them and picked the slime gently. "Want to come help me with some work?" "Muuu?" "Miu?" They were adorable. Her daughter liked them already, but she was afraid to get close to them since they were creatures and she was still unfamiliar with such beings. There was no need for her to be afraid of something that was also a creature of Nature, so she wanted them to get closer. And since they had this chance now, she thought it would be the best time for them to work on this little thing. S§×arch* The N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 59: A tough morning "Yawnnnn~. Woh.""Had a good sleep?" This time, she was the one greeting him after their peaceful sleep. Just like it should be. "Nope. It was terrible." He was smirking as he looked at her pretty face the first thing in the morning¡­ in the evening actually. The morning and afternoon had passed already. "Oh? Was it now~?" Just like him, she was smirking as well. Both of them knew what the other one was thinking, and their eyes looking into each other''s eyes spoke more than either of them had said. "So, should we?" He asked first, even though he could tell she wanted to be the one to say it. "Well¡­ I wish we could." But contrary to what he thought, she shook her head at his pretty invitation. "It''s time. We have to go down to the central plaza. The Mayor''s speech, remember?" "Ah¡­" Last night was terrible. He did not know how or when he fell asleep but now that he was awake and his head was clear once again, he remembered all that had happened yesterday. All the blood shed. All the goar, blood, insides, deaths, those gruesome scenes¡­ he remembered all of it out of the blue. "...!" And he instantly became nauseous as soon as that happened. -Thum! Thum! Thum! He ran straight to the bathroom and threw up involuntarily. They did not have dinner yesterday and still, he could not help but throw up after all the things that he had seen yesterday. "There there. Take it all out. Slowly. There''s no need to rush." "Ahem! Ahem!" She was right beside him this time¨C she thought she would not be there when he would cry over all that had happened yesterday but he unexpectedly fell asleep with her. Perhaps because of exhaustion or all the spells that he had cast. She didn''t know the reason, but he also fell asleep alongside her. And now that he was awake, and all the memories, emotions, and ''images'' were rushing back to him, this was a natural reaction for someone that saw the light of the world, instead of the shadows present everywhere. "Haaa¡­ haaa¡­" He did not get to cry his heart out, so his mind compasented for all that mental burden through this small, simple, but effective process. Few people knew it, but throwing up was a unique response that the human body had developed over many evolutionary phases that protected not only one''s body but mind as well. But then again, those were recent studies. It was common for people to not know about them. "You alright now?" She was familiar with those kinds of sights. This game was not for children, or for the older people who did not want to see those kinds of scenes. Not all humans could handle things like that¡­ surely not a normal person like him who had lived a normal life in the bright areas of a city. "Yes¡­" But she knew his adaptability was unreal. He had survived many brutal environments in his younger days and he had handled high pressure in his recent years. She knew very well how he was before she met him. And she knew how much he had learned in these short twenty four years of his life. "Good. Let''s clean up and make you something good and warm." He wasn''t a kid so the fact that she got to treat him like one was a fun thing for her. She liked this rare occasion. And she wanted to cherish it even more¡­ but when they got down after an hour, the scene before them surprised them a little. "Miu? Az? What are you two doing down here?" The fact that they actually forgot about their two cute friends was shameful, but they knew they wouldn''t have gone far away from there. They were smart so they should at least not have gone out in the broad daylight. They knew that, so they expected them to find somewhere around here¡­ "Miu!" "Muuuuu!" But, well, they at least did not expect them to be with Misha¡­ or on top of a passed out Misha to be more precise. -Bling. Bling. Bling. The slime jumped towards them happily and the lizard that was sitting on top of its friend with only its legs inside the mucus surface smiled widely at its friends. "Miu~!" "You were playing with her¡­?" It most certainly did not look like they were playing since she seemed to be unconscious right now-. "Hmm? Where did you two go?" "Hun?" "...?" Or not. She was fine and seemed to simply be acting unconscious. "Oh! Sister! Brother Elio!" The young girl in her humble outfit ran up to them, picked up the little slime and carelessly hugged it. She was hugging the gecko alongside it, but though shocking, it did not seem like she was affected by the dense Mana of the gecko. "Sister! Brother Elio~. We were playing bang-bang! And even though I was not going easy on them, they defeated me twice!" "Muuuuu~!" "Miu~!" The three of them seemed to be awfully close now even though it had only been a few hours since they last saw her. "Muuuu~!" "Mia!" And from how excited the two little creatures seemed, they could tell the three of them had fun playing together. "Seems like you three had fun, hun." "No! They always win! It''s not fair!" She was usually quiet, but now that she was having fun with these little ones, she had become more chatty. "Hmm? What''s going on?" And since she was loud as well, her mom- who had been working inside the kitchen- came out with her hands still covered in flour. "Misha?" "Mom! They won again!" From how she was not surprised by her daughter''s reaction to the creatures and from how she seemed to be familiar with what was going on, it seemed like she knew how the three of them had gotten closer. But the two of their friends did not know that. So she informed them first. "Oh, sorry about this¡­ the two of those little ones seemed to be going out for a walk, so I brought them down to play with them. sea??h th§× ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The inn will remain closed for today so there''s not many guests around either, so I thought playing with them would be fun." "Oh?" Elio understood the situation from this much. And he certainly didn''t mind it. "I see. It''s fine. You can play with them when we aren''t around¡­ I''d appreciate it if you can look after them in our absence, actually." He was happy actually. The two looked happy, and that was all that mattered to him. "Miss Rin? Is the kitchen occupied?" "Hmm? You want to make something, dear?" Alex was¡­ confused right now. There were a few things going around in her head, but for now, she decided it was better to first make something for Elio so that he could at least feel a little better. "Yes, so, you see¡­ Elio wasn''t feeling well after what happened yesterday." She didn''t expect her to understand much of what she was saying, but from the sudden sad look she had, it seemed madam Rin understood what she meant. "Oh, I see. Come in, let me help you with it. Oh, and, Misha." Misha was hugging Miss Rin ever since she came out even though her hands were covered in flour. She knew it was inappropriate, but she did not mind it. "It''s fine if you lose. Just try harder next time, alright dear?" She gave her a warm smile and though she wanted to pat her head, her hands were dirty. "That''s right. So, even if you lost twice, try a third time. And fourth. And then as many times as you can." Try as many times as you can until you absolutely can not¡­ she remembered the words of one of her acquaintances from her past. And thought how strange of a man he was¡­ "So." Misha somewhat understood what they meant, and so, she asked Elio if she could play with Az and Miu for a little longer. And since Alex was making something for him, it was going to take some time. "Sure. Go have fun." He didn''t mind them playing around. They were young children anyway. They deserved to have fun¡­ Chapter 60: Sorrow and loss "Are we late? Have they started?""The boring part should have been over by now." "Hun? Does that mean we are late!?" He didn''t like being late. He didn''t like being right on time for something either since he believed on time was also late, so he preferred being early for everything. Even for their first date, she remembered how he had reached the venue an hour before their decided time¡­ if she didn''t practically live in that cafe, she would not even have known that he was so early for their meeting¡­ "Relax dude. The mayor would obviously talk about the great loss of the town, the deaths of the people, and sad stuff like that. The contribution rewards are something that''s generally left for the end of such sad events." She knew how these things proceed from her experience. There was a certain kind of sad speech that the mayor would give at the start of the speech, and it would mostly be dedicated to the people of the town. The main reason many of the establishments of the town were closed today was because of the mayor''s speech that had been going on for a while now. Most of the town''s folks were gathered in the plaza and places around them. The voice of the mayor was being broadcasted with the help of some magic devices resembling a microphone, and people were listening to him with sorrowful, sad, and a little angry eyes. There was a unique vibe to this atmosphere. She liked it quite a lot when the people were collectively sad like this¡ª it was a guilty pleasure, but she kept it to herself, only revealing her unique kinks to her partner. "It still means we are late, Alex¡­ haaa¡­" He did not mind that she felt happy to see this kind of atmosphere. He already understood how she liked the uniqueness of the atmosphere and not exactly the sadness that the people felt. ''She was a logical realist so, many emotions were a fascinating thing for her. Collective sadness of a mass that might or might not even be connected to the dead people in question was just¡­ fascinating to her. That was the reason she liked it. Not because she liked seeing the poor people cry like some sadist. "Should we go forward? There are too many people back here." "Nah, this is fine. Come, let''s sit there." The central plaza where players get summoned after either dying or when they are traveling through scrolls and items has now become the central stage for the mayor. The central fountain that reflects the light of the golden moon in a way that the water seems to be made of gold¡ª was right beside the stage that had been built for the mayor''s speech. He was standing on a podium, along with his wife and pretty daughter that was around the same age as Elio. The people in the surrounding had circled around this stage, and since there were no sitting arrangements, everyone was standing. "But-." "Don''t worry about things and just sit." Most of the people here were standing, even most of the players were standing along with them. They weren''t paying attention to what the Mayor was saying but at the very least, they were listening to him. And yet she was suggesting that they sit down in the chairs of an outdoor cafe? Elio didn''t find it appealing. "Haaa¡­" But at the end, he got dragged there and had no choice but to sit down. They could hear the voice of the mayor from this distance as well so there was no need to go in such a crowded place. { "We all have lost someone, someone dear to us, someone we cherish and someone we have looked up to." } Even if they did not have anyone among the people that they knew, as a member of this town, they must know some of the guards and of course, the knights and mages who had fallen. Some of them were people that one could normally see when they visited the Knight''s hall or the Mages'' tower. They were top of their craft and so, they were renowned figures in this town. And now, they are all gone. { "Losing someone is painful, agonizing even unto death. In my hometown, they use the word (Tokotsubo)¡­ a strong surge of abnormal waves of emotion¡­ that causes the heart to deflate, and contort until¡­" } He was the mayor. One that cared about the lives of his people and the ones that he had the duty to look after. { "Until it resembles a dried well." } He was emotional as he faced his people. People who shared his sorrow, people who had lost their loved ones, people who were not just subjects to him. { "An empty well¡­ so hollow and cold." } Among the crowd, there were families of the ones who had departed. Ones who lost nearly everything they had in this world, in this town. And all of them were his people. He was the same as a forgotten pot at the bottom of the fathomless sea, right now. { "I''m sorry for your loss, everyone." } He was the saddest, he was the angriest for not being capable enough to save the lost lives. { "We have suffered a lot, and that fact will not change." } He did not offer his people, the ones who were still with them, some false words of comfort. He did not even try that. Instead, he stated the reality of their situation. And expressed his own genuine sorrow with tears flowing down his eyes, while standing before the people who looked up to him. "That right there, Elio, is a leader." Alex liked this person for a reason. There weren''t many who liked him when it came to the political world of this world. Those in authority surely possessed power and influence unimaginable to the non-players or new players. "A leader¡­" Their ability to influence and grant Quests alone made them a vital part to this world. For high level players as well, these individuals were the same as those Rankers and achievement makers who are known throughout the original world. { "Thus, with heavy hearts and sorrow burning our souls, let us appreciate the efforts of the individuals without whom, we might all have suffered even greater losses at the hands of the evil." } [Ding.] Not everyone participated in this quest to save lives. Many of them just wanted the rewards from the quests. And now that it was time to reveal the Contribution tables and see who contributed the most to this quest, the players were finally paying attention for real. Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 61: Contribution calculations "Finally. The contribution.""Haaa¡­" "Why did we even have to wait for something like that for so long. "Anyway, it is finally here." The players had to wait for just the list of their contribution this time around because of the nature of the quest. Experience new tales on §Þ?? Since it was a quest issued by the town mayor, the one who held the highest authority within this town, he also had the right to reveal the contribution to the rest of the people. It wasn''t like the contribution calculations had taken days, something of this small scale did not even take a few hours for the advanced system even with all the variables and unique elements it counted. One of the unique features of this world was the calculation powers of the system that had unique ways to perceive things. Though one could not call it omniscient or omnipotent, it was something that was established in order to help the natives and the players. And there were rarely any complaints about the system''s methods or function. It did not take long for the contribution calculations to happen, however, since the nature of this quest was unique, the players had to wait until the Mayor revealed the list. But now that they could see it, many of them were surprised, some were having a hard time accepting it, and those who weren''t aiming for the top rewards but merely good rewards were happy to see their rankings in the list. ============ 1] #### (Pt: 15,999) 2] Axar 3] Aloha (Pt: 9876) 4] Elio (Pt: 9771) 5] Roland Lan Hunter 6] Ahitem (Pt: 7716) 7] Kaveh (Pt: 7121) 8] Lumine (Pt: 6699) 9] Rin (Pt: 6000) ¡­ ============ The name of the one who had obtained the highest contribution that was even beyond the contribution of the person who dealt with the dark magician and the Town''s mayor was concealed by the system. However, those who had contributed the most to this whole quest knew exactly who this person might be. They had received orders from her directly, and even the guard captain had worked as her suggestions. The guard captain and the mayor had given up their own contributions from what they could see in the final list, so the players could tell how someone who had not even been seen throughout the actual fight might have been on top in the contribution list. And though they did not know who the one in the fourth position was, they knew well how the only person who could receive that high of a contribution and still be unknown would be the newbie with the slime who they had only known briefly. It was surprising to them just what they might have done to get the contribution points of not just the guard captain that they were close with but also the mayor who wasn''t exactly someone who would so openly favor someone. This was strange for the players, but to the people in question, this was no big deal. "You got first place, congrats!" "Don''t make fun of me, bastard." Elio had a smirk on his face as he scrolled through the list. The fact that she got first place was surely something he was proud of, but the fact that she got that place after the two of them gave up their contribution to the two of them did not go well with her. They did it without asking or telling them so they could not do anything about it, but if they had informed them, she would never accept something that wasn''t hers¡­ or something that she had not earned herself. ''She''s the kind that never leaves even a copper coin if it belongs to her. But if something doesn''t belong to her rightfully, she avoids having it¨C calling it a negative gesture.'' She doesn''t like having what isn''t hers and she doesn''t like giving away what belongs to her. "Hehe, everyone seems envious of you." "Hump." She was an orphan. She did not have any parents and she never got adopted from the orphanage that she grew up in. She was smart, but she had never received any official education. She did not have any degrees like him, and she had never gone to any school either. Until she had become an adult and left the orphanage on her own, she had mostly taken care of herself. Most that she had learned was from books or from the vast internet that was available to everyone in these two worlds, even to the most common people. She hardly had any friends, and if it wasn''t for a fateful encounter, the two of them might not have even met. "You know what? I should go up to some high building and throw away the coins I earn from this. Make it rain money." "Instead of doing that, shower me with your money, ma''am. I will still be poor even with the money I receive from this quest." She was serious when she said she would throw away the money that she receives from her main quest rewards. She genuinely did not like how the two of them just gave her their own contribution without even asking her¨C they divided the contribution between many people but she still got something that she had not done anything for. She had done her best in the quest and she would not have had any less contribution than Miss Aloha, the representative of all the players in this town, as well as the one who had been here for the longest. But thanks to the two of their contributions, she was now on top of the list. And she did not like that. "Oh, right. You''re broke¡­ right! How about we go shopping after we get the money~?" All that she had right now was something that she earned on her own. No one had ever given her more than what she had worked for in her younger days, so having only what she had earned had become part of her nature. She avoided accepting help as well, that was another main reason she had been a Solo player for all these years. But just like how couldn''t do anything about what had already happened, occasionally, she did not mind accepting these unwanted things¨C that unwanted help. "Sure. I''d like that more than you throwing away the money that I helped you earn." He was smirking at her once again, and she absolutely did not like this. "What did you say you bastard?! I was the one who did the actual fighting!" She was angry at him, so she was shouting. Thankfully, there was nothing to throw at the table or his head might have been bruised by now. "Hump. Even Az and Miu did more than you!" "Miu~!" "Muuuu~." She did this often. But after listening to this loud and not so melodious voice of hers for so long, he had become used to it. sea??h th§× N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 62: Gratitude of the mayor [As a reward for achieving the highest contribution in the regional quest, you will be rewarded.] Your next read awaits at §Þ??[Ding!] [Achievement: [Defenders of town (Common)] [Money pouch (Highest contributor): Copper- 200. Silver- 100. Gold: 1.] [Achievement: [Judge of evil (Rare) will be awarded for contributing to the Dark magician raid.] [As additional rewards for having the most notable performance in the quest, you will receive a small blessing of nature.] A green light sprung up from beneath her feet and unique white stars fell on her from above. "Wow¡­" It was an effect that the players around her were well familiar with since this was something very famous, so everyone around her including Elio gasped with surprise. [Strength+3.] [Agility+3.] [Endurance+3.] "This is something I deserved already." Not all of them seeing this special effect knew it, but she was rewarded these stats for her own achievements. The blessing of nature was something that players earned naturally for their achievements randomly. Though players seeing this attributed it to her highest contribution, she had in fact earned it with her performance in the quest. She did not mind the stats, she was obviously happy to receive nine stat points in her physical stats. "Alright, then. Let''s go." Elio received two more achievements in addition to the two that she had received¨C one for perfectly casting the magic from the golden book she showed him, [Ancient magic caster (Common).] and [Master of a mutant (Common).] for taming Miu. He didn''t understand why he obtained the achievement after the quest had ended, but she knew Miu played a vital role in this quest somehow. Just that she did not yet have enough information to tell him everything that she suspected. "Yes¡­" The rewards of the system were generous. So now, they had come to meet the Mayor. Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The money both of them obtained from this one quest alone was more than enough to go around and buy some decent stuff in the town. The Trading site wasn''t always the best place to buy low level simple things since all the players knew how the real good and unique things could only be purchased from the shops and merchants. "The mayor has been waiting for you two. Please, this way." The Otherworld market was a trading section for the players. And as all players knew, no one sane enough would put any good item in there unless it was something useless to them, or they were dumb enough to misclick what they wanted to put up there. "Welcome. Please take a seat." They had to go shopping now that the sad event was concluded. But before that, they were visiting the Mayor in his office in the town hall. "Hello, mister Mayor-." "Call me Hunter. It is fine." Both of them now had the maximum familiarity with the mayor as well as the guard captain. Their relationship status had changed from [Acquaintances] to [Benefactor] as well. Both the characters now looked up to the two of them since without them, this town might not have been around anymore. And for saving their home, the Mayor wanted to thank both of them personally. Finishing the work he was doing, the mayor placed his pen down and walked to the side, and poured some water for his guests himself. "Please don''t hesitate to ask for anything you want." There were already some refreshments prepared on the table before the two of them, and he still offered both of them water himself¡­ He was the mayor, so even the servants in the room were surprised how he was doing those simple things himself when they all were present. The air of dignity and authority were still around her, his eyes still had the same light as it did before, and he was still wearing his professional clothing. The only thing surprising here was how he was behaving, and how there was still no difference to the air around him. "Thanks, Lord Hunter." "Hahaha. I am no lord, young lady. I''m merely a servant of someone who entrusted this town to me." He held the title of the Mayor of this town but this town was not a democracy or a republic. It was a place owned by the Viscounty that owned the a great part of southwestern lands of the Kingdom of Viv. The viscount was a noble lord who chose certain individuals and gave them positions of the town operators for set time periods, and though he had been the mayor of Moongold for the last five years, his turn as the Mayor was coming to a close. And after he isn''t the mayor anymore, he would be just a regular citizen of this town like the rest of the common people. "I am no lord, but merely a servant. However, even as a servant, I thank both of you for all you have done for us." Mayor bowed down to them even before he had taken his seat, surprising both of them who had been drinking the water he handed them. "I know it would not be an exaggeration to say you two saved the town yourself. However, it is a fact that everyone contributed to the safety of this town." He sat down and gave them both a moment to handle themselves. The water was still in their mouths so he could tell they were still surprised. They might not have expected this kind of reaction from him, but he was being genuine, and that much the two of them could tell from the eyes he had alone. "I don''t have much left, but please tell me if I can do anything for you. I will do my best to see if it is possible." The rewards that they received from the system was just a portion of the total rewards that they were going to receive from this quest. Their contribution was much more complex from what one might think, aside from the system rewards, they were going to get a gift from the guard captain, and a direct favor from the Mayor. "If that''s the case¡­" Both of them had something that they had in mind and, now that they had the chance, they did not hesitate to tell the mayor their wishes. Chapter 63: A guard "Good thing you''re here early."After their meeting with the Mayor, the two of them first paid a visit to the guards'' office since it was around where they were going to go shopping. They needed to see the guard captain anyway, so it wasn''t a bad idea to get the gift that he was going to give them either. "Hello there, guard captain~." Elio had gotten closer to the guard captain. "Miu~!" "Muuuu!" And his two little friends were the same. "I see you are in high spirits¡­ alas, I am drowning in work." After what happened with the town, there were a lot of deaths that they needed to record so that they could help the families of those who had lost their family members in the battle against the evil dark mage. They needed to clean up many places as well, and thanks to the battle that they had just had, the town had become a little vulnerable with the guard forces facing the most losses. Underground organizations who don''t operate in the broad daylight were now running all around the town, so it was getting difficult for the guards to take care of them. Various cases of theft, robbery, assault and such were being reported from all around the town so there was a lot of work that the guard captain had to do. He was busy already, so with the lessened workforce and with the hectic, gloomy atmosphere around the town, there was a lot that he needed to look after. "Thankfully, I have enough time to pass these two important objects to you two who should be able to handle them much better than the others here." The guard captain had already thanked them for saving his life, for giving him those precious things through which he was able to summon the spirit guardian in their complete form, and for doing all that they did. The thanking part between them was over already, so he did not waste long and just handed an old box as well as a small attractive dagger-like knife to the two of them. "You already seem to have a bunch of good things that I won''t ever be able to provide, but these things should help you in times of need." He handed the dagger to Elio and the box to El as he continued with his work. His desk was filled with a bunch of papers that he needed to look after, the schedule beside his desk had some unmarked boxes so he also needed to go around and do a lot more things later. They could tell how busy he was, so they did not disturb him too much. "Thanks for the presents. We will cherish them." "Thanks, Axar." Since the two of them had gotten closer as well, he did not mind them using his given name. But Elio still addressed him respectfully. She liked being free with their talking and addressing so, she did not stick around with the honorifics much anyway. She liked the free talking style so she mostly addressed people casually. "And this is for you." Now that they had received the gifts from him, and along with the gifts a pouch of money that contained all the money that he could spare at the moment, Alex placed an important looking parchment right on top of his current papers. "What¡­?" S~ea??h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "We players are not some outsiders. Use us, dude. You don''t have to suffer by yourself with all this work." The paper that she had placed before him was a direct order from the Mayor to utilize the foreigner forces in the reconstruction of the town and to get direct help from them. "...?" When an incident like this happens, they don''t usually ask help from the players since they know they will have to pay them. And the help of the players was most of the time costly so, they found it better to just do the work by themselves or with the free or cheaper help from the volunteers and natives. Nothing this big had happened to this town before so even the guard captain or the mayor knew how to deal with this situation, however, Alex used her chance to ask for anything from the mayor to do the mayor and this town a favor. She showed the mayor data on how smaller towns that had faced the dark magicians or calamitic events like this recovered with the help of the players. She showed them what kind of methods and techniques the natives of those places used and suggested what they could do to boost the reconstruction of the Moongold. The plan that she made with the Mayor in the short conversation that the had was more than enough for the smart and capable mayor to draw out the basic starting plan for what they would do¡­ and that plan was now before the guard captain''s eyes. "You came up with this, didn''t you?" He looked at her, before looking at Elio and the two creatures in his hands. "I didn''t. Well, I wasn''t the only one. We did it together." Smiling, Elio shrugged and shook his head lightly. He did like how the people of this bright town were so gloomy all of a sudden. The glamor and the energy that he had seen just a few days ago when he came here were all gone and instead, an eerie silence had taken root here. He did not like it. This bright town had won against the invasion of a very powerful being and instead of celebrating, they were being all gloomy. He did not like it, that''s why he had asked the mayor to organize a festival. Something that they still needed some time to finalize¡­ "Hahaha¡­" The guard captain also shook his head while laughing with a new energy. "Very well then~!" He was happy. After reading only one page of the whole long thing, he knew just how effective this plan would be. Read new chapters at §Þ?? They would be targeting the players and instead of paying them with money, they will pay them in tokens that they could later exchange for various unique things. Just by putting a few good things on display, they can create a competitive atmosphere and everyone will fight to collect more tokens faster than the others. And to do so, they will have to help out with various works. "I thank you once again for all your help, you two." The guard captain smiled at them cheerfully for a moment before continuing with his work with a new fire in his eyes. He had never thought of something like this before¡­ but now that he knew how he could take off some burden from his shoulders, he continued with his work with a new enthusiasm, excited to implement this new system in their town and see the unique results. Chapter 64: Fried chicken "Yawnnnn~. Now that we are finally done, how about we go get some food first?" she suggested with a tired look on her face and though lost in the scenery around him, he nodded at her suggestion."Sure. But are there any good places that will have something as good as your cooking?" He wasn''t teasing her this time, he was merely being genuine with his words. He loved her cooking, so much so that he hardly ever ate anything other than the things she made. It had been like that for a few years now, and yes they surely ate out, ordered in, and lived off of packaged food sometimes, both of them liked cooking and helping one another make special things for one another. "What do you take this town for, dummy. This is a different world. Of course there are things much better than the things that I make." She was confident about that, actually. In the time he wasn''t here, she had explored the town and looked around at the things that were famous and tried things that people all over the community recommended. She knew some of the places here at least provided some top class things that would be quite attractive to the new players of the town. There were also some must visit places around the town so, she wanted to visit them all with him. "Let me show you a good fried chicken place." she started dragging him before he even reacted to her suggestion. "They have fried chicken here?" "They even have italian, hehe. Don''t underestimate the cultural diversity of these starter towns." As someone who had gone all around this world and tried all kinds of things, she knew very well how there were things that were unfathomable to even individuals like Them when it came to food. There were things in this world that one could never even hope to reproduce in the real world. She had tried it herself but she could never do it. There was no way to do it actually since the kind of ingredients one can find in this place, the kind of techniques and cooking methods that one can use, as well as the kind of experiences one can have in thai virtual world was just too different from reality. It was close to reality and at the same time, it was not real¡­ No.15 in unified rankings was a chef. A chef that had no offensive skills and yet was at some of the highest positions any player of this world could possibly want to reach. "The fried chicken and the alcohol they serve here is just too amazing. You''ll like this place." She dragged him all the way to the high class district''s biggest restaurant, a six story building that one could see even from across two streets. It was a grand hotel, a place that also provided various other services on top of their great food. But, the chef here was a high class individual, someone who was one of the highest level people of this town, and someone who had learned from his long years of travels. They were famous among the players as well as the rich natives of this town. Many of the famous players of the town and those in big guilds frequented here often. They all recommended the taste of the fried food here, and since she had tried it herself, she knew this darling of hers would like it as well. "Hmmm? Aren''t you¡­" However, right when they were about to enter the place, a voice from behind stopped them in their tracks. "Right. I was right." It was a warm voice. One that contained decades of real world experience, one that was different from many voices that they had heard while walking around the streets earlier. They had to turn around and see the source of this voice. "Miss¡­ Aloha?" And when they did turn around, even Elio recognised this lady at a glance. "Oh, it''s an honor to be recognised by the savior of our town." A tall elder woman who seemed to be in her late fifties from the faint wrinkles on her face, but her still strong, mature physique and the way she was dressed made her seem like one of those old rich ladies who were just enjoying their days after retirement. "Oh no no, miss. The honor is all ours." Even Alex was surprised to see this individual and greeted her with a bow. She respected those she looked up to, and in this town, this person was one of the few that she could not help but respect with all her heart. "Huhuhu, what honor could an old lady like me bring to you who saved this home like town of mine." Wearing a lavish and finely crafted purple dress that was covered in rich embroidery, white gloves and comfortable yet attractive looking shoes¨C as well as a dull blue hat that strangely went well with her outfit, she was carrying a small expensive looking purse around. She wasn''t wearing any heels, but she was still as tall as both of them who were over six feet tall. Her dark brown hair still contained a glow that many ladies her age might start losing, and her skin devoid of any kind of makeup was as full of life as Alex''s. Her deep amber eyes were full of life for someone who actually was old, and the smile that she had as she looked at the two of them was not that of interest or surprise, but simply that of a deep gratitude. "Oh, looks like you two were going in. Would it be fine for me to join you two? I wanted to have a little chat, you see." "Oh! Yes. Please!" "We don''t mind, not at all!" Elio and Alex both did not expect she would directly ask to join them like that, but they would not deny the very representative of the players who also had been in this town for the longest. If anything, people had to wait for weeks to get a simple appointment with her. She was famous not just in this town, but throughout the entire northwest for her special skills. Perhaps in the entire viscounty, she was one of the most famous hair stylists that even the mayor and viscount who governed this entire land had to take appointments to meet. S§×ar?h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And if they were getting a chance to have food with her directly, both of them would be just dumb to reject this great opportunity. Continue reading at §Þ?? Chapter 65: Miss Aloha The inside of the lavish hotel exuded elegance and charm.The grand lobby had a high ceiling with sparkling magical chandeliers adorned with magical candles and glowing stones The polished marble floor with gold patterns along with red flowing finishing that perfectly settled with one another and gave a close, flowing feel to the entire floor. Cozy seating areas with plush sofas and dark wood tables holding fresh flowers filled the reception space, many guests were waiting for their turns, many of them being players. The walls had tapestries showing six unique mythical creatures, all representing an ancient tale that was famous throughout not just this town or part of the viscounty but throughout the entire empire. Large arched windows gave views of the live scenery of the town, the calmness inside the place giving a cozy yet rich vibe. A grand staircase with carved railings was present to the left of the main reception at the end of the hallway, red carpets on the stairs leading to the upper floors. All six of the floors were connected with the same staircase, so the space it provided for the rest of the places was quite vast. The polished reception desk made of red wood had friendly staff in the center who welcomed guests with warm smiles. The dining area a story above that was faintly visible from the ground had elegantly set tables and the delicious aroma of food filled the air. "Well, this place has some unique ambiance, I''d say that much." Elio was impressed. Even with his strictly high standards, this place was something he actually liked quite a bit. "You should make one like this in reality, hehe." He mainly owned cafes and small restaurants that weren''t as luxurious as this one, but it wasn''t a bad idea to try and build something like this. "It''s not impossible¡­" He actually considered this idea. He could try¡­ just that he will have to splash over half of his savings for that. "Huhu, looks like you like this place." Miss Aloha walked in front of them and directly reached the reception. The staff did not even ask her what she wanted or if she had a reservation and, one of the staff members directly came out of the reception area to greet her. "Please prepare two more tables for my guests." "Yes, ma''lady." The staff member respectfully guided all three of them to the third floor, a place that was relatively emptier than the rest of the floors below. And a place was already prepared for them there, in a certain empty corner with no disturbance around. "Being a VIP sure has its perks, hun?" "Just being a VIP can''t give this kind of treatment, dummy. She must be very close to the owner of this place." "Looks like the young miss actually is more experienced than her level." They were only whispering to one another and yet she heard both of them clearly. "That''s right though. The young boy that owns this place used to call me grandma while telling me how he was kicked out of another job. And he still does whenever he visits." [Candlelight] The merchant union that owned this place was one of the largest and wealthiest merchant unions in the kingdom. Not many knew it, but the master of this union was a young person, an ambitious young person. "That''s¡­ amazing." Alex had always been a wanderer. She did not stay in one place for long. She mostly fought and polished her skills. There weren''t many natives that she had any connection with and since she had not stayed in the same place for longer than the time required to finish all the quests that she could find, or to clear all the dungeons and hunting grounds in the area, she had not had a life like this person. "She respects you, miss Aloha. It is rare." S§×ar?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Oh, is that so?" They sat down in their seats, and just like the gentleman he was, Elio thanked Alex when she pulled out the chair for her princess. "Aren''t you two a unique couple?" She found it interesting how it was natural for them to make fun of each other while at the same time being respectful to one another. She could tell they loved one another, her age had at least taught her how to perceive love and affection as well as how to distinguish between lust and attachment. She did not expect it, but meeting them showed her a rare sight. "Huhuhu." Unlike Alex who had experienced the vastness of this world, Miss Aloha had been here for most of her life. Experience new stories with M V L She did not travel much, she loved the house she had in this town, and she loved everything that they had in this town. She was a simple person who was already tired of all the work of real life. She did not like the hustle and bustle of the real world, that''s why she had started playing this game which offered a unique kind of freedom. "Order whatever you want. Oh, if you were going to order fried chicken with the sparkling ale, I suggest you try their secret sauces along with them." Alex wanted to experience the vastness of this world so she traveled. But Miss Aloha found freedom in staying in one place, finding a home, and doing what she wanted. She respected this elder person exactly because was able to do what she loved for so long while staying in one place. "They have secret sauce? I didn''t know that¡­" "Huhu, then you will like it even more." She could never do it. Being tied to one place¨C it just wasn''t what she wanted to do in this fun world. "Oh, and while we wait for the food¡­ I will express my gratitude for saving my lovely home." She looked at both of them, and lightly bowed her head. "I know everything you did to defeat that evil mage. And for all your efforts, I want to express my gratitude." Their meeting this time was a coincidence but she was going to approach them soon to thank them both. "I don''t know how much these two little ones helped, but they must have helped a lot as well. So, I want to thank all four of you." Az and Miu were looking around this place, and even though the other customers did not like a slime jumping around the place, they did not say anything about it since they were with the guests of Miss Aloha. She was pretty much the same as the owner of this place, as well as many other places in this town. It was just plain foolishness upsetting this person. So, they left the slime with the gecko inside of it alone. They were just jumping around the floor so they could ignore their presence. "I don''t have much to offer like Lan or Axar. As a simple barber, all I can offer to you is a simple haircut, so¡­ how about it? Are you two free anytime soon this week?" "..." "Wait, really?" Both of them had to take an appointment for a haircut from her anyway, but they did not think they would get the chance anytime soon. "Yes. That would be my thanks to both of you¡­ and as for the little ones, tell me what will make them happy. I''ll see if I can get it somehow." She was not just any normal barber if even a noble had to take appointments from her. All players knew how special her hair styling was. "Thank you~!" "We appreciate the gesture, miss Aloha." His grown hair was getting on her nerves anyway. Thankfully, they will go away soon now. Chapter 66: The amazing taste "Oh wow¡­ oh, shit this is better than last time I had it.""Does the sauce change it that much?" "You bet. How the hell did they prepare this chicken? What do they mix in this sauce? Drugs?" "Huhuhu, we can go ask the chef if you want." She wasn''t joking. The head chef that made the recipes of these things and looked after everything in this place also knew her well. He wouldn''t mind even if she asked him what the secrets to all the things in this place were. "Hmmm¡­ I''d like to take a look around the kitchen here. See how they make these things." He knew how cooking was done in a unique manner in this world. They did not always use the common appliances that the people of the real world used. They had special methods and special ways¨C as well as special ingredients. The chicken that they were eating right now was not the same kind of chicken that they ate in the real world. The thing that they were eating was called (Kukooro) a creature that, though closely resembled a chicken, was something that lived in forest areas, on trees. The overwhelming juiciness that was balanced perfectly with the crisp of the outer surface and the softness of the meat inside was just too unreal even to someone who had once lived on this particular food. "Wow¡­ this sauce¡­ Elio I''m telling you¡­ this is The shit." "Hey. mind your words." His hands were a little dirty so he hit her head with his own. They were with someone she respected and she was using curses? Now that wasn''t appropriate. "Didn''t you used to say you have tried all kinds of heavenly and divine dishes? How does simple fried food compare to those things?" "Divine dishes?" Elio''s words suddenly caught Miss Aloha''s attention but, when she looked up at the sauce stained face of the girl before her, she could only chuckle with a smile. "You have no manners, little lady." She wiped the sauce from her face with a napkin while smiling at her warmly. This was a pretty familiar sight to someone who had taken care of tens of little children of this town. She did not know what her background was or even What she was, but she kind of had a unique liking for this pretty girl. There was something special about her. "You.. ahem. Sorry. You didn''t have to do that." She got a blush of embarrassment when Miss Aloha did that. It was out of the blue. "It''s rare for her to be embarrassed as well, miss Aloha. She''s usually calm and stoic." Elio was having more fun than the smile-gecko duo who had found a strange looking green plant in a corner and were playing with it. She wasn''t an expressive person in reality so he had not seen her so openly expressed many times in the past. She was the most expressive when she was with his mom, or when they were with his family. Alone at their place, she was mainly just doing her stuff or was playing around with him. They talked, they helped one another with house work, and they went on dates. But still, this little lunch they were having was the first time she was being like this around someone they were meeting for the first time. "Your mind allows you to be vulnerable around the people you feel comfortable with. And¡­ well, let''s just say everyone becomes comfortable around me." She smiled lightly as she took a bite from her own unique dish¨C she liked chicken but fried food so early wasn''t good for her health. She avoided it inside the game as well until it was some special occasion. "Seems like it." Their meeting with her was something that happened by chance, but it must have been fate. He liked this food, he liked how she was liking it even more. And perhaps if not for this chance encounter, they might not have had this unique experience together. "Miu!" "Muuuu~!" "Oh, you two are back." The little ones found the plant that was emitting Mana a fun thing. It was their first time seeing such a plant, and since it was a rare kind that one didn''t usually find in the beginner hunting grounds, their surprise was natural. Still¡­ "You can''t have it, Az. Can you even eat something like that?" He could tell his little friend also wanted to eat something, and the plant was a fun option. Miu also wanted to come out for some fresh Mana but they can''t have it out here or the people around us will get scared. It will have to wait for some time, but Az was still not getting that plant. "What an interesting creature¡­" She could tell what this creature was and how special the one inside it was as well. In her time here, she had seen all kinds of slimes, but none were as unique as this one. "I haven''t seen many that are as curious and energetic as this one." Your next chapter is on M V L Since Az was back on their table, she caressed it gently. "Muuuuu~." And Az liked her touch as well, which was a rare sight for the two of them. "Miu!" Even Miu who was inside Az was happy after receiving her indirect affection. The way the gecko was smiling was so pretty, it put another smile on Miss Aloha''s face. "You have some unique friends, Elio." She called them friends¨C not creatures, not tamed beasts, not something the other players would call but friends. "I''m fortunate to have these special friends." They weren''t simply creatures. They were his friends, as she had said. "Then¡­ can you tell me how you three met?" Their lunch did not have any special objective that they needed to reach. They were simply having food together. They were going to pay for their portion and they knew they would get some discount thanks to her so, they were thankful for that. "You two know about the library''s grand event, right? I think you two should participate in it." "Oh, we are here for that exactly actually." Their lunch had concluded soon and they were enjoying their dessert. They would go and take a look at the kitchen before parting ways, and since it was still afternoon, the two of them still had a lot of time for their shopping. "Is that so? How nice¡­ we will get to watch something fun this time then." "Hmmm? You won''t be participating?" The event that all the players in Moongold were excited about was something that was only held on the night of the [Golden moon]. A unique natural phenomenon that this town and this reagan experienced every three to six years. "No. I''ve tried it last time, but I know that it isn''t for me. I will be a spectator, and since the Mayor invited me to watch it along with the representative of Lord Viscount who will arrive tonight, I won''t be standing in your way. Besides, this event was always for the new players. Not us oldies." S§×ar?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Both of them were looking forward to that event already, but now that she knew they would be participating, even Miss Aloha was looking forward to it¡­ Chapter 67: Shopping "Then I will see you in three days.""Thank you very much for the meal." "It was fun chatting with you. We should do it again." They had added each other to their friends list. She did not have many friends added, since she mostly met the people she was acquainted with around the town. The two of them were going to leave when they were done with their business in this town, and she knew that much already. That''s why she requested to add them into her friends list. "Huhu, sure. But next time, I want to taste Alex''s cooking that you are so proud of in my house. How does that sound?" She quite liked the food that the head chef made in this place, but even though it was amazing, it could not catch Elio''s attention. He liked it, but he still thought there was something missing. Something that was necessary in food of such a high quality. Something small but significant. He liked it. The flavors were amazing. It was true that this dish was much different from greasy fried food that they had in the real world. But the fact that it was not something he desired remained the central point. "I''d love that much more, yes. Let''s do that." "You won''t even ask the person that will cook for you if she wants to do it or not?" "You just said you''ll cook for us, dummy. Why would we ask you something you obviously want to do?" She was funny sometimes as well. Why would she not cook for him when it was one of the few things she loved? "Anyway, miss Aloha. Thanks for the meal. We should leave you now, you seem busy." "Busy, yes. That I am." Find adventures at M V L They said their goodbyes to one another and the two of them moved to a cross section filled with shops, vendors, and stalls on all sides. "So¡­" Now, it was finally shopping time. And since they had quite a bit of time left, they had a lot of options to start from. "Both of us reached (Level-30) after the quest, so we can at least leave this town after the Library event." She only needed one thing from the library so there wasn''t any reason for them to stay here any longer. She knew things will finish here soon in the following few days and they will be ready to depart. However, before they left the town, they had to get all the essentials that they would need. "Your inventory is still at a low rank so you can''t carry much stuff around either." But the inventory limit was a very crucial thing for the players. That''s why she wanted him to have a Maxed out inventory before they left this town as well. However, Maxing out the inventory was not an easy task. "Let''s go get some storage items first." "Aren''t they usually expensive though?" To increase the rank of the inventory, one needed a unique kind of crystal known as [Kan]. It was a natural resource that was considered even more valuable than gold, platinum, any kind of metal or any kind of gem. It was one of the costliest materials that one could either only obtain through luck or through big quests from the system. Just having an inventory was a big thing, but expanding it to the max like she had done over the past many years was not something one can do easily. "Who''s telling you to spend any money? Didn''t I say I would buy you things? Lemme be the sugar mommy this time. Act like a spoiled child. Ask for anything you find interesting." sea??h th§× ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Thankfully, even though she had fallen to the low levels, even though there were restrictions on her and she could not use all the things she had on her, she still had all the money and resources that she had earned over her time in this world. She did not have any Kan on her since she had stored it all in her [Treasury] along with many other precious things and to access it, she would have to go all the way across the continent where it was located. They can''t do that right now, so they had to use other means. -Taaa-ring~! They entered one of the big and attractive looking shops around the street that looked lavish even from the outside. The glass covered walls on all sides made it look attractive, and the inside of the shop was even more attractive as it contained all kinds of tools, equipment ranging from accessories, weapons, magic wands, and armors, and items that all players would want to have. "Hello~. How may I help you today?" There were employees looking after all the customers present in the shop. Many of them were natives and not players. And even among the players that were present here, most of them were looking at the accessories and Skill Essences instead of something like weapons or armors. The quality of those things seemed pretty good, but an armor purchased directly from a blacksmith and an armor purchased from a pretty shop like this one was bound to have great differences. "We are looking for storage items. Please show us the ones with the most storage you have." "Oh, I see you are looking for the storage items. Please come with me. You might find what you are looking for on the third floor." Players had inventories naturally. It wasn''t a skill but a blessing that was bestowed upon them along with the curse of destiny. Not many other beings possessed this unique power in this world, however, magic existed here. "Very well." And though rare, spatial magic was one of the most useful and revered magic as it helped in the creation of special places as well as special items that contained a fourth dimensional storage space inside compact items that people could carry around in one hand. They were costly, yes, but having them made life quite easier. "Oh, wait a minute." They were about to follow the employee to the upper floor, but they stopped when Elio could not ignore Az anymore. "What happened, little one?" It was not shouting, but it was wiggling in a weird way since earlier, telling him to do something. But he did not know what he wanted from him so he was ignoring him, but since even Miu was confused by the slime''s actions, he had to stop and resolve this matter first. This was the first time he was seeing the little blob acting so worked up¡­ Chapter 68: A hairpin "Muuu."The little slime was pointing towards something so, he followed where it wanted him to go and ended up at the very left side of the shop, in the ornament sections where jewelry of various kinds and types was showcased. "You want jewelry?" Elio did not understand why the slime would bring him all the way here, but when they reached there, the slime started Wiggling even more violently. "Hmmm." Elio can tell this was some kind of an involuntary response that even Az did not have control over, so he did not pay too much attention to it. "Do you want this one?" He just started pointing at various things on the display and in the glass cases, asking the slime what it was making it act like that. "Muuu!" "Then this one?" "Muuu!" "This¡­?" Alex was confused at the back, and she could hear the other players who were badmouthing her clearly. They could not understand why a player was asking a slime what it wanted but unlike the employees who were also confused, they were talking shit about them. And she did not like it, she glared at them¨C and even used {Sword intent} very lightly to shut them all up. It was a special skill that only those who understood the sword to a certain degree could possess. And not only it passively increased her control over her weapon, it could act as a versatile skill. And it was useful to shut some people up as well. "Then, this one-." "Muuu~! Muuu!" He had pointed at a few things before his finger landed on a small glass box and the slime reacted positively to it. "Excuse me, can I see this?" There was a female employee looking after the ornament section and she was actually mesmerized by the cute slime in his hands. There was a cute lizard or something inside of the slime as well and it was smiling at her¨C it was so adorable that she wanted to hold the slime and hug the lizard but she was working right now. "Oh, yes!" They were customers and she was supposed to work instead of acting like that. "Here you go." Experience tales at M V L The one holding the slime was an attractive person as well, but seeing as how he was with an even more attractive lady, she knew she would not stand a chance in this situation. "Thanks." She surely had a blush on her face when she received his thanks and that smile¨C her heart almost skipped a beat when she saw that smile, but she controlled herself and tried her best to maintain her expression. "Do you want this thing, Az?" "Muuuu~! Muuuuu!" The thing that they had taken out was a very attractive looking pin. Made of gold and covered in unique patterns all around it, there was a single blue stone embedded at the top of it. The sharp top of the ornament seemed dangerous, but from the looks of it, it was intentionally made that way. The decoration around the blue stone made it seem like the center of a flower, and, though not perfect or amazing, this was a pretty decent work according to Elio. "How much for this ornament?" Elio had no idea why a slime would be interested in a hair ornament, but since this was the first time Az was asking him something that he could actually give to his little friend, he did not hesitate to ask for the price. "O-oh. This piece would be one gold and ten silvers, sir." "One gold?" A whole gold coin for a simple ornament? "It sure is pricey¡­" He had that much money thanks to his sugar mommy''s generosity and the quest rewards, but spending it all on something so simple did not seem fine to him. "Muuu¡­" But, it looked like the slime really wanted the ornament for some reason, and he could feel it thanks to their connection. "Can you go down? Or are the prices fixed?" "No, sir. We can not. The hairpin belongs to the ''Imported'' section. All the items in this section come from trusted sources and are authentic. I don''t know the details, but the prices are strictly fixed." "Is that so¡­?" He did not have a ton of money to throw around and he knew how to handle his money. So, if he was going to invest in this item, he needed to at least know a little about what it was. "Can you tell me some more about this piece? Something that you might know?" "Apologies¡­ sir. The items in these sections are different from the others. They are already sealed when we receive them and we sell them directly so that the customers can be the first to have them." "It is an item at least, right?" "Yes, that much we are certain about." "Can I use an appraisal scroll on it?" Sear?h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "You¡­ can not, sir. You would have to purchase it before using any items on it." Now this made things complicated for him. "It looks good, why not just take it?" Even Alex liked this piece. She can tell it wasn''t just a simple hairpin even though she could not tell much about it. If this slime had any interest in it, there must be some reason behind it. She didn''t see it wrong to gamble some money and see what the slime does with its gift. But Elio was against it. "I can take it, sure, but then what? I''d like to give Az a gift as well but I at least need to know I''m not giving my friend something dangerous as a gift, right?" His main concern was if this pin was safe or not. "I can see it for a minute?" "Hmmm? Yes?" And if he can''t use an item on it, he had no other choice but to use the primitive method. "Dude, seriously?" Not having an appraisal skill was starting to become unfavorable, so he wanted to quickly fulfill the conditions to get the skill so that he doesn''t have to waste so much of his time on small things like these. "..." The employee did not understand why the pretty man was looking at the simple hair pin so intently when it was just a hairpin with some kind of effects, but instead of him, she paid more attention to the slime that seemed to be cheering his master. She had no idea what was happening here, and the rest of the employees and players in the shop were the same. The one who had been guiding them to the upper floor had even gone back to his position after instructing the one they were talking to right now to take care of them. "...sir?" And though she wanted to show them what they wanted aside from the pin, she did not understand what the attractive man was doing with the pin. "Umm¡­" As more time passed and he just kept staring at the pin, she got a little worried and was just about to speak up once again¡ª when he blinked his eyes for the first time in a while and placed the glass box containing the pin down. "We will take this one." His eyes had almost become red, and she thought it was concerning so she offered him her own handkerchief. But he rejected it, saying there was no need for that. "Now, will you be showing us the storage devices as well?" "Hmmm? Oh, yes!" Observation was not as good as the appraisal since it merely revealed some very basic information about the targets of observation. But, what he got from his observations was more than enough to convince him to buy this object. In fact, he wanted to quickly go back to their place and confirm his suspicions now. The one liner info that he obtained from his observation was much more unique than any of his past observation targets until now. Chapter 69: Spoiled brats. "The hairpin: 1 Gold, 10 silver. The storage ring for essentials: 1 gold. Storage box for monster bodies: 3 gold. A box of twelve (Basic) Mana potions: 60 silver. A box of twelve (Basic) heath potions: 48 Silver.Two pairs of enchanted clothes and boots: 6 gold. A box of thirty scrolls with various kinds of magic: 9 gold. And if that wasn''t enough¡­ we even spent: 3 more gold on lunch, food essentials and ingredients. AND, of all that money, I only spent on the hairpin." In total, they spent over 23 gold and 118 silver while not counting the amount of copper they had splashed over in less than a day. sea??h th§× N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. According to their original world market standards, if silver was over 1800V and a single gold coin was around 25 times its price, around 45,000V, then they had just wasted around 1.2 million V. "We could have very well invested all that money in good assets, you know?" Read exclusive chapters at M V L After everything was said and done, now that he was realizing just how much she had spent on his things today, he could not stop cursing himself. "It''s my mistake¡­ I shouldn''t have agreed to go shopping in the first place¡­" She just ran around and bought a bunch of things that she thought he would need going forward. She didn''t ask him for most of the things and even the clothes¡­ she bought specially enchanted costly clothes instead of some light armor. The kind of money they spent in the last few hours was just absurd. They could have lived off of that much money for weeks if not months¡­ and now all of that was gone. Just like that. Gone. "Hump. Bastard. I bought all that for you and you''re still crying like a baby?" "You spoiled brat. Don''t you even understand how costly these things are?!" He couldn''t help but shout at her at this moment since she was making it sound so simple he couldn''t help but get angry at her. Simple people of their world barely make this kind of money after months of work and here they were, spending all that like it was no big deal¡­ "Hey! Do you think I bought all those things for myself?! Do you think I wasted money?! Just tell me, damn it and I''ll never buy you anything in the future!" She had been happy until they were out, but as soon as they came back to their inn room and he took out everything to do the math, he became sad. It was as if some kind of post nut clarity had hit him hard, enlightening him to the truths of the world. "Yes! That would be better than spending another million! Money doesn''t grow on trees, Alex!" "What do you know, bastard!? Money does grow on trees! A lot of it mostly grows under the trees as well!" On an important note¡ª both of them were serious right now. It wasn''t like one was half heartedly arguing back with the other since the one was doing it, that was certainly not the case here. Both of them were serious about everything they were saying. "Of course, right? How can I forget this is a virtual world~?! Hahaha!" Well, he understood the importance of money more than her, and he could not stand it when the person he was closest to took such financial decisions. "Yes! This is a virtual world! And yet the money of this world is as important as the crisp fresh banknotes that you cherish so much!" Ummm¡­ they were arguing right now, and it was a common occasion. They will stop anytime now and start doing¡­ stuff, so the little slime and gecko shook their heads at them and ignored their dumb game. They weren''t human but one understood emotions well, while the other had good enough life experience to know what affection was. "Hump! Spoiled brat!" "Oh my god~? Spoiled brat? Me~?!" The gecko could tell what they were doing right now was their way to show their unique affection to one another. Something that was beyond their simple understanding¡­ so, they both ignored them. There was something more interesting for them here. "Muuu." "Miu!" Among the pile of things that were placed on the ground, there was a glass box containing a unique golden pin that looked pretty attractive. This pin, though something unknown, had caught the attention of Az''s {Curiosity}. It was a special skill that allowed it to find the creature who used to live in that small hole in the cave of the red hob. The first time they met was when the skill led the curious slime inside the cave and then all the way to where the gecko was living. When they met, the gecko''s condition was not as bad as it became after it accidentally ''almost'' fell into the pool of waste and got poisoned. Miu was fine and they played around the cave while the two of their human friends were fighting the ugly creature. They somewhat understood one another and Miu was pretty friendly so they became friends quickly. In this new place where Az did not have its old slime friends, Miu was the first that played with it. Had he lost its first first because of its own mistake, it might never have forgiven itself. However, its human friends saved its friends. And thanks to them, as well as thanks to its {Curiocity}, they were now together. "Miu?" "Muuu¡­" The same skill that led the slime to his gecko friend had led it to this certain unknown golden stick. And, even though the slime had no idea what exactly this strange object was¡­ it found the pin attractive. "Muu?" "Miu." They weren''t certain if they should take it out of the glass case, but since the humans were busy loving one another, they somehow opened the glass box and Az sat down in the golden pin. Then, the slime passed the pin through its mucus body and raised it on top of the surface of its body, accidentally infusing its Mana. -spark! -Ooooooooooooooooong! It was out of the blue but, when the mana of the slime got into contact with the pin, it started glowing as a new golden Mana sprung out of it. "Hmmm?" "What the?" A golden light exploded from the wand not long after, and both of them who were now busy winning against the other''s lips were momentarily blinded by this bright explosion of light. They did not understand what was going on there, but the presence of the strong Mana confirmed the suspicion that Elio had. The hairpin¡­ in fact, wasn''t a hairpin. It was something that any mage would lust after. Something that now coincidentally belonged to a little slime. Chapter 70: To be a mage In the world of the mages can cast their magic through various different means.To firstly cast a spell there was a magic chant, a specific set of words that invokes some unique spells that one might or might not need to cast the spell associated with it. There was chant less magic that worked the same as how Elio casts magic, through sheer imagination of the spell and the precise mental drowning of the spell. There was another method that people called mixed casting method in which the spells were cast with the help of chants as well as the imagined spell structure, and on the higher levels, this method was more effective. Aside from that, there might also be personal spell casting methods that might be unique to the individual caster. There is a chance the caster might or might not be able to cast all spells the same way as they do some certain spells, but that was a natural limitation of human abilities. "Is that really a wand?" S§×ar?h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Seems like it." He got off of her and both of them sat down on their bed and looked at the now glowing hair pin which still was in the same form as before. Nothing had changed about it, but as Elio could feel, the Mana that was bound in the item was released and it was now circulating Mana from the atmosphere. "Damn¡­" To cast spells easily, magies developed their own casting methods and in addition to that, they used various catalysts. Usually, orbs, magic canes, or staff were used as catalysts. Some of them were items that contained spells inside them and the non mages could use them if they could channel the Mana that it contained. However, the mages of high society or what were called battle mages in this world used a unique kind of catalyst¡ª a magic wand that was different from a staff, or a cane. The wand were magical objects that contained high concentrations of Mana, were made with the finest materials, and were so unique that only the individuals that resonate with these objects could use them properly. They came in all kinds of sizes and shapes, and though few Wandcrafters were known to the world, everyone knew there existed people who crafted these wands and scattered them throughout the world. It was said that a wand would naturally find their masters, that their masters would naturally find these unique objects that their bodies and souls resonate with¡­ The meeting of a wand and its master was a fateful event, something that one can recognise instantly as they witness it. "Congratulations, Az." To be recognised as a true magician, one had to possess a magic wand of their own. That was also one of the official criteria to become a mage of the mages'' tower without going through the long, boring tests that most of the mages go through. "He became a proper mage earlier than you, lol." Finding a wand that is right for you is a difficult task since just finding a wand is a challenge in itself. But their little slime friend now had a wand that belonged to them. A wand that looked pretty as well. "Muuu¡­?" "Miu~!" Az had no idea what this thing was but Miu found this pretty looking thing cute. Az was keeping the pointy part inside him, so the blue gemstone on top of it was glowing, illuminating the golden flower along with it. "Oh, right." "Are you thinking what I''m thinking?" "I''m sure we are thinking the same thing." They both smirked at one another out of the blue and looked at their slime friend. "Az, try casting the water spell." "Muuuu?" The slime was still confused since the only good thing it found about this thing (in its hands) was how its friend liked it. The little gecko was jumping at the light so Az moved it around and the two played with it. It was pretty fun watching them, but if they had someone who had obtained their wand, then there was one thing they had to try asap. "Simply cast magic that you use. The water one. Don''t put too much Mana in it, and just use the spell as you normally do." "Muuu?" The slime did understand what they wanted it to do, but it did not understand why they would want to see magic out of the blue. It did not mind showing them magic since it was suddenly feeling full of energy, but it still found their behavior confusing. The magic it can use was very basic and simple. It did not even have as much strength as the normal support spells or Elio and they knew it will take some time before the spell it uses gets any stronger. "Mu¡­" Still, at their request, it jumped ahead and channeled its Mana. -Oooooooooooooooooong! A magic circle materialized underneath its blob body, just like how it usually does, and along with it, this time, a similar magic circle also appeared on the tip of the magic wand, before the blue gem. "Aim at the window just to be cautious." "Muuu." Az did not feel as tired as it usually felt while casting a spell. The spell actually manifested even smoothly than it usually did until now. It had not been since it started learning magic, but it surely could feel the difference. -Ooooooong! Discover hidden tales at M V L It could tell the spell that was manifesting would be different from the usual spells as well, so it used as little Mana as possible- something a normal slime would not have ever done- and released the spell while aiming at the window in front of it. "Muuuuuuu!" The spell release was commanded, and the Mana that had gathered and materialized in the form of a spell circle started condensing water drops. In the blink of an eye, the spell circle had collected enough of the droplets that the condensed force of the gathered water became too strong. -Shrrrrrrrrrr! All do the gathered water condensed into a ball form, a ball no bigger than a baseball, and just the moment after that¡­ -Bang! Like a bullet, the ball was shot from the tip of the wand at a speed so fast that even the two of them could not perceive it. "Holy¡­" The ball of water had passed right between the two of them, so they felt the force that this spell carried on the side of their faces. "¡­shit." And even after having been familiar with the magic of this little creature, neither of them could believe how there was blood coming out of the two scratches that they got from the micro droplets that were released from the ball of water as it flew away from between them. "Muuu?" There was quite some distance between both of them and still, the force of the spell itself dealt that kind of damage¡­ Alex couldn''t help wondering how much damage that same kind of force would do to a high level creature- perhaps to a red Hob. Chapter 71: A strategic assault unit [{ "Elio, speed boost, then slow on the target." }][{ "Gocha." }] Moving with her unique movement technique, using precise footwork to sneak up on her target, she used one of her daggers that Elio had already enchanted with sharpness and toughness enhancement magic, and dug it deep inside the opponent''s neck. "Gruuuuuuuu!" The sneak attack was a success, so she used {Blink} and vanished from her previous position. "Grrrr¡­?" "Grrrrrr! Gurrrr!" The opponents were the same green goblins that they had fought in the battle against the dark mage, however, this time, they were in their natural form, and the bunch that she had ambushed was patrolling not far from their village. -Ooooooooooooong! There were three at some distance from one another and she had targeted the one in the middle so that when it screamed before falling to the ground with a bleeding neck, it would distract the two others. And this distraction would give her the opportunity that she needed. "Gurrrr¨C." -Swish. -Thud. To deal with the second one, she used a sword with enhanced sharpness to behead the second one. It was going to run back to their village to inform the rest of the villagers about the ambush so taking care of this one first was important. "Gurrrrr!" Later, she took care of the last one in a clean manner as well and cut the ugly creature in half. [{ "Change of position. Take a high ground." }] They had deliberately waited after killing just one of them so that the strong screams of the remaining two could reach the guard archers at the gates of the goblin village. -Swish. Swish. Swish. She knew the ones in the position of archers among the goblins were always good at hearing. Their eyesight might not be as good as their hearing, but they were still great archers thanks to their unique way to perceive things through the sounds. It was similar to Echolocation but here, they just draw a mental map of their surroundings with the sounds coming from around them¨C not that she cared about that." -Swish. -Click. She used a quick sword drawing movement to cut the two guards in half horizontally. She avoided the dirty blood of the creatures by using another {Blink} but since she knew well how this was just the start, she used another {Blink} to vanish from her place. "Gurrrr¡­?!" The sudden commotion had already caught the attention of many monsters in the area, the goblins in the surroundings inside of the village had already sensed something was wrong. The death of the guard archers will be made known to the rest of the warriors shortly, and as they usually do, they will form a party of their elites to go after the enemy that attacked them. The chief and rest of the elites of the families will guard the town and protect the children and females of the town. But their main targets weren''t them. Today, they were here to not kill¨C but to test. "Alright listen. When they come out of the town and reach that rock I''ve marked, we will test the light attribute {Blind} spell to take away their vision. They will scatter with that, and then we will test the destruction series magic one by one." There were only three offensive spells that Az could use right now, and the goal was to test all three of them on these practice monsters. "You got that?" "Muuuu~!" He had just got his magic wand, so testing on the real targets was a must. Sear?h the N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Goblins were usually above (Level-25), and some of them were even (Level-40) but, with the kind of power they had experienced yesterday, they knew they could kill even those (Level-40) bosses. "Alright they are coming." Elio was not fine with how they were killing creatures right now, but she was holding back his urge to stop her. As she said, this was just a test and they were only doing this to test the new power that Az''s magic wand brought. Having a magic wand did not just mean a faster magic casting and easier spell deployment. All magic wands had their unique characteristics, and the one that Az had allowed it to use spells to their maximum power despite Az''s weak and immature self. They did not understand the complete functions of the item since the appraisal scrolls did not reveal everything about it aside from the basic stuff, so they did not know what abilities the wand had exactly. Thankfully, they at least knew how this wand made the simple spells that Az cast into something very, very dangerous. [{ "Get ready, both of you." }] Az knew what it had to do from now on. There were some targets and it just had to practice some magic on them. "Muuuu~!" The little slime creature was excited so it took out the magic wand that it now kept inside of it with Miu. -Oooooooooong! It first conjured the light magic circle and aimed at the group of nine elite goblins who had walked out of their village fences. -Swish! The spell contained a great amount of power this time as well and the speed at which this light attribute spell was released alone gave Elio chills. -Boooom! "Gurrrrrrr!" "Grrrr¡­!" Continue your adventure with M V L "Gurrrrr?! Gurrrr!" That spell also contained power, even though it was not an offensive spell. And it did what they wanted from it¡­ "Good. now the water ball spells first." This would be the same spell that they experienced last night. "Release it with more Mana than last time." She wanted Az to actually use that spell without restrictions, so the little slime did as she suggested and used a third of the Mana that it had to cast the same spell it had cast last time. -Oooooooooooong¡­! It did not imagine or chant anything to cast spells. It just recreated what it had associated with the emotion that it felt when it first ate the magic scroll containing this spell. This was a unique kind of casting that the slime could use thanks to the unique skill it possessed. However¡­ -Zaaaaaaaa! -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiish! -BOOOOOOOM! When the big ball of water was released from the tip of the wand, despite the bigger size, it was the same in speed. The destructive power had increased due to the increased Mana, and when it hit the target, as if a bullet hitting a water balloon, the bodies of four of the creatures that were just about to go their way to search for the intruder enemies, were blasted away under the force of the water ball. And, the spell did not just stop at the four creatures, it went beyond and reached the place village doors, destroyed them, and crushed half the town in its wake along with every single thing that came in its way, and¡­ the spell only ended when it had crashed in two trees behind the goblin village. "Az oh Az¡­" She was speechless but Elio had lost all the voice he had thanks to this little scene. He was not expecting this level of destruction from just one spell. And, if just one spell was so destructive¡­ "Let''s try the other two as well." He did not come here to do some massacre or destroy a settlement. Az was his friend so Elio only accompanied them to see the new powers of his friend¨C NOT THIS MASSACRE. Chapter 72: Future decisions "So¡­"Some time had passed since the little slime unknowingly destroyed all those green gobs. The kind of destruction that one spell caused was on par with the destruction that the spells of (tier-4) are capable of. And the spell itself was unique¨C different from the conventional spells that the normal mages cast. "I don''t think it''s a bad thing, you know?" Seeing all those dead bodies, the blood splashing with the forceful sphere of water, the kind of destruction it brought, the way it killed even the head of this village¡­ Elio couldn''t handle it. The kind of power that one spell displayed was so great that they were shocked already, but the kind of power the other two offensive spells contained, how they actually destroyed the rest of the settlement was just beyond him. "This is good. Az can cast powerful spells that are different from the normal spells. Among the players, its also called (Original spell casting) where the players cast a spell according to their own understanding of the spell with their own methods and the spell results in something unique from the same version of that spell." Az could only cast three spells before its Mana was almost bottomed out. She had to feed it another Mana stone but she did not mind it. If the power that they are getting at the cost of just some simple Mana stones, she did not mind any of it. Thanks to Az, both of them were able to gain a lot of experience in such a short time. The slime and the gecko both had also leveled up to (Level-15) with this. And it was good. Their leveling was different but the Exp that they shared with them was the same. They obtained the same kind of experience as the rest of them, just that their leveling system was different from the players, or the natives. They were natural creatures and both of them were now Elio''s tamed beasts. They belonged to him, so it wasn''t really a bad thing that they were so strong. In fact, even Miu had special senses as they had recently found out. It also possessed three skills like Az currently did, but all three of its skills were something Alex recognised well. "Having a strong friend is good, dummy. Why mourn over some mobs that were going to die sooner or later anyway." At those words, he looked at her, directly in her blue eyes. "So, if they were going to die one day anyway, did their lives not amount to anything?" S§×arch* The N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He did not like those words from her, even though they were true¡­ "Haaa. Alex it''s not like I care about the lives of these mobs." His concerns, the thing that made him sit down there and be in such deep thoughts was not something related to the things that they had killed. After being killed, their existence had surely become meaningless to this world. They were now dead, but¡­ what if there was someone else in their place that was not supposed to die? "Az cannot control that power yet." His main concern was how this little creature who was playing around with its little gecko friend, that strangely powerful object would learn to control that great power. "At the end of the day, Az is still a slime." Sure it can cast those powerful spells but, great powers without control over them was the same as a broken rifle. One does not know when the rifle will backfire and kill the one to pull the trigger, or the bullet that was coming out of it would hit the family of the one pulling the trigger instead of the villain. "It is young in nature, it''s new to this world filled with people who would want the power that it has, and you and I both know we will not be there for them in every moment of our lives here." They weren''t natives and there would be times when they would have to go back to their world for hours, perhaps days sometimes. Due to the quest, they had managed to stay around with only a few hours of time outside of the game. They mostly slept inside the game but, they will have to go and take an actual nap after today. They could not neglect their health. "With that kind of power, without us around them, what will happen to them and the ones around them? What if they just curiously try something and something bad happens?" There were always consequences of everything. And with power this great involved, there is no telling just what kind of things could go wrong. "With great powers comes great responsibilities¡­" Alex looked at the little creatures that were happily playing around without even knowing much about what kind of strength they actually possessed. "And they aren''t ready for that responsibility." As their friends, as their tamer and their family, they were the ones responsible for everything that these creatures do. Sure they are smart and understand a lot more than some normal slime or some normal lizard, but they still do not have the maturity of a proper adult human being that they need to understand the kind of responsibilities they would have with the kind of power they possess. "Alex¡­ what will they do when we aren''t around?" Had they been summoned creatures, familiars even, things would have been simple for them. Those creatures could stay in their own realms or in a unique space that belongs to them in the absence of their masters, but tamed beasts were creatures of the same world as their masters. They weren''t something that they could send away or put in some place. With the kind of strength they had, there weren''t many people or beings around them that would be able to take care of these special creatures. "Will they be as happy as they are with us?" That was his biggest concern. "..." And though Alex had thought about this, had some idea of what they could do in their absence, and was planning something¡­ it was not confirmed just yet. "Don''t worry about it." The only thing she could tell him was to not worry about those things. She had something in her mind, but she still needed some time to think it through. There were some things that she needed to confirm before she can answer his question with certainty, but until then¡­ Continue your adventure with M V L "I''ll take care of it." That much was all that she could tell him. He will just have to believe in her words this time. Chapter 73: Preparation of the events In the Moongold town, the Town Hall was not the place where people¨C players and natives frequented the most.Magies'' tower was the place that recorded the most traffic, and after that came the grand library. Town hall came after that even though it was always filled with people that needed the help of the town officials for all kinds of paperwork. The registration office and the guards'' hall came after that in public traffic as they also were filled with people all day long. There weren''t many things that interested the players in this town so the few places where they could learn skills, get essential items, and sell their hunts were frequented by them the most. "I can''t wait for the library to open up again~." "Do you know about the event? They say you can get Five star items if you get in top ranks!" "Huhahahaha! Not many people know, but you can even get the items that are displayed all around the library if you do well!" "I''ll be aiming for that Thundersword. I''ve had my eyes on it for months now." The town was filling up with cheerful voices of the players as the Library event closed in. An event that was held on the night of the golden moon, the event that opened the doors of secret storage of the great library of Moongold to the players and natives of the town¨C the event that all players wished to experience at least once in their lifetime, one of the most fun event of this special town was now approaching. "You got the helper quest?! How!?" "Man I''m so jealous of those bookworms¡­ they got quests directly from the librarian. They say they are getting an Achievement as a reward just to help them in the preparations." And coincidentally, along with the special event, a festival was also being organized in moongold to celebrate the sacrifice of the brave fallen heroes. "The Mayor had to organize a festival on the same day¡­ haa¡­ I have the library event preparation quest already but I was forced into the festival preparation event as well." "Man¡­ I should have learned carpentry as well. You''re suffering from success." "You think I like that¡­?" The players were mostly excited for the festival and the new quests that were appearing all around them. They were also happy to see the rare token system that allowed them to get all kinds of exciting rewards. The more fun part was how the gloomy atmosphere that was present not long ago had pretty much returned to normal. The players certainly liked this fresh and festive vibe much more than the gloomy one, so even the old players of the town were happy to see this. The normal players who enjoyed lifestyle activities more than hunting were now receiving more attention from the natives. Not only the festival but also the library event required all kinds of things, the preparations also required a lot of manpower so starting with the older players who had good affinity with the natives, even the newer players who were recognised for their skills were getting some work. Overall, everyone was contributing to this whole festival and atmosphere. And the two of Them were no exceptions. "Oh? Have you done the wood cutting work before, miss?" "You can say that, yes." They needed wood for the decoration and many preparations. And as an experienced swordsman who also had a smashing skill of the Red Hob, work that required strength and precise force was pretty easy to Alex. She was helping out with all kinds of work like wood cutting, transportations, and with her sharp senses and many experiences, she also knew how most of the things were done. She was helping with the management work, the organization work, and was even preparing the work schedules that the other workers were following for the smooth sailing of the work. On the other hand, Elio was gaining popularity among the natives for his unique skills¡­ "Wow¡­" "Someone drew that? Really?" "Apparently, the person who clicked the banner photos and the one who drew this are the same. What more, a little birdie told me the person who designed the hall that we are making, the one who wrote the songs that are playing all around the town, and the one who decided on the whole color theme are all the same." Drawing wasn''t his cup of tea but he knew a little bit of painting. Aside from that, he was pretty good at a lot of things. He loved clicking photos but since he did not have a camera here, he had to work with the screenshot mechanism. Videography was also his strength¡­ and so were digital design, script writing, music, resource management, and choreography. He was good at a lot of things, but since he had learned most of it on his own, he did not get many chances to showcase his skills in the real world. In here though, he was having a blast going around doing things that would help the others. His views were artistic, different from her practical and scientific perspective so though there was sometimes a clash between their ideas, they did not let that get in the middle of the other''s work. S§×arch* The n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. They understood one another enough to resolve their conflicts by themselves. So, with their addition, the preparations for the event in the library as well as the festival preparations were going on smoothly. Three days had passed somehow in this whole work, and on a fine afternoon, they had reached one of the most famous boutiques of the town that was owned by the oldest player here. They needed a haircut and some hairstyling. They also needed some more hair treatment¨C and though unnecessary, they needed to get a proper pedicure as well. It was surely a game, but things like these were also necessary to maintain their pretty bodies. "Welcome, you two~. I''ve been waiting~." Miss Aloha was a professional, just like the two of them so she knew exactly what they wanted with their hair, as well as what they needed. Find more adventures on M V L "Let''s get you prepped up before going to the main thing~." A haircut from a professional like her was not something simple like what they experience in the real world. At the end of the day, this was a game¡­ and since it was a game, even the most common things could be made a little different here. Chapter 74: Blissful treatments First of all¡­ since Madam Aloha''s special boutique welcomed guests of even the nobility, there were some special services that she provided to the important guests."Oh yeah¡­" "This is unexpectedly comforting." "Holy¡­ yeah it is." They were having a foot massage that was much better than any pedicure they had had together. This was going to be followed by a special spa session, after which, Miss Aloha will personally wash their hair, do a head massage and then, the main course¨C hairs. For now though, the two were having the best time of their week in this town. "We should do this often." Elio was a little surprised by how his legs were inside a tub full of small slimes that were even smaller than Miu. It was a unique experience and the professionals that were using various tools and lotions in their unique treatment knew exactly what they were doing. "Totally¡­ we should totally do something like this¡­ every once in a while¡­" Her voice sounded like she was moaning but she was just enjoying this blissful experience. Wearing those heavy boots every day was not good for her feet and toes, even in the game. S§×arch* The novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Her feet had gotten used to such footwear over the years, but it was still uncomfortable sometimes. But, having such a blissful experience was worth all the time and effort she spent in this game. "Do you accept tips, miss?" Alex wanted to at least reward them for such great work even if Miss Aloha was not going to take any fees from them today, giving tips for these professionals was at least something she wouldn''t mind. "Oh¡­ we don''t get tips¡­ but, it''s not like we can''t have it." There were two pretty ladies looking after her and two looking after her darling beside her. And when she brought up tips, all four of them were a little confused. "We don''t have a tipping culture in this town, Alex." Miss Aloha commented while preparing their next course with her other assistants. She knew Alex was still new to this town even though she had been here for a while now, so she did not know everything about this place. Tips were pretty common things in some of the cities and main cities, and even in their real world. But, Moongold was one of the places where the ''tips'' were not a thing. The professionals here were assistants to Miss Aloha and most of them were natives. Discover stories with M V L They worked here and they got paid for their work and, since the prices of her services were already pretty high, giving money to the workers was not common in this relatively small town. If anything the workers were more than happy with what they were making just from working in this small but special establishment and learning from a renowned person like Miss Aloha. She was one of the few famous professionals in the beauty field and just getting recognised by her might get them a chance to work for some from a big house, or even some nobles that she had connections with. Her letter of recommendation held even more value in their line of work than the letter of recommendation from the town mayor or the head of the mages'' tower. "You don''t have to, but you can give tips if you want. It would be the money they have earned themselves." Besides, Miss Aloha wanted to see how much she would give to someone who had looked after her like that. "Oh~. Alright then~!" The treatment was done soon and before thanking the ladies and moving to the next step, she handed all of the pretty young ladies a shimmering silver coin. Which surprised them quite a bit. As simple beauticians working under someone famous like Miss Aloha earned them a few silver coins every month. They were paid according to their performance in the month directly by Miss Aloha so they earned around thirty to fifty silver coins each month. It was no small sum as any normal person in this town could tell, so¡­ they were happy with what they were doing already. Earning an extra silver coin just for doing what they do? Now that was quite a new experience for these simple common ladies. "Thank you!" They all thanked her as the two of them moved to the next room for the new thing¨C which turned out to be just as relaxing. "You''re going to tip them as well?" Elio knew she had a lot of game money¡­ a lot of it. But she can''t just give it to everyone just because she wants to. "Of course I am." She knew the value of money as well, but right now, she was happy. And as he knew, when she is happy, she doesn''t really care about money, or the abundant resources she has. "If you give all of them a silver coin, Alex, you will be spending more than what these treatments cost." "Hmm? I don''t mind though. I''m just giving them something I see fit." "No point telling her something she obviously knows, miss Aloha. If that girl really wanted, she would be giving them gold coins¡­ but then she knows we will have another argument like a few days ago." She spent over a million V worth of gold and silver coins just to get him some necessary things. He had no doubt she would spend ten or so more for such fun experience if she wanted to. "Oh? Is that so?" She was spending an acceptable amount. That was the only reason he was not stopping her or arguing with her about it. "Well, then give me some tips as well, rich young miss. How did you get such a unique boyfriend?" It was only an hour, but all the things that they did before finally reaching the haircut stage was something¡­ they enjoyed very much. Alex gave all of Miss Aloha''s assistants a silver tip, so¡­ the masters of these assistants should also receive something, right? "You wanna know how I got him¡­?" It wasn''t that fun of a story, as both of them remembered it. "I''d love to." But while she was doing their hair, the story of such a unique couple surely was not something she could possibly miss, you know. "Well¡­" They came across one another due to their work three years ago, and then¡­ one thing led to another, resulting in their first date, first kiss, first night, first trip, first holiday, and many such firsts. It has been three years now, but they still remembered the day she first sent that Email to one of the most famous Freelancers among many communities that, she was coincidentally part of. Chapter 75: Some backstory "He was pretty famous in the editing industry, I mean among us players who used to play various games, were used to the YT game videos, and the VR games around three years ago."Miss Aloha first covered their faces with a warm towel and wetted their hair before applying some special oils and a unique shampoo to their hair. Her long, strong black hair was one of her favorite kinds of hair. She can tell they had faced a lot of turbulence in their long life and though they were not maintained, she can tell they were trimmed from time to time with good sharp objects. Not a scissor though. The cuts were too sharp and too unprofessional for them to be something from a professional. "He was new, but he got famous with his work for various famous players. Among the many games of that time, as well as the older games that were still famous back then, the players who saw the kind of transitions he could make, the choreography of the whole product and of course the precise on point editing that even the creators of the video could not fathom, were all instantly mesmerized by his work." Miss Aloha wasn''t quite active in the player community since, well, she was old. All her interest was in this town and her work. She enjoyed all that she did here more than enough so, she wasn''t really that interested in these player matters. She can surely understand what Alex was talking about, but her knowledge was limited to just that. "I shall show you some of his works later." "I''d be happy to see them." As Miss Aloha combed through her thick black hair, she was reminded of her younger days. Her hair right now were still pretty attractive, but they did not have the kind of shine that they used to have. Looking at Alex''s pretty, strong, and thick hair made her a little envious as well. But she liked these hair more than she envied them. There was a lot that she could do with them so, right now, many ideas were filling her head as she listened to their story. "Back then, I was just starting out so, don''t take her words seriously Miss Aloha. The old ones are too flashy. If anything, you should see the later ones-." "Shuddup you dumbass. The older ones had a kind of rawness-." "Don''t move please." "Oh, sorry." Miss Aloha was still not done prepping her wet hair. "The older ones had a kind of rawness that''s just too good. Something that one can tell is pure work of art. Yes your later works got better with time and experience, but they became more refined and serene. The imperfections the earlier ones, and some unique ones have are just too good." Those early ones were exactly the reason that she sent him her first Email as not a creator, but as a fan. She expressed her awe at his work¡­ but she was ignored. He never saw that Email of hers until much later. "I''ll show you the old ones and the new ones. You will understand what I mean as well, miss Aloha." "Sure. I''ll be happy with anything you believe will be better." Your next chapter is on M V L She was finally done preparing her hair for the cutting, but before moving on to the cutting, she first pulled a unique looking machine that had a special kind of energy emitting jewels embedded on a ring. They resembled a ring light, but they were a lot more unique than simple LEDs. "Now, Elio, relax your shoulders." She moved to the side and sprinkled some water on Elio''s shiny light brown hair. Though not long like hers, they surely looked longer than they should. They were even, so she can tell they were maintained properly. But, since she could also tell they were never cut until now, she was going to work with a raw specimen. And these hairs were pretty strong and thick as well. She liked these quite a bit as well¡­ they were a rare kind among the men these days. "So, I sent him an Email expressing my fangirl admiration and was thoroughly ignored. Later, when came and I started playing, I sent him a video of one of my plays-." "You started playing when the game launched?" "...there are some circumstances, but yes. I was one of the beta-testers as well." "Oh wow¡­ I knew you were special, Alex. But a Beta-tester? My niece calls those special people Extraordinary on par with top rankers." She did not dwell deep into why someone so extraordinary was in a starter town. In fact, now that she knew Alex was an old player that had been around even before the normal players, the fact that she was so good and knew so much made perfect sense to her. Everything that she was confused about until now clicked at this moment. And a new smile appeared on her face. "Please keep this to yourself." "Of course, silly." Alex didn''t mind telling all these to her only since she believed she could keep secrets. sea??h th§× ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She was Their barber now, so it was her duty to keep their secrets. "Alright~. So, as I was saying¡­" Their first meeting did not happen until three months after she sent her second Email with her first video. "Huhu, you two have quite a unique start." "Right~?" What happened in these months was some of the best days of their Friendship. They exchanged many Mails in the era of short messages and emojis and stickers after that. Many of them were related to their work, but many of them were just casual chats that friends have. "When we worked on our first project, I didn''t even know she was such a pretty lady." "Oh right! Hahaha! For three months he thought I was the agent of the person that he was editing the videos of. On our first date, he was looking for a man and I was enjoying his confusion in a cafe full of lesbians." She wanted to laugh out loud as they remembered those old days. She teased him a lot¡­ but then when they actually got to know one another, many things changed. "I still get chills thinking back to that day¡­" He was attractive. And he was dressed as he usually does¨C attractively. The way those ladies were looking at him with various emotions was one hell of an experience for him. He also owned shops like that cafe, but this one¡­ it was different. He never went near that place after that day. Some things were just... not for him. Chapter 76: Special haircut -Phrrrrrrr¡­Some blows of warm air from not a hairdryer but from the magic of one of her assistants dried their hair, she added some finishing touches to their hairstyle with a scissor and a black comb, and finally removed the cloth wrapped around her neck. "Wow¡­" Her long hair was straight and she had them tied in a ponytail when she was fighting. Open hair was a bother and since her hair was long, she also braided them when she was fighting long battles or was going to travel on foot for a long time. She didn''t get much time to look after her hair, but she loved her hair a little too much to completely ignore them, so, whenever she got some time, she trimmed them down as best as she could. She was no professional so, in the real world, there were people that she trusted her hair with. In this world though, she never had the luxury or motivation to get such treatments that often. Most of her time was spent in places that were far from civilizations¨C when she was in forests, she had to camp and hunt day and night, when she was on mountains, she had to make strong camps that could withstand the harsh weather. When she was in deserts, she had to endure the heat and sandstorms. When she was in cold stormy areas, she had to fight against the cold and keep herself warm. When she was deep within some ancient dungeon or labyrinth, she had no time to look after herself since her life was always on the line in those kinds of places. In all her life in this world, she had gone to many places, traveled much more than most players have, gone to places that only she knew about, and she loved every adventure she had by herself, with her Partner, with her occasional acquaintances, and with the ones she coincidentally crossed paths with. She rarely had done any activities like these. A proper haircut was something she had only gotten a handful of times in all her life in this world. But, now that she was looking at her pretty, her glowing, her fluffy and sexy hair, she couldn''t help but feel¡­ full. "They are so pretty¡­" she touched her new hair gently, and caressed the thin brides Miss Aloha had twisted them in. They were still flowing down her west, but they weren''t messed up and unorganized anymore. They were well organized, moved as she moved and even when she moved around the room, moved using {Blink}, or performed some quick movements, they weren''t hindering her anymore. Only a few of her hair were braided in long pretty braids, many of them were making an attractive pattern independently as well as when seen as one, and they had a special shine now¨C a shine that they did not have often. "Thanks, miss Aloha." She almost got emotional seeing her pretty hair, and thanked the one who had made them like that. This was genuinely much more than she was expecting. Much more than she wanted. And perhaps much more than she deserved. "Huhu. Come back anytime you want. I still want to try a bunch of other things with that pretty hair." "Hehe, I''ll try my best." She could not promise her, since she did not even know where this journey of hers will take her or when she will get the chance to come back to this pretty place. But she still said she would try. So, she was definitely at least going to try her best to come back this time around. "Oh, and thanks for that one as well." Miss Aloha was done with both their haircuts. And though unlike her long hair, Elio''s styling was much simpler and plain, he somehow looked much more attractive than he did before they entered this place. His natural light brown hair was not a mess anymore. They were properly short now. Their raw ends were trimmed and set just the way they should, and looking at them now, she did not feel annoyed anymore. Now, his pretty green eyes were showing more brightly. The face that they extracted the dirt and oil from was as clear as it was outside the game, with the sophisticated lines of his clean face back to the game. "They are perfect." "Just as they should, huhu." Discover more stories at M V L He did not expect her to be so good with this. She was even better than his usual stylist that he had been going to for the past five years. The way she had carefully cut the unwanted long strands, then set the front, side, and upper sections one by one, not hindering the roots of the hair too much was just¡­ perfect. There was nothing for him to complain about. And there was nothing for him to criticize. From his standards or from the standards of any artist, this was good. Great perhaps. "Thanks for this, miss Aloha." He bowed to her just like she had a moment ago, and expressed his thanks for not just the haircut. [Ding] [You have received a special haircut for the first time! Rewarding Exp.] [You have received a special haircut from a [Master] for the first time! Rewarding Exp.] [Ding.] [Resonance effect of the special haircut had resulted in unique effects.] [Experience accumulation by hunting (+10%).] [Experience accumulation by quests (+10%).] [Charm +12.] [Attraction of opposite genders to you will be increased.] [Mana accumulation rate and spell potency will be increased by an additional (12%).] "These are some of my best works, actually. But it''s all thanks to the amazing hair you two have." Sear?h the N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She liked their hair and she liked their story as well. She was not going to earn money from them, but getting this amazing couple as her friends was nothing less than a fortune. Their story was quite touching to her as well¨C they were good children. "Right. You still have to look after a lot of preparations, right? You should take your leave now that we are done." However much she wanted them to stay and have another long chat with her young friends, she had already taken a lot of their hours today. There was an event and a festival being held in her little town and they were looking after a lot of people, a lot of work, and a lot of preparations. "Right. We still have to eat dinner." "We had a wonderful time here, miss Aloha. Thanks again for everything." She knows she will get her chance someday and when that time comes, she will have them all for herself for hours¡­ "I had a blast as well, huhuhu~." But for now, they had more important things they needed to look after. Chapter 77: The Library event Streets filled with laughing children.Parents who hid the sadness deep within their hearts as they traveled the streets, telling their children to stop running. A bright clear blue sky, refreshing air filled with joy and laughter, a festive smell in the atmosphere, and voices of vendors announcing their discounted goods to the world. An unseasonal festival had arrived in Moongold. And the townsfolk had welcomed it with open arms. "Woh! Let''s go there next!" "Have you tried the town''s speciality? The white creamy skewers?" "Damn, even the blacksmith is giving a big discount today! I should have saved some funds for a new sword!" Read latest chapters on M-V-L There was joy in the air. Natives weren''t in their houses today like they had been until a few days ago. They walked the streets with their families, offered their condolences to the ones who had lost someone in the battle, and throughout the town, there were events being held in the memories of the fallen heroes; without whom, this town might not have been present as it is right now. The main streets as well as the important places in the town were all decorated not with the simple decorations that would be removed, thrown out, or destroyed after this festival, but with solid wood, rock, and metal¨C things that might not disappear even after a decade of natural corrosion. The names of the fallen heroes were engraved on these various structures that were now part of the important places like the mages'' tower, the knight''s hall, the guard''s office, or of the main townhall. These decorations, carved from the wood in the form of an archway, from the stone in the form of effigies, and molded in various objects like gates, fences, post boxes present in some locations, and decoratives of high quality when made from the metals, were now part of this town. The loved ones and family members as well as acquaintances of the fallen heroes had worked hard in the creation of these things and their acquainted players had supported them immensely thanks to either their connection with these natives, or to get the tokens that were being distributed for all kinds of help they provided. "Muhahahah! I got a hundred tokens already! Hahaha!" "Man¡­ being a woodcutter or fisherman is better. Ughh. I regret not learning anything now." "Even the mages are doing well¡­" The token could be exchanged for various things. Swords with good boosted options, armours with great defense, weapons with various skills, magic scrolls, potions, as the best things, the mayor was even personally offering a small property, a house in this town for the one who managed to collect more than three thousand tokens¨C but, technically, there was only going to be one, or two maximum individuals who will be able to achieve that goal. "Miss Rin? Won''t you go out and have some fun as well?" Thanks to Alex''s impeccable plans and documents that she provided to the mayor, they were able to form a kind of reward system that usually takes weeks to create for an event of this scale in just a few days. And for her help, they were even more grateful to them both. "Oh no dear. There''s too many people outside today and there''s not really anything we have to do outside either. We might come to the library later, but not right now. For now, I will be staying here." Misha was looking after Az and Miu, playing with them around the streets outside and Miss Rin was just looking after them from the balcony. She was enjoying the view outside today, and there was a smile on her face. Just seeing her child running around happily down there was fun for her, and she wanted to do that instead of going out for today. "Oh¡­ if that''s the case, we will be going ahead." Alex was waiting for him downstairs already so he said his polite greeting and walked down as well. The Library event was today as well so there was already a festive atmosphere around the town. People were all going to gather around the library to see the players and the natives who participate in the event that will be broadcasted to the outside for the spectators. Not many will get the chance to witness the event directly since the library cannot accommodate everyone while the event is going on, so, many of those interested would be gathering all around the plaza surrounding the grand library. However, since both of them were going to participate, they will be inside. "Took you long enough." Today, she was dressed not like a swordsman, or a knight but, as a proper lady. "You look pretty as well. I''m sure there will be a few that will come to confess their eternal love to you today." "I know right? Huuu¡­ being so hot is so exhausting~." She was wearing a dark purple dress. A very expensive dark purple dress. It resembled the finely made dresses of those noble ladies of high society and, if one did not know enough, they would think that the jewels, gold, and platinum this dress was adorned with was all just fake. Only the eyes that were familiar with luxury could tell this thing was made with the finest materials and even fewer would be able to tell that this dress was made with the hands of many experienced [Masters] of their fields. "Haaa. But look at you, Elio. No elegance, no style, just the same old fashioned stuff." He was a picky person that did not just wear anything that he got his hands on. There weren''t many options for male clothes in this small town and even the dress that Alex was wearing was something one would only find in a big city. They did go around looking for anything that he found interesting, and even asked Miss Aloha for some suggestions. But nothing passed his picky style. "You like me plain and pretty, so I don''t really mind." At the end, he settled with a plain white shirt that he found in an antique shop- a one star item that increases stamina and energy regeneration rate. A plain black trousers that fitted his fine legs fairly tightly, looking not too big and not too tight¨C it was a perfect fit. The trousers weren''t an item but they were bought from one of the most luxurious stores so, he got some Exp for the experience. Then, he chose a pair of black shoes from the Many pairs of special shoes she had, which were an item with the skill {Sidestep} engraved on them. To add to that, he was wearing his pretty bracelet with a healing skill, a ring that Alex gave him with a necessary (Spell Slot) ability- a rare consumable item where one could save Three spells of (tier-2) or six spells or (tier-1). He looked quite simple in that plain outfit. The white-black went perfectly with his light skin tone, his light hair, and those deep green eyes were a strawberry on the cake. "You do look hot, yup. I don''t mind that either." She actually learned how to dress from him so he was the one with more fashion sense between them. If they had the chance, he would have dressed even better to match her flashy dress, but sadly, they couldn''t do it this time. "Then my great lovely lady¡­ shall we?" He gracefully asked for her hand. "Of course not~." And she gracefully refused his romantic gesture. "Hehe, don''t do those funny things lol." After laughing at his funny gesture, she simply shook her head and grabbed his hand as he interlocked their fingers. "Oh, wait, should we remove them-." Sear?h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "It''s fine with me. I don''t mind them wrapped in these silky things." They were also wearing matching gloves to their outfit, so she thought Elio, who adores her hands a little too much, would want them unclothed. "You really are one messed up pervert, aren''t ya baby?" Sadly, she underestimated her partner''s ''preferences'' this time as well. Chapter 78: The Librarian "She was happy.""You don''t need them for this one. We aren''t going to fight anything anyway." "Is that so?" Elio did his research on the event that was being held in the library today. He did not know how big a deal it was for the players, but now that he knew about it, he wasn''t surprised after seeing so many players around the library today. "The event is all about knowledge and talent." The great library of Moongold did not exist until just over a few decades ago. The town itself was not that old, it barely had a hundred years of history. "In the past, the Southwestern lands were home to the [Beasts of Bronze Age]. it was a grassland that extended from the border to the empire''s western gateway to the edge of the western continent." "But a few centuries ago, a [Mythical creature] burned that eternal grassland to ashes." "It was something unprecedented. History books record it as [Lamentation of crimson flames]." Not much is known about that incident, but overall, the flames burned over half of the grasslands and the creatures that lived here. "The rest of the creatures moved down to the south and settled in the area that is now known as [Valley of bronze]." One of the highest ranking hunting grounds that few players in the entire game dares to approach. "Well¡­ that must have been some amazing event." As they traveled to the library''s entrance for the registration of the event and stood in the long line, Elio was lost in his own thoughts. He was chatting with her, replying to her words, but he did not even know that the line was moving forward. She was behind him so she was pushing him forward whenever the line moved forward. "Wow¡­" "He''s so handsome, oh holy lord~!" "Are they together? ¡­of course they would be together. Haaa." "These are times when you believe the saying ''world is fair to all'' actually makes some sense." "The Beauty¡­ truly is eternal, hun?" They were receiving all the attention any well dressed attractive people standing in a line with common players would. He was pretty, and in that dress, with that hair, there was no way anyone would not be attracted to these people. Most of them were still new players so they must not be familiar with the actual beauty standards of this world by which, even with that dress and those looks, she would only be called fairly good looking. There were people in this world who were a sky and sea more attractive and charming than either of them. She knew they all will see it themselves when they move on to their first city and see the noble society there so, she did not pay much attention to the gazes. She knew she was pretty and that her boyfriend was a hottie, so she just pushed him forward and enjoyed his absent expression. He was thinking of the glorious past of this world¨C but, what he knew and what one could find in the community was not even a tenth of what those high level players who had done countless quests and had been through countless experiences over these past years knew about this world. She, especially as a special player, knew a lot more about this world than even most of the other players. Still, just like many other high rankers, even she could never even hope to achieve the kind of understanding of this world as THEY did. The players did not call them the only true for nothing. "The Empire claimed the burned lands of Southwest and after assigning many areas under various regional lords, the crown assigned this particular area to the Viscount family." "Moongold was established, and then, one day, an old man came to this not so famous town." Moongold was not as popular as it is right now before the arrival of the players, or a hundred years ago. But the first time it started changing was when a library unlike any other the town''s people had seen in their lifetime appeared in the middle of their town out of nowhere. "The Librarian, the sole maintainer of this library, was apparently someone that was recently starting to gain popularity in those times." "Didn''t you say he received a trial from some god?" "No, he must be just a crazy bastard that ''thought'' he received a revelation from the heavens." According to her perspective, the only reason he would ever spend everything he had and build an empty library to fill it with books would be because he had gone senile. "He was almost like a Saint in the wars. He could have built his own nation if he wanted." When a human evolves into a higher species, they either become a [Saint] who had received the revelation of the world, or a [High Human] who had surpassed the inherent limitations of the world and gone beyond the mortal capabilities¨C as myths says. "But instead, he made this Small library." No one knew if either of them were true or not, but the players were always looking out for the authenticity of these myths. The event was announced right when she got to this town right after she came back to the inn after checking up the library. She did not get to read much, but she knew the library surely was filled with some good things. Some of those things were so good they deserved to be showcased in a bigger place where people could see it, not in this small town. Not many people would understand the value some of those items held, but she did. And the fact that they were in this small beginner town instead of some good city just infuriated her. "The librarian is just an old crazy bastard." Gods existed in this world, sure. She did believe that. The operating AIs were the same as gods here as well. But, she did not like how this amazing person¨C someone who had played a great role in many of the past ''main scenarios'' had tied himself down to this damned place. She did not know what kind of ''trial'' he might have received, but it surely was a different kind of ''trial'' than what she was following. Enjoy exclusive chapters from M-V-L "Is he though? Then, why does he look so majestic?" S§×ar?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Hmm?" [Ding!] All the people in the surrounding area of the library including the players and natives received a system notification as soon as Elio said that. And then, a [Familiar] manifested atop the Great Library of Moongold, the archive of forgotten records¨C the Treasury of a Hidden Saint. Chapter 79: The Familiars Reaching (Level-100) was a big thing even after so many years of the game''s release.Those of (Level-100) and beyond were called the elites of the smaller guilds and someone that was eligible to become a member of the bigger guilds. The rankers were all people who had received a second awakening, meaning those who had crossed (Level-200). And there were only around two hundred or so such ''known'' people. Those who had crossed that level and were not officially on the [Unified ranking] were called ''Hidden rankers''. And, only the top thirty of those in the unified rankings were called a high ranker, those who had crossed (Level-300) and received the recognition of the world and third third awakening. Those were the Legends that had achieved a Legendary achievement and were known throughout the world. The players did not know about the existence of any hidden High ranker, however, it was said that they existed in this world. Just like the many natives that had also received a third awakening, these special individuals were also more experienced, more knowledgeable, and more special than the known Players of the unified rankings. Still, they were merely players¡­ [You have been affected with status abnormality: Reverence.] [You have encountered a [Spirit beast] for the first time. Rewarding Exp.] [All other status abnormalities will be subdued in the presence of Reverence.] [In the presence of the Spirit Beast, you witness the profound unity of nature''s raw power and ethereal grace¨C a reminder that the most extraordinary wonders are often born from the most mysterious depths of existence.] Familiars are the creatures that a few fortunate ones meet after receiving their very first awakening. These unique beings, different from the beasts and creatures of nature, are unique existences that the world recognizes as one''s ''Partner'' a part of one''s soul and existence. They are simple beings of nature before meeting their fated partners, but the moment they meet, they evolve and with the blessing of nature, become something unique. "A Physical existence that is also a spirit. A rare being born on the boundary of the Spirit world and the physical world." Some players find their familiars in nature, some meet them through fated encounters, some use established methods to meet them, and some¡­ similar to a magic wand, just coincidentally come to one another. Some players take days to find their partners while some take years. But they meet. When the time arrives for their meeting, they do meet. "For me, it was three years." For three years of in-game time, Alex wandered all over the world in the search of her partner. She met many beings, many creatures on her journey, but she only found her partner when she was least expecting it. "Let''s quickly reach (Level-100) so that I can finally call my cutie back." On the towering library, a bird so big it covered the entire plaza under its fantastical wings resembling a starry night sky had manifested along with¡­ a man. A young looking man with bright fair skin, No beard, deep blue- almost purple hair, and star-like obsidian eyes, behind his round spectacles. His sharp face was so handsome that the ladies who had all come here just to see him could not help but admire his beauty even under the effect of the strong debuff from the librarian''s familiar Spirit beast. Continue your story on M-V-L S~ea??h the N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The shining silver coat he was wearing along with the matching pants, and those black gloves upon which he was wearing those rings and jewelries seemed so attractive that neither Alex nor Elio were anywhere close to his standards. He was also wearing a blue shirt under his coat¨C and it attracted even more attention. "Being a sorcerer in this world comes with quite some privileges, Elio. This world is sometimes just as unfair as the outside one." The Librarian of the grand Library and his familiar. Both of them were over a century old and still, the one that they were seeing right now looked in his late twenties. He was pretty and the clothes and stuff that he was wearing made her jelly. And the familiar¨C she could not summon her little cutie due to the restrictions so that poor little one was just stuck in the special dimension that every familiar goes to in the absence of the players in this world. Familiars become part of the players, so when the players aren''t in this world the familiars are not either. But, her situation was a little different. "You and your complicated stuff, haaa¡­" Elio was back to the present and he had moved away from the line to get a good angle for a screen shot. Almost everything had become frozen after the appearance of the two of them, and the scene right now¨C the majestic Sorcerer wizard, the librarian of the grand library floating above them before his unique partner that Elio could only admire¨C was so amazing that just one angle was not going to quench his excitement. He wanted to record it from different angles and click some live screenshots from a higher angle. But it was just not possible with the current state of the things around him. "I wish I could fly¡­" If that was possible, he would have clicked an amazing photo from high ground. "Learn flying magic then, dummy. It''s only a (tier-4) spell so you should be able to cast it by the time you get to (Level-100)." "Well¡­" Flying magic was a thing, yes he knew. But that was not the kind of flying he was talking about. And she knew that as well. { "I appreciate your presence in this place, everyone." } A voice resonated all across the plaza and was heard by every single player and natives. { "It seems like we have more participants this time than what we had expected. The older methods would not work this time." } This was inherently different from the authoritative but trustworthy voice of the Mayor. The Librarian was not supposed to come out until the end of the event, and summoning his familiar was something even Alex or the other older players like Miss Aloha were expecting to see. The voice that they were hearing right now was purely a voice that indicated deep wisdom and power as well, so new flowers of admiration were blooming across the plaza. All the players present here could at least tell that the being that they were facing right now was no normal thing. Both the bird and the librarian were the same individuals that they had all wanted to meet at least once in this town, and now that they were before these two, they could tell even the exaggerated rumors and stories about the two were severely downplayed. The old librarian did not look old at all, and his amazing familiar¨C the special creature that had captivated the hearts and minds of most of the individuals present¨C was nothing but a being of admiration. { "I''d like to make things a little easier." } The plaza was filled with people right now and all of them were here to participate in the event. If they were to stand in this line all day, they would only finish the registration by the end of the day, and they cannot have it. They had to wrap up the things by the end of dusk. The Treasury would only stay open in the first few moments when the golden moon is shining down on them. The librarian cannot have things going out of their schedule, so he used his powers. [Ding.] [Do you wish to register for the unique event quest: (Conqueror of mind maze)?] [Accepting the quest would transfer you to the event location directly.] He was the strongest individual in this town as well as someone so strong that he was once the centerpoint of a Main scenario. He was no simple being either¡­ "At least he still has his smart ass." But Alex still did not like him all that much. Chapter 80: A mind maze { "We shall start early so that we get some moments to spare before the arrival of the golden moon." }Many players did not even think about anything anymore and just accepted the quest as soon as the golden quest window appeared before them. They were excited already, and if they were to skip the line and start directly, wasting time would only make them fall behind the others. "Wow. Look at these excited people." It did not even take five minutes for the plaza to clear up. Only the players that were still admiring the pretty librarian and his pretty partner were left there along with the two of them. The spectators who were finding a place to sit around the plaza just rejected the quest and found a nice place now that the plaza was empty. And, since they knew the event started earlier than it should have, they knew this was their chance to secure the best seats before the others arrived there after hearing the news of the event. They were lucky, but unlike them, the ones who still had the quest window open before them were thinking what to do. "We will have to do this alone, right?" "Some will get together in groups and will have to do things in groups, but it''s mostly random. We might not meet till the end." Standing in the line was tiring and the crowd made them sweaty in their pretty clothes, so they first cooled down and drank some water before helping one another tidy up their clothes and hair. "What if we do meet?" "It would be fun, I guess? It''s not like we will have to fight or anything so if we do meet, we will compete for the better score." The event was going to be simple. They will be placed inside the library that will temporarily be spatially modified into a highly complex maze. The spectators will see the library as a normal place, but inside the minds of the participants, it will be a whole different world¨C of course though, the spectators will see what the players are seeing as well through the display screens. The Mind maze, as the players call it, was a special technique of the Librarian¡ª the arcane weaver. He was born a sorcerer and he studied magic, the world, the truths, and the past into detail, gaining control over the world altering powers of [Arcanum]¡ª the special energy that was like Mana, but more ancient and Natural. He created this special energy world for the participants that was as real as any reality for the ones participating in the event. "Then, shall we?" They would be dropped in random locations throughout the library that had now turned into a giant maze, and they would have to come out of it. The system will assign them ''stars'' according to their performance and since its system is supported, there''s no need for them to worry about anything like cheating or miscalculations. The librarian used the quest method exactly because he also understood basic human nature better than the others. He was a human at the end of the day as well, so there wasn''t much that he had left to understand about these simple beings. "Yeah. Let''s go." The two of them knew how players would have reacted had this not been supported by the system as well. Continue your adventure with M-V-L "Then, good luck I guess." She was smirking right now, and he understood that provocative smirk very well. "I''ll do my best, remember that." "It depends on the starts you get, darling. And there are more than one kind of star." Above them, the librarian was looking down at the ground, at this particular couple dressed in attractive clothes. He could tell the boy was a curious one right after he saw him moving freely even in the presence of his familiar. And the girl¡­ he had a feeling that he had seen that girl somewhere. But he could not remember for certain so he was contemplating as he looked at her black hair, those familiar blue eyes, and especially¡­ that white sword she was carrying as an accessory at the back of her dress. The attractive sword had somehow become the part of her dress from the way it was set on the dress, it was unique and though one could not tell that it was a weapon with their simple eyes, as the bearer of those unique eyes, he could certainly tell that it was no simple sword. But, he could not tell anything more about that weapon. It was a sword and that was it. Even his special eyes could not tell how precious or worthless that unique sword was¡­ which confused him even more than his distant memory of the owner of that weapon. "Let''s see who gets more than." The event was called [Appreciation of blessed talents]. The venue for the event was going to the mind maze that the Librarian created inside of the library. Those who performed well and earn good stars will obtain something that they ''needed the most'' in their current state to move forward depending on their contributions. The criteria was unknown, but they knew if they performed well enough, aside from the things that they could obtain from the treasury, they might also get to choose something from the library. "Good luck to you too, Miss Alexandra." sea??h th§× N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. They both pressed the accept quest button and vanished from the plaza, vanishing from the eyes of the Librarian and the Spirit beast as well. "How amusing¡­" The librarian was confused but there was a smile on his face right now. He looked beside him at his partner before closing his eyes and looking at the situation inside of the library. There were hundreds of people participating this time around. More than half of the total player population of the Moongold and a sixth of natives were participating this time. If it wasn''t for his continuously expanding spatial magic, they might not have been able to accommodate so many people into that relatively small place. There weren''t many people this time around, just like he knew there would be. But, he was only interested in the results that these individuals show to them, to the world, and to the people watching them. Last time the event was held, the player did not have much information about it or knew the actual importance of it, but this time, they knew. And since they knew there were amazing rewards waiting for them, without knowing what actually they are walking into, they started the trial that was presented to them, and appeared inside the mage where they will face quests, quizzes, puzzles, and most importantly¡ª trials of the (Forgotten enigmas). Chapter 81: Trials of wisdom and talent The Library was quite a large place from the inside, enough to fill the players that were in there. It could freely accommodate hundreds of people daily, and since there were three floors of the grand structure, the place was certainly one of the most attractive places in the entire Moongold.Most players that came to this town were interested in books. There were certainly libraries in the cities but to have a library in a small town like this one was a rare thing. "Looks like I''m alone." Participants were scattered all across the Maze that created the magic of the Librarian, and even though they were technically still inside of the library, what they were seeing before them varied greatly from a simple library structure. [Ding.] [Quest Objective: Escape the Maze.] A simple message appeared before Elio as he found himself standing in the middle of a wide road with empty bookshelves on both sides. The bookshelves on both sides were tall and though he could see the glass ceiling of the library, there was something more that he could ''perceive'' thanks to his {Mana senses}. "Is this what they call Arcanum?" As he could feel with his special senses, there was a unique energy surrounding this entire place. The ground beneath him, the bookshelves that looked empty, even the ceiling. Everything was somehow covered in this special energy and he could tell this was no simple Mana. He looked around and tried using some magic, but there was nothing wrong with anything. Read exclusive content at M-V-L He could cast his magic just as normally as he could outside of the library, he could also circulate his Mana normally so, there really wasn''t anything special going on. Aside from this unique dense energy surrounding everything around him, there was nothing wrong with anything here. "Well then¡­" He folded the sleeves of his white shirt one more time, revealing his muscular forearms, and carefully couched down to the ground, placing his ear to the carpet covered floor. "Hmmm¡­" There were two ways he could go: forward or backward to where he was right now. This was an endless looking straight road so, he had to make a choice, and he had his own ways of doing that. "There are no movements around it seems." Thanks to Mana, his senses had heightened so he could perceive even the small sounds and vibrations in his surroundings if he focused well. He could not see anything or anyone here anyway, so he was going with the traditional method. "Hmmm." The first trick did not work, everything around him was normal, so he took out a normal twig from his inventory, something that Alex used during her demonstration when she was showing them the magic series, and placed it on the ground while holding it from one end. "Going forward is usually the most common thing¡­" But as he released the twig and it fell to the ground pointing not frontwards but to the back, he had made his choice. "Let''s go." Instead of the path that was placed right before him, he walked back without hesitation. Catching the attention of many of the spectators who had been watching him and the other participants of the trial. They were surprised how he was going in a direction after making a conscious choice instead of others who were walking as they liked or saw appropriate. He knew the path forward would be the path that was taken most of the time, but that was not where he wanted to go. "Hmm? Looks like I was right." He chose a path, he made a decision, and that decision of his led him to a book. "The article said the books will give tests." There were three ways to earn a star in this event. First was to complete the trails that one comes across, second was to showcase their talents¨C be it anything, writing, singing, simping, sculpting, woodcarving, hunting, weapon techniques, magic. There was no ''border'' to these talents. Anyone can do anything that they want in the designated places that they would find on their paths. The main objective was to get out of the maze, and passing the trials of the books and getting recognition from the audience for their talent showcase will give them clues. The maze was not like the normal mazes since it was made with a special kind of magic, so to get out of there, they would need certain kinds of special methods. Everyone was going to have a unique way they get out of this place, and they will get stars based on how they do it, but the clues were going to play a big role if anyone wanted to follow the traditional method like Elio did. "Let''s see¡­" He picked up the book, and a bright blue light blasted from it as soon as he did that. -Oooooooooooooooong¡­! The light soon died down, and when he opened his eyes once again, the book in his hand was gone. [Q: What does Dawn look like?] A message window was now present before him, and in his hand, there was a feather pen. "?" There was no paper or even inkpot but there was a feather pen in his hands now. And, from how the message window was showing a Question, he could tell he would have to answer that question. But, to answer¡­ was he supposed to write on the message window? "..." He tried it, but that was not the case. This was just a normal message window and the tip of his feather pen just passed right through it. "Where am I supposed to write then?" He was confused about what he was supposed to do. There was no quill, there was no paper. All he could see around him was wood and though he had paper in his inventory, he did not think he was supposed to use what he had for this test. There was something else. The answer to his question was going to be somewhere around him as well. He just had to find it, so he searched the empty shelf where he found the book, but, even after a few minutes of searching, he did not find either paper or any ink. And it confused him¡­ "That''s not it." He was given a feathered pen with a sharp and strong looking tip. This was not a quill or a pencil but a specific kind of pen that was used in the older times. It was specifically used to write important things on parchment or costly paper. There was something he was missing¡­ S§×arch* The NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. So he looked around once again. "The book is not here anymore." The window only had a question so it was not related to the system directly either. "The shelves are empty." The carpet beneath his feet was not something one can write anything on even if they had a magical nail that worked as good as a pen. He could use magic-. "Oh. That''s right!" He could use magic. And grace series: toughness enhancement spells as well as sharpness enhancement spells were one of them. If he paired them with this already sturdy looking feather pen, he could just write on these shelves! There was practically an endless paper before him if that was the case. "Let''s try it." It was a dumb idea, but he at least tried it. There was a question that the book left for him, and he just had to answer the simple question. That much was not going to be too difficult. Chapter 82: Different objective Different from the others participating in the event, Alex found herself surrounded by shelves filled with hundreds of books.-Swish. There was only enough space for her to move in a square as she was surrounded by wall like shelves full of books on all four sides. They were too tall so just jumping up and crossing them was not an option and there was a barrier covering the above part anyway, so climbing was not yet an option. -Swish. Swish. However, she was not stuck in this place. Many of the books around here were task books that gave out trials and she just had to find those books. It was a simple task and she had time. She was smart as well so she had already read a lot of books present around her right now. All that she needed to do, thus, was find the books that did not have any title or did not belong in the categories they were organized on the shelves. One of the trials will be about the barrier and about getting out of there, so, it was not that difficult of a task at all. At least for someone like her this was not that big a deal. She knew how to get out of this test, but that was not what she had come here to do. -Swish! Swish! Swish! She was here to get the most stars- to get the best possible reward and the opportunity to get something that this bastard librarian had. She needed that thing for their future. Their future expeditions all depended on it. Things would be a little too complex and difficult if she fails to get her hands on that thing and the only way she could get it from this library, from this place protected by someone she could not defeat as she had in the past, was through this competition. She surely would be fighting against some of the most talented people present in this town, and the trials, by their inherent nature, favored those who had unique talent, someone that was smart and was learning new things through these trials. Not many people knew it, but these trails were aimed at the growth of the individuals participating in this event. The main goal of this competition was to help these new players, these stars who were just starting their journey in this new world, these stars who were hot and full of potential grow past their current limitations. The trails were not random. They were assigned to one after the system analyzed their past achievements, their current talents, and their ''nature''. She knew how these trails and quests worked, so she knew they were not going to be any helpful to someone who had gone past the level of a ''normal'' player already. She was not the same as the rest of the players. If anything, she was closer to the librarian, perhaps even beyond that person. -Oooooooooooooooooooooooong! The only thing she wanted from this place was a certain item that was not in the insignificant treasury of the librarian but on the main display of his very desk¨C something that everyone saw but none, not even the best players, not even the librarian himself knew the true value of. She wanted that thing, and the only thing she could get it, was through doing something crazy. -Crrrr¡­! -Krrrak¨Ckrrak¡­! Since the moment she arrived in this enclosed space, she had started gathering the energy in her body and channeling that energy through a normal sword that her darling bought her yesterday. She had become unfathomably weaker after falling down to the normal level, but she had not forgotten a thing she had larnet with her hundreds of hours of effort. She had put her heart, sweat, blood, tears, even soul into learning those things. She might not have her Aura, she might not access her familiar, she might not have the kind of skills she had until just recently, but she was still someone that every single high ranker of this world recognised. [Ding!] [You have successfully integrated three skills and created a new skill!] [You have earned a great achievement!] [Granting total accumulated Exp!] [Granting achievement: Weaver of skills (Rare).] [Granting achievement: Flawless creator of superior skill (Rare).] [Achievement boxes will be added to your inventory.] "{Energy Smash} is effective, as I expected. I should thank him for giving me the skill." If he had not given her the {Smash} skill, she would not have been able to create this new skill by integrating her Sword intent, Energy infusion, and the Smash. The simple sounding task of skill combination was one of the hardest tasks in the game and not many players could do it even if they wanted to because of the limitations of their will, concentration, and incompatibility. Skill combination was not as simple as Skill creation. Creating something and combining something existing into one and creating a new thing altogether were totally different things. Even when it came to skills, it was not easy¡­ at least until you had already done it before. Then it becomes as simple as using that skill. Explore stories on M-V-L "Sadly, it consumes an awful lot of energy." Her energy level almost bottomed out after using just one skill. Which was bad. She had supplements to replenish her lost energy but spending all that energy for just one use of a skill was not effective. Consumables were a temporary solution, as she knew the best. She needed to become stronger and improve her energy levels. Reaching (Level-50) and obtaining {Aura} was her next goal, but for now, she was going to obtain the most starts in this event. "The barrier is gone now." She took her time, but at the end, she obtained a skill that could shatter even the strong (tier-3) barrier that was blocking her. "Let''s get going." When she destroyed the barrier, all the books that contained the trials, as she confirmed, vanished from the shelves. "{Blink}." The reason she chose to destroy the powerful barrier instead of finishing all the trails present was because of how this place worked. The system and the librarian helped them get better, but if there was someone that was so good that they could destroy even the barrier that even the guard captain might find difficult to breach, then there was no need to block them there anymore. She knew the librarian personally so she knew just what kind of person he was, so she knew how he and the designed system would give out stars. -Swish. She was the smart one between them. She was not going to slave away and do as the trials and He wanted them to. She was going to get what she wanted even if she had to do some Unconventional things for it. On that note¡­ "Done. Finally." Elio was finally done writing his answer to the question that the book of trial had left for him. "Haaaa." Writing on Fifteen shelves with the feather pen was not easy, but he finished it in less than an hour. And, though he did not know how they were going to judge it, he was done with his task. S§×arch* The ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. So he moved forward to the next location on the path of his choice as well¡­ Chapter 83: Understanding Art His long essay began with the description of what Dawn is, what do we mean when we say dawn, and after explaining the basics, the word, the science, and the symbolic meaning of the word Dawn, he expressed what the word Dawn meant to him.He described how dawn meant a new beginning, how it meant the end of a perilous time, something personal and something that captivated even the Librarian who had read countless books, knew a lot of things¡ª someone with the most experience of this world in this place. He liked the topic, so he poured his heart into the writing that was carved on the empty wooden shelves. He had written no more than three six thousand or so words. It wasn''t much compared to the millions of words he had written in his lifetime. And this time, unlike how he would usually do, he had also not written the answer in the way that he usually does. He was a good writer, but more than that, he was someone who loved art. Someone who appreciated the existence of this world more than any individuals out there. "What do you think?" "Hruuu?" The Librarian was still looking at the compiled copy of the text that was now present on the desk that was created with his own magic. "Hruuuu." "That''s right. This test did not need one to write on the wood." They just had to answer the question, so writing on a paper of his own or something similar that one could write on was going to be acceptable. The reason there was no ink or paper there in the first place, was because the feather pen that he was using did not need something like that. It was special so even if he tried writing on the carpet, he would have been able to write with it. But, he found a different method that the librarian did not expect he would see. "Hruuuu." "That''s right. His magic was pretty good." He had seen countless mages in his life, so he could tell the casting method that he was using, though it relied on his amazing memory, was something different from simple memorizing. "Do you think he will do something similar in this trial as well?" As the afternoon approached in the Moongold, the town was becoming a little quieter. Spectators in a large number had gathered in the plaza around the Library. Magical screen a little different from the system screen was broadcasting things that were happening with those who had participated in the event. Even inside the library, the special guests like the Mayor and his family, some special guests from the Viscount noble family, some important Foreigners who had established a special connection with the librarian over the years, were seeing everything through the magical vision of the librarian. They were at the top floor of the library, looking down at the various things happening in the various parts of the unique Mind maze. Getting the opportunity to watch all this from so close was nothing less than an honor. The Librarian was a special person that did not have any extraordinary connection with anyone. He was a simple person, a strict follower of his own rules. These people who had been invited here might know that person a little, but he was still not someone any of them could have any kind of close connection with. Even a private meeting with him was just as difficult to them as it was for the rest of the people. "Hruuuuu." The Librarian was also looking at everything happening with his special bird from the top of the library. And, though just like the rest of them he was also seeing every participant almost simultaneously with his unique vision, he was paying attention to two particular individuals. "I don''t think getting that topic was just luck though." Elio was now faced with the second trial that was a little more difficult than the previous one where he had to choose a certain ''caterpillar'' from the dozen that was presented before him. The trial this time was about a choice, and there were no additional details of it. He just had to choose, and that would be enough. But the Stars that he will get will completely depend on the reasoning by which he chooses the one. "Think about it. What if he had some other kind of question?" The question that was asked to him first was very simple, yet he answered it in so detail that it did not make any sense from a normal player''s point of view. He did not receive the hint that he was supposed to since the librarian was immersed in reading his answer until now, it was postponed until he clears his second trial. "Hruuuu¡­" His familiar believed that the answer that he presented was just a stroke of luck. He could write well about something and understood something good enough. He was lucky to have that topic as his first question so, the unique being did not give him as much credit as the Librarian. And since it was a wrong way of thinking, his master was trying to show his friend what it was missing. "Look what he''s doing." The Caterpillars that he had to choose from were all of different kinds, colors, race, and they also had a unique power. One could not choose one of them until they knew the power that they contained¨C at least to make this kind of decision, they needed a little more information. And, trying to gather this information was nothing less than a form of art. "Do you remember when I told you about the meaning of art?" People would usually try and see what kind of powers the caterpillars had by provoking them into using those powers. Some would try established methods that would not harm the individuals, while some would just recklessly choose the one that They found attractive. This trial was not about that. "Art is not how well you can perform something, how well you can write, or how well you can create something." The young man was not provoking the little creatures or was treating them like the repulsive creatures they were. He had taken out some snacks from his inventory, and he was chatting with them. Someone who could write so well that it could even captivate someone like the librarian had a warm smile on his face, and he was chatting with the creatures that humans otherwise would not even spare a glance to before crushing them under their feet. "Art is the humbleness to accept the existence of insignificant creatures. The ability to appreciate the inevitability of change and decay. Stay connected with M-V-L Art, as I understand Heliox, is the ability to let go." S§×ar?h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Letting go of the conventional thinking, erasing the borders and boundaries that were never imposed on mankind by nature, having the intense desire to not become an element of this ill, twisted society. "To embrace the present, to admire the past, and to wait for a new moment in our lives while contributing something, anything to this present flow¨C that is art." Every being had this inherent right to contribute something to the present, even the beasts that are killed at the hands of hunters every day. "Those who know how to contribute to this flow in the right way, in their own way, with what they consciously knew was right¨C those who understood what their creations would mean to the world even after the present becomes past in that unseen, known future¡­ these individuals, Heliox, are Artists." He wasn''t one of them. He did not have the ability to create anything that would contribute to this perpetual flow. That''s why he had made this library. That was the sole reason he was cherishing this world more than most others, and helping those who had the ability to contribute something to this world with their arduous task. He admired art. And he admired Artists like Him who saw beauty even in the most unintelligent, small, insignificant looking creatures. Chapter 84: Effects of the titles [Task: Choose one of the beings.]Twelve caterpillars were summoned before me and, well¡­ they were caterpillars. "How do I have to choose one of them? On what basis?" There was no answer when he asked the question, only silence. They were not answering and the task window was frozen in place unlike the previous one that had disappeared. "At least tell me something about them? Is this just a test of confidence? Courage? Decision making? And what do you mean by being? Do these caterpillars represent something else? Is this a choice of some certain thing?" The Trial window had only wanted him to choose one of the creatures, and he could not do it unless he knew what exactly this choice of his would mean. "Well¡­" He needed more information, and if he was not going to get it from the trial, he would have to figure things out himself. "So, what are you, little ones?" He sat down before the twelve insects that were moving on the green carpet, crawling like any normal caterpillar. S§×arch* The NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. These creatures were at least not some simple thing that many people might find disgusting or dangerous. They were colorful, all twelve of them had their unique color and there was a strange symbol on their foreheads. Six of them were as big as his palm, while three were a little bigger. The rest of the three were pretty small, but they were the most attractive ones among them. "I should do the observation first¡­" He needed to know something about them and wasting an appraisal scroll on them was neither appropriate nor suitable. He still did not know what this trial wanted from him so he needed to avoid using items as much as he could. "Hmmm." He decided on what he needed to do, admired the cute caterpillars a little, and then started observing them, what they were doing, trying to look at them from different sides, and while he was doing it¡­ [Effects of the title will be applied.] The caterpillars who were only crawling aimlessly around the carpet started showing some interest in him. They started crawling in his direction and in no time, all twelve of them had gathered before him, looking up at this unique yet approachable big human with interest. "Oh?" This was not the first time the effects of the title were triggered for him. Every time he met any creature that was friendly towards humans, was someone else''s pet, or were something that could be tamed, the effects were triggered. He could use this opportunity to tame these creatures if he wanted to, but he did not want to take advantage of the creatures that were only attracted to him because of some unique power that made them interested in him. They did not need to be forced to do something just because of some title''s effect, so, even though he could, he avoided taking advantage of the interests of the creatures. "Hello there." Just like him or any other being, they also deserved their freedom. "How are you all?" He gently petted the little creatures with his gloved hands and smiled at them warmly. "Looks like they aren''t very sensitive to touch." He can tell they could not understand what he was saying either so ultimately, they were not as intelligent as Az or Miu. They were caterpillars and they might soon evolve into a unique lifeform like some butterfly, bee, or something else. He did not know what they were, but at least, they did not seem harmful. "Can you tell me more about yourself?" He placed his palm before them and asked them something that he knew they would not understand anyway. Still, as if to have understood his intentions, one of the big caterpillars with white body and spiky blue fibers covering its body walked on top of his palm. "Hello." He greeted the little creature happily. He did not know what he should do with them, but he at least knew they weren''t harmful to him, so he continued his observation while he showed various edible things he had to the creatures in search of something that they might like. [Ding!] ============ [White Caterpillar]: (Level:12) ============ "Oh? Aren''t you a high level caterpillar?" At least, he was sure they weren''t normal creatures with this. "You''re like a snow leopard." The white one was white like snow and the blue spike seemed like the white leopards that the players could find in the mountain regions around the north of the kingdom. Then there was a red one that seemed like a bright red fish that they can find in the great central lake near one of the most popular main cities. The three smallest ones resembled jewels of various kinds: A dimon, a blue topaz, and an Aquamarine. They were the prettiest of them all and strangely, Elio found them to be especially attractive. Surely they were unattractive caterpillars in some normal eyes, but they were a special natural element in his eyes. They were special, he could tell just that much from his observations. "Oh? Looks like you do eat something after all." And, after a while of showing them various things, all twelve of them strangely reacted to something that he was expecting the least. "Are you like Az then?" The thing that they had reacted to was a Mana crystal, a rare and costly mineral that contained dense Mana inside of them. "Hey wait wait. I have more. Don''t be too exci-." They got a little too excited when he took out that Mana crystal and jumped the human as he fell backwards. It was more costly and special than the Mana stones that Az eats, but he did not mind them having these costly things. He was saving them for sometime later, but he will get some more from Alex later if he needed. Experience exclusive tales on M-V-L "Hahaha, you all are funny." They shared the Mana crystals and it did not take long for them to finish their meals. Watching the little insects eat an important material like these was a unique experience to him, and especially seeing how each of them glowed and produced a unique effect while they were eating. "All of you are (Arcane Silkworms) I see." He was not certain yet, but the unique nature of these creatures was something that was studied extensively by the [Researchers]. They could eat Mana crystals, something that contained dense Mana. While eating, the fibers around their body glowed, indicating a successful instantaneous digestion process. He had not seen them produce the extremely rare kind of silks with unique properties that they were famous for, but he knew they Might be the same creatures that do produce it. And if that was the case¡­ "I cannot choose just one of them. Not even if I wanted to." The test wanted him to choose one of them, but they were so precious that just choosing one of them would be unfair to the rest of these pretty and gentle creatures in every manner possible. [Task: Choose one of the beings.] But the task window was still in the same place it froze as soon as it appeared before him. "Doesn''t seem like I can choose all of them when they specifically mentioned one." This was a problem then. But, he had a solution to this problem. "I''ve made my choice." He did not know what would happen to these precious creatures after his choice, so, did not gamble their lives. And just made a choice¡­ Chapter 85: Among the spectators "Hehehehe~. There are so many people around here~!" S~ea??h the N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality."Muuuu~!" "Miu!" A young girl with short red hair, pretty looks, and a slime in her hand did not get many chances to be around so many people. "Slow down sweetie. You will get hurt." Her mother smiled at her young daughter as she found a good spot for them among the many people around library plaza. There were many people here right now. A big part of the townsfolk were here right now. There were all kinds of noises, cheerful shouts, screams, and shouts of those who saw this as an opportunity and were selling their goods- mostly food and drinks. It was not every day that they got to watch such things in this town. The two of them moved a lot so they were still comparatively new to this town. "Mom! Mom! Look at that! That''s magic, isn''t it!?" Her pretty daughter was looking at the big screens present in the air before the library. Continue reading at M-V-L Many scenes of things happening inside were showing on these screens as they changed continuously. A section of the screen was dedicated to some more fun things that many people were watching with great interest. Aside from the bigger screens showing the scenes inside, they were also looking at the isolated screens that were relatively shorter but were showing some special individuals who were showcasing their unique talents. "Yes, that''s magic. Magic of Mr. Librarian to be more precise." "Oh! Mister Librarian! It''s been days since we last saw him~!" "Of course, darling. He was busy with all the preparations." She patted her head when she came back with her new slime and gecko friends, and made her sit down first. Running around so much was not good either. She had been running all around since the morning anyway. Now was the time to rest a little. "Where''s sister and brother? I don''t see either of them~." She squinted her eyes, focused a little to see all the things and people on the big screen and when she did not find the ones she was looking for even on the isolated screens, she looked at her mom with a worried look. "There are a lot of participants, dear. You see how the ones on the screens are changing right? They should also appear soon if you can''t find them right now." "Miu!" "Muuuu~." The slime and the gecko inside the slime agreed with her mom. They were smart and knew when to take her side, so she liked these little ones even more lately. "Sit down. Let''s watch." "Yes Misha~! Sit down~!" "Here! Have some of these potatoes~." "Do you want some sweets, Misha~?" "Misha! I''ve made this bread just for you~." Their neighbors had saved them some places so they did not have to worry about being late. They had been here since the participants went inside, so they had a lot of space. Besides, the lovely neighbors who also had their own shops in the town and adored her daughter could not miss this special chance. It was not everyday an event like this was held in this small town, and it certainly was not everyday that this shy girl came out of her house and smiled so much. She was adorable, as well as polite and kind. So many people all around the town loved her. "Umm¡­ ah¡­ em¡­" Even the girl did not understand what to do when all of the people smiling at her started fighting to give her the gifts. She looked at them, their smiles, and could tell this was a show of their kindness. But she was still not used to this kind of situation. "Aww¡­" So, she just got embarrassed and hid her red face. She did not know how to deal with these kinds of situations, so she just left it to her mom. "She is thankful for your kindness everyone." Everyone found this behavior of hers adorable as well so they smiled at her warmly, just like her mom, and after passing their gifts to her mom, they went back to watching the fun things on the screen. "Misha? Look, it''s your big brother Elio." "Hmm? Where?" She was still not looking up even though they had gone back to watching the event, but as soon as her mom mentioned that name, she looked up excitedly and started searching for Elio in the various screens. "There. Look a little down there in the right corner." She did not find it before, but after her mom pointed it out for her, she instantly noticed the young man in a white shirt. "Az! Miu! Look! Brother Elio!" She lifted up the slime so that the two of them could see him as well¡­ but she forgot for a moment that the two of their senses did not work like the rest of them. Az did not have eyes and Miu did not see with its eyes. One completely relied on emotions, environmental Mana signals, and things that were directly in contact with its slime body, while the other relied on fluctuations of Mana in the surroundings and its {Sixth senses}. Both of them could not ''see'' something that was too far away, especially the magic screens that Misha was showing them. "Miu!" "Muuuuu~." But even though they could not see it, they still cheered on when Misha tried showing it to them. They enjoyed her excitement, and were happy to see their new friend happy. "Is he playing with those cool things by himself? How mean!" As she could see, Elio was with some unique caterpillars that, to someone like her who did not have the same kind of thinking as the usual young teenagers, was something purely amazing. She was happy and excited to see those colorful things. And she wanted to play with them as well, but sadly, he was there all by himself. He was having all the fun alone, and there was only one thing she could do as a spectator. "And that right there, I think, is your big sister." She was bound to this place, to her seat, with her mom. Cheering for them like the others were doing and watching them do all those fun things was all that she could do. "She''s having fun as well, it seems." She was envious of someone for the first time in her life perhaps. She also wanted to have fun like them... Chapter 86: Following trials The trials for all the participants were different. And, it was not like everyone had received a trial.This event focused on the individual growth and evaluation of the talent and wisdom that one possessed. One was not limited to anything when they were inside that place. So all the players who found an appropriate place to showcase everything that they had, were showing what they could do. The Stars were the end goal here. And showing the best they can do, might just be the way to the most stars. Many of them weren''t even trying to get out of the Maze. But that was fine as well. One of the reasons Alex was able to destroy the barrier blocking her and Elio was able to finish his second trial without harming any of the Caterpillars was through the freedom of ''choice'' that one makes in that unique space. Contribution was not calculated based on how much they traveled and how many trials they finished. The whole event was about an individual, not their position among the rest of them. "Everyone possesses talent." After parting ways from the small caterpillars, Elio had moved forward and now he was facing the sixth trial on the path that he had deducted from the various clues that he received in the form of a ''chit''. When he received these special pieces of paper, they were blank. However, when he used one as suggested by the window that appeared after he obtained them, he received a clue to his next destination. And after passing through many of these destinations, he had reached the place where the following trials took place. "Talent is not something that one can quantify, or something that one could measure with a set method. It is not a scientific amount that one could measure. It can be graded on a set, well defined scale, however one could not measure it." In his third trial, he was faced with a unique predicament. The first trial that he faced was a simple question, second about a choice, and third one was about his knowledge. He had to explain what a creature that resembled a bunny, a simple black bunny actually was. He also had to justify why something so simple looking was considered so unique in the ''environment'' that they live in. The third trial was pretty easy looking with the presence of the [Forum] that all the players had access to. There was already a lot of information available there. If he could get some information about this creature, he would have obtained whatever information he needed from it. However, without even some simple knowledge about this creature, that would not be possible. Thankfully, he was good with [Observation] and [Identification] so he was able to get good enough info on it to finish his third trial¡­ only to face the next trial that was similar yet a little different. He did not have to tell information about any creature in the next trial, but he had to answer a philosophical question. [What would you do if the (Creature) you had encountered in the last trail ever harmed someone precious to you.] He understood this question as the ''Trial'' wanting to recheck his knowledge about this creature as well as an attempt to make him question the answer that he had given. "Talent and potential are not interlinked. It does not matter if someone has talent for magic, for sword, for art, or for complex coding. Every living being has an inherent potential to them. And this potential itself¡­ is a beautiful thing." He had found out the simple looking black rabbit was actually a demonic beast that was very famous in the high level hunting zones as one of the apex predators of the corrupted land. They were very dangerous creatures that even the players of (Level-150) and above could not handle easily. They possessed great strength and these creatures were considered so dangerous that they were one of the most avoided beings among the players as well as the natives. Sear?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Infamous for killing anything that came into their set territory, they were one of the top ten creatures with the most deaths to their name. Some even called these ''bunnies'' a natural catastrophe. Chances of a precious someone being harmed by these creatures was high, and one''s natural response would be hate towards these creatures. They would want to get their revenge, kill these creatures, and even perhaps want them obliterated. But realistically, there was no way to completely eliminate their kind. And that would just bring despair to the ones who want nothing more than the deaths of these creatures. "Finding one''s talent is something highly based on luck and fate¨C on the other hand, realizing the potential one''s body, mind, and soul hold is what actually births strength at the end of the day." Elio was a simple person. When he was asked a question like what he would do to a creature who has harmed a loved one of his, his natural response certainly was to express his emotions. However, instead of harming that creature as much as they had harmed his loved ones, he would want to tend to his harmed people first. Forgiving the creature would not be possible, but he would not want to kill them if the creature was acting entirely as it was supposed to do. Weakness was an inevitability. If someone close to him was harmed by a creature whose pure nature was to harm something that ''only'' intruded into their territory, then there would not be much that he could do. The matter would surely be different if someone he is close with is killed by these creatures¨C then he would have no choice but to eliminate their entire kind. But those extreme measures would not be needed. Realistically, he did not want harm to any of the beings close to him. But even he knew he would need a great kind of strength for that that was enough to protect what was his. He did not have that strength, but he wanted it. He wanted to be strong. Stronger than he was right now. But, he did not want that strength at the cost of a beautiful being''s fair life. "I do not wish for more talent, I don''t even know what talent I hold right now. All I want if I am given the chance to ''realistically'' have anything I want, would be the opportunity to realize the potential I hold." In the fifth trial, he faced a new being. A sphinx. Yes, the creature from the myths. They existed in this world as well¨C just that the one he was facing was merely a two meter tall replica made with magic. Though, for his fifth trial, instead of receiving the puzzle or riddle like it is in the myths, he was asked to convince the creature that he was worth their Trial. Thus, he did all kinds of things from casting magic, to singing, playing some music with some strings that he had, reading some poems, to even asking the creatures riddles that he might find fun. He took a while, but he was able to somehow catch the attention of the creature. Continue reading on M-V-L He did not know what convinced it, but he received the attention of the creature and along with it, his final trial¨C another question. { "So, you want to realize your potential?" } The voice of this being was close to the voice of the librarian. Something different, but something that had the same kind of power and wisdom as the librarian did. { "Admirable¡­" } The question that he received was simple. Very simple. [Q: If you are given the chance to have anything that you want, what would you want? Would you want more talent?] The connective question was something that indicated that this being before him wanted to hear the answer with some connection to the ''talent'' so, he answered it like that. And, he was right for doing it this way. -Oooooooooooooong. "Oh." { "May you receive what you desire, oh merciful foreigner." } He did not realize it, but he had crossed the maze as well. Chapter 87: Achievement Stars The place that he had ended up in for his fifth and sixth trial looked a little different from the places that he had been to until now.Instead of a road, this seemed like a dead end. Find exclusive content at M-V-L There were no shelves on the sides, the floor was made of stones instead of the carpet one, and he was facing a being that had a unique air to them for the first time. He cleared his two trials. And now, the being that had asked him his last question, was vanishing into unique particles of colorful light. It did not happen in the previous trials, so he was a little confused. And the look on the Sphinx was even more flattering to him. [Ding.] "Let''s skip these for now." He just said what he thought was right, so did not think much of the answer. There was nothing to think actually, all that he said was the truth that just came from his heart. But, that answer opened a unique gate to him that was hidden behind the sphinx''s large body. "Looks like this will take me to the next place?" He did not know yet, so he just crossed the simple wooden door, and was blinded by the light that fell on his eyes. "Hmmm?" When the light cleared up, he found himself in a new place. "Didn''t say I''d win?" A voice greeted him the moment he looked around the open area that seemed to be somewhere inside a library. There were walls filled with books on all sides below him, glass walls were filtering the evening sunlight while illuminating the attractive stories contained in them. There was a different atmosphere on this bridge situated above all the bookshelves, and the scene before him was something he could only sigh at. "You said nothing like that." Alex was here already. And, she was sitting on a round table with someone everyone present around the library outside knew closely. "You are a unique person as well, mister." She was sipping on some tea along with the Librarian, the very person who had perhaps created this entire place and the event that they were holding. "Come, sit." He was a little amused by this scene, since seeing his girlfriend with an attractive looking man with that kind of pretty clothes was a new kind of scene for him. She was oblivious to fashion, but right now she was wearing a pretty dress. Her hair looked nice, and though she seemed to have run around and did some things that she should not have in a dress like that, she still looked nice. And the Librarian was already pretty looking. "Don''t click photos, idiot." She knew when he had stopped like that and was just looking at them with those eyes, it meant he was setting a good angle for the screen shot. She did not like this, but he was already done with his work by the time she said that. "So, does this mean I passed?" S§×arch* The N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Yup." He did not understand how he was already out when it was only late afternoon, but now that he was not in the maze anymore, he knew the event had ended for him. "Look there. That''s the scoreboard." Alex placed her cup down, kissed his cheeks and shifted his head to the left of the room where his eyes fell on a unique magical window. It was different from the status windows, that much he can tell with the color and the similar kind of energy around it that he had felt in the maze. There were many scenes of various areas of the maze playing on this window, along with a certain section to a side that had a scoreboard. "The last answer of yours was unexpected to us, just like your first answer to that simple simple question." The librarian lifted his finger and a cup was lifted from the many that were placed on one corner of the table, then the kettle poured some tea in the cup, and the cup flew to Elio. "Are those the stars?" "Yup." There were some stars beside the names of the various people, and he could see some familiar names in that list. Many of them were from the contribution list of the town quest, however, what surprised them was the three distinct kinds of stars and the top two names on this list. "The normal white stars represent the simple achievements that one makes through their natural actions and decisions, the golden ones are for the trials, while the unique tricolor stars you see there are from the Tests of the Forgotten enigmas." Alex did not know all this stuff since this was also her first time participating in this event, but she had understood what these stars stand for when she crossed the Maze and reached this place just a few moments before Elio. She did not do things the way they were conventionally supposed to be done. Just like how she destroyed the first test''s barrier, when she came across the other trials that were related to intelligence, wisdom, knowledge, and so on, she also just brute forced her way through all of them. She did not stop and ignored the information chits that she received after clearing these trials so that she could clear as many obstacles in the path as she could. "As you can see¡­ I''m going to win by a landslide." She was proud of her achievements right now. "I think you will, yes." and he was proud of her as well, so he patted her head. He had obtained a total of fifteen normal white stars for the natural actions- which he had no idea about- then there were not six but nine golden ones from the trials, and there was a red-blue-yellow star with six pointed ends in front of the rest of them. It was a very impressive number that put him on second place of this list, however, it was nothing compared to the thirty white ones, fifteen gold, and six tri-color stars that Alex had. The third place on this list barely had three gold stars with not even ten normal ones so the two of them were certainly extraordinary. "It isn''t everyday that someone clears a trial of the¨C Forgotten enigma. Especially the trial of the sphinx. You not only satisfied them with the answer, you even received their blessing." Elio knew what Forgotten enigmas were. But he did not know the magic replica sphinx that he met a while ago was a Spirit manifestation of the world''s myths. Meeting those being in the town or common places like a library was a very rare occurrence, but if what the librarian and Alex were saying was true then, he knew at this moment that skipping the messages that he got after the sphinx vanished, was not a good idea. Chapter 88: Talkative librarian [Ding!][You have been recognised by a Forgotten enigma for the first time! Rewarding Exp.] [You have received the approval of a Forgotten enigma for the first time! Rewarding Exp.] [You have completed the trial of a forgotten enigma for the first time! Rewarding Exp.] [Ding!] [For completing the trial of a forgotten enigma, you will be rewarded.] [Intelligence +3] [Mana +10] [You have earned an achievement!] [Recognition by Forgotten enigmas (Rare) has been achieved!] [Ding!] [You have received a [Blessing] from the Forgotten enigma of Riddle and Protection.] [Ding!] sea??h th§× N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [You have received a blessing for the first time! Rewarding Exp.] [Achievement: Blessed Individual (Common) has been achieved.] [Ding!] ============ [Blessing: Fulfillment of a genuine desire.] Type: Conditional trigger. Effects: The blessing will aid the individual in fulfillment of a certain genuine desire that could ultimately lead to potential growth. ============ "..." Elio was shocked how he just casually skipped all these notifications. If it wasn''t for them, he might not even have seen these things until this entire event was over or until he received another bunch of notifications. "A blessing that aids in individual growth is quite rare." The librarian took a sip from his teacup and smiled at him with an impressed look. "And seeing as how this was your first blessing, you sure are one of the special ones as well." He could not understand why the librarian that held so much power and so much knowledge would be interested in him when he had not even done anything special. But, his experienced partner knew the reason behind the interest of this sly person. "He''s mine, mister." She glared at him, warning him not to get any weird ideas about her boyfriend. And she was serious about it. "Keep your talons away from him." A [Blessing] in this game was a unique kind of Buff. Find more adventures on M-V-L It was different from a Grace series spell that granted a momentary fixed kind of effect. It did not particularly enhance or buff something, but a [Blessing] was close to a non-permanent skill of either active or passive type. As long as one had that blessing, they could grow stronger in a new way, accept special quests that would give special rewards, and encounter unique things in their journey. Blessings varied, however, there were only three kinds of beings that could bless someone or something. And the common factor among all these three beings¨C [{(Divinity)}]. "I did not recognize you at first, however, seeing that unique swordplay was enough to rekindle my not-so-distant memories¡­ . Or should I call you¡­ the ?" The librarian wasn''t just interested in him, now that he had recognized her as well, he was even more excited about something. "Don''t call me either of that, bastard. Hmph." The gods could bless someone, and that was a normal fact everyone knew since they could do it through their proxies as well. In there were high ranking classes like [< Saintess >], [< Pope >] or classes representing a certain God. As the proxies and closest followers of those higher powers, these beings could either manifest their authority into the physical world, or were able to become the vessel that temporarily supports their [Descent]. The beings who gain power through their mythical significance gain divinity through the shared belief of the other lower beings (Humans), and as a fragment of their power, Forgotten enigmas manifest in the physical world. The third kind of creatures or beings who could bless someone are the ones who possess Divinity at their birth, or obtain it after their [Ascension]. The power of divinity is the power of [Divine realm] that only the [{(Deities)}] could possess. And either through a direct contact, or through a fragmented manifestation of power like ''Forgotten Enigma'' or ''Substitutes'' the blessings are bestowed. "To think a ''truth seeker'' would accept even a trial like this and give up everything that they had gained with such efforts-." "Wait right there dude." One of the reasons she did not like this bastard was because he spoke a little too much sometimes. He was nice when he did not speak much. That calm and quiet self of his was much better in her opinion. But when he starts speaking a little too much like this¡­ he starts saying nonsensical stuff and, she just does not like it. "First of all, I''ve only temporarily lost what I had. Not permanently. Second of all, I''m not doing this shit because of some ''truth'' or forced trial." She did not say she just wanted to be with him and that was the reason she accepted this trial in the first place. He was smart enough to realize that from the way she looked at Elio after saying that. "Oh?" And he did realize it. Just that when he did, the smile and interest on his face turned into a smirk and joy. "So, the one who brought down the heavens also had a foolish slide to them, hun?" He was happy for some reason. And, not only Elio, it was even Alex''s first time seeing this person like this. She wanted to hit this bastard with her sword. From the rage in her eyes alone, it was clear she wanted to cut him into pieces or something. But, Elio just grabbed her hand since, well, he knew neither of them were anywhere strong enough to face this person. Hurting him in any way was not going to be possible anyway. "I see¡­" The librarian could see things that normal eyes could not. "There was someone who could possess even the impossible." He shook his head with a helpless sigh as He could see the two of them were just as close to one another as the (Golden Barn Owl) couples. He could see the cohesive, intimate bond that these two had. And, also the unshakable foundations of a relationship that was not grown, but forged in a scorching furnace. "Haaa¡­" He seemed to be reminiscing about something, but that only lasted for a moment as he looked back at the two of them. "Do you want some snacks? There''s still some time left for the conclusion so would you like to stay with me and chat a little more?" Now that he knew who Alex was, he knew why she did not like him so much. It was obvious actually, given their unique past. But, he also knew she was a reasonable person. "What do you say?" She knew Elio was confused about a lot of things and still was not asking her, so she did not bother him too much. "Sure." She would tell him everything when he wants to know about it, as well as when she is able to tell. Until then, things were fine as they are. "I want some cake." She demanded with a new comfortable look on her face, though she still wanted to at least punch this bastard. "I''ll share whatever she''s having so it''s-." "No! What do you mean you will share with mine! Get your own!" "We will share, so it''s fine." Elio did not pay any attention to her since he knew she wasn''t going to finish whatever sweets she was asking for. Sweets weren''t her thing anyway even though the ones she made were world-class. So, if she was asking for the sweets, he knew the one to finish it would be him. There were a few things all three of them wanted to talk about with one another. So, with the sudden appearance of new sweets, they started a new, more casual talk. Chapter 89: Presence of Evil "You know did not help with the town quest.""I am not obligated to, you know that better than anyone else." As the event neared its conclusion, the spectators outside of the library were getting excited to see who would get the highest scores and who would get the chance to take something away from the library. All the town''s people knew about the things that were present in the library. There were all kinds of items of the past and things that were related to the various civilizations of the past. The library was not just a simple place where the books were sold, it was the main attraction of the Moongold because there were so many unique things here for everyone to see. "Still, you could have given out quests at least." "And why would I do that? A single low level Dark magician is something the foreigners and town''s people can handle very well on their own. Thanks to your presence, actually, the losses were minimized and the positive effects maximized. The peace in the town was getting a little too much. A crisis like this will only lead them towards growth and ultimately they will be much better than they are right now." They were all watching the players and the natives showcase their talents. Some were painting while some were playing music. There were some disputes where a group was present, but they were little things that were resolved quickly. The players all knew how important the Trials were and for the trials, they at least had to move around. So as they showcased their talent, they also moved across the library in the search of a way out of the maze, following the clues they received at the end of each of the trials. It was not that difficult for any of them to find a trial, almost everyone had received at least one trial even if they had not moved from the place they were transported to. However, the real challenge was following and deciphering the clues that they received and reaching either the next location or to the place that had the next trial that they would have to cross for more clues. Every action of the ones participating in the trail was counted and the unique ones were given a star. Finishing a trial did not give a golden star, the way the trial was completed was the real factor that decided the kind of stars that one would receive from the trails. "You are the same bastard that you were the last time I saw you, hun?" "Well, what can I say? I''m too old for change or something like growth." "I don''t think you-." "Suddup, El. Elders are talking here." she was the one to say that, but she was also blushing as if she had just done something very thrilling. "Is that so?" and the surprised smirk he had somewhat explained what kind of roles they had in their personal lives. "Anyway¡­" Elio had received a total of nine stars after finishing six of his trials so it was at least clear that he completed each of his quests in a way that was worth a golden star. But, some parts of his trials were so extraordinary that just one gold star was not enough for them. Two stars was the maximum that one could receive from a trial, so he had received two stars in his second, fourth, and sixth trial. Additionally, for crossing the trial of a Forgotten enigma, he also received a tri-colour star. "The unexpected Presence of Evil in this town was a good thing from many points of view. One can just see how positively it affected the town from the way the natives are celebrating this festival." Unlike Elio, even though Alex had broken through six of the trials of the Forgotten Enigmas, since she actually speed ran everything and passed with the most optimum answers and actions to the trials that she knew already, she only received a star and not a blessing. She knew blessings were a rare thing already so getting one was uncommon even on the higher levels. Even she had not received that many blessings in all her time as a player. And getting one before reaching (Level-100) from Fragment of a Divinity, and from some bastard of the [Temple] after spending a shit ton of money was a rare thing. She was happy for him, but the words of the librarian did not sit that well with her. S~ea??h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Why are you like this, Connie?" No one knew the Librarian''s given name, but those like her called him . And since she was one of the few people close to him, he did not mind it when she called him by that¡­ unique, name. "You can help people, but you chose to stay in this place. You have the strength but you only come out and use it when the world is ending. You can do some good crazy stuff but instead of doing something like many others, going around the world, why is it that even after having so many options, you just stay in this¡­ in this, cold place?" People come and go in this library. It is almost always open to the public day and night and those who like books sometimes spend days and weeks in this place. As a librarian, he is great at what he does. He did things that not would want to do when they have as much power as he did. "Hmm." She was not too close to him. They just had some bad history together. She did not come to Moongold to meet him or have tea with him. She was here for something and she was going to get it. This chat was a coincidence, but since things had come down to this anyway, she wanted the answers to the questions that she had always wanted to ask this person. "There isn''t any particular reason, actually." Elio was eating the cake that she could not finish. And even without hearing the answer of this unique person to that complicated sounding question, he knew what he was going to say. "I''m just doing what I find right." "Yeah." He knew it, and it was pretty simple to guess actually. Chapter 90: Conclusion "Whatever his initial reason might have been, this library, not this town or this world, has now become his home." He thanked the librarian first for the cake and nodded at him with a familiar understanding before looking at his twinkle. S§×ar?h the N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality."There''s no deep reason for what he does." As someone who had gone through a similar stage in his life, he knew what [Stangnency] or a complete blockage felt like. "You seem to have experienced something similar." The librarian agreed with his words as well. "Not quite, actually." But Elio shook his head negatively at his comment. He was a creator, while on the other hand, the librarian was a consumer. Elio could tell that much from his observations until now. This person¡­ this attractive looking person who certainly had wisdom beyond anyone he had met in this world, someone who knew a lot, someone who understood a lot as well, and someone who had a great lot of strengths¡­ instead of being someone who judges the creations and talents of others, he merely appreciated it like a spectator. He understood it, but for whatever reason, he could not create something like they do. "I''m not good at many things." He could not understand math like she does, create artificial intelligence, modify technology, create new things from wires and small things and machines, stuff that look all the same to him. He was not that good at sports even though it was one thing he admired greatly. He might be a graduate, but when it comes to real academics, he was nowhere near her level. And she was not the only one. There were many in this world like her. Someone who could do many things that he wanted to be good at much better than he could. But even though he could not do what they do, he loved to appreciate what they do. "Perhaps one of the reasons I like this pretty human so much is because of my lack of abilities." The loving look he had as he looked at her while saying that out of the blue almost made her blush, and she tried hiding this embarrassment by pretending to sip on her empty teacup. "Is that so?" The librarian was smirking at her. This side of this person¡­ this utterly ruthless, destructive, catastrophic person was more than just unexpected to him. He was more surprised right now than when he was almost killed by her sword. He liked this unexpected talk, and he would have loved to continue it further. But¡­ "Looks like the time to conclude the event has arrived." They had to finish things now. He knew this one event had been much more eventful than any others they have had in these past few decades. And he was happy with that much alone. "Thank you both for the amazing chat." -Ooooooooooooong! They had finished with their tea and snacks and it was time as well, so with the bitter look in his eyes, the librarian proceeded with the closing ceremony. "You two were the only ones to escape the maze this time it seems." In the maze, the ones who were done with their performances or with their trials were starting to vanish from their places. The ones who were not finished with their trials were given the last five minutes before they would be transported outside. In the plaza, as the sun went down and the dusk greeted Moongold, the townsfolk prepared for a unique phenomenon that would soon occur. They had enjoyed the event this time as well, the festival would reach its peak at night, however, before they greet the night, they would witness something that not everyone gets to see. "In that case, it seems like there will be two things I will be parting ways with." he smiled at both of them happily as he vanished alongside the table. -Ooooooooooong. The two of them were also transported to the ground floor of the library from the highest top. And, along with them, the rest of the players and natives who had taken part in the event were also popping up in this place. There were a lot of people, the two of them were there first but it did not take even a minute for the ground floor to fill up with the participants and the rest of them started shifting to the upper floors. On the highest floors- not the highest place where the three of them had been until a moment ago but the highest floors with books- the special guests like miss Aloha, town Mayor and the Viscount''s people who had seen the entire event and especially the two of them were looking down at all the participants with a joyful expression. The participants who were coming back to reality, out of the Mind Maze of the librarian that they had been in until now, showed various unique expressions. Some were happy, some were sad, some were upset about their performance, some were angry while some were feeling unique expressions altogether. For most of them, this was their first time experiencing an artificial space. They were technically present inside this library all this time, and at the same time, they were not here. It was logically somewhat strange, but from the magical perspective and from the angle of the [Arcane theory], this entire phenomenon was quite explainable. But knowing something like that without foundational knowledge will only mess things up. { "Looks like everyone had a great time." } Many people had learned many things thanks to the trials, many people had also broken through the limitations or walls that were previously blocking them. Many had not expected it, but they had gained more than just some physical rewards from this one experience. { "And the moment is approaching as well¡­" } Their efforts and their performances¡­ their talents, their wisdom, and their potential was going to be rewarded soon as well. However, before that, they were going to greet a unique natural occurrence. Something so rare and precious that only these lucky individuals present around the Moongold, and perhaps a few more regions of southwest would be able to experience it. Chapter 91: The treasury As dusk settled over the Moongold, a golden glow spread over the cobblestone streets and old buildings. Excitement buzzed as people gathered around the grand library looked up at the dark¨C or now gold sky.The library''s ceiling, once made of colorful stained glass holding the stories of a forgotten era, began to turn transparent. "Wow¡­" "So, this is it?" "Look over there. How beautiful¡­" The ones who had just finished the event, the ones who were watching from inside the library, as well as those watching from the plaza outside all looked up at the sky¡­ "There is a story about this phenomenon." With the sun setting, the sky above the library became visible. Slowly, a golden moon emerged, its light filling the night after years of absence. The moon''s glow bathed the town in a mystical, golden light. "[Lamentation of crimson flames] was not only about a mythical creature destroying the valley. It happened because the child of the creature was taken away from her." Children pointed at the bright gold in wonder, while the elders watched in quiet reverence a sight they had witnessed before as well. The library, now open to the sky, connected the town''s history, history of the books stored within the old wooden shelves, with the celestial magic above. "She destroyed all the valley because she could not find the child, and only stopped when a [Hero] brought her child back to her." The townspeople, the players, Alex and Elio, Miss Rin and Misha, Az and Miu stood with their friends and family, faces lit by the moon''s golden light. They had seen the bright white and yellow of the moon, sometimes crimson and a milky moon. But, to witness a celestial body covered in bright golden light was a breathtaking experience for many of them. "The mother calmed down when she was reunited with her child, and then she thanked the hero." The grand library, a proud symbol of Moongold, seemed to open up to the universe. The return of the golden moon filled everyone with a sense of hope and renewal. Moongold felt more enchanted than ever, with the night promising endless possibilities, it''s unique warmth appreciating the efforts of everyone present, its mystical presence somewhat appreciating all the efforts made by all the natives and players. "A [Phoenix] is a creature that reborns from its ashes." Alex looked up at the sky, at a scene that she once was fortunate to witness from up close. "And in their last moments, they release all the energy left in their unique bodies." What one saw as a natural phenomenon was much more unique than one could imagine. The moon of this world, just like the moon of the real world, did not have a light of its own. The sun of this world was a completely different entity than the sun that they have in the real world as well, since it did not merely convert hydrogen into helium. The sun of this world burned a primordial energy of stars and converted it into various natural energies that are present in the nature around them. It holds a very special place in the [{(Prakriti)}]. And though not as significant as the sun, the celestial moon also holds a special position in both nature and human lives. "I was not sure before, but I can tell the story of the golden moon being a reflection of the death of a [Phoenix] is true. Death of a young one, at that." Just like Dragons, Phoenix were also creatures of myths. There were not many ways to confirm their hidden existence, but events like these, the events that one sees as a natural phenomenon or a natural disaster gave an undeniable proof of their existence. She was fortunate enough to meet a few of these mythical creatures in her lifetime in this world, and she was looking forward to meeting more of them as she goes to various new and old places along with her partner¡­ who was currently lost in the beauty of the moment. "Death of an older one is even more beautiful, especially from up close." If she could, she could have recorded it and showed it to him, but she was not able to. She had experienced a lot of things in her life in this world, but she wanted to experience a lot more along with her darling. { "Congratulates on finishing the event and experiencing something new." } On the ground floor, a void was materializing on the floor beneath their feet. But they couldn''t feel it. { "The two people who had obtained the extraordinary results will be given the chance to obtain one item from the library." } There were rare books, there were records, there were skill stores and precious things, and there were things that everyone, even the high ranking players desired in this place. But, Alex already knew what she wanted and Elio had no idea what he should get out of all the things present in this place. { "The [Treasury] contains all that I have gathered over the years. Treasures, items, knowledge, and things that cannot simply be defined as a tool." } The leaderboard appeared before everyone and the top achievement holders, people who had managed to get two or more golden stars were highlighted in the grand list that had appeared before everyone present here. -Oooooooooooong! The list was long, but their own ranks were the first thing that they saw when it appeared before them. The stars were listed beside their names, and before the rest of them, high up in the air, before the special guests that were at the top floor, as well as before the biggest magical screens outside of the library, the performance highlights of the ones with the most stars were displayed openly. { "The contribution you have made and according to your needs¡­ may you get what helps you with your journey ahead." } The darkness beneath their feet exploded and covered the rest of them inside the library. Their eyes got momentarily blinded¡­ [Ding.] [Rewards from the achievements made during the library event will now be granted.] [Additional rewards will be granted individually upon claiming of rewards.] And in the next moment, they saw a unique pouch in their hands. A colorful pouch that was of a different color for all of them. There was a unique shine and glitter to these pouches, and though they were light, everyone could tell there was something hidden inside of these unique pouches with an expanded inside space. This was their reward from the treasury¡­ Obtaining it was not as eventful as they might have thought, but now that they had obtained this object, they all wanted nothing more than to open these pouches in their houses or inns or in safe spaces outside somewhere, and check what they had obtained. { "Let us all admire the wonder of gold as we welcome a new tomorrow¡­" } Phoenix. The symbol of Life, Glory, and a new beginning born from the brightest flames and ashes. "Beautiful¡­" As the people of Moongold and players who had obtained their rightful rewards watched the moon covered in the golden light, some shed tears of sorrow. After the catastrophe that had hit the town, the town covered in the golden light had lost a lot, suffered even more, and had parted ways with many. They had been through darkness¡­ "So beautiful¡­" But, with the new golden moonlight wrath of the new tomorrow, with shedding tears and joyful smiles, the players and natives alike, greeted a new tomorrow. S§×arch* The n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The festivals would go on and the seasons would change. They had suffered a great loss, but life goes on¡­ and the ones who are left behind, still had to contribute their verse. Chapter 92: Night of festivities The golden moon was a unique phenomenon that only lasted for a few minutes.People of the Moongold witnessed it, bathed in its warmth, and when it was gone- and when the library event had concluded- the main festival began. The town was covered in lights, streets were filled with people, and along with isolated mourning, joy enclosed the town. They had just lost a lot, but they were not falling to the darkness anymore. The people were with those who had lost someone, not leaving out of the festivities. The monument that was made in the center of the town was covered in the mementos, flowers, and gifts of the children. Streets were filled with young and old as they walked around the illuminated town, there was happiness in the air, the shops were earning from those excited, happy customers. The night was young, and yet the inns and bars were full. Those who did not or could not handle themselves alone were drowning themselves in alcohol. Those who had someone to rely on were spending the night and those who did not get to experience a festival''s unique atmosphere were enjoying their time with their loved ones¡­ or by themselves. "Misha! That''s enough running now¡­" "Hehe, let''s go there next~!" Elio and Alex were looking after the young child who ran around with the little slime in her hand. Her mother had retired home and they were soon going back as well, but before that, the little girl wanted to taste a few more things. "How does she have so much energy, haaa¡­" Elio was tired after running after the girl for an hour, but since Alex was having fun as well, she did not mind going on a little more. There were a lot of things in the market, many vendors were practically giving away some stuff at base price, and even big shops were giving things at a discounted price. They were leaving the town soon now that she had obtained what she wanted, but if she had the chance to stock up on a few more things before that, she was definitely not going to miss it. "I''ll be back in five. Take her to the toyshop while you are at it as well." "What? Where-." She had already vanished from his side by the time he looked back up at her. The streets were full of people. There were noises all around and it was not easy keeping track of everything even with his heightened Mana senses. All he could do was accompany them, but if they were going to just run around like that, he did not know what he was supposed to either. "Haaa¡­" After the golden moon, they had stayed back at the library to collect their rewards. He was going to give them anything he wanted from his collection, and despite that, someone like her who understood the actual values of the things that he had, chose a simple world Map that had the power to find whatever one wanted it to. It was one of the oldest items he had and no appraisal scroll worked on it so he never knew just how valuable it was. He could tell if she wanted something like that, then there must be something to it that even he did not know about. But, now that he has given it away, perhaps, he will never know its true value. "Misha¡­" Elio was tired running around with her, but he knew her pocket money would end soon and she would have to go back. She was spending her money carefully, tasting things where she can actually buy what she liked, but that would end soon. S§×ar?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She had only received twelve copper coins from her mom, which was a lot for a child like her, and even that was going to end. Alex told him to take her to the toy store¡­ and by that, she wanted him to take the little girl and the two little creatures to the item store. There won''t be many things that she could buy with the remaining three copper coins that she had, so he believed she might finish her funds on some silly things. He wanted her to end this anyway. The hustle and bustle of the town right now wasn''t that fun for her anymore. He was tired already, and after spending an hour pondering what he should get from the library, he was tired even more. "Muuuu~!" "Miu!" "Oh! That looks fun as well~! Brother Elio~. Where did sister go~?" "She will join us-." "Oh! Look at that! What are those shiny things~?" She only stopped momentarily before vanishing once again. She was like a bumblebee, an excited bee high on pollen. It was cute, especially with the slime and the excited gecko inside of it. She was enjoying, which was a rare sight that her mother would have loved¨C but she had seen her happy enough times today. Now, she was gone and had placed her girl in their capable hands for this night. She knew when she came back home, she would be tired. So, she had gone back after enjoying this rare night festival. She had her acquaintances that had lost someone close to them that she needed to meet as well, so she was not around. The two of them were looking after her daughter, and she knew they would treat her well. "Haaa¡­" But with Alex running around doing her own thing, he was looking after the children alone. And he was getting tired of it now. "What do you children eat to have so much energy!" He ran behind her, again. Cursing his partner in his head for leaving him alone to deal with these active children. The special object that he finally obtained from the librarian was not going to be helpful for him anytime soon. At least though, he was happy that the street food here was decent enough. His stamina was decreasing with each shop Misha jumped to, but since his fatigue was not increasing in proportion to that, he was doing fine. It was difficult, but he knew he could manage the children at least until they got back to the inn¡­ Chapter 93: So, how about it? Alex told him she would join him in five, but she did not specify five minutes or five hours.So, even though ten minutes passed and Misha finally finished her pocket money, Alex had not come back. [{ "I''m sorry. This sudden work came up¡­ haaa¡­ I will be back as soon as I can. Don''t worry about me." }] She said she was going to buy something, but she had actually returned back to their inn. [{ "You are hiding something from me, again." }] [{ "I''m just working, lol. Don''t be like that. I might be back before you even get back to the inn so don''t worry." }] She cut the call, and entered the wooden doors of the (Woodleg inn). "We are closed-... oh. You''re back~? Where''s Misha and Elio~." Madam Rin was waiting for the three, especially her little baby. Seeing her so happy and excited all day had been a rare but joyous experience for her. This event, this whole day had been very special for her, and her child obviously enjoyed it all. She was a shy one, but being with that little Slime and Gecko had been a completely new experience for her. They were her friends, and seeing the three of them playing, shouting, running around had been a heartwarming experience for her. And she was extremely thankful for the two of them who brought such joy to her little girl. "Can we talk for a moment, Miss Rin?" Alex closed the door behind her, locked it with a wooden plank, and took out a unique object from her inventory. "Hmm?" It was a barrier item, one that blocked sound of any kind. -Ooooooooooong. It was rare, so not many could recognize it. Someone who had just started the game or were commoners from a small town like this would not even know what that object was¡­ but not her. "Why are you using that, Alex dear?" There was a table with four chairs, and Miss Rin sat down right before hers when she saw the item activating. The look this girl had did not seem right to her, so she did not ask any unnecessary questions and just sat down beside her. She knew the matter was serious from that new kind of look she had. "You know Miss Rin¡­" Alex placed her sheathed white sword on the table beside her. "This sword is special." With calm but extremely serious eyes, afterwards, she caressed the sheathed weapon with one of her hands, and looked at the person before her. "It cries with excitement when it senses individuals who are at a level I cannot defeat them." Her level had fallen but she still had all her experience, and techniques from her past. Her power was limited in many ways, but just like how she was able to stall for time even when going against something like that dark mage, she knew she could defeat most of the individuals in this town if she fought seriously. She could even defeat the guard captain if he does not use that special skill of hers. She was strong, even if she did not have even a fraction of her power at the moment. So, whenever her sword had cried after she entered this town, it was when she was facing someone like the guardian spirit that manifested through the guard captain or when facing the dark magician. The librarian made her sword the most excited, after which came the guardian spirit, and after that¡­ it was not the dark magician. "You defeated six of the dark minions that entered the town, weren''t you?" Sear?h the N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. As soon as she mentioned that, the expression on Miss Rin''s face changed as well. "The ''special'' person that was mentioned in the Town quest¡­ it was Misha, right?" "..." As soon as her name was brought up, the worried expression on the mother''s face changed completely. "There were fifteen minions that entered the town, three were dealt with by the underworld organization''s people. Two were dealt with by the guards, three by the players, and one died because of the mages from mages'' tower. The rest that were spotted by the Mayor vanished without a trace and were not found even with the later investigation¡­" Where could these creatures have gone? She wondered about it for a while. She thought long and hard about it instead of just accepting they might have vanished with the dark mage that summoned them, she investigated. And still, she did not find anything. Anything except subtle trances of a very familiar energy in a dark corner of the town. "You''re a remnant of the fallen Holy Kingdom of Archlore, aren''t you?" Miss Rin looked at her¡­ her eyes hollow, the calm and worried expression changed into a serious and poisonous one. The way she was looking at Alex now told her how she wanted to kill her right on the spot. But, she also knew that she knew that was not going to be effective. Alex was not a native. She was a foreigner and they are cursed to be reborn after their death. "You found out an awful lot of things in the few days you have been here, hun?" The always cheerful, attractive, and positive aura around her transformed into that of the aura of a wounded tiger¨C cold, and deadly. She was not sitting before the strong girl that had saved her inn from some thugs. She was now standing before an enemy that she knew she could not kill. "You made a mistake, Miss Rin." And she knew that as well. "The head of the mage tower¡­ he will find you." Using her unique power was not the best idea if she wanted to stay in this town for a little longer. Alex knew just what kind of troublesome position she was in. And, she was going to leave the town because of it anyway as well. "I know he will. That is why we will-." "Let me blunt, miss Rin." Existence of someone who can protect them and be good with them. Someone who was strong enough to help them out of situations that would require her presence, and someone who was already experienced with war. She was the perfect guard that they could have found for the following part of their journey and since she had a ''special'' daughter to protect, Alex knew the two of them will be present when the two of them are not around. "Join us." Miss Rin had strength but that strength was nothing compared to what they might need when they go out of this town. "I will give you the strength you need to protect that child." She was a single mother who could use a rare power that was sought after by the mages all around the world. After her investigation and a little deeper digging into the assistant of the Dark magician that died because of his own foolishness, she knew the entire situation now. "Let''s use each other, at least." Alex knew Miss Rin would not understand her position with the kind of anger she had right now, but she knew this person¨C the mother who was in a unique position right now was at least smart enough to know what was best for her and for her child. "So, how about it?" Elio needed someone to look after Miu and Az in their absence anyway, and she knew there would be more special creatures joining them. They needed someone here that they could trust, as well someone who could actually look after those special creatures. "...you are not really some normal person either, hun?" Alex could not think of anyone better for this job other than a Soldier who could partially use the unique energy- Holy power and a being born with the blessing of nature. She wanted the two of them¡­ and, the person before her knew this young, fearsome woman was not going to take a no for an answer. Chapter 94: Next destination "Haaa¡­"Misha ended up falling asleep while they were coming back, so Elio carried her back on his back. And when got back, Alex was already waiting for him on the ground floor. "See. Didn''t I say I''d get back before you." She was talking with Miss Rin with her sword on the table, and he could tell there was something strange going on here. But he was too tired to think about something like that, so he looked at Miss Rin and she came up to him and carefully took the sleeping girl from him. "Thank you for looking after her." Miss Rin smiled warmly at him as she usually does and after bowing to him and to Alex, she went back to put her pretty sleeping daughter in her room. "Hun?" And then, without even looking at Alex, he walked up the stairs. "Hey¡­" He was too tired to deal with her. He could already tell she lied to him when she said she had some work to do. There was also something going on between her and Miss Rin before he came here. "Haaa¡­" He wanted to ask what she was up to, but he was just too tired for that right now so he at least got back to their room first and fell down on his bed. "You can''t even handle a teen child. How will you handle a baby?" With a smirk, she came and sat beside him. "Let alone a baby, how will you handle the little friends you make going forward?" She placed Az and Miu, who he left on the ground floor, in their basket. These two were smart so they knew at least a little about how to look after one another, but what will he do when he gets a friend that has no worldly knowledge? How will he be a father in the future if just handling an older child like her made him so exhausted? "Haaa¡­ Misha is different, Alex." She was caressing his hair, he loved it. They had been together for a while, but neither of them really believed in the ceremonial marriage. They lived together, did everything that a married couple would do, and perhaps much more than that. They surely were more than a couple living together, and since they even thought about their future occasionally, they knew what they wanted from one another. "She had that¡­ bright energy to her. I don''t know how to explain it." With his head now placed on her lap, he sighed while staring up at the ceiling. She was his bliss. He did not need a potion or any items to feel refreshed when she was around. "I agree on that point. She sure is special." She smiled at him warmly. And the hidden mysterious feeling hidden behind that smile told him how she knew more about this than what she was letting out. "You¡­ hide a lot of things in here, you know? Completely different from your ''self'' in the outside world." "You''re new here, dear. Telling you everything at once will be no fun." She ruffled his hair while laughing and¡­ then placed her head on his forehead. "We will be leaving the town soon." "Yeah¡­" Thanks to all the quests, they had earned a lot of experience and were both (Level-35). They could leave the town any time they wanted now that they were done with everything that they needed to do in this place. She already obtained what she needed and he had obtained something that he will be able to use in the future. He had some unique talents so that thing will be great for him, but before he could use it, he will have to deal with some things with the dagger that he received from the guard captain. "It was a fun experience, Alex." S§×ar?h the N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. When he finished his tutorial quest and came to this town, he did not think it would be so much fun. Things here were completely different from what he had expected. The hunting was a special experience, seeing all those cool creatures, seeing this unique town, seeing the various things in this town, meeting so many people, so many good people¡­ meeting a new friend that will accompany them, even staying at a place that he might never forget. And the town quest and library event¡­ "It was unforgettable¡­" He did not know how it had been if they had gone to some other town, but the fact that they fatefully ended up in this specific place where they not only experienced so many amazing things, met so many amazing people, and had such unique experiences, was something that he was thankful for. "Elio oh my darling Elio¡­" She shook head with a smile on her face that was making fun of him. "If you are like that after just this much, you have no idea what awaits you outside this town." Forest vaster than deserts, deserts hotter than volcanoes, volcanoes colder than glaciers, and glaciers house entire civilizations. There were so many things in this world that they will need another half a decade just to see all the good things that she had seen in her time here, and more that they were going to see as they traveled the world in search of objects that will give her powers back to her. "Didn''t I say we will have a looooot of fun?" Their next main destination will be a vast Jungle even bigger than the small ''forest'' that they had in Moongold. It was strange how a jungle was going to be bigger than a forest, but while the Great forest of Moongold was called the great forest by the people, their next destination was given the title of one of the vastest greenlands on the western continent. However, before they reached the forest, they were going to stop at a city. Get a little stronger, and prepare to go to a place that is filled with all kinds of dangerous creatures. "Anyway¡­" How about we open those pouches we received from the librarian''s treasury. I wanna see what it has. "Must we do it right now¡­?" She turned his head around and buried it in her firm thighs. "Yes we have to do it right now. So come on. Don''t be lazy." It would not take longer than a few moments anyway. He could do at least that much even if he was being lovably lazy right now. Chapter 95: Stellar pouches The one she had received was of bright crimson color with some unique jewels embedded in the pouch."You know what? These pouches won''t vanish even after we obtain the rewards inside of it." The one he had received was obsidian with golden glitter all around it. The glitter did not have a texture. The punch seemed to be made from a high quality fabric that itself had this glitter like shine to it. "These pouches will start selling at high prices on the Otherworld market as . And the demand for the pouches belonging to the people who had more stars in the event would be quite higher as well." These pouches were an item as well, however, they only had a little bigger expanded space inside of them. They were only used to store the rightful rewards of the participants but, while the natives kept it as a token of honor, the players treated it as a valuable collectible. Unified Rank 10 , one of the richest people of the two worlds and someone that perhaps had the most items, things, valuables, [Relics] and [[Artifacts]] in the entire world would definitely want a specially valuable piece like the two of their pouches. Alex had not seen such pouches on the market so she at least knew the ones that the two of them had, had something special about them. "Let''s open them together." "As you wish, my lazy." "My Lady, not lazy." "Oh right¡­ I''m lazy, not you." She smacked his head when he made that shit joke and pushed him off the bed. "We will open it together." "Aww... that hurt." He did not like falling off of the bed. This has happened more than a few times since he arrived in this town. "Why do you keep pushing me, woman? I''m not some rock on the street that you can just kick as you want." He got up and smacked her head- got slapped in return- then they fought for five minutes and when they were done- they finally got back to what they were actually doing. "Hmph." S§×ar?h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. His face was red from the slaps and she was angry. It wasn''t her fault that he was acting like that. None of it might have happened had he not acted like that. For hitting a pretty lady like her He was a bastard indeed! "Open it now. I don''t even wanna do a countdown." She opened her crimson pouch and a golden light blasted from it. -Oooooooooooong! A unique sword slowly floated out of the pouch that had a glow of its own. There was a gem as bright blue as her eyes embedded on the handle of this sword. The blade of the sword seemed to be made from some kind of blue metal instead of steel. The edge of the blade was so sharp looking that as Elio looked at it, he could directly feel its unfathomable sharpness on his eyes. The sword was one handed, not a great sword or a two handed sword. It was just the perfect weapon for hers. The sword was not covered in any sheath, so they could see all of its magical beauty. "Wow¡­" The sword seemed like one of those mythical weapons talked about in the stories, the weapon of the Hero. Elio could also feel the vast energy contained within this weapon with his {Mana senses}. As soon as the sword came out of the pouch and fell into her hands, he could also tell how unique this weapon was. It was unlike any other sword that he had seen after coming to this place. It is almost on par with the strange white sword that Alex carried around. "What kind of sword is that?" This weapon was a unique item, that much one could tell just from the blue body of the blade. The unique handle that seemed to have been carved by the hands of a Master was also something that attracted his attention. This one weapon¡­ he could tell she might have been able to defeat even that dark magician if she had it at that time. "Oh? Isn''t this good?" A smile appeared on her face¡­ And then, she took out her white sword, and placed the tip of the new blue sword that she had just obtained on the sheath of her pretty white sword. -Oooooooooong. The sword that she had just obtained and the sword that she carried around all the time reacted, a red energy then slid out of the sheath covered sword, and wrapped all around the blue blade. The sword that seemed precious and highly valuable, something that Elio knew was worth more than a few gold coins, vanished along with the red energy that slid back inside the sheath. "..." Elio had no idea what just happened, but what he had just seen logically meant that the precious sword that she had just obtained was devoured by the sword that she carried around all the time. "What the hell?" He was confused. But Alex just shook her head without saying anything as she placed the sword back into the corner that she usually puts it in. "You are not going to tell me what just happened either, are you?" "There will come a time, hehe." She was smiling happily. There was a unique playfulness in her eyes, one that said she was waiting for a good moment to tell him about what had just happened. She wanted to have fun with this oblivious side of him, so she just smiled happily at him. And, he sighed deeply after seeing that smile. "Haaa¡­ I''m too tired for all this." He just wanted to get this over with, so, he opened his purplish black pouch with golden shine as well¡­ -Ooooooooooong! Instead of a golden light, this time, a silver light blasted from the pouch and what came out of it surprised the two of them¡­ "Woah." It was not a sword, yet it surprised Alex. It was an item. This was a very rare item. It was so rare that Elio, who was tired of anything and would not have been affected by even a dragon at the moment, got surprised by this object as well. "These are precious, Elio." "I know¡­" Even in her long journey, she had only come across twelve of these. And of those twelve, six had protected her in critical situations at the cost of their own lives. "What¡­ should I do with this?" The thing that he obtained from the pouch was a card. A precious item that was called by the players, and by the natives of this world. The object he was holding right now was not something simple. Not many existed in this world and all that were known to exist, were already owned by various individuals. They were precious. Extremely precious. "What do you want to do with it?" And now that he had obtained one as well, it was entirely up to him if he wanted to put it up for auction and get hundreds or perhaps thousands of gold for it, or accept it as his own and add a new member to their growing party. Chapter 96: A servant card The same room in the inn, the same bed, the morning after the festival and event, with the sunlight shining in through the windows, the couple who should have woken up by now were still asleep.With her one leg upon his and his hand on her back, with the blanket thrown away below somewhere, his other hand holding hers, they were sleeping peacefully. -Chirp. Chirp~. The morning sounds of a lively town filled the atmosphere. Their room that was normal last night was a mess once again. Things were a little more chaotic around here for some reason, but one can ignore it thanks to the peaceful atmosphere of the fine morning. The table beside their bed was still in a good condition, though there were strange marks of claws, or nails, or something all over it. -Swiiiiiiiish~. A unique metallic card rested on this table. There was an illustration engraved on the metallic surface of the card. A unique illustration depicting a feathered being with hair covering their face, as well as going all the way to the base below. An angelic halo floated on the head of this being, and from what one could understand, the being in the depiction was wearing an ethereal thin cardigan. One could not tell if the depiction on the card was of an angel or a fallen angelic creature. One could not confirm the gender of the being either. There were no specific characteristics that confirmed if this being even had any gender¡­ All one could say when seeing this illustration was the fact that whatever this unique ethereal being was, was something very unique. The silver that it was carved on was different from the silver that was used to make the coins, it had something one could only understand as¡­ ancient. Just by looking at this unique card, one could get mesmerized by its presence. There was no unique energy exuding from it, there was no Mana around it either, and yet, the uniqueness of this object was so special that anyone seeing it would want to possess it for themselves. It had a devilish attraction¡­ Yet, when he obtained it, instead of using it right away, he placed it aside, and decided to think what to do with it later in the morning¡­ But even though the morning had arrived already, he was still asleep. -Crrrr¡­ There was a unique calm on both their faces. They were sleeping, and the intimate connection and the special understanding the two of them had of one another was pretty much reflected in how they were sleeping. It was a unique sight, so¡­ "Miu?" "Muuu¡­" When the door to their room crack opened and a little slime jumped in with a little gecko, and a young girl, as they saw this unique sight, they did not disturb their friends and just closed the door behind them. They ignored the messy room since they already knew the two cleaned things up as they should on their own, and went down to play. There was no need to wake them up like she had been doing for the last few days. The festival and the event had ended, so they did not have any work left. They had also worked hard all this time, so they deserved some rest. They left them like that¡­ but perhaps they should have made some noise while going out so that at least one of them wakes up and sees the time. "Hmmm¡­" They had slept late but it was still not like them to stay asleep for too long. "Ugh¡­" Perhaps because of the kind of things that they tried or perhaps it was because of the fatigue from the event and festival, but by the time they woke up, it was already late evening. "We¡­ should stick to the normal things for a while." "Ugh, yeah¡­" Both of them were in pain, and, since he woke up before her, he got to see her sleeping face and hear these groaning voices. She did not like him seeing her like that, but sadly, there was nothing she could do here either since she was the one to suggest a lot of things that resulted in the pain and soreness that They were feeling. "Some of that was fun, regardless." "Hehe, right?" He helped her wake up and sit down on the bed and though his body ached as well, he used one of the potions that she had bought for him when they went shopping a few days ago, and got out of the bed. "You want something?" Drinking some water and giving her a glass as well with a forehead kiss, he first got into his clothes and looked around the messy place with a complicated expression. He was at fault this time since he couldn''t take her provocations anymore and went a little overboard. He knew fixing things here this time will not be that easy, perhaps they would spend the rest of the day on it. "I''m hungry¡­" She used a potion as well but she knew she was not going to feel well with just these potions this time. She needed to rest a little longer, and he understood that as well. "Anything special you want? Or should I just throw some stuff together?" "Well¡­ surprise me." With a new smile, a happy smile, she rested her head on the wall, and thought back to the wild but fun night that they had. "Alright then. I''ll be back in a bit." If she could somehow infuse worldly taste in her cooking her partner could present even the simplest things like a cabbage as attractively as a three star dish. She liked eating her cooking more, but occasionally, they didn''t mind having him make something special for them. In times when she could not make anything for them or does not want to, he knows what he has to do. "That bastard¡­" The Servant card was still beside her on the table so she picked the unique thing up and caressed the cool surface of the card. She could tell the card was made from a material called [Primordial silver]. She had never seen a card that was made from something that was only found in the highest difficulty runes of the past. She had only seen something made from this material twice before this card. The first was a Sword that had been said to be stained with the blood of a God, and the other was a normal ring in the personal collection of . Just the value of this card was astronomical. But to think a being was trapped inside of this small piece of metal¡­ S~ea??h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "What could you be?" She did not know what the being inside this card was, or how it will be, or what it will grow up into. She had been with only a few Servants, and all of them were unique. They did not have many memories of their past, but they served anyone that summoned them as their eternally loyal servants. "Haaa¡­" She was looking forward to what the being coming from this card would look like, so, she was now excited. As she waited for him to come back, she thought about the many possibilities of how this new individual would become a part of their lives in the world outside this lovely town. Chapter 97: Appearance of the first Throne "Pretty as ever.""Here." A special smoothie after their first late meal of the day, just the way she liked it. "Thanks." The food was amazing, even though they were simple things. It was not about flavors when he made something for her, but more about the emotions and aesthetics. He was damn good at it. "Alright then, now that we are done with things¡­" S§×ar?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Miss Rin did not ask them much about anything since she could tell they were tired and were taking their well needed rest, and since she had checked up on them earlier this morning, she knew what might have transpired in that place¡­ At least she knew a little about their plays. When he went down, he asked Misha to look after the two little creatures as she did last night, and the three were happy to play around as well. They were happy and Miss Rin did not tell him anything about what Alex had talked with her about. She needed some time to think about it as well, so she left the two of them for the day. "Here." And now that the time had come for the big thing, she handed him the silver card that had just been left on the table all this time. "You want this." "Yes¡­" He was thinking about what to do with the card all night after she told him the true meaning of having this servant that will do everything in their power to ensure the safety of their master. They would kill and they would die if it meant the safety of their masters. The masters can restrain them through orders, but the servants would inherently want to protect their masters and things would become complicated in the situation where things are a little too complicated. The death of the masters meant a great deal to the servants. For them, they aren''t just going to be reborn, but their death directly affects them in various manners. They lose a part of their memories with their masters, they lose some of their powers, they even lose the levels that they had gained with their masters. Having a servant was the same as having a child that one will first have to look after and when they grow up a little with the levels and achievements, they would protect their masters as if they are their everything. "Haaaa. Alright." For Elio who did not want to see someone he cherished put into harm''s way, the existence of someone who would willingly choose death even above the orders of their master in certain cases, this servant was more of a problem than a strength. He would need to resolve himself a lot if he wanted them on this journey, but there are always things that one could not control. "Place it on your head." If there were some downsides of having a servant, they were one of the closest friends one would ever meet in this world as well. They were unique beings that were only a fragment of their true forgotten selves of the past. They were different from the Familiars, or any physical being of this world¨C or even spirits, for that matter. No one knew how they came into being, but there were some cards like these scattered all throughout the world and occasionally, some got their hands on them. When they choose to accept them as their servants, they are committing to a lot of things, and it isn''t good all the time. He knew how difficult it might be, so he wanted to think a little more about this, but¡­ she convinced him how it will be good for him and for them going forward. "Alex-." "No point in overthinking anymore. You are doing it." He did not want to kill. But, he still needed strength. And this servant would be his answer to that predicament. This was what he needed the most right now. A weapon that would fight for him. "Haaa¡­" She might not be around all the time, so, in times like that, he would need someone to be his sword. And, all servants, according to what she had known through her experiences, were capable of that much. "It''s good. You need this." Holding it with two fingers and his thumb, he touched the silver card to his forehead. "Call it¡­ your first servant." There was a name, a unique identity attached to all the Servant cards. And this one had a unique one as well. "Oh, Sera Heru Phanim." -OOOOOOOOOONG¡­! As soon as he called out that name, a blinding bright silver-white light exploded from the card and covered everything around them. "Answer my call¡­" Words, Runes written in an ancient language flowed out of the card and started circling around Elio, and Alex knew this whole phenomenon must be attracting a lot of attention by now. "Join me on my journey¡­ not as a servant, but a friend, a companion, as an individual." The ancient runes gathered and circulated around Elio''s arm, and then got engraved on his right wrist like a tattoo. Later, a unique voice spoke up¡­ [{( "As you wish¡­ my master." )}] She had experienced it several times, so she could tell he must have seen a vision at that moment. Something only he would see, something he would only see again when the servant that he has just accepted would reach their true potential. The card in his hand shattered into particles of serene silver light, and this silver light melted inside the Rune markings that had been engraved on his wrist. The calling was complete. His first servant had arrived at the calling of his master. Elio had seen an ethereal sea of silver in his vision. On the surface of these silver waters, a being¨C a person with wings as white as the purest first smile of a newborn child that births a fairy, with sun like golden hair so long that they were endlessly stretched to the silver horizon at the back¨C was expressing their lament as they sat there with their delicate yet mystical fair hands wrapped around their knees. Even though that moment had only lasted for a few seconds, He felt the greatest sorrow he had ever felt at that moment. It was weird. He did not understand how a being could express so much sorrow¡­ He instinctively wanted to help that being, share some of that weight with them. But, he did not stay in that silver sea for long. Right when that lamenting being looked up at him with their¡­ indescribable golden eyes, he came back to reality, to their messed up inn room. { "Greetings, master." } And, what he saw as soon as he opened his eyes, what stood before him was the being that would be known as the of an individual who will hold a unique position in this grand Junction of Origins¡­ Chapter 98: Sera Heru Phanim Standing before him on its two legs was a magical bird, and just being in front of this being made them feel a sense of awe wash over them.This bird, this being that had called him master just a moment ago was now looking up at him, and he was looking back into its golden, mesmerizing eyes, filled with a mysterious wisdom that seemed to hold the secrets of the heavens. The bird''s white feathers shimmered with a soft, radiant glow, creating an almost otherworldly light around it. "Wow¡­" Among the pure white feathers, a few golden ones stood out, catching the light in a way that made them look like threads of sunlight woven into its wings. As the soft feathers moved gracefully, each flutter of those soft, almost unreal wings added to its enchanting presence, making it clear that this was no ordinary bird. It felt like a creature from a fairy tale, a messenger from a magical realm¡­ an angel in the form of a bird. { "I see you, for the first time, my master." } Elio couldn''t help but feel a deep sense of wonder and peace, as if he was in the presence of something truly divine. The bird''s beauty and grace were so captivating that it seemed to bring a touch of magic into the very air around them, making the moment feel timeless and almost unforgettable. "Hello to you too¡­" He was frozen in his place, so Alex had to give him a pat on her back to bring him out of that state as she greeted the small creature. This one had a long blue tail that seemed to be an extension of its own body, like braided hair. The white and gold on its tail were separate yet intertwined, making them seem exactly like some intertwined ribbons. They were attractive, and she liked them quite a lot. She liked the first appearance this being had taken as well, and since the bird was no bigger than a pigeon, she would not have to worry about carrying it around. It was a pretty creature, and pretty things made him go into his own zone sometimes. "Hun, oh, oh sorry." But she brought him back, and he finally greeted the amazing creature. "Hello, Sera." The bird¨C the unique servant of his had a neutral name, but, since the voice that they had heard just now was a more feminine one, they had decided to use the feminine pronouns for her for now. They were unique beings that were not human or mortal, so things like genders of pronouns did not matter to them in the first place. { "Using Mana is still difficult for me, so I will not be able to speak like this for too long, master." } Sera flew up and sat down on his hand. Her claws looked sharp, but they did not hurt him at all. He could tell she was strong from what he was feeling as he caressed her feathers and looked at them from up close. The strength of her grip on his hand was quite firm as well so, she certainly seemed to be a strong being. S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And, that fact was reflected in her status window as well. ============ ID: Sera Heru Phanim (Level-0) Race: Servant (Master: ID: Elio.) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 12 Agility: 12 Endurance: 12 T-T (System stats) Intelligence: 30 Luck: 21 Charm: 22 T-T (Functional stats) Energy: 10/10 Stamina: 10/10 Fatigue: 3/10 Mana: 12/30 (Stat points: 0) {Skills: Mana Senses, Magic comprehension, Energy Infusion, Elemental Attack, Light of Grace, IX Longinus.} [Titles: .] ============ "Aren''t you a strong one, miss." He caressed her feathers carefully, and with a gentle touch, he patted her little head. "It''s fine. You don''t have to waste your energy unnecessarily." "Chirp~!" [{ Thanks for your understanding, master. }] The Master and Servant were connected with a unique connection. They did not need to use words to understand one another. They could talk through this special connection, just like the masters and a Familiar. The connection was not as deep and unique as the connection between a Familiar and their master, but on a scale of cohesiveness, this was the sixth strongest bond that Alex knew the existence of. "She''s a cutie alright. You struck big this time as well." Alex was envious. She has also had some Servants in her life, but they were not like this one. The strength of the Servants greatly depended on their masters. And she had only obtained her first Servant card after she was over Level-100. None of them were as weak as this one when she met them. She never got to see a cute side of theirs like this one. "This is Alex, Sera. My significant other, and the most important individual in my life." "Chirp!" [{ I will keep that in mind, master. }] She hopped on Alex''s hand and Alex caressed her as well. She was adorable¡­ "I think we should leave soon now." Her feathers, her deep golden eyes, the light body that was stronger than most (Level-0) that she had ever seen, the power to sense and use Mana and even spells. Intelligence stat that was higher than most beings that she had seen was the proof that this little bird was not some normal ''bird''. She was in fact a unique existence that might just be as smart as any average human adult. And, she was still at the weakest stage of her life right now. "Oh, right¡­" Right after Alex reminded him how they would be leaving this town soon, she remembered something important that she had almost forgotten about. "I didn''t tell you Miss Rin and Misha will be joining us, did I?" He was playing with his new friend, but as soon as she said that, a surprised expression appeared on his face and he looked at her with wide eyes. "What did you just say?" He had heard her loud and clear, but he still could not understand what she meant by that. "Just as I said. Miss Rin and Misha will be joining us. Didn''t we need someone to take care of Miu and Az in our absence? The two of them will be perfect for that, don''t you think?" She answered him again, and with a new smile this time. "Alex¡­" This was another unexpected thing. "Haaa. Please tell me why they would leave their perfectly happy lives here, their home, and come with us?" It did not make any sense to him at all. But, she had prepared the explanation that he was asking for right now. It contained facts, as they both liked. So, it was going to be pretty easy explaining stuff this time around. Chapter 99: Fallen Holy Kingdom "Holy Kingdom of Archlore¡­"Her explanation started with the history of a kingdom that perished two decades ago. "You know what ''Holy'' energy means in this world, right?" "Of course¡­" Holy energy was the third prominent kind of power in this world, something that was used on a smaller scale in the eastern and northern continents of the world, however, in the west where the influence of religion, magic, and the influence of the powers that followed divinities was vast, the holy energy was seen as a special privilege by the big powers like the [Empire] and [Temple]. Holy energy was essentially the power of priests and believers, those who had faith and earned a unique power through that faith. This power was stronger than Mana, was on par with Aura, but was practically a unique power from either of them. S§×ar?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "So, do you know about the fall of Arklore?" Two decades ago, a kingdom was completely demolished by the Empire and Temple''s combined efforts and almost all traces of them were erased from the continent. The reason? The kingdom did not follow any particular god or divinity even though it was called a ''holy'' kingdom. It was a kingdom established by a Wise individual that though did not have great strength, was wise beyond their age. They were a king, and they made a large inhabitable land into a completely new, functioning nation that had hundreds of thousands of citizens at its peak. It did not have a long history, the king was a Half-elf and was only around a hundred and fifty years old when they established the kingdom with their friends and made it into the prosperous nation it became. Under the great leadership of the king, they rose to a powerful position and made treaties with the surrounding powers. They had power, the subjects and followers of the king gained Holy power through the worship of not some god, but their king that they followed. They had faith in the abilities of their leader, so much so that they gained the power of the unique origin that only the faithful could have. It was a worship of not a divine being but just the worship of a human, and yet since they gained this power, they were proving the point that any kind of belief, and sincere faith in anything was able to birth the the unique Holy power¡­ however, the mainstream religion and the strongest power who also followed divinities of their own could not accept that some human had become what only those divine beings should be. "The Holy kingdom was born on the blood, sweat and laughs of the kind people who only wanted a home, a paradise where anyone who wanted peace could escape to. It was a unique place, governed by perhaps one of the smartest people ever born¡­ yet, before the might of absolute power, even the smartest fail sometimes." The war was waged and the war was lost. The remnants of the kingdom''s army, the soldiers who had obtained the holy power of an ''impure'' origin, were hunted down even to this day. "The wise and kind king made sure that the most of his people survive at the end of his life, and so, there still remain many individuals who had once fought for that brave king and still owe their lives to him." But Miss Rin was not one of them. She was simply a mother that met someone that she loved, a wonderful man that she accompanied till his last breath, and when he was gone, she had no ''home'' that she could stay in. "She is being hunted, just like the rest of them, Elio." She was constantly moving, not staying in one place for more than a year or two. Moongold had somehow grown up on her, and she ended up staying here for long, making it a home that she thought she might rest in forever. "But then¡­ that dark mage came." Traces of the Holy power that she used to defeat those minions must have been sensed by the head of the mage tower, the greedy person who, unlike the librarian, saw no profit in helping the town''s people. He was even more materialistic than the players, and unlike them, small things could not satisfy him. "They would have had to leave the town anyway, so I asked them to come along with us." She explained to him how the kingdom fell, what had happened, who were the Soldiers that fought in that war, and how the Empire was still offering huge rewards to the individuals who would bring these remnants to them. "You know how much she likes us, don''t you~? She was happy to come along with us when I told her we would protect Misha and make both of them stronger~." Mages are greedy, especially the upper ranker of the mage towers who need expensive and some very specific materials and ingredients for their experiments. Magic is not cheap. And research in any field requires tons of funds. And, a simple weak wandering soldier could earn them much more than what they could earn by working their normal jobs. "So, isn''t this good? We will have one more proper party member with experience, and someone that Miu and Az like~." She promised him she would take care of the matter regarding the two little creatures. And, she did come up with the solution. But¡­ "Will Misha be okay?" She had so many people in the town that she is close with. Perhaps she doesn''t have any friends and is shy, but will she be alright leaving her home? Did they even tell her that they would be going with them? "Miss Rin said it would be alright." Even Alex did not know how she was going to tell the young girl. But, since her mom said not to worry about it, Alex knew that there would be nothing to worry about for the two of them. "Really?" "Chirp??" Yet, even if she understood that, she forgot that her unique bastard would not just sit still and let the mother handle her child. As the big brother and the one at the center of this whole thing, he also needed to talk with the child, as well as the mother who was now in a difficult position. Chapter 100: Famous people Elio walked downstairs and there was already some commotion."Did you see that light just now?" "Didn''t it come from the upper floor?" "Everyone''s here exactly because of that, dumbass." "Someone must have obtained a special item. That kind of light is very rare¡­" Sear?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "It was silver as well." There were a lot of people crowding the hall on the ground floor. Miss Rin was trying to explain to them how they did not know anything about the light either. Some were plainly curious about the light, but as Alex and he could see, some were not here with pure intentions. "What''s going on here?" She spoke up with a loud voice that everyone present here heard clearly. After the battle and the contribution as well as after they saw her destroy pretty much everything in the Library event, she had become well known in this town. Her voice was also famous now, so everyone present in the hall including the players and natives heard instantly knew who this voice belonged to. "Why are there so many people here?" She knew the answer to that, but she still looked at everyone present with an annoyed look, especially those who came in here with impure intentions. Some people instantly left the hall and some who were surprised by her sudden presence also prepared to walk out of the inn. Those who had food and drinks on their tables tried avoiding her gaze by focusing on their food. While Miss Rin who understood the situation took up the chance. "Oh. Alex, good timing. Some of these people saw some kind of light coming out of your room and were wondering what it was. Do you know anything about it?" As soon as Miss Rin mentioned that the room that the light had originated from belonged to her, a lot of people either choked on their food or almost three whatever fluid was in their mouth. They knew how she had beat up some of the higher level players as a mere (Level-20) a while back, and they knew how strong she was after her performance in the battle and the library event. She was the highest contributor in both places, so it was obviously no coincidence. Even the dumbest of them would know what would come out of messing with her. "Chirp~?" Sera was still in Elio''s hands, and everyone could see this unique looking bird. The smarter ones could tell the light must have had something to do with this special looking creature, but they did not try to look at it for too long. The person holding the bird was already famous as someone who had a slime and a strange lizard. He was also famous as her lover, and someone who was just as special as her. Messing with either of them was not going to be good, and both of them had a good relationship with the guard captain and the mayor. So, none of them wanted to go to jail and spend the following few days there for doing anything stupid in this stupid game. "I see. People saw a light from our room? What about it?" She looked at the people who must be here to ask about the light with an annoyed look. She was practically telling them to piss off with those eyes. And, afraid, some of them did leave the inn without saying anything anymore. If the light was connected to her, there was nothing they even wanted to do with it anymore. Most of them left, and the room was cleared up. Those who were too afraid to move or catch her attention just continued with their food and started playing with the system interface without paying any attention to the two of them¨C or the special bird. "Miss Rin? Can we have a moment please? Is Misha in her room?" Elio asked her with a little concerned look as they walked down. "Oh, yes. She''s in the back." Miss Rin could tell he wanted to talk about something. And from the look Alex had, she could also tell it must be about something related to their departure. "Go ahead. I''ll be there in a minute." Now that the festival and event were over, the inn was open once again. She was going to leave soon, so she was going to entrust this place to someone she trusted, so she also had to look after that. "Alright." She will be bust for a few days, and when they leave, she might not even get to tell the others about her circumstances. But, she was familiar with this kind of sudden departure. "Chirp." Sera greeted Miss Rin and she could tell this new little bird she was seeing for the first time was something unique. There was something about this one that caught disturbed something deep within her soul, but they could do their introductions later. "It won''t take long, so please join us soon." The two of them went in after he said that, and after crossing the kitchen, they reached the back area where they mostly stored things. "Miu!" "Muuuuuu~." "Hey! No! That''s cheating!" This storage room had become their playground since a few days ago. They mostly played either in the hall, or in the kitchen, or in this room. This was a pretty spacious place so there was quite a bit of room to play various games. "What are you three playing this time? Hide and seek?" When the two of them entered the room, the girl was running behind the slime while Miu was laughing at them from the top of a high shelf. The two had no idea what they were playing, but it seemed like just like most of the time, their human friend was losing once again. "Brother Elio! Sister!" They were lost in their own fun, but as soon as they saw Elio and Alex, they came running to them¨C and while she was running at them, her eyes met the golden eyes of the unique bird in Elio''s hands. "Woh!" Misha stopped right in her tracks and shouted as soon as she saw the pretty looking bird. "Who''s this, brother Elio!" Then she ran back to him once again and looked up at the bird with stars in her eyes. Her excitement was obvious. Seeing this unique being sparked a new excitement in her pure heart, and the first thing she thought when she looked at her was how she might have a new friend to play with. { "Oh? An Ichorborn?" } But then the bird talked, and the stars in her eyes transformed into a kind of sudden fear that neither of them had ever seen on her until now. Chapter 101: A special girl "Misha?"The sudden look of fear was somewhat shocking to both of them. "Th-the bird¡­ it talked!" She stepped back as she shouted that, and hid behind Alex. She was shaking, as if she was genuinely terrified of a talking bird. { "Her senses are good." } And when Sera spoke again, the shaking she was feeling intensified again. "What¡­?" Elio did not understand what was happening with her, but Alex had an idea about what might be happening with the young girl. "She doesn''t know much about herself, Sera." { "I can tell that." } "...hun?" This time, when the bird spoke, Misha stopped shaking and instead, looked up at the bird with a confused expression. "The bird¡­ talked?" She wasn''t afraid because the bird was talking, it was an involuntary response of her unique body to the special kind of Mana that the bird was using for her speech. "Chirp." [{ For a young child, her perception is quite formidable. }] Sera was complimenting her, but Elio was confused about what she was talking about. Alex understood her, but since both of them could tell Elio was still lost here, they explained the situation to them as he placed Sera down to the ground. "You know how there are blessed individuals and people who could naturally control magic- the sorcerers?" "Yes? What about them?" The bird approached the young girl. [{ There are a unique kind of individuals that are born with a little unique power among these special kind of people, master. }] The girl was afraid of a talking bird a moment ago, but, when the bird approached her this time, Misha looked at it, in its golden eyes, and crouched down before the bird when it stood before her. "Misha is an Ichorborn." Beings born with the blessing of nature, beings born with a unique connection with the world, and beings who are inhuman in many ways even while being physical beings like the rest of the mortals. [{ Since ancient times, they have been called the . Creatures not humans or part of their own race who receive more attention, more grace, more privileges and freedom from nature than the rest of its children. }] Misha was not afraid of Sera anymore, and even Miu and Az approached them when she had finally gathered some courage to touch the pretty bird. The soft feathers caught her attention quickly, and then, the understanding and intelligent nature of the bird washed away all her fear she had towards this unique being. "Do you remember the town quest and how it asked us to protect an important person?" Alex searched far and wide for any clues regarding this important person. All the people that she had listed as the protected individuals were taken care of by the strong groups and at the end, even with the trolling attempts, no one was harmed. She did not think much about it later, but after she dug deeper into the identity of the helper that was assisting the dark magician, the one that dies with the magic circle, new suspicions arose for her. Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "That person was also a mage and a magic researcher who was researching natural magic and the origins." According to her findings, she was able to get some information on how the research of this person was somehow connected to the Ichorborns, the unique beings that are more powerful, privileged, and talented than the other beings of the same kind. "I still don''t know what that person obtained the information that there was one such being that he was looking for in this town and convinced a dark mage to destroy it in the name of the dark powers." She had no idea what he was even up to after he suddenly vanished from the magic tower that he was part of, but at the end, she was able to guess how the whole quest might be referring to Misha. "She does not experience Mana poisoning when touching Miu directly, can sense Mana even though she doesn''t have her Mana channels opened, and even though she is young, she has this unique potential to her that even Az finds interesting." The slime was a little too friendly with her for some reason and Miu was the most comfortable when it was around her. Misha was special, Alex had guessed that much already. But when the angle of an Ichorborn was raised, she connected the dots and came to the conclusion. "Hehe, hello there~." "Chirp~." Sera was a unique being of the past so even though she might not know much about her past self, she had all the basic knowledge of the world that she needed. [{ The reason she was afraid of my voice at first was because of the purity and refinement of Mana that I use to speak. }] Sera explained to him how she used her own Mana to directly process the environmental Mana and turn it into a voice that one could understand. She did not use the direct Mana voice of her own like the librarian had during the announcement of the library event. The way she used Mana was much more unique and personal than what one could imagine. And, to the senses of someone like Misha, an Ichorborn, that highly refined voice was like the bloodthirst of a creature tens or levels higher than them. "How can you speak~? Are you really a bird, Miss~?" { "Not really, dear. I just look like this for now." } "Wohhhh! But your voice is so pretty~!" When she stopped using her refined technique and used her Mana directly, her voice became something her senses accepted and liked much better. "It''s quite unique, actually." The senses that she has worked quite differently when it comes to Mana, Aura, her mom''s Holy power, the demonic energy, or something else. She was especially sensitive to those things, perhaps that was the reason she mostly stayed inside the house with her mom when the dark mage invaded. She was in a constant fear of that dark power, and both of them knew how bad it was for her back then. So¡­ "Oh, looks like you have already made a new friend, Misha darling." Elio was here to ask her how she would like to come with us. And, he could only ask that sensitive question when her mom, the real guardian of this little one, was present with them. "Misha." She was playing with Sera''s pretty feathers when he crouched down before her. Az and Miu had arrived there as well and were now standing beside him, looking at him with new curious expressions. They would like it if their fun friend comes with them as well, so he looked at Alex, then at her mother who understood what was going on here, and after receiving a nod of permission from her, he asked the special young girl. "How would you like to join us on our journey?" Their time in this town and their time together had been fun. But, now that they were about to leave, he wanted these two special individuals to come along with him as well. But, he would not force them. Neither the mom, nor her child. Everyone had their freedom of choice. So, unless she wanted to, he was not going to force either of them to follow them on this certainly dangerous journey¡­ Chapter 102 To the next destination "Miu! Don''t run around on your own!""Muuuu~!" "And you! How can you play around with her when you''re supposed to stop her!" "Chirp¡­" "Haaa. That''s right Miss Sera. They are a headache!" It was difficult for her to understand what he was asking when he asked her if she wanted to come with them. But, then she looked at her mom, and the look she had was a familiar look that she had seen before. She could tell it was time for them to leave as well. "She''s working hard." "I''ve never seen her that happy at the moment of departure." They had not stayed in the same place for as long as they had stayed in this town. They had always traveled¡­ from one town to another, from one village to the other, from one city to the next and from one kingdom to the other state. As long as she could remember, in her fifteen years of life, she had moved places more than twenty times. They did not stay in the same state for more than a few months, sometimes, if the place they were staying at was small, they only stayed there for a fortnight or a month. She knew they did not have a set home for some reason, and her mother had always told her how it had something to do with her past. She never said too much, but the smart daughter knew it was not easy for her to talk about her past, about her father, about why they don''t stay in the same place, and why she was so different from the other children. "Madam Rin. Do not worry at all. We will maintain this place for you so that you can come back here whenever you want to." "I''m thankful for your help, Lord Mayor, guard captain." Growing up, she had accepted the fact that they might never stay in the same place for long enough to call it a home, so the young girl never made any friends. She was a soft hearted, friendly child, yet she did not make any friends and stayed detached from most of the things. She lived by herself, helping her mom who was doing everything for their sake, and found happiness in things that weren''t for the children. She grew up learning a lot of things from her and the people around her. But then¡­ when they came to this town, they met a person that somehow understood the specialness of the young child. "Take care of her." S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Fancy coming from you, Connie." Librarian knew at a glance how special this child was more than the rest of the children. And he also knew the circumstances of the mother of this pitiful child. "Since when do you care about children? Or is it because she is special?" He could not offer them much, but he offered to teach the young girl whenever he had the chance if she stayed here. He was also someone well known for his neutrality so Miss Rin knew she would not have to worry about this person. If he was offering them something that she had never been able to provide to her child, she would have been cruel to reject that genuine offer. She had already become a bad mother to her child, so she did not want to rob that child of this special opportunity as well. "Rinny! I know you were planning to sneak away without telling us! How could you do that!" "People come and go in our lives. But those who we have been with at least deserve a proper send off." "You will have people you can be with going forward, we can see that, but you should at least thank us for looking after you two all these years!" Elders of the town, her neighbors, the people that had become her regulars¡­ all the people that she was going to leave behind in the Moongold, even the mayor and the guard captain that she had not been close with¡­ she did not tell any of them, but as they were leaving, all of them had gathered to send her off. And she did not know what to feel about this. "Yes¡­ I''m sorry¡­ I don''t know how to-." "You ungrateful woman. Don''t be all emotional now." They all knew the two that they were going with. And, they already knew the two will leave one day. She had told them how she liked to move around, they had heard from the young girl multiple times how they had been to many places all this time. She was not Nomadic through her choice. She had her circumstances, they all knew that much. Yet, somehow, they spent years together. She became a part of their lives, and they became a little part of their lives. For them, she was more than a good neighbor. She was a good person that rarely came around. All of them including the child and her mother thought they could make this place a home, but that was never an option. Even with all these people looking after her, even with the Librarian being there, now that she had exposed her powers, it was not possible to stay in this place anymore. She would only put the people around her in danger. And she did not want that. "Haaa¡­ sister! They are teasing me!" "They are just playing dear~. Wait for your big brother~. When he is done with his prayers, they will stop on their own~!" They were on the edge of the town, in the graveyard, to offer their last prayers to the people who departed before them, people that the four of them somehow knew as well. Elio was still offering his prayers and his thanks to all those that he had met and lost in this town, including the family of his little gecko friend. They were waiting for him, and when he was done, they would depart. "Miu~!" "Muuuuu!" "Chirp¡­" "Yes¡­ they are a headache." Misha was leaving the place that had almost made home in her heart. She did not know if she would ever come back, or if these people and this place that she knew would still be here when she does come back in the future. But, she was not leaving this house alone this time. "Did you teach her anything useful Connie?" "Sadly, no. All she knows is how to erase her presence. Her Mana channels aren''t open yet so most of her powers haven''t bloomed yet. Continue your adventure at empire I was hoping it naturally happens and so that I can officially take her in as a disciple. But, it seems like that won''t be possible anymore." There were people here sending them off. There was a house of hers that might still be here when she comes back. She was not alone this time either. She was leaving with her special friends and big brother and sister. "Alex, Miss Rin. I''m done." There were people here that would remember her, remember them. She did not want anything more than that, actually. Just this much was more than enough for her. "That''s why¡­ Please look after her when she understands the kind of powers she possesses." He did not want this child to suffer more than she already had. Not because of her amazing powers. Especially not because of her beautiful potential. "Both of them deserve happiness." They were taking them on a difficult journey. Both of them will be Elio and Alex''s responsibilities going forward. So, at least as someone who had crossed paths with these two unique people, he wanted them to find happiness wherever they go. "Don''t worry." And Elio wanted the same. "We will look after them." So, Alex will have to do her best to keep all her companions safe going forward. Chapter 103 Travel to the next junction After saying their goodbyes to the people around them, they left the town in the carriage that they received at a discounted price thanks to Miss Aloha.She wanted to give it to them for free but they did not accept it, she knew they would not accept it even if she insisted. She knew them well, and now that they were going, she knew they were going to meet someday in the future as well. This was not the goodbye but simply a see you soon. Things were not anything complicated here, they were players and they were simply going to their next destination. The world was vast and they were going out to see all that was present in this vast world. There were a lot of things that they needed to see as a couple as well and she knew that very well. This was a game and a vast world for all of them to see and embrace, so¡­ she said her warm goodbyes as they parted ways with her in the carriage. This carriage was going to be their support and the horses driving the carriage were going to be their winds. "You know how to ride a carriage as well?" S~ea??h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "I know a lot of things, hehe." Alex was riding the carriage and the horses were friendly. They were fast, but for now, they were going slowly. The children had fallen asleep, it was evening time, and they were going to rest in the closest village to the Moongold. There were a lot of villages in Cromwell Viscounty, but there was only one big city in the entire region. The whole viscounty was made up of one main city, three towns, and eleven villages three of which were located around the Moongold. The one that they were going to stay in for tonight had a path directly connecting to the next town on their destination, and the town would be connected to the city with a highway so they were going to reach the city from that town with only a few night''s travel. The travel from the village to the next town would take them around two days, which was relatively faster thanks to the good horses that were carrying them. Experience more tales on empire And then from the city of Cromwell Viscounty, they would move up to the central city of the western region, one of the main cities that are destinations of many of the players who choose any town of Kingdom of Viv as their first destination. { "I think we will reach the village in half an hour." } "Should I wake the children up?" "Oh, it''s fine. Let them rest." The carriage was small but it was enough for three people and a young girl. Alex and Miss Rin took turns riding the carriage while Elio looked after the children along with Sera. She had a good understanding of the environment around them thanks to her highly developed senses and her detection abilities, so whenever there was any kind of danger nearby, she informed them ahead of time. She preferred to fly instead of being with them so that things are more visible to her, and thanks to her, they avoided a lot of unnecessary confrontations as they approached the village. "Alright¡­ are we really going to the Jungle of Nozama? Isn''t that too dangerous at your level?" The creatures in the jungle were no joke. It was not recommended to go to that place before at least receiving the first enlightenment. "It''s fine. We will power level in the City and the next city we move to." There were hunting grounds, and the Viscount had personally invited them after hearing about all that they did in Moongold, so they were going to receive some kind of big quest from him as well. "The Cromwell viscounty is big but it does not have any place where you could face creatures of high enough level to quickly progress in a small time though. We would at least have to stay there for a month-." "A week in this city and a month in the next. That is all we need." The Kingdom of Viv was divided into nine sections according to the eight prominent directions and the center being the core of the kingdom. The North, East, West, and south were powers that were either governed by a Duke or a Marques. And then there were various feudal lords of various ranks. The southwestern region where Viscounty of Cromwell was located was mainly under a Count''s rule, but the southwestern plains that were reclaimed by the kingdom were all mainly under the western duke and southern marques. They protected the region from two sides, and the feudal lords looked after the various cities and towns located in the various regions of this place. The kingdom was one of the only four places on the western continent that the players could go to anyway, but it was still special. "Really? If you two really achieve your first awakening in a mere two months'' time, I will be genuinely surprised." "Oh you can look forward to that, hehe." Alex was sure that Miss Rin would be quite surprised when she sees the kind of things that they were going to do. She knew what they had to do to quickly increase their levels. Gaining skills and recovering her lost strength would be easy for her, and knowing Elio, she knew he would be strong enough to match up to her in no time at all. He was studying magic while they traveled as well, so he was not wasting any of his time. He was smart and after seeing the magic of the Librarian, he was even more interested in the various kinds of magic one could command. "Oh, I see the village." The rest at the village will be brief and they will start their travels early in the morning. The next town that they were headed to was called [Yuta] named after a swordmaster that established it, and similar to Moongold, it also had its unique history and attractions. But, their stay in that town will be brief as well. Their main destination was the City of Cromwell, the [Kalp]. Just like all cities, this one also had the [Gate] that was connected to various cities throughout the kingdom, pretty much like a teleportation gate. And, they were going to use it to connect with the main city of the western region, the central city of Luthor Dukedom. The place where they would start their next exploration would be the great jungle located between the [Empire] and the kingdom of Viv. It was a high level hunting ground that not that many people go to, but they needed to go there. The second Key was there, and she needed to retrieve it to regain the next set of her new powers. Chapter 104 A new village "Excuse me."Miss Rin had been to this village and she knew an inn owner so they directly went there. "Oh~. Customer-... Rin? Is that you~!?" It was an old man with a friendly face. S§×ar?h the N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And, as soon as he saw her, a bright smile bloomed on his face. "Hey there, Bill gramps." "It really is you~!" He was so happy to see her that he left the customer that he was attending to and came running to greet her. "How long has it been, my god. The last time I saw you, you were leaving for Moongold." "It was only six months ago, not that long." She said she used to live here before she moved to Moongold. Since this village was connected to the Town of Yuta, the travelers who went there through the road stopped here often and the trade in this village was quite good as well, so she had also frequented here in the past. She knew this old man that used to be an adventurer in his younger days. And, she was close with him as well as his wife who ran this inn. "Hahaha, six months is like eternity to us old folks, you child. You know what, Warma was just talking about you a few days ago. Wait here, let me get her from the back." The old man seemed to be in his sixties but he had a good build and still looked quite vigorous. The way he ran to the back of the inn by passing through the tables also indicated his joints were still strong. "Haaa¡­" Elio found this old man fun. Even Alex, who was experienced with this world, could tell that unlike many normal natives, this old person had experienced the vastness of this world himself. She knew this person used to be an adventurer, and the adventurers were free spirits. They traveled throughout the world in search of various new adventures and she liked him for that much as well. "Come quick! Look who''s here~!" The old man brought an elderly lady who seemed to be covered in flour. She must be in the kitchen working from her messy clothing, and from how there was a handprint of flour on the grandpa''s face, they could tell what might have transpired in that back in this short time. "There better be a good reason for¡­ hmm? Is that¡­ Rin?" The old woman had blue eyes on her brown hair, while the white haired old man had pretty black eyes. They seemed to be a pretty couple, and when the old lady saw Miss Rin, she also came running to greet her¨C showing how even her joints were still strong at that age. "It''s you! Rin! Oh my god, how have you been~!" The old lady greeted her with a hug, and unlike the grandpa, she also greeted the rest of them. "Oh, are these people with you¡­ oh! Is that Misha?" Misha had woken up a while back but she was still sleepy so she was just holding Alex''s hand as she walked with drowsy eyes. "She''s sleepy, Warma granny." "She''s grown up so much since the last time I saw her¡­ she''s even prettier now." The warm smile she had when she looked at the little girl was the signature old smiles that the grannies look at their grandchildren with. It seemed like she wanted to give the young girl a cookie as well, perhaps a chocolate, but she understood how tired they all might be from her sleepy look. "Oh, right. You''re here to stay for the night? For longer? Please tell me you will stay for longer." "Ah¡­ no. Just the night." With a bitter smile, Miss Rin shook her head and the happiness on the granny''s face turned into sadness. "Oh¡­ I would have loved to have a chat if we had time¡­" It seemed like she really wanted to talk with her old daughter like an acquaintance, but Miss Rin shook her head once again. "We are going on a long journey, granny. We even have a carriage outside-." "You left your carriage unattended?! You children¡­" Grandpa was looking after the customers while the granny was talking with them, but as soon as he heard that they had a carriage, he quickly ran out to take care of it. Leaving carriages out on the road was no good idea, so he will first take it to the back where in the stables. "That old man¡­" Even the granny shook her head at how fast the grandpa ran. And then looked up at the rest of them with a sigh. "Come, let me give you the keys to your rooms. How many do you need again? Three? These two look like a couple so they will share one. Do you want a separate one for the child?" "Oh, no need. We will share one as well." Misha did not like sleeping alone anyway. So, Miss Rin shook her head and then bowed to the granny. "I want to talk as well, Granny Warma, but we must depart tomorrow. Though, if you would like, we can talk at night like old times." They could not stay here for long since they needed to reach the next town and then move to the city. They were invited by the Viscount and there was going to be a big party, so they could not be late for that. "You know what, dear? We would love that even more~." Granny could tell there were some circumstances from her expressions. She could also tell the people she was with, the Girl that looked much more experienced than her age, and the boy who was holding a Slime that possessed a Wand, a Mana beast, and a bird that most definitely was not a bird, were special people, just like her. From the looks of it, the two seemed to be her companions, and¡­ the fact that this pitiful one had found companions that she could trust actually was something that the granny could not possibly ignore. "Then, come here. You should freshen up and eat something before we wrap things around here." The granny was a talkative one. And the grandpa was the loud one. Both of them used to be adventurers in their time, but now they ran an inn in a village. "Thanks granny Warma." "Huhu, why are you thanking me~. Silly child." Apparently, both of them had been together for over thirty years now. And both of them used to be adventurers so, there were a lot of fun stories that they had for these young people. Now that they had the chance, they could not possibly miss this fun opportunity to once again talk with this unique mother, and her new unique companions as well. Chapter 105 Stories of past adventures The village was much smaller than the Moongold town. S§×ar?h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.There were only a few houses, and there were hardly any big establishments in the entire village. One of the few big places was the inn that they were staying in, a place that was also one of the oldest in this place. The old man and woman that operated this inn were famous people and they provided fairly good services to the people that come there at a reasonable price. This was a village so the prices here were not the same as the town prices or the city prices. Things were cheaper here, and they especially offered quite affordable services. The inn that they operated was their house, a three story structure that was a fairly attractive place in this small village. There was a place for the horses, the food here was good, they had unique magic enchantment rooms that stayed warm on cold nights, and there was also warm water here¨C a rare service that was not common even in the towns. There were not many rooms so they were mostly full on business days, but, for an old acquaintance, they had made special space, and given the Miss and her companions the most special rooms on the third floor. They only used these rooms for important guests, and she was an important guest to them right now. "Your hair is so pretty¡­" Grandma was combing Alex''s hair, Alex was combing Misha''s hair, and Misha was playing with Sera''s feathers. "It''s actually thanks to Miss Aloha and El. He mostly takes care of them." "I am the only one that takes care of those hairs. You are a wild animal that has no sense of responsibility when it comes to those pretty hair." They were long, they were strong, and thanks to Miss Aloha, they were also prettier than they usually are. "Oh? Are you two acquainted with Miss Aloha as well? She''s quite famous around this village, you know?" "Hmm? Really?" They were going to talk for a little longer now, and since Misha had finished her nap as well, she was going to join in on their talk along with Az and Miu. Elio was already by the fireplace with Grandpa and the two of them were spreading a blanket on the floor for the rest of them. "You two seem to be quite close¡­ are you two married already? Or just engaged?" The grandpa smirked at him as he asked that with his relatively loud voice that the rest of them heard quite clearly. "Whaaaat~? Brother Elio and Sister are married~?" She turned around to look at her big sister with a new surprised expression. "No, silly. We are just¡­ partners. You know, more than friends. For now." But Alex just smiled at her and turned her head around as she continued combing her pretty red hair. She glanced at him, smirked for a moment, and shook her head as she continued with what she was doing. "We don''t really believe in the traditional engagement and marriage thing. Well, you can say that we are more than friends, perhaps something similar to a married couple. But, no. Officially, we are just a little more than friends." Engagement and marriage was something that did not really matter to either of them. They both understood one another, and they had been living together for years now. Giving one another rings and doing the traditional marriage thing was still pending, but they were thinking of exploring those things as well. His mom wanted them to do a grand wedding with all the traditional things and stuff anyway, but neither of them were ready for those things. They were happy with their lives, and even in this world, being together was more than enough. "Oh? Aren''t you an unorthodox couple~?" The two of them liked their thinking since the two were also somewhat like them. They were married for years, yes, but when they were their age and were exploring the world, they were also doing various things that weren''t fit for friends. They were pretty open minded back in those days, so both of them had a lot of acquaintances outside this village. "Tell me more about yourself." They were done combing and braiding each other''s hair and Miss Rin was here with some snacks for everyone as well. So, they all sat down before the fire and started the conversation with Elio and Alex''s story. "Well¡­ there''s not much to tell about ourselves." There were a lot of things that they could have told them about themselves, but there really wasn''t really anything from their home world that they would like to know. They were a simple couple, so she just told them a few things about themselves, Elio added a few things and corrected a few things that she said, and then they told them about what things they had done until now in Moongold and how they were going to Kalp to meet the Viscount. They also told them how they would be going to the Jungle of Nozama. And both of the old ones were surprised when she mentioned that. "You are going to the Dark Jungle? Will you be joining some expedition?" "Nah, just us." Alex said that casually but both the old ones got a look of shock at her carefree attitude. "How can you say that with that carefree look when you are taking a child in that dangerous place?" Grandma was upset, but she did not shout at them. She just asked a question with a louder voice, and Alex answered her just as simply as she had replied to her earlier. "We won''t be putting either of them in harm''s way. I know my way through that forest path." She gave them a reliable smile¡­ and hidden behind that smile was a deep determination to protect what belonged to her. "We will make sure they are safe. You don''t have to worry about them." And, Elio added in her word with a determined expression of his own that was much more serious than hers. He was clearly showing how he would do anything within his power to keep his companions safe. And, the old couple who were familiar with the kind of eyes these two young individuals had, understood their desires. "I see." They had roamed the world as well. They had met people and though they did not chase strength like many of their acquaintances did, they had experience. And their experiences told them how capable these two individuals were despite their low levels. "Well, if they are with someone like you two, I believe they will be fine." Granny smiled at them, and the grandpa nodded vigorously with a smile of his own. "Enough about them. Rin, tell me about how you have been~." The night was young. And the stories were abundant. Elio was meeting experienced natives who had explored the world as adventurers for the first time like this¡­ he had many questions for them as well. And with the flowing gray clouds in the fine night sky, they were going to see how many of these questions of one another they could satisfy in this limited time they had¡­ Chapter 106 Stories of past adventures (2) "Then, granny, tell us a few things about yourself as well."Now that Alex and Elio had told them about themselves and a short bit about how Miss Rin''s life had been in Moongold, they wanted to know more about the adventures of this old couple. "You were adventurers¡­ How much have you traveled? How many towns, cities, dungeons have you been to? The Grandpa seems to be a greatsword user and granny must have been at least a (tier-4) master, right?" Alex could tell the two of them were quite strong despite their old age. Their levels were not too high, but they were still higher than the guards of the Moongold. Levels don''t drop with age, but the strength of the human body is finite. And old age for the normal humans is an eternal truth that brings them down from their former glorious peaks. Still, the experience that one gains through the growing age is priceless. Even if they might not have the kind of strength that they might have used to, they undoubtedly had much more experience than any of them did. "I wasn''t a master, missy. But yes, I know a little bit of magic." The grandma called up her Mana and made a few strings out of it, weaved them together into something new, and made a thread that then vanished into thin air. "Wow¡­" Her control over Mana was amazing. Elio had seen some mages in the town while they were still there after the library event, but he had not seen them do something like this directly with Mana so this surprised him quite a bit. "Oh you will be able to do this as well, pretty boy. This is just the basics." To create original spells, one needed to have an understanding of magic and the elemental properties. And he was studying that already. But the mastery of Mana manipulation and the kind of precision that she had just shown just now were something pretty complicated. One needed experience. As well as a lot of practice to handle Mana the way she just did. "But you know what? I was quite surprised to see a Slime with a wand. It''s not every day you see creatures who cast magic, and ones that have a wand of their own are even more rare." "Hmmm?" The way she phrased it implied that this was not a one of a kind case. "Have you met other creatures who had wands, granny?" Not just Elio but even Alex was confused right now. As the granny said, the creatures that could cast magic were rare already, but the ones who also had a wand of their own? "How did you know it was a magic wand though? That''s the bigger question." A wand was a special object that surely contained Mana but it was not something that one could distinguish from the normal objects unless they check it with an appraisal skill and find something peculiar within the information that they obtain. "Oh, right. I didn''t tell you, right? Granny has {Eyes of Vas} the skill that-." "The special skill that (Blue great apes) possess?" Alex suddenly looked at the granny with a surprised expression. "Why is someone possessing such a skill here? You could very well be a royal subject or have a noble title if you want." She did not know how she had it, but the skill that they were talking about was one of the high ranking skills in the Appraisal skill category. The (Blue great apes) are on average (Level-150) creatures that are found on the eastern continent''s high mountain peaks. Their famous skill is something so special that not many people in the world possess something like that, and they don''t drop the Skill essence with this particular skill that often either. To see this skill in the Kingdom and not in the empire was pretty surprising to her, but for a granny of some village to possess a skill that only rankers have¡­ this was quite unusual. Read exclusive adventures at empire "Well¡­" Granny did not have an answer for her. Why wasn''t she a noble and just an innkeeper in some village? Well, she wanted this. Not some life of luxury. "I like being here. That kind of life¡­ it''s not for me." She smiled warmly at Rein. But, Rein could only shake her head at this absurd revelation. "Haha, there are some unique things in this world, as well as some unique people. I''m a simple old woman that likes working with her husband in this small village¡­ but we used to be part of a fun group of people as well." Granny caressed the little slime, and looked at the funny gecko with a warm expression. "We used to travel together, throughout the world, see places, live in some, go around helping others, fighting, playing¡­ those were fun times." She told them how they were part of a big adventurers group that used to be famous back in their times. "Yes, we had met a creature who possessed a wand as well." But unlike this little slime, that being was an old Ent. Something that was much older than the combined age of the people of their group back in the days. "I can tell this slime is special through my eyes, I can tell that little gecko is special through my experience, and one does not need experience or a skill to tell this adorable looking bird is, in fact, something unfathomable." She started her story with them going into a deep forest and stumbling upon an old looking tree. There, one of their group members suddenly vanished so they started searching for them and they found the entrance to a hidden dungeon hidden under the roots of the giant tree. They went in, and there, they encountered a single creature guarding doors to a great treasure chest. "We were young back then, so we challenged the creature." "However¡­" A bitter look clouded their faces and tears almost slid out on the granny''s eyes. "It was a foolish decision¡­ but thankfully¡­ all of us survived." She lost her own magic wand that day, the grandpa suffered a great injury as well. They all could have died, but thanks to their leader, they managed to come out of that place alive. "We reported that dungeon, but it took the sacrifice of Thirty knights, twenty mages, and ten archers to subjugate that creature. S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Its magic was beyond human. And¡­ it was fulfilling a duty." "It was quite a famous incident back in the days, but with time, people forgot about it. Our friends went their own way, and we settled down in this peaceful place." Both of them could tell neither of them regret settling down here. They could even tell the two of them were happy here. So, Alex just nodded with a helpless smile, shook her head while looking at Elio expressing her understanding, and then, seeing how Misha was sleepy once again, Alex suggested something that would cheer up their mood as well. "How about you tell us more about your time together with grandma?" The question was directed to grandpa, but they knew it was for both of them. And from the inappropriate smile on her pretty face illuminated by the orange warmth of the fire, the adults knew what kind of ''time together'' she was talking about¡­ Chapter 107 Departure from the village "When will you come back then?" Before Miss Rin boarded the carriage with Misha and Elio, she hugged her pretty granny warmly. Find more to read at empire"Who knows?" And with a rather happy smile, she said her goodbyes to this kind couple. "Weee-hyehyehye~!" The horses were ready to depart. The night that they spent with this old couple was a new kind of experience for Alex and Elio. They were quite different from a normal couple. They were even different from his parents. The life that they had lived was different, the things that they did in their lives were different, the things that they had experienced in their lives were different, even the way they had grown up was different. The old couple did not have any children, they could not¡­ sadly. But they had been together. And they were happy. They had a home, and they had helped many that they had come across in their lives. They did not have their own children, but many players who lived in this village, as well as the children that the villagers had all knew this couple, and were quite close to them. They were famous in their village, and they were loved by many. Even though they did not have the kind of strength they had in their prime, even though they could not have the kind of adventures that they used to have, they were happy in this small place. "Alex?" Elio had learned a thing or two from the old granny, and he had obtained a unique book from her as a gift. "Yes, gimme a minute please." A red diary that belonged to her in her younger days. It was a diary that contained a lot of things that she had learned as a mage, notes, her life experiences, stories¡­ it was a special item that had magical pages so that one could write three times more in those pages. Additionally, one could add more pages to this diary by materializing their own Mana¨C a difficult process, but something possible. "I don''t think it will have any meaning at this age, dear." While granny helped the young boy, the young girl, his partner, helped the older man. "I''m not saying you should have children¡­ well, you can if you want to. Granny is still in great shape, but it is up to you. This works. It is possible. And it is up to you." They deserved happiness, as well as pleasure. She knew they were happy. They were genuinely happy, she knew that. But if they wanted, there could be more happiness, more bliss in their life. An injury of the past did not have to necessarily be a full stop in their personal lives. She did not know the kind of agony they might have felt in their younger days, just how much they might have suffered together to become indifferent to those feelings. "Our happiness is our right. No one can take it from us, and we do not have to give in to any external factor either." She said her goodbye to the old man, she received a bitter smile from the granny as she said her goodbyes as well, and then, she bowed and thanked both of them before boarding the carriage. She was the only one who had stayed behind after saying their goodbyes. And now that she had told him all that she wanted, she climbed the carriage. And before they departed, from the driver''s seat at the front of the carriage, she gave them a last warm smile. "You deserve that bliss." It was just sad that they could not express their affection, their love in the most simple way, connect their bodies, and experience the most basic mortal bliss through the act of lovemaking. They were amazing people. And she genuinely wanted them to be happier together. "Hiayaa!" Their time in this village was short, but they had a fun night with these fun people. "Ba-byeee grandma Warma! Grandpa Bill!" Misha also liked these people. She was shy around people and took a while to get used to them, but she knew them from her past, so it did not take her long to get used to them. She was also not sad that they were leaving so early. Last night was fun for her. "Miu!" "Muuuu!" "Take care of those little ones~." Granny had strangely gotten attached to the slime and little Gecko. One was as curious as a one year old child, while the other smiled so happily that it seemed like sadness, or any kind of negative emotions did not even exist for it. "Chirp~!" [{ They are nice people. }] "Aren''t they?" Even Sera found these two unique among the hundreds of people she had seen since she became his servant. "They are fun." Elio was leaving another fun bunch, and once again, he was carrying with him something that would remind him of them. This diary contained what she had experienced and learned. Sear?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She was not able to complete this magical diary¡­ but, now that it belonged to him, he was going to do what she could not. ... -Tab-dak. Tab-dak. ... [{ Master, I see some abnormal activities ahead. }] "Abnormal activities?" The horses were fast, it was early morning, and the road to the next destination, the town of Yuta, was pretty much straight. There was no forest and the solid path was well built. There weren''t any monster habitats around the village so, there should not have been any abnormal activities for a few more hours now. But, if Sera detected something ahead on an open road, they surely were going to encounter something up ahead. "Alex¡­" "I know. I can tell something isn''t right either." The road was quite quiet. There should have been more sounds around¡­ but the straight road seemed like it was experiencing the silence right after some kind of incident. "Halt." As they traveled a little more, they saw the abnormal activities that the bird had informed them of. "Kekeke, another bunny~? Aren''t we lucky today~?" And, this was quite a classic situation¡­ Chapter 108 Classic bandits The rising sun peeked over the horizon, casting a golden glow on the dusty, solid road. Alex, her black hair pulled back in many braids, steered the rickety carriage with a confident hand. Fear, worry, concern, anxiety¡­ all that was a stranger to those heavenly blue eyes."Ahem. We''ve got company, everyone." Behind her, amongst the worn cushions, her companions shifted. Elio looked from the open front, and Sera came back inside from the open back. A comical cough escaped from one, a curious glance exchanged between the young girl and her mother. Up ahead, a ramshackle barricade of scrap wood, metal, and stones blocked the path. Around ten figures, bandits by the looks of them, lounged with haughty looks, their faces covered in pleased smirks. Alex, unfazed, pulled the carriage to a halt just a few feet from the barricade. Anyone else would have stopped a mile away from this barricade after noticing it, but not her. Right now, just like how the classic bandits had pleased smirks on their faces, she had a smile of excitement on hers. "Can I have them?" "They look fun, though. Can I try out some magic on them?" "Nah. There doesn''t seem to be any mages among them. Lemme have them, hehe." The bandits stirred, eyeing the carriage with suspicion. One, a hulking brute with a wickedly curved blade strapped to his thigh, lumbered towards them. Even to them, this was strange. A carriage was almost stopping in front of their faces, and instead of trying to turn and run away, they were chatting among themselves? They found it quite funny, actually. "Well, well," he rasped, his voice gravelly from years of smoking. "What do we have here?" He approached them, his height almost two meters, with arms as big as her thighs, his bicep veins pulsing with vigor as if they had been pumped already. He was bald, his skin bronze. The sword was now in his hands, and the aura exuding from him was threatening. But, as he stood before the attractive female driver, a rather faint blush bloomed on his clean face. "Well¡­" Alex''s lips curved into a wider smirk, a glint of comedy in her eyes. "Not today," she said, her voice ringing with a confidence that belied the outnumbered situation. The bandits exchanged surprised glances. This wasn''t the usual scared traveler they preyed on. This was not like the group that they had just captured. This was different. -Dhum! They suddenly heard a strange sound, and the towering giant of their group, their shield and protector giant, was suddenly thrown all the way to the back. -Dherrrrr! "Hello there, fun people." She started with the first one, and then she vanished from her driver''s seat. S~ea??h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. -Dhum! The giant had crashed a few meters before them, but in a blink of an eye, he started flying once again and was thrown right into their barricade! -Bhum! Three individuals of the group were hit by the giant body and crashed into the barricade along with him, and this was the moment when the bandits realized¡­ "We fucked up." -Dhum! -Dhank! -Boom! "Wow~. Is that how you fight, mommy~?" The young girl enjoyed the show, even though it had only lasted for a few moments. "Miu!" The gecko liked the fight, while the little slime also wanted to join in on this fun thing. But Elio kept it in his first grasp. "No, little one. We don''t have to kill them." "Muuuu~." "No. You are too strong. Perhaps next time, ok?" Alex used her {Blink} and her hands. She did not need to use any other skill, or even her sword or dagger, or even a twig to deal with these little, adorable bandits. They were nothing in front of her anyway, so, this little meeting they had was only going to be a negative thing for them. "Huuu~." Alex finished them in no time, and then she tied them up with a string rope. "That was some good exercise." The sun was rising on the horizon. This was early morning. The bandits that were just smirking at them and were somehow blocking this road with a strong looking barricade were now bruised and bleeding. Some had also fallen unconscious from her beating. All of them were alive, and handing them to the authorities would earn them rewards. The soldiers that maintain this road should be here anytime now, the time was approaching as well, so they would arrive soon, and with that, the bandits would be dealt with. "Just how weak were the people before us that you dealt with, hun?" These bandits weren''t that big a deal. They were pretty high level, but they neither had any special skills or even abilities to take down someone that had any kind of protection with them. It was actually strange how they were able to deal with someone else¡­ "Who was it¡­?" There should not be that many people traveling on this road this early in the morning. People mostly left the village to go to the town when they took this road. It was also a one way that was rarely used so there were also not that many people around, so¡­ who was it that they dealt with in this place? And, why were they barricading this place in the first place? How did the soldiers that should be patrolling this place not see it? Actually, if they had barricaded this place not long ago and had captured someone as they were saying earlier, where was the person, loot, and the carriage that they looted? "..." {Blink} Why were the bandits that should be screaming with high and mighty curses like the peacock before the rain not even saying anything at all? This should not have been like this. [{ "Elio, get ready with Miss Rin." }] This wasn''t right. If anything, why did the bandits look so clean if they were bandits? [{ "It''s magic. Sera just noticed as well." }] They should be disgusting, they should be wearing alcohol stained clothing, they should be smelling like bandits should. { "It is commendable you noticed this." } This was not right. And she knew it. -Ooooooooooooong! Continue your saga on empire Natural magic, wind element, Preservation series, (tier-4) spell: (Illusion barrier). Since the moment they started feeling that weird sensation, they had entered the magic barrier of a mage. To be more specific¡­ "Greetings, friends from the other world." Magic of a greedy mage tower master. Chapter 109 Mage tower master "You might have heard of me already, but allow me to introduce myself."The bandits that she had beaten up vanished into thin air along with the barricade that was created by them. The atmosphere around them changed, the window flow shifted, the calmness of the winds also became unstable for a moment, but that only lasted for three seconds. -Crrr¡ªek! With a shattering sound of glass, they felt the air pressure around them shifting. And when they blinked, someone they had never seen before personally was standing right in front of them. "I''m the master of Moongold town''s magic tower, Ryan Von Luliby. A (tier-4) Advanced magician, studying the magic of nature, blessed by the winds, and treading on the path of Preservation." Long green hair that seemed to contain a magical glow, White mage clothing that at a glance could be apprised as a high value item, a face that was no less attractive than Elio''s, surrounding air that gave off a magical, almost fantastical feel¨C this person before them, this noble looking man holding a tall magic staff, this strong individual of over the hundredth level¡­ "The hell are you doing here, you jerk?" He was the materialistic bastard that she wanted to avoid and the person that she disliked even more than the librarian. "Oho? Seems like you are one of those sharp tongued foreigners." He smirked at her, and started approaching them with a unique but calm attitude. "Anyway¡­" He was walking with calm, slow steps. But, none of them noticed how or when he crossed over six meters in a blink of an eye, and appeared right beside Alex. "There seems to be more interesting things here than I expected." He looked inside the carriage, at Elio, at Misha, at Miss Rin, at the Slime, gecko, and the pretty bird. His deep green eyes were sparking, glowing with a unique light, indicating he was looking at them with his unique appraisal skill. "Who would have thought-." She could not react when he suddenly appeared beside her, but he made a mistake if he was thinking they were anything easy to deal with. -Swish! She instinctively swung her hand and a blade appeared in her hands out of her inventory. "Woah." It was no simple blade, it was coated with a lethal poison that could be fatal even to someone like him if it had even so much as touched his skin. But it did not. He vanished just like he had appeared beside her, and gained some distance from them. "Aren''t you a wild one?" He smirked once again at them from a distance, but now, he knew he would not be able to deal with them. "Stay here with Miu, Misha." Elio came out of the carriage along with Az and Miss Rin. Alex also took out a unique looking sword from her inventory that most definitely was an enchanted item. Az knew the time for him to show his skills had arrived, so it also took out the magical staff that the mage tower master found the most fun. "Is that a wand? Damn¡­ just how much more fun is this going to be?" "Sera." [{ Yes, master. }] This person, the mage tower master, someone who was said to be over (Level-100) did not come out of his sweet lab when the town where his tower was, was being attacked by a dark magician. He was famous for being a materialistic bastard, actually he was infamous. It was said that there was a time when he wiped out a village saying the commoners who lived there had disrespected him and were working with demons to tarnish the image of the nobility. He was from a baron family, the lowest order nobles, and yet he had managed to climb to the position of a tower master in his late forties. It was said that he did all kinds of experiments to look attractive and young like the actual mages from the dark novels do. And it was said that if it was for his research, for the Preservation of his own self, he would go to any length, even accepting assisination tasks from the higher ranking lords. "Kehehehe. When I sensed that distinct holy power, I did think some remnant of that wicked kingdom had crawled into my darling town. But it was surprising even to me how that person was in fact not someone new, but someone who had been living right under my nose for so damn long~~." The winds changed once again, and this time, they were much more violent and sharp than they had previously been. "After knowing how my prize money was going away with the ''saviors'' of the town, I felt extremely bad, you know? I was heartbroken. That bastard librarian was a hindrance, but thanks to some distraction, I was able to slip away from him, hehe." Elio cast a magic barrier around them with a scroll, a Preservation spell of water element. Then, while that mage was blabbering, he cast all the buffs that he could on the sword wielding Alex, and the longsword wielding Miss Rin. "Do you know why I did not just kill all of you extras when I had the chance?" Find adventures on empire Alex moved, used her sword and aimed at the point that she knew the mage will appear after using his wind magic. But, even though she was on point, he was covered by a swirling wind that blocked her attack. "I saw a pretty looking bird, and was momentarily awestruck~." Miss Rin conjured her Holy power, wrapped it around her sword, and also used her movement technique to close the distance between him and the mage. "Then, when you came inside of my illusion, I saw a unique looking sword with a strange girl that I could not figure out the strength of." Elio used restriction spells, but they were pretty much useless against a mage that understood his magic on a deep level and could [Dismantle] it with just a drop of his Mana. -Ooooooooooooong! Even Az and Sera used their magic, their powerful magic, but even that was useless against someone who knew more magic than any of them combined. "Then, I got curious." He was not using any offensive spells. He was just toying with all of them. "How could a girl be anything normal when she is surrounded by all these people?" -Oooooooooooong! He was not showing it until now, but since the start, he was not aiming for any of them. S§×arch* The Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "You know what I noticed after that?" "No!" "Alex!" "...!" "A simple young girl was holding a Mana beast with her bare hands." -Swiiiiiiiiiish¡­! A sphere of wind flew to the carriage with downed horses, an afraid young girl, as well as a gecko that was not smiling anymore. It was offensive magic, and it was aimed not to harm the girl, but to destroy everything else that was present around this girl. "Miu." Everything¡­ including the little gecko friend that she was hugging with all the strength of her delicate life. Chapter 110 Winds against anger Miu had three skills.One was called {Sixth sense}, a unique skill that very few Mana beasts possess. It was a rare skill that gave the little gecko extremely precious ''intuition'' and perception powers beyond the normal senses. This skill was the reason it was able to navigate through the dungeon and sense many things even during their travels. It was a great skill with immense potential so, with good enough time and right training, she knew she could teach the little creature how it could use this skill in a better manner. The other two skills that it had were even more precious. They were highly rare, almost unique skills that were found in a few mutants. One of them was called {Spontaneous growth}, a skill that helped the creature in extreme situations where it would need to quickly adapt itself to the environment and the nature around it. One of the reasons it was able to survive for so long even after being poisoned like that was most probably due to that skill. It was a special skill as well, but it was not as special as the third skill it had. -Oooooooooooong! When the sphere of deadly winds came to them¨C ready to destroy the carriage, the horses, and even her friend¨C the golden spots and the crystal eyes of the little gecko started glowing with a unique light. "Hmm?" The spell that was flying towards them at a speed that not even Alex was able to react to was strangely stopped in its wake, a golden energy now circulating around it. "Miu." "...?" Misha was afraid of everything that was going on already, but, when she looked up at the friend that she was trying to protect in her embrace after perceiving that strange feeling, she was stunned. The gecko that she had only ever seen smiling, playing, cheerful and devoid of any negativity was now seriously glaring at the strange person in the front. Miu''s eyes were glowing as well. And, Misha could feel there was something more to these glowing eyes. "Fascinating¡­" The Mage stopped for a moment, admiration present in his eyes. "A creature capable of commanding nature!" His eyes sparkled at this marvelous sight. The spell that he had used just now was a natural spell, not an elemental spell. He was controlling the very winds that exist in this nature, not the elemental powers of the wind element itself. Even someone who understood this spell that he had crafted himself were to use their powers to [Dismantle] this spell, they would need to be a genius on the level of high mages. But, a creature had just stopped his spell. And that too, with not the understanding of the spell or with brute force. "Hahahaha! This is truly a jackpot!" The creature used its skill, {Fragment of natural will}, and controlled the very nature in which the spell winds were traveling through. [{ "Miu can''t do it consecutively." }] What it did was the same as controlling a spell that was cast by someone else. It was not something simple, a spell was an execution¨C it was a result of a cause. [{ "I''ll take the right. Alex, take the left, leave the front to Elio and the others." }] It was not even an elemental spell but a natural spell, so one could just guess how fascinating this instance would have been for a natural magic user like this bastard. [{ "Move." }] -Swish! Miu used the power that consumed a great amount of its own energy to save Misha. Something Misha did not understand yet. She did not know what was going on, why this strange person was laughing like that. She knew if her mom and big brother and sister were fighting this person and if he was trying to harm them, it most certainly was a dangerous person. It was trying to harm them, and she could not do anything to help them. She was afraid right now, and there was nothing she could help them with. -Swash! "Aren''t you bunch persistent~!" Elio and Az helped them with buffs. Sera was attacking with light elemental attacks, but her powers were limited as well. Miss Rin was a war soldier and could use Holy energy, but even she was only a (Level-108) soldier. She was not a knight, she was not even a proper swordsman who had learned the ways of a sword or practiced with it for years. She was a soldier, and all she knew was how to kill, and how to survive. Yet, right now, she was fighting like a knight to protect what she cherished more than her own life. [{ "Miss Rin." }] Alex coordinated with the rest of them and used her unique daggers covered in lethal poison as well as the sword that could harm this person. -Swish! Swish! Swish! Her sword techniques were not complete since she did not have her complete strengths, she was merely a (Level-35) player at the moment. She was not someone that could use complex techniques, but even still, she used her years of fighting experience and with the help of the rest of them, she blocked the mage from casting any more spells at the carriage. The horses might die, the only way of transportation they had right now might get destroyed, or the girl in the carriage might get badly hurt¡­ This bastard mage, he was trying to capture them now that he knew their true value. Find more adventures on empire Even if he did not catch the remnant of the Holy kingdom, he will be able to progress his research to a great degree with the help of the little girl and the little gecko alone. If he gets the slime that could cast magic, he could earn some great funds as well. And that bird¡­ he wasn''t that interested in the bird anymore. It was not that special compared to the rest of them. "Kekekeke!" Alex had used a high tier magic scroll of the Preservation series to cover the carriage so Misha was safe for now¡­ Breaking that barrier will not be easy even for him, and he knew that as well. -Swish! Swish! Swish! With them blocking him, he was not going to get to the carriage anytime soon. "Bastard!" "It is futile~!" -Oooooooooooooong! But if the opponents were merely two baby foreigners, a fragile mother, a slime, and a white bird¡­ sea??h th§× N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Shit." ============ Ryan Von Luliby (Level-132 Advanced magician) ============ -Swiiiiiiiiiiiish~! "Hahaha! Just die~." He was not going to have any problems taking out the useless trash. Chapter 111 Helplessness -Swish!"Ugh!" Alex barely avoided the blades of wind that flew at her from three different directions. -Dhum! Miss Rin blocked the attack of the wind sphere with a shield that she got from Alex, but that threw her away. The impact almost made her lose her footing. But she somehow managed to stay still and block another attack. -Oooooooong! Sera had already exhausted all her Mana so Elio ordered her to go inside the barrier with Misha and Miu. She was not doing well, and she was over exerting herself. He could not see her like that anymore, but she could not leave her master in this situation. The opponent they were facing was too strong. The magic that he was using was not something they could block with steel weapons and their low grade magic. She stayed behind, and looked out for an opportunity where she could use what she had right now. "Muuuuu!" Az was somehow effective, but even the little slime had its limits. The Mana volume that it had as a low level creature was low. So, the spells that it can cast were very limited. But, since these spells were at least effective, they were able to use them strategically. [{ "Elio! Give me a speed boost!" }] [{ "I cannot! Wind spells aren''t working! I can''t use any wind spells!" }] [{ "Focus on the winds! You don''t have to use the winds that are present in the surroundings! Create your own winds!" }] Az was reaching its limits. They brought Miss Rin along with them thinking she would be helpful in most situations, but none of them had expected they would have to fight the mage tower master right after they left the town! -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiiish! The bastard wanted all their people now! He was using powerful spells! There was a whirlwind covering him that had winds so sharp just a touch of them felt like it was a deep cut from some sword! Just the touch of the strong winds ripped open their bare skin, it destroyed the normal clothes that they were wearing, and if it wasn''t for the protective spells from the magic scrolls that they had used, they would not even be wearing any gears anymore. "Kugh!" "Miss Rin!" She was hit with another wind sphere, but this time, when the sphere of winds collided with the shield, it broke down and became sharp blades of winds that exploded and cut her at multiple points! "Don''t worry about me!" She had her holy powers, so she was healing herself while also buffing herself with it. She was not a mage, so she could not use magic or use the power to buff the others of her party, but she could heal others if needed. But, that took a lot more energy than healing herself, so Elio was handling the task of healing as well. -Boooooooooom! Alex was doing something. He could feel it. She was not just swinging her sword around getting beaten by the strong magic winds of the tower master. She knew they were not nearly strong enough to defeat this opponent even though there were four more helping her. "Damnit." Alex was bleeding from multiple wounds now, but since they cannot stop for the healing like they were able to until a moment ago, he could only helplessly watch her go against the damned mage. -Swiiiiiiish~! The opponent was strong, almost a hundred levels higher than the two of them. And, even though Miss Rin was also above (Level-100) she was not as strong as a mage that knew his craft. She used to be a soldier, she knew how to kill, but that was limited to those who used weapons and swords. She had almost never fought a mage, so she knew nothing of how to deal with them. They were different from normal humans, the power to use Mana was something that gave them strength incomparable to normal humans. And, the holy power surely also made one a superhuman, but that was not enough. Against a mage covered in a protective barrier, getting past him and dealing any kind of damage was not simple. -Clank! Clank! Clank! She used the enchanted weapons of Alex that somehow went past the winds, but the mage was still powerful. They were not getting many openings. Most of the damage being done to the shield or the mage himself came from Alex who systematically swung her sword and exploited all the opening the mage was unconsciously creating. He was strong, but she had experience dealing with strong opponents. Explore more at empire -Swish! Swish! Swish! Even in the face of absolute power, she did not feel any despair or helplessness like Elio did at the moment. He was not just a mage, yet he was supporting her like those rankers supported their party members. He was just as weak as hers, yet while she had years of prior experience, he was just a new player starting his journey in this world. He had not seen dragons, he had not fought demons and angels. He was still doing well matching up to them, yet he was feeling helpless right now. But she did not have any time to lecture him right now. "Huuuuu¡­" She has been doing something since a while back. And now, she had almost created the opening she had been searching for. {Blink} She created some distance from the mage, and just then, the mage knew she was going to appear from the left while trying to misdirect him. She had played the same game a few times now, but it was not going to work. "Fool!" -Ooooooooooong! He had received some wounds, but he also had some potions so healing these things was no big deal to him. He knew this ''savior'' of Moongold would be a formidable opponent and she would grow up to be someone dangerous as well, but he could do little about a near immortal foreigner so, he was not after the two. He just wanted to deal with the rest of them and go back, and now that she was walking right into-. "Old habits don''t die easily, they say." Instead of appearing on his left, or right even, she reappeared right in front of him, and, there was a strange crimson sword in her hands this time. -Swish¡­ -Click. The way she moved in that simple instance was so fast that even the mage did not perceive her. But when he looked down after hearing that distinct clicking sound of a sword being put back into a metallic sheath, he found himself momentarily powerless. [{ "El, Miss Rin." }] A strange crimson slash was present on his body, but it did not hurt. It was simply a dark red slash of blade, something strange, but at the same time, something that seemed to be sucking in all the Mana in him to momentarily make him useless. He could not use his magic, the winds were gone, the atmosphere around them had returned to normal, and this was the last chance they were going to have. -Thud. [{ "Pour¡­ everything you have¡­" }] She fell to the ground, the sword vanished from her hands, the white sword hanging around her body started glowing with an abnormal white light, and¡­ this was their chance. "What did you do to me?!!" -Oooooooooong! She gave them the one moment that they needed. Miss Rin or Elio were not going to waste it¡­ S§×arch* The ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 112 Strength of a (tier-4) Elio did not have any offensive magic but, now that the mage could not use his powers, the rest of his spells were going to work.-Oooooooooong! He conjured three magic circles of restriction and debuff spells, cast it on the mage, and then froze him in his place. -Swish! In the very next moment, Miss Rin closed in on him and gathered most of the Holy power she had left in her at the moment and slashed the mage''s neck, body, and legs! -Zaaaaaaa! He was wearing protective gear so he was not decapitated, but he still received substantial damage from her attacks this time. "Kugh!" He coughed up blood, the sword slashes on his check and neck triggered a different item that started healing the wounds, but before the healing had reached any important point, Az gathered the last bit of Mana left in it. "Muuuuuu¡­!" The aim was the total destruction of the mage, so the slime that was already enraged did not feel any remorse over what it was doing. It manifested the elemental powers, mixed the light element along with the water element, created three spikes twice as big as Miss Rin''s longsword, and launched them towards the mage who, for the first time, was in a panic! -Oooooooooooong! His eyes widened. His mistakes flashed before his green eyes. The pain of the wounds he had just received overwhelmed him. "..." S§×arch* The N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Death approached. His heart was beating out of his chest. Sweat mixed with the blood slid down his back and neck¡­ The wide eyes did not blink as they observed the pointed water spears approaching him. -Crac¨Ckle. The green eyes glowed. -Crackle¡­! Green sparks manifested in those green eyes. -Oooooooooooong! The magic that was approaching¨C it was elemental magic. Something that resembled the magic coded into the magic scrolls that he also created in his free time. It was not complex. So, even without his own Mana¡­ -Crrrr¡ªreeeeek! -Boooooooooooom! With a green spark of lightning surrounding them, the spikes of water were destroyed midair! "Muuu?!" The magic that held enough power to kill even a mage like him did not reach him, but that was just the beginning! -Oooooooooooong! The very next moment, the mage also destroyed the spell restrictions that were covering him! "Tsk!" He could still not use the Mana and his spells, but the skills were not something even they could prevent the use of. -Oooooooong! So, he condensed the surrounding air around his fingertip, and shot a bullet of wind at the woman that was already on her way to deal the next big blow! -Bang! The condensed bullet of winds were so strong that they knocked the shieldless Miss Rin all the way to beyond Alex''s downed body. "Disgusting slime." Then, pointing his palm at the slime, he created a slash of similar condensed air and released it without any other thought. -Swiiiiiiiiish! "Muuuuu!" "Az¡­!" Elio watched his slime friend, the being that had been with him ever since he came to this world beyond his tutorial, get sliced in half by the powerful slash of wind! "And you." The crimson slash on his body started vanishing as he locked his enraged green eyes with, the ones shrouded in helplessness. "You''re a nuisance." Mana in his body started moving again as sharp winds manifested around him once again. "You have no experience, no special power, no uniqueness and no skills." -Oooooooong! Elio did his best to create a barrier around himself, to slow down the opponent, to do something¡­ anything. But he could not. "Ughh." He felt the very air around him decreasing. He could not breathe properly anymore. The Mana that he had was almost emptied as well¡­ He had no energy left after simultaneously casting all those weak yet useful spells. The fatigue was overwhelming him now¡­ "You may be smart and creative¡­" -Swish! A blade of wind flew to him, and cut down Elio''s left leg. "But you are nothing special compared to the people around you." { "Master¡­!" } -Swish! Another blade, and his right arm was chopped off as blood splashed everywhere. -Ooooooooooong! "Even this servant of yours." -Zaaaaaaa¡­! Sera was going to block the next attack with her own body since even her Mana and energy had dried up, but the spell that came next did not harm her. "Someone who does not have the will to kill in order to protect something precious to them." Sera was surrounded by winds, caged in a sphere. She did not have any energy to use her skills nor any strength to break out of this imprisonment. All she could do now¡­ was to watch everything she had, crumble down right in front of her eyes. "You do not deserve any of this." Another blade of wind materialized before his hand. -Swiiiiiish! He did not want to waste any more time here. This was enough playing around. He almost got himself killed this time, so things were not funny for him anymore. "Maggots." If he wanted, he would have killed both of them the moment they came into his barrier. But things became fun when he saw that Mana beast in the hands of that girl. -Ooooooooong! He wanted to have some fun after a long time, but his opponents ended up being much more than what he had anticipated at the start. "This could have been dangerous." He released the spell, and turned around as he saw the spell hitting the boy who had already fallen to the ground. "What the hell did that bitch do to me?" Looking at Alex who was still laying on the ground almost unconscious, he shook his head as he thought back to that strange crimson slash. He had not felt anything like that in the past¡­ so this made him even more curious about that sword, as well as her. "I should take her as well." In the distance, Misha was still hugging Miu, her eyes still closed with fear overwhelming her. She did not know what was happening there, and because of the barrier, the gecko also did not know what was going on with them. But, it had a bad feeling¡­ Miss Rin was on the ground, unconscious. Az was cut down in half, its wand thrown away to the side. Sera was captured in a sphere, Alex was also almost unconscious. Elio had lost his arm and leg, his unconscious body laying in a pool of blood. His eyes were still open as they gazed up at the clear sky, tears mixed with blood sliding down his blood covered face. The mage, his long green hair now uneven and messed, downed a potion as he observed the mess that they had created. His own torn clothes and dirty body disgusted him. And most of it had happened because of that black haired bitch. "Damned foreigners." He hated her the most right now. But he was going to squeeze out all the honey from her body and cursed soul when he takes her, that young girl, that amazing Mana beast, this half dead slime, and that disgusting remnant to his lab. He will have his fun with them. He had suffered more than enough to deserve that much. Experience new tales on empire Chapter 113 In a distant land Mages in this game were graded in two stages: first was through the highest tier of magic they can create themselves.It was not about casting magic, but creating a spell from scratch. The highest tier they can create before the right individuals affiliated with mages'' association, was their official mage rank graded with the same tier of spells they can cast. The other stage was the consecutive casting of spells of either a lower tier, or casting of spells that are of higher level than their earned ranks. A normal mage affiliated with magic tower has to be at least of (tier-2), as in they are at least able to create their own magic of (tier-2) if they wanted an official mage rank. It was a complicated process, so not many of the players go after it since just being recognised by the system was pretty much enough for them. There were privileges for being affiliated with a magic tower or with the association, but for players, it was not really that important unless they wanted to academically study magic on a higher level and aim for the higher stages. If they are (tier-3), mages were welcomed in any magic tower and reaching the (tier-4) stage was considered a great milestone among the mages. As each stage was divided into Beginner, Advanced, and Master, to become an advanced mage of any respective tier was considered a great honor, one could become the master of magic tower with that level with enough achievements. Ryan Von Luliby was an advanced (tier-4) magician of a high level. Yet, if we compare him to someone like the mages of (tier-6) or higher, he was pretty much a nobody. "Oh? What brings you here?" in a distant land, in a cave filled with ancient scriptures, an elder voice resonated. "Greetings, Lord Sage." And greeting this old voice was a voice that the world, mainly the entirety of Moongold, was already familiar with. "What brings the great busy Librarian to my humble abode today~?" The voice the librarian was greeting was old, and filled with a more profound wisdom than his own voice. "It is about the , so I believed you would be the best individual to ask." S~ea??h the N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "About that child?" There was a kind of respect in the Librarian''s voice that one could not understand with simple logic. He not only looked up to this old person covered in an old looking yet lavish purple cardigan, he was one of the few people in this world that he genuinely respected. "Yes¡­ you recognize this, right?" The Librarian went inside the illuminated cave and created an image that he had seen himself with his magic. "Oh?" The magical screen contained multiple images of a single object that the old person in the lavish rugs, a pure white beard that went down his torso, recognised instantly as he saw it with his deep blue eyes. "The white sword of great trial?" This sword¡­ this unique white sword covered in a unique white sheath was something most individuals like him in the world would recognize instantly. "So¡­ you do recognize this object." Even the librarian who had been around for over a hundred years, one of the few (tier-7) mages of this world, knew nothing about this strange object. And, no records that he held contained any knowledge or mention of this unique object. "Hrmm¡­" The sage looked up at the librarian with a concerned gaze. "You mentioned her title earlier¡­ could it be that¡­" "Yes. She was in possession of that object when I last parted ways with her in moongold." The sage looked at him with a sudden look of deep sorrow, before sighing with a sigh and shaking his head. "Indeed. She won''t stop surprising this old man even after so many years." The moved his hand, and from earth, two chairs and a table manifested for them. "You''re here to know more about that sword, are you?" "If possible, yes." Ever since he saw that sword in her possession, even though it had somehow integrated into her dress, he could tell it was no simple object. Explore more at empire He could feel something unique from that sword. Something that he had been searching for decades and had given up on before creating that library. His relationship with her was not the best, and he had an innate feeling that even if he were to ask her, he would not get the answer that he was looking for. Thus, when he suddenly obtained the fortunate information of this person''s current whereabouts, he could not help leaving his library momentarily to quench his great curiosity. He knew he was being reckless leaving the town when the mage tower master of the town was aiming for the people that had just left the town with the person they were talking about. It could be dangerous, and knowing the mage tower master''s greed, he knew that person might go straight after those people. "Have a seat first." "Thanks." But, he also knew that because of his greed, he would not at least kill any of them. He was a great barrier mage, so even if things go wrong, he would only harm them enough to knock them down. His greed would not let him harm the ''things'' that were going to earn them great research materials and some unique subjects, so the librarian had faith in His greed. "Before I tell you anything about that white sword, know that all that you will know is a taboo." "...?!" The librarian was not worried about them but hearing those simple words of the old sage before him caused a ripple in his serene heart. "Just knowing about that sword is a taboo?" he asked with a concerned look, his eyes clearly showing distress. "There are things in this world that not even gods are allowed to talk about, young librarian. Much less us mortals." The sage lifted his hand, and from some corner of the cave, an ancient parchment few in those old, wrinkled hands. "That sword is one such object." The sage opened the scripture before the librarian. And a colorful light blasting from it filled the entire cave around them. "All those who reach the pinnacle of their art are approached by a unique object that has existed since the dawn of this world." In the scripture, there was a record of the objects written in primordial language. Something that almost made the librarian dizzy after just a glance at them. "They are presented with a trial, and clearing this trial gives them an opportunity." The opportunity varies. But, there have been multiple records stating the appearance of certain unique objects that seldom gives these triumphant individuals a chance. "WE call these objects ." They are locks. And hidden behind these locks¡­ is something even individuals like them do not know about. "No one knows what happens to those who accept the trials of these objects, no one even knows what they have to do and what they achieve at the end of their task. It is unknown what powers these objects contain as well¡­ but, at least, from what is known¡­" From the scriptures, a three dimensional image scene came out, shocking the librarian who had seen his fair share of absurdity in his time in this world. "These primordial objects hold immense power." A power so great that achieving a ''legendary'' feat with them becomes a simple task. "Their trial is different from any divine trial that exists in this world, young librarian." The scene vanished, and along with it, the scripture retired to its original place. "And the fact that she is now following that trial means something has finally changed." The old man looked up at the librarian with a pleased, excited smile. "Would you like some tea, young one? I want to know what she has been up to in your town." The librarian''s relationship with her was a complex one. While bittersweet on a personal level, everyone entrusted with maintaining this world''s peace and stability recognized the unique nature of her connection with the Six, and especially with this particular member before him. "Yes, tea would be nice." He could not possibly decline an opportunity like this one¡­ They were called the Great Sage for a reason. And beside, someone like him who was also a record keeper could not possibly decline an invitation from this particular individual. Chapter 114 The white sword The guard''s captain in Moongold gifted the two of them two special things after their help in defeating the dark mage.They were personal gifts, two unique objects that had been pretty close to him all his life. They had saved his life in the past on many occasions, so he wanted them to have them as well. "Hmmm~. Hm-hmm~." The dagger that he gave to Elio had the ability to save him from any one lethal attack that would kill him, a skill called {Undying hope}. It only activated once a month, but it saved his life many times. And this time as well, though the mage did know it, it had saved Elio from dying from that last attack. "Let''s get that girl and lizard first. They should see what has become of their companions, kekeke." S~ea??h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Still alive, Elio lay on the blood covered ground, his body still devoid of any energy, the little Mana that he had recovered going straight to the bracelet on his hand that healed the wounds, and somehow chained together his severed limbs. The mage knew what was happening with the boy''s body, but he did not pay much attention to him. He knew the boy was nearly dead so even what was happening with him did not matter at the moment. Just like the almost unconscious girl, he could not do anything anymore. "That girl must be at least blessed by Mana if she can touch the Mana beast." He had won the battle, so the mage was not worrying about the cleanup. Instead, he focused on the rewards that he had earned with his hard work. -Oooooooooooong! He ignored the woman with holy energy, he ignored the boy surrounded by light elements, he ignored the slime that was trying to regain its shape, he also ignored the servant in the form of a bird that could not even break a (tier-3) barrier of his. He did think back to how these weak individuals almost killed him, but he believed that it was all because of his own foolishness. "What should I have as my reward fiest~?" He was lost in his own world, arrogant and mighty. He did not even pay attention to the white glowing sword of the girl that had been Almost unconscious since a while ago. And that¡­ was his biggest mistake. -Ooooooooooooong¡­! Though not as amazing as the dagger, the necklace that was present in the box that she received from the guard''s captain was an item that instantly recovered the energy and stamina of the wearer once a month. "...?" He had been feeling it since a while ago, but the strange feeling that someone was observing him on his back suddenly intensified and he looked back at the mess that was created by the fallen individuals. There, for the first time, he noticed the strange energy that surrounded the black haired girl, a white light that was not Mana or anything that he somehow did not notice earlier. "What''s that now?" They were strange foreigners. Even though they could come back to life, they were trying desperately to survive and to do something. She even went as far as using that strange attack that somehow consumed all the energy she had, almost making her fall unconscious. She was not moving at all until now and the sword she had, the strange white sword, was also under her fallen body so he did not pay much attention to it until now. "Haaa¡­ how many times do you have to say?" He was tired as well, so he did not care anymore. "It''s useless." He just called up his Mana, made a few lethal blades of winds, and shot them towards her and just turned back and started walking back to the carriage. -Swish. But, no sound indicating pain or struggle was heard, making him turn back to see what was going on. "Hmm?" But when he turned around, the girl that had been laying on the ground until now, had stood back up on her feet¡­ He found this strange, especially with that glowing white sword in her hand. -Ooooooooooong! He first covered himself in a protective wind barrier and then, he shot another round of wind blades at the zombie-like bitch. -Swish. But the winds strangely vanished as soon as they reached her. "What the?" He did not understand what kind of tricks she was using now. -Ooooooooooooong! But, he just continued attacking her knowing full well how she was still, at the end of the day, a low level foreigner. -Ooooooooooooooong! -Oooooooooong¡­! -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiiish! -Swish. Swish. Swish. He used all kinds of spells, lethal spells that could have killed any of them ten times. But, they did not work. None of the spells that he used even reached her for some reason. "What¡­ what''s going on?!" She was just standing there, looking down, still, with the white sword that was still glowing. -Ooooooooooooooong¡­! This was strange, a little too strange. And dangerous. His spells were not working at her, so he aimed for the rest of them. But¡­ -Swish. The spells somehow did not touch them either. "Do you know how much I hate bastards like you?" "Hmm?" -Swish! For the first time, she spoke up. And the moment she did, the mage felt a strange sensation around his hand that he had used to aim his spells at them. "You bitches think you are all that just because you have gained a little power or authority." The sensation on his hand intensified right after he blinked his eyes and heard her voice for the second time. "...?" She had vanished from his field of vision, so he looked around. Missing the moment where the strange sensation filled hand he was aiming all his spells with, gently fell to the ground. "I absolutely loathe bastards like you who think they can do whatever the fuck they want just because they have that shit little power or piss little authority." He turned around to see where the voice was coming from, only to finally realize he had lost all the sensation of his right hand. "...!" When his eyes found her, she was looking down at the boy whose pure green eyes were looking up at her sad look, as well as her infuriated eyes. His pretty eyes¡­ they were crying, and bleeding. And the cause to all of that, was this one tiny fucking little bastard. "You think everything belongs to you just because you can take it?" She looked back at him with her infuriated eyes. An absolutely terrifying aura exuding from her. "You¡­! How can you-." "Shut the fuck up." He did not understand how someone as weak as her could possess such horrifying Aura. his heart paused for a moment when those enraged blue eyes looked at him. And, his soul almost came out of his ass when she suddenly appeared right in front of his face. "How dare you do this to my darlings." -Swish. He did not have his right hand, and now, he did not have his left one either. "Aghhhhhh!" There was no blood coming out of the severed limbs. The cuts were made so precisely that not a single drop of blood came out of his body. There was only the pain of a severed limb. "How dare you¡­" -Swish. Swish. There were tears of anger and frustration in her eyes. Her blood was boiling. Her very soul was screaming at the things that she allowed to happen. "How dare you do this to my gummy bear you cocksucking, motherfucking, titles, piss of shit fucking cunt?" His legs were severed as well. And now, the limbless body that was all left of the mighty mage fell to the dusty ground. "Don''t¡­ don''t kill¡­ me!" Overwhelmed with a primal fear, saturated with absurd pain, with a limbless body, and powerless soul¡­ he looked up at the terrifying individual that had been the target of his lust until just a moment ago. "Would you have spared anyone just because they begged?" -Swish. First horizontally. -Swish. "I bet you wouldn''t have." And then, with a horizontal cut right to the neck, she severed the remaining body of the mage into four parts. "Hypocrite¡­" For bastards like them, she did not even need a sword or a blade. Her Will was more than enough for these weaklings. Chapter 115 Aftermath of a struggle After finishing the mage, before the temporarily recovered portion of her power was lost once again, she healed the severed limbs of her gummy bear and helped both Az and Miss Rin.After the mage''s death, Sera was freed from the wind barrier, and though unconscious, Alex knew Miss Rin was alright. She just helped her a little with a potion before she lost her temporary powers completely and sat down beside the conscious body of her partner. "Does it hurt more than the tutorial?" He did not see what she did, but he heard everything that was happening. And that much was enough for him to know what had transpired there even with the mage''s body gone. "Yes¡­" He was in pain now. But, after she healed him, she also helped him get back up and sit down beside her. "Here, this will help." If not for the bracelet and the dagger''s skills, he would have been long dead¡­ he might have died without her help as well. "Thanks." He did not like how things went, what that mage tower master said to him, to them, what was happening here just a while ago¡­ he did not like the utter powerlessness he felt at that moment. It was bitter, it was hot, and at the same time, it was a freezing cold feeling¡­ His entire body was cold like ice right now. His eyes were looking at their messed up surroundings. The cold in his body and soul as he saw the shivering slime and the bird hugging his leg, clinging to him with tears wetting the dusty ground intensified even more. There was a blockage in his throat, something that was not caused by blood from his internal injuries. The bitter feeling was almost overwhelming¡­ But the high recovery potion helped warm him up a little. "How''s Misha and Miu?" He asked with a concerned look as he glanced at the barrier that was still standing in its place. "I''ll check up on them later¡­ first tell me, does it still hurt anywhere?" Everyone aside, she was the most worried about him at the moment. She knew he knew what she did even though he did not have any idea how she did that. He did not know about the white sword, about her powers, about what kind of trial she had obtained from it, or how this sword even worked. It was obvious he did not know much since not even some of the highest ranking individuals in the world, even the high rankers, and even those who keep the records of the worldly happenings did not know much about it. It was a strange and absurd trial, but trial was also the only way she could be with him¡­ or at least, that was the only way until now. "I''m ok¡­ please go and see if the two of them are alright." There was sadness in his eyes, bitterness on his face. He was trying not to bite his lips off any more than he was doing already¡­ his complexion after that traumatic experience was not paler. His color did not look good, he was still covered in blood like the rest of them, and yet, he was worried about the two young ones instead of his own wounded self. "I''ll check up on them¡­ you should¡­ try and calm down a little." "Yes, don''t worry about me." He gave her a helplessly warm smile. A smile that was asking her to go away for now. "..." She knew what might be going through his head right now, how he was feeling and the pain in his heart¡­ and she knew he wanted to be alone for the moment, so she kissed his forehead, picked up the little slime and its wand, as well as the bird stuck to his calf and walked to the barrier that was now vanishing. The time the three of them and the two creatures fought with the mage was much longer than a few minutes. He was a mage following the path of preservation so, they had engaged in a battle of attrition for over fifteen minutes alone. He played around with them, underestimating all of them from the beginning to the end, and he paid with his life for his disgusting actions. S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Misha. Miu." The young girl was still hugging the gecko, but as soon as she heard her big sister''s voice, she ran right to her and hugged her just as desperately. This was her first time experiencing something like this, and she hadn''t even seen what had transpired out there. She was here, in this relatively safer space, so she was fine this time. But¡­ "Ughhhhhhh!" Elio, who could not hold it in him and threw up after thinking back to how worse things could have turned out had she not used those strange hidden powers of hers, knew very well how bad things could have been. Az almost died, even Sera was taken away from him¡­ Miss Rin was still unconscious, and the young girl who had done nothing wrong to deserve any of this was now crying in the embrace of the person who saved all of them. "Aghhhhhhh!" He was powerless. Even against a mage tower master of a beginner town, merely a (tier-4) mage that wasn''t even a Master level, he was powerless. He knew he was weak until now but he never even considered the fact that they would have to fight something like this all by themselves. And, a mage of his level was practically the weakest existence in the forest that they were heading to¡­ -Dhum! Dhum! He fell back to his knees and smashed the dusty ground. Tears were not present on his face anymore. There was just anger. And frustration. -Dhum! He could not do anything, again. Everything was almost taken away from him. Az almost died¡­ he did not even know how horrible things could have been had Alex died or something other than what had transpired already might have become the variable to this whole scenario. -Dhum! Dhum! Dhum! As anger and frustration overwhelmed him, the smashing hands started bleeding¡­ As the rising sun made its way to the high sky above, what was left on this road now, was a carriage with fallen horses. A woman laying beside a blood stained shield. Voice of a crying young girl¡­ and agonizing screams of a weak man. One that once again failed to protect what was precious to him¡­ Chapter 116 First camp "So, the sword you got from the library event was something like a key?""You can say that¡­ there are many kinds of swords in this world, and some are special. This white sword is perhaps the most special of them all. But, I can''t use it. And as long as I have this, the only special sword that I can use are the ones like that crimson sword that you have seen already." They are the actual keys. S§×ar?h the N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And she was searching for the rest of them. "The downsides are many. When I got it, I lost all my levels and most of my unique stats were sealed along with my servants, skills, and powers. Obtaining the original keys, the sword like that red one grants me back a certain portion of my powers¨C but with the ones like I got from the steller pouch, I can unlock a portion of those powers once. Some common things will become available with level up as well. That''s why I am so focused on leveling and hunting." Elio knew just how precious that sword was, and if something that amazing was used as mere consumables, he did not want to imagine just how powerful the actual swords would be. "I can''t even tell you a lot of things because of the restrictions from the trial of this sword." The restrictions were many. But, it allowed her to be with him. And she did not want anything more than that. "Getting the sword was really a good thing. But, I did not expect that bastard to actually go that far." They traveled a little further after calming down and resting and set up a campsite when it was evening. They were all tired and there was still a complicated air around them, so the mother and daughter had fallen asleep. Az and Miu were chatting by themselves- or so it seemed- and Sera had gone away to survey the area. The two of them were sitting by the fire, under the night sky, chatting about their first experience even worse than the dark magician. "That bastard librarian¡­ wasn''t he supposed to hold that tower master until we went to the next town?" Alex was furious, but she was not feeling the same complicated emotions as he did. Unlike he who did not have any power to do anything, she was fortunate enough to have that one chance to do something. She was able to save them, but as she said, most of it was thanks to the circumstances. "Let''s forget about him for now. He''s gone¡­ nothing will come out of cursing the dead." He had calmed down a little. He cried, he mourned, and he cursed himself for a long time away from their eyes. And, he was fine now. "Perhaps this was for the better." Had the librarian blocked him for now and he had appeared later on when they were leaving some other town or were going to the jungle, they would have been in big trouble. And, things would have been even more complicated if she did not have that special power at that time. "Haaa¡­" An obstacle that could have been a hindrance to them later on was dealt with early in their journey. And, thanks to her finishing him off, all of them had obtained a lot of EXP as well. They got all the items he had, all the precious materials and things, and his magic staff was also in their possession now. All three of them who fought against him obtained two rare achievements: [Mage killer (Rare)] for killing an officially recognised mage of great significance, and [Nature''s gratitude (Rare)] for some reason that they did not understand either. "There''s a long road ahead." Alex killed him but she did not get any special achievement or rewards since she used the power of the sword. Instead of receiving anything, she received a penalty where her stats would be reduced by half for the following few days. The price to use a great power with her now weakened body was great as well, but that did not matter to her. All that she cared about was the life of her partner as well as the ones that he cherished. As he said, killing the mage was a good thing. She did not regret it. However, since he was a mage''s tower master, his death would be noticed by the magic association soon and an investigation would start. "I will say it again even though you know it already¡­ none of this was your fault." "Of course." "Don''t smile like that then. It''s getting on my nerves now. Hmph." In case the association finds out that they were the ones to do it and comes after them, Alex will have to take care of them by herself. But she thankfully would not have to fight with them or go through the long and uncomfortable procedures. She would be alright. Life of a single (tier-4) mage was not that great to those association people. "Haha, yes yes. I will start smiling." He was laughing. And, it wasn''t a fake laugh. Experience more tales on empire "Good." He did not like that he was powerless, but one thing that dead mage said had remained on his mind. ''I''m nothing special compared to people around me¡­'' It was a fact. He was not skilled and experienced like Alex or Miss Rin, he was not special like Az and Miu, he was also not a unique existence like Misha and Sera. He was a good mage perhaps, he might also be a good person. But, when it comes to combat¡­ he was useless. He did not want to kill. If it were up to him, he would have spared even the mage that caused them such trouble¡­ he was greedy, he was arrogant, but the fact that he did not kill them outright also indicated that he was not an evil existence like the dark magician. He was doing what he wanted because he was strong enough to do it all. And, being strong was not a bad thing. ''Strength¡­'' What he needed, what he must obtain was strength unlike anything anyone else possesses. If he wanted to protect Them in extreme and unexpected situations like this one in the future¡­ He needed to find his strengths. "Thanks for saving them." "I''ll do it again, and again until I cannot. They are as much as mine as they are yours." She kissed the hand that he had not let go of ever since they sat here¡­ It was late at night already, and they needed some sleep. But until Miss Rin finishes her nap, they need to stay awake and keep watch over the rest of them who were done with their little sleep. Camping was not that simple, especially when it was done in areas famous for monster attacks. Chapter 117 Travel to Yuta "What''s that~? Woh! It looks pretty~!"Thankfully, Misha had recovered from the shock of the incident pretty quickly. "It''s a tree creature, dear. It''s called (Pink flower tree). It''s quite dangerous, but they don''t attack anyone unless they are provoked." They were still passing through the forest area but the town was nearing. Just one more night''s travel and they would reach their destination. "Look at those flowers~! So prettttttty~!" Misha was having fun looking at the things around here and there. The creatures of the forest weren''t all dangerous. Some were quite friendly. And thanks to Elio, there were a lot that were much friendlier to them. These creatures were pretty fun, but traveling without fights with beasts and creatures was pretty uncommon. There were a great lot of beings here and there that caught the attention of both Elio and Alex. Sera was doing much better as well so with her informing them, they did not have to worry about any great threats. They were trying to make it easy to fight creatures of comparatively lower levels as the target, but now that Elio was (Level-39), the Leveling up was going to be a difficult task. Defeating the mage was a great thing for them. Alex was now (Level-42) as well, and though the Exp that Miss Rin got was comparatively higher than Elio''s portion, she did not advance even one level. She was already high level so the divided Exp she got according to her contribution was much lower, but she was happy with what she got. "Oh, look! There''s a pretty bird!" "It''s a Red Nightingale dear. They are pretty sweet." "And shy as well." They are rarely tamable, but some people, usually nobles, did have their kind as pets. "We should prepare to stop now, right?" "Hmm?" They all had leveled up quite a bit, and they were going to travel at night now that they were almost out of the forest area. It would be a smooth journey once they were outside the forest, so they could sleep later if they wanted. Resting now and having some food was more important. "Are we camping again?" "Yes, a short rest." Misha was having fun looking around the things even though it wasn''t her first time traveling in a carriage through the forest. She had seen her fair share of things, but she was having fun since for the first time, she was not by herself. Az and Miu were with her as well and they were also having fun together with their friend. They were happy now, but they had also suffered as much as the rest of them. Az did its best and it protected her by fighting the mage with everything it had. And Miu did what it could¡­ Misha could not do anything since she had no experience with such incidents. She had not seen her mom fight and she had never been in a situation where someone would be after her. She did not yet understand how special she was, but now that they have had this experience, questions have bloomed in her heart. And, it would be up to her mother to answer those personal questions. "That seems to be a good place." "No. Sera says there''s a bee nest near that area." "Oh?" They were inside a forest but this place was relatively safer than the forest around the Moongold. It was also maintained regularly by the forces of Yuta, so the travelers did not always have to worry about the sudden ambush. Still, being careful was always much better than engaging in a fight unprepared. "We will camp there then." "Hmmm. That one''s fine." They had learned how important it was to stay alert even in the safest places, so they weren''t going to face the kind of situation they did earlier. "Miss Rin. Can you please look after them this time?" "Of course. You haven''t slept in a while, so have some rest." "I''ll help-." "I can look after them. Besides, Misha wanted to learn how to set up a camp." "Yei~! Both of you should sleep! You look tired!" "Muuu!" "Miu!" "Chirp!" Even Sera suggested they go to sleep since she knew they were going to mostly stay awake tonight as well. It was still bright and the sun was still there. They wouldn''t have to worry about them for a while at least. "Alright then¡­" The town of Yuta was not that far anymore. They should reach the place by the time the next dawn breaks out. The journey that should not have taken too long was prolonged due to a greedy mage. They almost faced a tragedy on their way to this town. But that was all in the past. "I''ll make something to eat for everyone before we depart." She was tired, and he was sleepy. They did not get much sleep after their first camp, and they had been traveling for a while now. They needed to be careful while traveling since they were with creatures that had the tendency to run around occasionally, and someone had to watch over them all the time. "El." "Don''t worry about me¡­ I''m just¡­ sleepy." He was not just sleepy. He was still contemplating over the big question haunting him. Everyone around him, especially Miss Rin was doing her best even though there wasn''t really any need for her to do so. She was traveling with us but it wasn''t like she was our knight. She was free to do anything she wanted¡­ and yet, even after being wounded and experiencing an incident like that, she did not blame them for it. She knew she was to blame for a lot that happened, if it weren''t for her being unable to control her powers well, none of this would have happened in the first place. She also blamed herself for all of this. But at the end of the day, it happened because the greedy mage found an opportunity. "Az~! Miu~! Let''s play~." "Miu!" "Muuuu~!" One thing that at least soothed their burning hearts and souls was this happy smile of the young girl. She knew what everyone was going through right now. sea??h th§× N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She knew how they were feeling as well. That was perhaps the main reason she thought acting happy and fine like this would make them all happy. "Don''t make too much noise! You will attract big and scary monsters~!" They knew she had still not recovered from that incident completely, but her tricks still worked on them. Read new chapters at empire "That girl¡­" "Hahaha." They were a little more cheerful thanks to her. And perhaps, it was also thanks to these cheerful bright children that they were able to have a good night''s sleep without any breathing problems or hypnic jerks. Chapter 118 Home of a swordmaster "There it is¡­"Dawn had broken out a while ago but they were only seeing the gates of the new town right now. "Wow¡­" And, the gates that were just as grand as the gates of Moongold actually surprised a few of them. "This is different somehow, right?" Unlike the normal black stone walls, the walls of Yuta seemed to be made from some kind of grayish rocks that were also shiny like some metal. There was a unique shine to them, so under the rising sunshine, they were shining like some newly polished shield on a deadly battlefield. There were more guards visible on the town walls as well, and there were also much more armored soldiers than what they had in Moongold. "That''s the home of a Swordmaster for you." Unlike Moongold, Yuta was a normal town that did not have that many unique facilities. S§×arch* The N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. There was no magic tower here since the knight association here was a prominent organization, and, there was also no grand library here so not that many players stayed here. It was also a town made for beginners, but not that many players came to this place. But still, when one talks about the beginner towns that followed a certain niche in the Kingdom of Viv, Yuta was one of the names that came up. "I think we will have some fun here, at least." Alex was smirking as she stopped the carriage at the end of a long line of players, individuals, carriages, and those who were traveling on their unique mounts. They weren''t going to stay here for long, but there were some very fun things that they were going to do here. "Have you been here before, Alex?" Miss Rin was curious why she was so excited since unlike Misha who was generally looking forward to most of the things that they were doing every day, Alex was not usually as excited as she was right now. There was perhaps a certain reason behind her happiness, but Miss Rin was not expecting an answer like the one she got from her. "Hehe, this is my first time here, but you know what? I''ve defeated that arrogant old ''swordfish'' from here many times in the past. He is a fun guy, hehe. And I have some business I have to take care of here." Elio was still focused on the castle walls, the guards, the knights on top of their armored horses¡­ This was a unique town, even though it was not the same as Moongold. It was just the early morning, and yet there was a long line of individuals, merchants, trainees, guests, and prospects who wanted to join the various Knight halls under the knight association in the line before them. Yuta was pretty much like a training town for those who wanted to become a knight or wanted to solidify their foundations. "You''ve defeated the swordmaster as well¡­?" When someone said ''Swordfish'' in Yuta, every native and most players would know who they were talking about, and Miss Rin did as well. "Yup~." Miss Rin had not seen it directly but from what she understood, Alex saved them from the mage tower master. Even though he was a strong mage and she was not even half of his level at the moment, she somehow killed a person that even a soldier like her could not defeat. She was weak and she knew that already, but different from her, Alex defeated someone like that with no significant injuries. "You''re¡­ quite something, you know?" If she was right, then it might also be true that the one who actually healed them was also her¡­ and, she was thankful for that much. Still, the fact that someone like her had defeated the Swordmaster in the past was a new thing to her¡­ "Hehe, of course~. I''ve defeated Connie as well. That old man was not even that difficult back in the days~." She had always found it surprising how Alex seemed to be quite close with the librarian even though she was just a new player. They did not tell her much about themselves or their past yet, but since Miss Rin had not told them much either, she did not think too much about it until now. But still¡­ a swordmaster was a unique existence that was famous all throughout the world. Just like the Swordmaster Yuta Shogun Kazuha, these people were Masters of their art as well as people who had achieved second awakening and obtained a unique power from the world, an authority that was a combination of their various achievements. They were different from the other Masters. In a kingdom setting, a Swordmaster would be treated the same as a royalty and even in the empire that had over a dozen swordmasters, these people were of a high social rank. They not only had the power of Mana, but also an absolute control over their weapon, as well as their own unique styles that they had honed with countless hours of dedicated training. The Swordmaster of Yuta especially had a unique style that was said to be quite captivating. They were strong people that most citizens and even the fellow nobles looked up to. "Connie and all are fun people most of the time. They aren''t really as serious as you might think them to be even with their usual attitude." The castle gates were reached and the knights checked their IDs before they entered the town and looked at the new wonderful scenery that was quite different from their previous home. "If you are free later today, how about we go and check out the knight''s hall together?" Miss Rin needed strength, and for those who wielded weapons, fought on the battlefield for the things precious to them, and people who could not wield Mana, this town was nothing less than a mentor. She needed strength, and Alex had promised she would help her get that strength so that nothing like last time happens once again. "For now though, do you know any inns here?" "Oh, yes. I do, actually." The Swordmaster was a position and a title granted by the world and not by some particular individual or nation. These people were called as such because they had obtained something that not all mortals could, and they had surpassed their limitations to achieve that. They were just like a normal person¡­ and yet, they possessed the power to express their own Truth, and materialize the ''Path'' in their unique manner. Chapter 119 Town of Knights Moongold was famous for its great library as one of the few towns that had a library of that scale.It was maintained by a person that had played a significant role in many of the battles that had happened throughout the era of players, and most of the time, he only did it because there was a great crisis that involved the fate of the world. He was not the only individual that joined these battles, there were many that do not come out of their ''dwellings'' usually but he still played a significant role in them. He was famous among players, female players especially. Some of them were crazy about him and though the natives might not know, there was a Cult following of the Librarian. He was famous, and thanks to him, Moongold was also famous for more than just the great library. And the mage tower was there as well, so among the many beginner towns around the world, Moongold was pretty popular in general. Yuta however, was a different story¡­ "Did you say we will be going to the Archer hall first instead of the Sword hall?" "There''s something I need to pick up there. It shouldn''t take long though." The Town of knights¡ª not many towns in the kingdom held such a unique title. There were few cities that were dedicated to the knights, but not many towns. Knight as a path was a diverse and difficult route for the players. It wasn''t limited to the knights that used a sword¡­ a knight of was a symbol of chivalry, honor, strength, and their own Codes. Even if the paths that they follow might be different, even if the Truth that they believe in is different, a True knight was a Class that was a Symbol above anything else. To become a true knight one had to overcome numerous trials, earn the achievements and acknowledgments of the authorities, people, and the world, and only after one proved themselves Worthy of this honor, is when the System granted them the unique position of a Knight. "Sword made from the highest quality steel! Grab the once in a lifetime opportunity to wield the sword made by an advanced blacksmith!" "Look here! Madam! Sir! Have you ever seen a shield as shiny as this one~? Surely it resembles the one that the hero used to defeat the great serpent headed witch!" "And here comes the shield hero! Betrayed! Forsaken by the world! See for yourself the rise of the great hero of shields!" "A spear for the windriders! A spear for the great heavenly spearman!" If there is a civilization, there is bound to be a market present there. Trade was one of the primordial arts that originated when the mortals understood the eternal and unquenching needs for various resources that they possessed. This need never quenched, and till this day, a market was what those who understood it called the face representing the entirety of the civilization, Culture, or society. And in the town that was filled with knight prospects, those who willingly wanted to walk down the difficult path of the knights, it was obvious that most of the vendors and the shops would sell things that they either needed or would need in their journey towards chivalry. "Mom! Mom! Look over there! There''s a pretty looking monkey!" "Muuu!" "Miu~!" The children were having fun looking down at the various things present in the market. And the elders who were seeing the slime, the little girl and the pretty bird were all quite happy. This was not a normal sight in the town of the knights. There weren''t many children walking down the streets here since most of those who were born here or were raised here inherently either wanted to become a knight or wanted to become someone that could be respected even more than the knights. At the age of Misha, they would leave the town on their own or would join the knight hall that they wanted to follow and start learning more about what was the main use of the weapons that they wanted to use in their following life. This was something very unique to this town and the towns like this one so the people who saw the happy girl that in fact was acting like the children her age should, they couldn''t help but smile unknowingly. Of course, unless one was a jerk or a tsun tsun, they would surely smile at the girl and the little creatures that were with her. "Oooh! Mommy, look!" Misha squealed, her finger poking excitedly towards the building. "A castle!" Her mom smiled, a gentle warmth in her eyes. "Not quite a castle, sweetheart," she explained. "That grand building there is actually the main hall for all the knights who protect Yuta." Misha''s eyes widened even further with a new spark when she heard it. Right in the heart of Yuta, a magnificent structure dominated the landscape. It looked just like the fantastical castles she''d seen in picture books, with pointed towers reaching for the clouds. The walls were built from a unique kind of brick, and balconies and grand windows adorned its sides. Instead of the city of Kalp that was the center of the viscounty and the entire southwestern region, Yuta was known as the central base of all the knights. Moongold, on the other hand, was not the central hub for the mages. That position belonged to a completely different town that was not part of the viscounty. "We have to go this way, come." "Yei~!" S~ea??h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. They were going to the archer''s hall for now, but they were going to go to the many other halls that the main association was divided into to see, and observe the knights. Alex did not want Miss Rin to specifically become a knight, but seeing these people will surely help her decide on the path that she wanted to walk on going forward. Of course though, she had her own unique agenda for bringing all of them to this place. "Elio, wanna do an archery competition?" "...?" They were nearing their destination, so when she said that, Elio instantly figured out why she had brought all of them to this place even though ''picking'' something up could have been done at any different time. "You were after this all along, hun?" They did not know it yet, but Elio had learned some archery in his younger days. And this partner of his had exploited every single chance she got to force him into showing his Amazing skills. "It will be fun~. Please say yes~." "Brother Elio is an archer~? Wow~!" The new stars in her eyes showed how even this little girl wanted to see him holding a bow and arrow. "Muuu!" "Miu~!" She set him up by bringing all of them there before she revealed her true intentions. "You''re evil, Alexandra." And now that they were standing before the hall already¡­ he had no choice but to show all of them his great, almost unbelievable skills that he was not proud of. Chapter 120 The archery hall With the grand castle as the center, the entire central zone of the town of Yuta was divided into six main Knight halls.The first one was the sword hall on the north side, the shield hall on the south, the spear hall on the west, and the archery hall on the east. The two other halls that were located nearest to the central halls were called the unique halls where either the knights who were training with a unique weapon went or were places for the people who did not know any of their talents. This places were not the same as the other four knight halls as there were a little more than just a few kind of weapons here, but these are the places that gabe the knights the freedom to choose the weapons that they found the most comfortable with the people who knew how to wield these weapons being there to teach them,. "This is the archery hall, the shrine of the archers." The archery hall on the eastern side to the main association hall was the place that housed most of the archers and had the biggest training ground for the archers that was occasionally also used by the other knight halls. "Oh! Ohh! Look mommy! They even have birds here~!" The inside of the main hall was just like most of the halls. There was a reception, there were people here in appropriate armor that was of their class, and they were carrying around various weapons- mostly different kinds of bows and various kinds of arrow carrying units. In the air above, there were various birds flying or were accompanying these archers or the people that were in charge of the various things in this place. These birds were very important to the people who were professional archers¡­ they were not their familiars or tamed beasts but partners that were nothing less than a part of their body. They were their eyes, they were their ears, and they were the main individuals that saved them in many situations on the battlefields or in the hunting grounds. "They are called Misha. They are trained beasts that help the archers and various individuals as messenger birds, as signal birds, as well as the warning birds that save their lives in many situations." Miss Rin thought back to the time when she used to have a creature like this one as well. But, no good would come out of reminiscing about a lost life. "Do you want one of them as well Misha?" "Hmm? I can have one as well?" These birds were highly trained beasts that not just anyone could have, but it wasn''t difficult for someone like Alex to get one if she wanted. "Of course you can~. Though, you will have to take a very good care of it. They are a very useful being, so having one with us will be effective in the forest." Sera was there of course, but she wasn''t going to stay in the bird form forever. She was not a bird in the first place, so she will revert back to a more appropriate form once Elio gets to a higher and more appropriate level for her to manifest a better form. "Ohh~! I will take good care of it! I want one as well! Please sister Alex!" She wanted a cute little bird of her own as well. All she had around her were her friends, these creatures that she was carrying around did not belong to her or anything. They were merely her friends. But having a bird of her own will be a completely different thing. "Alright then. Let''s go look for a good one the day after tomorrow." They already had plans for tomorrow so they weren''t going to have any time for shopping tomorrow. But, the day after that was quite free. "Yeiiiiii~!" "Be careful, Misha." She was excited, but she shouldn''t jump around in a place like this. There were a lot of people around and if she crashed into someone, then they might get angry or there could be some unnecessary commotion later on. "Alright then, let''s go to the training ground first." She was going to compete with Elio inside the game for the first time, but they had done thi in reality a few times. She knew just how ''good'' he was when it came to handling a bow and arrows. He was just too good actually, and even if he did not like it, she did not want to miss any chance to see him holding a bow and any kind of arrows. "Excuse me." "Oh. How may I help you today~?" They all went to the reception and seeing the group, the receptionist lady greeted them with a smile like they should in a place like this one. "I have this letter for the hall master. Can you pass it on to her?" Alex took out a unique looking purple envelope from her inventory with a unique golden seal on it and just seeing this seal was enough for the employee as well as many other employees around her to recognize it. "Miss!" The receptionist took the envelope from her hands and hid it under her desk. S~ea??h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "You aren''t supposed to show it around in public!" she was shouting in a quiet voice, her eyes wide, and it seemed like just seeing that envelope had almost given her a minor heart attack. "Oh? Apologies. I did not know that." Alex had a smirk on her face, so it was obviously a lie that she did not know just what this envelope actually was. She was just trying to tease the receptionist, and it was certainly effective. "..." Receptionist quickly took another look at the envelope after seeing the girl''s careless expression, and when she confirmed the authenticity of the letter, a complicated expression appeared on her face. "You can just pass it on to her. She will know what to do with it. Oh, and can you also show us to the practice area? We would like to spend some time practicing until she is done reading this." "..." The receptionist still had that complicated look, but there was nothing that she could do here. This envelope and this seal¡­ every worker here and even many of the players here knew that they belonged to the Swordfish Swordmaster, the person that this town was named after. Enjoy new chapters from empire For all of them, he was an ideal, and those who were taught directly by him in the past like the nine hallmasters currently living in this town were all the same as well¡­ Chapter 121 Battle of arrows The training halls and practice areas were divided into many sections in the Archer hall.There were indoor ones and there were outdoor ones that were in the open area that was used by many of the archery practitioners. For safety''s sake, it was divided into many parts and there were a lot of people practicing there all the time. Elio and his group had also just got into one of the training areas outside of the hall, in the backyard area that was pretty empty right now. They were people but the place that they just got to was separated by the barriers that the mages who also live in this town had created. They were special barriers so the arrows did not cross them but if one wanted, they could go through these barriers with proper authority. But for that they needed proper authority and that was only something that they could get from someone that was in a high position in the association or the hall. "Get ready¡­" Unlike the modern archery that they do in the real world, the archery of this game was not that complicated of a thing. There were a few things that one needed to look after for their safety. There was a shoulder-chest guard, gloves, arm guard, and the other equipment were part of the armors that they use. "I''m ready." S§×arch* The N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Are you now?" They did not need long to get into the equipment that they needed for this competition that they were going to9 have now. Continue your journey on empire They just needed a few things and they got those few things for the practice for free in the hall. They were now holding a bow and a quiver full of arrows. "Let''s finish this quickly now." Elio was sighing as he looked at her excited smile. He did not like how she set him up like this. He could have declined her request had Misha not been there but before that little girl who wanted to see his mediocre skills, he could not help but give in to this obvious trap. "Hehe, then, what will it be~?" "What? You wanted to have the competition! You should be the one deciding how we are going to do it!" Alex was a sword wielder and she had learned sword handling in the real world as well. She was good at many of the traditional as well as newer sword forms and she was even able to do things that people did not usually do in the real world. He knew her the best so he knew she was amazing already, but when it comes to other kinds of sports especially Archery that she was not that good at, both of them knew who was better at those things between them. "Oh? Hahaha! I thought you would want to set the terms since I suggested this~! Well, I don''t really mind it~." She was fine with this anyway. It would give her a better chance to see some more of him. "Haaa¡­" "Then~! How about we do moving target shooting~? The one with more points wins." "Sure¡­ whatever you want." He was tired of her new side already¡­ Well, he found it fun, but she was not the same serious, stoic and calm girl anymore. She was more cheerful, noisy, and annoying for some reason. Every chance she got, she bullied him. Every chance she got, she did things that he obviously did not like, every chance she got¡­ she did things that she usually did not. He was fine with it for most parts, having the strength to endure this complicated girl was one of the reasons he was still able to stay this close to her. But this kind of trick was one thing he did not like. "Alright! Let''s start right away~!" There was a special device that systematically sent out certain light balls that they needed to pierce with their arrows to get the points in this kind of training. The archers used this device to increase their shooting time and to get more familiar with the moving targets and, though difficult, this was a very useful device for many of the archers who wanted to be on the field in the battles and not in the back. "Miss~? Can you set the disk device?" "Yeah. Right away." The receptionist was still with them after she had passed the letter on to someone else since, well, a letter like that was beyond even her authority. She was a normal worker so she was with them right now, looking after them all as per the orders of her superiors. And, since they wanted to practice, she just needed to do what they wanted her to do. "On your marks." "Mommy! They are starting!" "Yes, dear. Watch them carefully¡­" "Miu!" "Muuuu~!" "Chirp!" They were unique individuals. One was very good with swords, while the other was quite proficient with magic already even though he had only recently started learning it. Thai was going to be her first time seeing them use the bows and arrows, but she had a feeling that they were going to see something that was definitely beyond the level of a beginner. They were foreigners, so when it comes to skills that weren''t specifically limited to this world, things like magic and the various magical arts, then they were much better than the natives of this world like them. "Prepare the bows!" They got into their positions. Fifteen wooden arrows in their quiver were still like the still waters of a dead lake¡­ There was a sharp look in their eyes. A competitive spirit was oozing out of them, and the rest looking at them could tell this little competition was much more than just a fun activity to pass their time. Even the employee knew that the two of them were not archers, and yet, the aura that they were exuding as they locked their eyes to the open sky, was nothing less than the aura of the seasoned archers. Even their stance, the bows in their hands, and the arrows on those bows had their uniqueness. "Start!" -Paaaaaam! -Swish! The rest of them were going to see them using a long ranged weapon for the first time, but they were going to be fascinated soon now¡­ Chapter 122 Force of strings Holding the arrow between the gap of her thumb and index finger, Alex shot the first glowing disk that flew out from the magical device that created it with the unique elemental magic enchantments.-Tang! This one was green, and as they knew, the whole training process was divided into six phases. The green disks were the easiest, and following them were orange, yellow, blue, purple, and lastly the red a disk that flew at a speed that was not easy for even the expert archers to hit. This device was a very valuable piece of equipment, so when the match began and the first arrow was shot, the audience did not think very highly of their archery skills. Alex even used a non-traditional holding style to release the arrow, so the employee that was helping them here was not impressed or anything. They weren''t beginners. The way Elio was holding his bow and arrow even suggested he had experience with the weapon. But that was not all there was to the two of them¡­ -Swiiiiiish. Both their first arrows hit the target, and so the following arrows were set on the bow¡ª and released instantly as the following green disk was shot from the device. -Tang! -Clink! The sound that was produced by the hit of the arrow were both different, something Misha found unique. But, her mom and the employee who had seen this kind of training in the past as well, knew well how the more sharp sound was the indication of a more perfect hit. This was not a still target, there were no traditional red-white sections that could indicate how perfect a shot was. They were just hitting targets with arrows, but as archers, the most important aspect of their job was to hit the target as precisely as possible. -Swiiiiiiiiiish! -Tang! -Clink! The third disk flew and the arrows that were shot from both sides hit the target. And following them, numbers started appearing on the individual machines that were shooting this disk for the two of them. "Wow¡­" -Swiiiiiiiiiish! -Tang! -Clink! The following stage of Orange disks arrived which were much faster than the previous one. Keeping track of these disks was not easy and shooting the arrows so that it would hit them in the sky was even more difficult even though the disks that were merely being shot up at the sky were falling down with the gravitational force as well. If they shot the disks when it was at its full speed at the highest distance, they got a better score, while even if they shot it when it was falling down, they got a somewhat lower score. But it was still good. They were doing it without missing a single shot, using just one arrow at a time, timing their shots perfectly with the winds and the distance of the shot. -Swiiiiiiiiiish! -Tang! -Clink! Since each one of the disks were released from the device at least twice, they were able to adjust to the flow of the disks. There was a brief break between each section of the disk stage so they were able to adjust to the change in that brief time, however, some of the stages had a third disk that followed right after the section which might have thrown off most of the people using this device for the first time. -Swiiiiiiiiiish! -Tang! -Clink! But that did not happen with the two of them. They were somehow able to deal with most of the unexpected disks, as their eyes were always focused on not the disks, but on something that they were better at focusing on. "They are amazing, mom¡­" "Yes, dear¡­" -Swiiiiiiiiiish! -Tang! -Clink! Elio was focusing on the color of the disks against the blue sky above while Alex was focusing solely on the sound that they made, the sound of the disks slicing through the winds. Their techniques were different, but the two of them knew what they were doing. Elio had experience with a similar kind of training, so he did not find this one that difficult. And Alex was one of the people that contributed to the creation of this technology, so this was not something that could pose any great difficulty to her either. -Swiiiiiiiiiish! -Tang! -Clink! They faced off against each other, gathering point after point, carefully observing the disks and aligning their arrows. -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiish~! When they released their arrows in almost unison on their individual targets, it produced a unique kind of symphony. -Swiiiiiiiiiish¡­! -Tang! -Clink! There were emotions behind these wind slicing arrows. The force that was stored behind these arrows was so great that it seemed to be enough to pierce even metallic armours, -Swiiiiiiiiiish! Using a bow was not a simple thing. One needed a great strength just to perfectly pull the string all the way back with the arrow perfectly aligned on it. This was a fantasy game so things were pretty different here, but a bow was a body and the arrow were their bones. The wood and steel making them were forged in the fires, crafted by the hands of a craftsman with their sweat and blood. They were nothing less than a blade, a shield, or a spear. Those who held them were called archers, but those who knew how to use these unique weapons were called Knights, the individuals that decided the fate of the soldiers from the battlefield. -Swiiiiiiiiiish¡­! -Tang! -Clink! The points were tied at 90 points. There was no arrow left in their quivers. Only one arrow on their bows. "Huuuu¡­" This was the brief moment before the last of the dicks, the red one that would be released at a speed unlike anything they had faced until now. "¡­" Everything including the very air around them had frozen. Now, there were only two people left on this practice ground¡­ "Haaaa." And for both of them, the few moments before the release of the disk were stretched to an eternity¡­ -Oooooooooooooong! One had calculated every single thing that she needed to as she stretched the arrow in her hand to the furthest possible point. While Elio was still holding the arrow in his hand, his bow pointing downward, his eyes squinted and focused on the blue sky above. "¡­" Their hearts had calmed down, their minds, senses, eyes focused on only one thing. The arrows made of wood with their sharp tips were their swords, and the disk was their target. -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiish¡­! What they needed to do was simple. Hit the sword with their targets. -Swish! And, in the moment that the disk that flew up at a speed almost invisible to the eyes was released from the device, she also released her arrow holding a disastrous force that blew winds to all sides. Read exclusive content at empire -Shaaaaa¡­! S§×arch* The n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. But¡­ "I win." When it came to archery, calculations were not as important as pure instincts. -Clink¡­! The one who shoots first and perfectly is not always the winner. She knew that, and yet¡­ she made that silly little mistake. Chapter 123 Cheater Elio Though Misha, Miu, Az, or Sera did not see it, Miss Rin and the employee lady saw it clearly.Alex''s shot was perfect. The completely calculated shot was going to hit the target that was moving so fast even they could not see it completely. Yet, right at the moment the shot was going to hit the disk, an arrow that was infused with the power of winds flew up at an even greater speed and hit the arrow that had almost reached the target. The moment this arrow hit the other arrow, its direction changed, and after throwing the other arrow off, the arrow hit the target at a perfect angle and destroyed the disk. "You''re a cheater!" Alex saw it as well, so she could not help but shout at him with a completely frustrated look. She knew he was a bastard that would do anything to win, but cheating like that, using a spell to enhance the speed, and to go as far as blocking her own arrow with his was complete cheating! "How can you do that!" S§×ar?h the N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "With my hands?" She smacked his back, then started punching his hand saying it was unfair. She had almost won! "Well, you lose. That''s the result~." At the end of the day, his tricks aside, there was no way she was going to win against him in this particular competition anyway. Even if she did hit this last disk, there was no way she would have hit it better than him. And she knew that already. "Hmph! You even missed three arrows on purpose!" "That''s what I''m saying. You had no chance in the first place." Unlike her who had hit all the arrows, he intentionally missed three of them and yet at the end, he had the same score as hers. And it was only possible because of the way his arrows had hit those targets. "Brother Elio! Sister Alex~!" Misha came running when they were done with their little competition and along with her, the little friends came as well. "Miu!" "Muuuuuuu!" It seemed like they liked what the two of them did. Az even made arrows of water with its magic. Even Miu was smiling joyfully after seeing her master win the battle. [{ You are amazing, master. }] Sera was amazed. Genuinely amazed. [{ Your control over the winds and arrows from the start, the stance, the way you used the sky to your advantage¡­ I''m amazed how you managed to ''see'' that color difference and use the contrast as a reference. That''s not something one can learn¡­ }] "Of course it is something one can learn. One can learn anything Sera. Learning is a contentious process that goes on from inception to the decay of our mind. It''s something I can do a little more easily because of the way I see things, but it does not mean no one can learn what I just did." [{ I shall remember that¡­ }] Sera was lost for words since among the rest of them, aside from Alex, she was the only person that understood what Elio did to understand the speed, and trajectory of the disks in a much better way than Alex''s experienced sensory recognition. Instead of just seeing or hearing and calculating the velocity and direction of the disks, he used the background, the sky as a contract and ''saw'' every every moment of the disk before calculating the way it was going to move. It was not simple, it was not something just anyone can do. One needed a complete understanding of their surroundings, a sense of movement and directions- ''flow'' in simple terms- and a unique mind that could slow down the naturally moving objects. "You two¡­ are amazing." Miss Rin wanted to say something more than that, but she could not say anymore. She was mesmerized when she saw the two of them. She knew the others had not noticed it, but the way the two of them were smiling, the way the two were enjoying this little competition of theirs was exactly something that could be defined as a competition. Experience tales with empire They were genuinely competing against one another for the better score while still enjoying themselves. Which was rare. Pretty rare as she knew. "Misha¡­ your brother cheated¡­" Elio was worried since he was doing this in the game for the first time, but he found this quite doable. The real archery practice that he had done with his mother- his teacher- was pretty difficult as well. So, this was a fun activity¡­ Still, even with this level, he considered his skills mediocre. "Hmm? Brother Elio cheated?" Alex was crying, at least she was acting as if she was crying. And her effective acting worked in the innocent girl. "Brother Elio?!" She shouted at him with an angry expression, something she did not want herself. But she had no choice since he made his big sister cry like that. "Misha¡­ She''s just acting. And it''s not like I cheated. The last disk was a deciding factor. That''s why there was only one of them." If there was only one red disk to begin with, how could he cheat when he was the one to hit it ultimately? "Hmm?" Misha was confused. She looked up at Alex who was still acting with that broken look, and then she looked up at Elio who seemed to be the one saying the truth. She looked at her mom who was enjoying her confused look, and she knew she was not going to get any hints or answers from the little slime and gecko who were already running around the exciting hall. "Misha¡­" Alex was taking things too far. The little girl genuinely seemed to be facing a crisis. The way she was looking up at everyone there for answers or hints on what to do in this situation was an adorable thing¡­ "Ptfff." And, even the one who had hidden her presence all this while could not help but chuckle at her miserable, adorable expression. "Hmm?" "Who¡­?" But, since she made that unwanted noise, she had ended up revealing herself to the rest of them. "¡­?! Hall master?!" Elio and others had not seen her before so they did not recognise her even though they were surprised by her sudden appearance in that place. But, even if they did not know who she was, one of her characteristics was something every single one of them recognised instantly. "Wow¡­" "Mommy! Look! An elf!" She had long pointed ears. Distinct ears that only three species possessed in the junction of Origins. Chapter 124 Hall master A half-elf with pointed ears that chuckled like a harmless kitten emerged out of nowhere. They were looking in the direction she was standing just a moment before, but it was only now that they had noticed her."Hello there, dear guests." Dressed in worn leather armor the color of sunbaked earth, she put down a quiver full of arrows slung from her back. Her smile was as sharp as the arrows she carried, arrows with a metallic point unlike the wooden arrows they were using for the training. Her hazel green eyes gleamed with a competitive glint. The way her eyes looked at the rest of them were different. Experience tales with empire She found the expression of the young Misha amusing, she found the two creatures running around the hall adorable, and she found the white bird quite unique. "Welcome to the humble hall of the archers." Still though, what she found the most unique were the three people gathered around the young girl. "I''m Elara, the Hall master here?" her strong voice was different from the strong and unique voices that they had heard until now. It was not the same as the strong voice of the guard captain, it was not filled with unmatched experience like the voice of the Librarian, and it was also not an arrogant voice of power like that of the mage tower master. This was a pretty simple voice, yet there was a uniqueness to this voice, a special crisp that not all normal individuals possessed. "Sorry to disturb your little ''game'' but it was quite funny to see her like this." she adjusted her long earth brown hair around her pointed ears poking out from the side as she walked up them with soundless steps. "Hello there, young miss." And when she crouched down before Misha, the young girl looked up at her with new stars in her eyes that were focused on her unique ears. "H-hello!" She was not hiding away from her, which meant she did not find her unapproachable even though this was their first time meeting. There was a unique air around her, an earthly freshness that most humans did not have. "A-are you an elf?" and, her pointed ears were something that Misha was finding the most unique thing she has seen in a long while. S~ea??h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Oh? Am I an elf?" Hall master Elara looked at the mother for permission before she picked up the little girl. She was a little taller than the rest of them, but she was also pretty. "My dad is an elf, but my mom was a human so you can say I''m a half-elf? You know, the uncommon ones?" "Woh! A half-elf~?" They were quite rare around the world, but all those who were born between different species carried unique talents and skills unlike what was shown in many of the popular mainstream media. Just like this person here, they were so unique and special that they held a special position in the world and in world societies. They were not human yet they lived among humans without any great problems. And, even among their own kind, they were regarded as a special lifeform that had come to be at the will of this world and nature. Not only half elves, half-dwarves, half-beastmen, half-demons, half-angels, descendants of divinities, and many unique existences like them were quite a unique lifeform in the world of NO. "Huhu, you''re the cool one here, you know?" And, since the Hall master was a half elf, she carried the bloodline of the elves, one of the closest beings to nature. "I''m cool?" "Yup, and cute." she kissed her cheeks before putting her down, knowing well how she found her ears fascinating. She did not like it when someone touched them. Much like her father''s side, her ears were pretty sensitive as well. But if this little girl asked her, she would not mind her touching them. Besides¡­ She looked up at the rest of them, asking a certain question, and all three of them shook their heads in denial. "Oh? I see¡­" As a lifeform close to nature, she could tell Misha was an Ichorborn naturally. But, the little girl did not know what she was yet, and, actually, it was for the better. "You''re the one master mentioned in the letter, I presume?" After giving the little girl another warm smile, she finally looked up at the one that had passed the letter from her teacher to her. "You can call me Alex." She presented her hand to her and the Hall master gently kissed it, following the normal elvan traditions. But it almost shocked Miss Rin and the employee who knew this tradition was only followed when someone of a great importance was to be greeted by someone much lower in position. And, before one of the Hall masters of Yuta, one of the strongest knights of the nation, someone much stronger than the Mage tower master¡­ they did not understand how a low level player like her held a higher position here. "I''ve heard about you from master before as well, but I did not think you would be accompanied by such unique individuals." A slime that had spirits following it around, a Mana beast that seemed to have escaped death, an Ichorborn, a holy power wielder¡­ as well as a unique archer. "Hello, hey. He''s mine." Hall master was looking at him with a unique interest in her eyes, something Alex obviously found delightful. "Oh, I didn''t mean to¡­" She went to Elio and presented her hand to him. "I was just surprised by that rare sight." And, since he By chance knew the traditions and greetings of most races in this world, he did not disrespect her greeting and kissed it just as gently as he should. "I''m Elio, Hall master Elara. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." "The pleasure is all mine, mister Elio." She was quite young for someone with elvan blood, but she was still old enough to be older than her master. "How about we go back to my office? There seems to be a little more we might need to talk about?" In her life as an archer, in her life as a weapon wielder, in her entire life as someone who followed the Path of Justice, she had not seen someone who used the bow as uniquely as he did. "Sure. That would be better actually~." Alex herself did not think he would be so compatible with a bow. She had some ideas of her own, but even if she knew he was not going to agree to any of it, she had to try. Before someone that was an avid follower of commandments, perhaps he might just change his stubborn, dumb mind. Chapter 125 An archer "Here. He entrusted this to me a long time ago hoping someone else would need it one day.""He''s at least smart for an old man." Hall master Elara passed a certain wooden box with a golden crest carved on it to her. "What''s this?" Elio was obviously curious about this unique box on the table before them. It was a pretty box, the crest on the box obviously belonged to Swordmaster of Yuta, but this box was quite lavish. And, from how the hall master said she received it from him a long time ago, it was not like they knew Alex would come to get it one day. Which meant this was a keepsake from her master, and not something she wanted to pass it on to someone that merely brought her a letter. "This?" She opened the wooden box, and resting inside the box was¡­ a sword. "...?" A sword made from a purple metal, a rapier to be more precise. "Well, this is a payment for something I taught that old man." The sword was amazing. Looking at it was enough for him to know just how amazing it was. There were magical enchantments cast on it, there were stones and crystals that seemed to be much more precious than the sword itself, and resting on the red cushion inside the box, this sword seemed just as precious as the sword that she received from the Librarian-. "...! Wait. Is this-." "Shuuu. Don''t shout like that dude." Elio remembered what she told him about the certain special kind of swords that allowed her to use a portion of her power once. And, from the looks of it, this amazing looking rapier was also one such unique sword. "Yeah. It''s like that one." He did not know why the swordmaster had left something like this to an archer, but he knew now that she had it, she could use her powers in a dangerous situation once again. And, it was going to help them when they were in that great jungle¡­ -Click. Alex closed the box for now, and thankfully Misha was out looking at the archery hall with her mom and the little ones. Sera was with them as well, so they could talk about business freely. "Well, that was all from my side." Not that there was much left to talk though. The letter she received explained a lot and she just had to follow her master''s instructions this time and not ask many questions to this lady that even he looked up to. She was not some low level foreigner as she seemed. As a unique being, she could tell this special person also had her unique circumstances. "So¡­" She was not going to ask her any questions about herself, about the special people she was with, or what she was going to do with that special sword. Still, she was not going to miss this chance to talk with her partner. "Your archery." She looked at the attractive man she was with. He was not like those nobles she had seen, or even those like her father. But there was something unique to this man. She could at least feel that much. "You used the sky and the color, I presume?" "You watched us, hall master?" They did not even sense her until she chuckled, so hearing she was present in that place ever since they started their little competition was quite unexpected to him. "I did, and it was quite a sight." Her office was a normal place. It was just like any normal office with a desk full of paper and documents, some pictures here and there, some awards she might have received, a wall full of unique looking bows and arrows, and a window behind her chair. There was nothing much in this small room, but thanks to the unique bows and those unique looking arrows that seemed more magical than a magic wand, this was no normal place. And, as the person this special place belonged to, she was also no normal individual. "I''ve heard Miss Alex was one of the creators of the device that you were using, so I expected that level of experience from her. However, seeing you use that unique method was a different story." She had used a bow ever since she was as young as the young girl they were with. She was not as amazing as her teacher, the Swordmaster, but she could still see the difference in experience and raw talent. "You can see the path¡­ right?" When it comes to archery, or any type of art that requires one to aim at something specific, eyes are one of the most basic senses that one needs. A professional archer needed to aim at a target, specifically their certain weak points to get the best results. While on the other hand, even wild hunters could use a bow to shoot their prey recklessly while using their other senses. They just needed to hunt the target, while on the other hand, archery was an art that used experienced fingers, a special eyesight, as well as instincts that one might not be able to develop with just life experiences. "A path?" Elio did not know what she was talking about, but Alex had an expression of surprise. "Wait? You can do that?" A path was a line, a strong, a path, or an imaginary direction that someone who was highly experienced at something sees or naturally visualizes when performing their certain art. "Do you mean the trajectory?" Stay connected via empire He had no idea what she was talking about. But, if they were talking about whether he could see where the disks were going or not, Alex already knew the answer to that. "Damn man¡­" It wasn''t that strange for him to see certain things. He had experience in various fields and he was mainly a creator. Sear?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He could see the golden ratio when he was taking pictures, he could see the golden lines he was drawing a design, he could see the drawing lines and colors when he was painting, and he could see musical notes when he was composing something. He could see numbers, he could see lines, he could see things that were hidden inside something else¡­ [Patterns of the world] as he called it. This was not something special to him. But for the people around him¡­ for the people who had worked hard for what they have right now¡­ "Seeing paths is not something just anyone can do, mister." He had a lot to learn about this world. And one of those things was how this simple ability of his was something almost every single individual aiming for a specific Goal, or walking on a specific path wanted in their lives. Chapter 126 His stubbornness -Ptsssssssss¡­-Sch-rick! [Playtime: 50:04:10 Clock hours. 150:12:30 System hours.] Read new chapters at empire [Welcome back, second master, master. This playtime is quite ironic.] The doors of both of the chariot capsules opened as the mechanical voice greeted the two of them. "Shuddup Sunday." But it was instantly scolded by his master as she walked out of her Chariot and looked beside her¡­ at him. "You''re one stubborn bastard, Elio." The archer hall master was impressed by his archery, so much so that she offered to teach him a few things until they were there. It was an amazing offer. That person knew much more about the bow and arrows than her, so even she wanted him to learn a little from her. But he refused. "Hmph. Bastard." She looked at him for a while, mainly with a disgusted look, and then shook her head, and walked out of their gaming room. "Alex." He also walked out of the room while calling her name, but she was upset. She did not want to listen to this bastard anymore. "Alex, wait a minute at least." He was stubborn. The two of them tried pursuing him, telling him how that was the game world and not the real world. There was no need for him to be that stubborn when these two worlds were completely different places and when the whole subject of archery was a different thing there. He was refusing to learn from her since he had already learned all that he wanted to learn about archery from his ''Teacher'' and he knew his archery was mediocre compared to hers. "Alex." "What?! Do you want to continue the argument that the game and reality doesn''t matter?! How the hell can you be so stubborn! Ughh!" She walked in circles around their hallroom before going up to the fridge, taking out a bottle, and taking a sip from it. "You did not want to learn archery from her then fine! Just tell her you don''t want to and walk out of the place saying nothing will change your mind! Why sit there the entire time and then deny once again after hearing us out?!" She handed him the water bottle when she had her fill, and he thanked her for that. "I can''t just walk out when you are trying so hard to convince me, dear. I at least needed to give you a chance¡­ but you two couldn''t change my mind. I still think archery isn''t for me. Perhaps you will have to try harder or take some different approach-." "Shut up!" He handed her the bottle back after kissing her, something she liked but did not want to at the moment, and she finished the bottle before throwing it in the recycle bin. "You''re unbelievable Elio." She was frustrated, the AC was blasting all around the house and yet she was sweating bullets, so He suggested they should take a bath as he was also all sticky after all that gaming. They had been in the chariot for almost three days now. It was almost the same time as his first run. They had been traveling in the game all this while, and after taking a short break after that Mage tower master incident, but then they had finished their travel until they reached Yuta. And now that they were in the city, they were going to have some real rest, some real food, and some real fighting. Some real kissing, cuddling and f-... family time, perhaps. Or perhaps not. "You really are a bastard, you know El?" "Of course I know. I am a bastard. I am a dog, cat, monkey, dumbass, piece of shit as well. You can curse me all you want. I deserve that." From his perspective, hearing some curses from her was better than actually getting into any arguments against her. She was good when it came to debates since she was more knowledgeable than him and she used all of that to her advantage. He had never won against her when it came to arguments or debates, so he had given up on it a long time ago. In this reality, most of the things she says are correct and almost all of the facts that she states are eternal truths carved on the monoliths by the Sadhus themselves. "Cold?" "Put some ice in the bathtub as well. I need an ice bath¡­ Do you know how bad I felt when Elara looked at me with that broken expression?! How can you so bluntly reject her like that? Twice, at that!" She was angry, she was frustrated, she was feeling bad, and she wanted to punch him. But she could not do that. If she did punch him and he dodges, she might end up smashing a glass or breaking something around the bathroom. Their bathroom was one of their most cherished places in this apartment so they had banned any kind of fighting in here. There was a place for fighting, so they would deal with one another when they got there. "Here''s the ice. Step aside and place your clothes in the basket please. Oh, and you look hot without them." "Of course I do~. But¡­ don''t change the subject!" They had a big bathtub that both of them loved so, while he filled it with the ice water, she prepared their bath essentials. There was a big mirror on one of the walls of the big bathroom, so she looked at herself with a pleased expression¡­ "Yup. Definitely hot." ¡­but when he stood beside her, in the same ''state'' as her, a blush popped up on her pretty face. "H-hey. Don''t sneak up on me like that!" The bathtub was full, the water was ready, the soft light in the bathroom was setting a perfect mood as well, so her flustered face looked even more adorable. "I don''t have to sneak up on someone that''s already mine, now do I?" He wrapped his arms around her from behind, and with closed eyes, sniffed her sweaty neck. "Yup¡­ you need a proper wash." The pink turned into a red when he did that out of the blue and she tried to get away from him with new alerted eyes, but his grip around her was firm. "Want me to wash you up, Miss Twinkle?" "...hey!" Using that name was the worst he could have done in this perfect situation, he knew that as well. S~ea??h the N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She was also getting into the mood, but thanks to that one name¡­ "Hmph. Bastard." He was punched and left on the cold floor¡­ just the way he deserved. As well as exactly the way he wanted it to be. Chapter 127 Missed calls and unread messages "Bastard."She wanted to hit him again, but she could not do it anymore. "You broke the rule, now you can''t hit me for the rest of the day." They had rules in this house, and breaking rules had punishments. "You cheater!" -Splash! "You made me do it!" -Splash! Splash! "Don''t splash the water like a little kid." "Let me go and I won''t!" They weren''t supposed to throw punches in the bathroom, but she did, and as a punishment for breaking the rule, he gets to hold her for the entire time they were in the bathtub. She also can''t hit him for the rest of the day in the house or outside so, he at least dealt with the physical things. He always found it difficult to defeat her in a direct fight anyway so he did not want to waste time when they could do so many more fun things. Your next read awaits at empire "Just stay still dude." He rested his head against her back, and closed his eyes. The cold water was not that cold to their hot bodies. With them sticking together, it was even less cold. In fact, this was the best temperature that they needed right now. It was perfect, and she knew it as well. "Hmph¡­" She wanted to be the one to hold him this time, but he unfairly stole that chance from her. He was a cheater, and he was a bastard. And on top of that, he was also a hot piece of hotness. "Don''t sleep." She kissed his shoulder and picked up the smartphone sitting on the side. "I won''t." And he kissed her back, sending another unexpected shiver down her spine. "Hey¡­" "Yes?" He placed his chin on her shoulder and looked at her with a smirk knowing full well just how much she liked this. "You''re a baby, you know?" "Am I now, hmm?" He wanted to do it again, but there was no point in doing it when she was on guard. So, he watched the phone screen that she was booting up. The phone she picked up was a special phone that she called her bathroom phone, something she only used when she was in here. There was no need to use phones in the house most of the time since both of them mostly used their [Cyberwatches] and PCs. But these thin bricks of tech were still a fun thing to use even in this day and age. -Ding. "Hmm¡­ let''s see." The smartphones were something of an technology of the older generation, but many people, many old ones still used them instead of the better C.watches. "Hmm?" "Did we have any messages? There weren''t any the last time I checked." The phone was connected with their other accounts so this piece was a convenient tech. "I don''t think I have any important messages but¡­" His account had around twelve missed calls and around sixty messages. And from a single person as well¡­ "Olive?" There were only two people who would call him so many times, and only one that would leave so many messages for him. "I remember you still haven''t told her you started playing NO, right?" "...?!" Suddenly, an expression of shock popped up on his face. -Splash! "You didn''t tell her?!" He shouted, splashing some water out of the bathtub as well. "Did you tell me to tell her? I don''t seem to remember you doing it though." -Splash! Splash! "But! Shouldn''t you at least-." "Hey. Calm your horses man. You''re gonna empty the bathtub." This was bad news for him. He did not mean to, but ever since he started playing the sense of time had become a blur for him. In the last few weeks they had been playing this game, he had not come out of his Chariot that many times. After his tutorial and after meeting her in Moongold, they almost only came out for some refreshments and a break. With all the things going on in Moongold, that dark mage thing and the Library event and even the incident with that mage tower master almost left him with no time to be in touch with the others in here. He surely talked with his mom a while back so she knew how he was finally doing something he wanted to try for a long time now. But, even though he had just talked with her a while back, even sent her a message like he usually does the last time he was out¡­ he completely forgot to tell one of the most important people of his life about his retirement and . "Alex¡­ I thought you told her." His head dropped on her back once again, she thought about how this is going to be a complicated matter now. "She''s your girl friend, mister. If you''re retiring, why would I tell her?" there was a smirk on her face, and he knew that without even seeing it. She did that intentionally. She wanted to see some drama between these childhood friends. But even she did not think this dumb bastard of hers would forget about it completely for more than three weeks. "Haaa¡­" She did condition him to think she was going to tell that ''friend'' of theirs, but it wasn''t so effective to the point things would come down to this. 12 missed calls and 69 unread messages. That was too much, even from her perspective. "Let''s go down. And reply to her third message first. Tell her I''m not dead yet with that :tearful: emoji." He did not need to read all those DMs to know what they might be. He could already guess the first and last few of them. "Gotcha." Olivea, his dear childhood friend and one of the closest people he had in his life. She was family, and she owned a bakery on the third floor of their building so thankfully, they would not have to fly two states across to apologize to her. "It''s on you if she cries, hehe." She did not expect things would go this far, but this was only going to be better entertainment for her. The Drama was going to be even more fun. "..." But, Elio did not like how she was thinking it so freely when he was having a mental crisis. "You''re a bad, bad girl, Alex." S~ea??h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He moved his hand up her back¡­ "...!" And then, with his nails, he scratched her back down in a sharp movement. "Ugh~." "Even if it was unintentional, you went too far." She was going to be punished for that. Of course though¡­ that would be after they get out of this bathtub. Chapter 128 Bakery downstairs The building that they lived in was a tall modern skyscraper, a state of the art place that not just anyone could afford to live in situated in the heart of their city.It was a popular place, in a popular area, where many celebrities and even high ranking individuals of the city lived. -Ding. [Third. Floor.] Every apartment space was costly here, especially the ones above the tenth floor like theirs. The building had a great complex on the ground floor filled with many shops of branded goods, on the higher floors were individual shops owned by people who had money to afford spaces like these, and going up were houses or offices of various companies or individuals. Overall, it was a nice building. And, now that they were down to the third floor, their current destination, Elio braced himself. "I don''t think she will be that angry, you know?" Alex was wearing a sloppy outfit as always. Loose cargo jeans over an oversized top. It would have looked pretty good if she was wearing a shorter top with better shoes instead of those crocs, but she liked it this way. They were only going downstairs to visit their friend, so dressing up did not make any sense. "It''s not about her being angry, Alex. You know I just feel bad after worrying her like that. It''s my fault." Unlike her, he was styled up. With proper shoes, pants, and shirt as well as his unique scent, he was the reason for quite a few of the girl''s and ladies'' attention towards them. He was pretty attractive, and thanks to his professional experiences until now, dressing up properly when going out had become a habit for him. "Welp, it''s your matter~. I''m just here for the drama~." She was going to enjoy this. Perhaps even more than she had expected when she formulated this little prank. "You¡­ damn woman." With a sigh and a tired look, he shook his head as the two of them stopped before a unique shop with a grand entrance¡­ "Pretty as ever." S§×ar?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Right~? I love this place~." Artificial sunlight streamed through the giant windows of [The Sweetest Sin] bathing Elio and Alex in a warm glow. The bakery itself was a showstopper on the entire floor. People pressed their noses against the glass, oohing and aahing at the display¡­ at least in a decent manner. Inside, a wonderland awaited the two. "Let''s go in." "I''m already ahead of you~." Gleaming floors reflected sparkling custom made chandeliers, and pastries behind the counter shimmered like jewels¨C not just as a metaphor. Cakes boasted fantastical decorations, cookies sported playful colors, and glistening tarts with sugary delights tempted all brats of rich backgrounds. The air also buzzed with the delicious aroma of chocolate and vanilla and strawberry and much, much more. When inside and standing before the ordering counter, Alex nudged Elio. "Ready to face a sugar coma~? Or are you just here to hold my hand?" she teased with a grin. "Alex¡­ not right now, babe." he firmed up his grip around her hand and looked at one of the employees present behind the counter. He recognised the two of them so, Elio asked him where his ''friend'' and the owner of this place was through eye contact, and the employee answered that she was in the back with the same. Then, since he already knew what Elio would be asking next, he tapped one of the other employees beside him, asked him to look after the two of them, and walked to the back through the door present at the left side of the counter. "The place is crowded, as usual." every single thing that they were seeing around them cost thousands of V, and yet there were many people every single day that visited the shop. Though, since there was a pre-reservation system in place, the competition to get even a single seat for even a few desserts was fierce. People even used to buy some of the pre-booked spots illegally before the owner of this place, Olivea, took strict actions against such illegal activities. This was her shop, these were her sweets, and they were an experience that one had to wait for if they wanted to enjoy it as best as a human could. She was a strict person when it came to these kinds of things. Thankfully, those things did not apply to family and friends. "Would you like anything, sir, ma''am?" The employee in a professional chef outfit asked politely, knowing full well just who these people were. "Yes~! We would-." Enjoy exclusive content from empire Alex was being a little too playful now. It was getting out of hand, so he looked at her in a certain way, almost glared at her seriously, and seeing this ''look'' was enough to silence her. "You don''t have to worry about it. She knows what we will have." With a smile, Elio pulled a chair for Alex and she sat down without saying anything. "Very well, sir." He also sat down after nodding at the employee with a smile on his face. And then¡­ the two of them waited for a moment. The fine place and sitting in an isolated corner on special VIP seats were two individuals. There was an empty seat beside them, but people present there did not pay much attention to that. Most of them were from a rich household or were people who worked very hard to get this chance, so while most were busy enjoying and taking pictures of their sweets and bread, the rest who recognised the two were shocked to see these two individuals present there. -Step. Step. Step. "You''re unbelievable, Elio." Their surprise only increased further when they recognised the person who sat down on the empty third chair after placing a tray full of unique looking small things on their table. "Where were you?!" A cute face and short brown hair, wearing a black chef outfit distinct from the others'' present in this grand shop, and the certain special golden star on her defined chest. Most of the people might not recognize her since she did not make many public appearances, but she was certainly not someone those from a high social class could overlook. "Explain yourself, Mister Elio." She had very unique purple eyes that she inherited from her mother, but for now, she was wearing glasses so they were hidden behind them. She was also pouting like an upset kid, so¡­ Elio knew this was going to be a hell of a difficult matter to explain and apologize for. Chapter 129 Olivea "So¡­ you''re retired now?" she plated the special sweet that he loved for him while thinking about all that he had just told her with a confused look.He was saying he was retired now and that he had also started playing that weird game everyone including her dad plays these days. She understood the retirement part, it pretty much meant he wasn''t going to work anymore, but even after all these years, she could not understand their liking for games. "What do you even do in those games? Haaa¡­" She knew very well how her bestie Alex could not eat too many sweets even though she loved it, so she had made her something special as she usually does. Along with her black coffee without any sugar. "First it was Alex, then dad, then my big brother and now you as well, El? Why do you all play that game, geez. I don''t understand it at all." Olivea, or Olive as they all called her was a simple person that had lived a simple life even with her extraordinary background. She wasn''t interested in grand things, she liked baking so she learned it from the best places around the world, and now she was doing what she loved. She was recognised for all her work and people loved what she made. And, she was happy with just that much. "You should have at least told me about it, you know? I was so worried¡­" "I know. I thought Alex would tell you-." "Why would she tell me about it if it was about you?" "Exactly her thoughts as well, but she did this thing-." "I didn''t do anything, Olive~. He''s just making excuses." With a sneaky smirk, Alex took a spoonful of the pretty dessert her cute friend had made for her. It was heavenly, as always. "Right? I can tell you''re making excuses El!" She was angry right now¡­ which was a cute sight. S§×arch* The NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Her pretty and cute face was all red from anger, her red nose pointed at him, and her eyes glaring at him with that upset look¡­ if anyone from either of their family saw her like this, Elio would be lectured for hours until this little gem of theirs calmed down. "I¡­" He looked at his darling partner with a little anger in his eyes, before shifting that anger into genuine sadness and looking down at his plate. "Yes. I''m making excuses." Even if this was her prank, he was the one that forgot about this important thing. He did not tell her, he was unreachable for a few days, there were no replies, and he did not pick the calls either. Olive did not know he had started playing games again, and that too the same one that her father was obsessed with since a while back, so she did not try to contact him through the [Common] communication ID. If he did not reply back to her today, she was most definitely going to ask Alex if he was alright or not through the CCI. "I''m sorry. It was my fault." looking up straight in her eyes, her sad eyes, he apologized. And since the apology was genuine enough, she accepted it and shook her head. "You will have to treat me if you are sorry, mister. And tell me everything you did after you started playing that game." There was a helpless smile on her face now. The anger had all melted away, and she had forgiven her dear friend. "What the hell¡­?" This was a little too anticlimactic though. Alex did not like it. This was not fun! Stay updated through empire "Aren''t you going to shout at him some more, Olive?! Cry perhaps and make fuss like you should? He did something so horrible!" She was trying to provoke her¡­ even while knowing such obvious provocations were not going to work on someone like her. "I''m fine, Alex dear. He apologized, that''s all I need~." She smiled at her warmly, and patted her head with her gentle and soft hands. She liked her and she liked him. Both were her friends, and both were amazing people. One was her childhood friend, someone that was the same as her brother to her. While the other was the partner that he met by fate, someone just as amazing as him that she adored just like a big sister. "He''s at least better than my dad and brother, you know? He apologizes for ignoring my messages and calls. Those two dummies are always busy with god knows what in that game." She sighed lightly, took a sip from her teacup, and shook her head. "You two at least talk properly about that ''other'' world of yours. Those dummies don''t even know how to explain what they do there to me." She wasn''t really interested in the games. She was happy baking and making these pretty things so she had not even tried this that most of the people around her play nowadays. "And, unlike you two, those two have a job and people to look after every day. They should understand that the ''other'' world of theirs isn''t reality. It''s just a game at the end of the day." She was the one of the rare few that thought like that. And she was not wrong either. This game was most certainly just a game, but calling it anything less than a reality was not right. "Olive, I thought the same, you know?" Until Elio started playing this ''game'' even with his long experience in the field and as someone who knew a great lot about this game, he had also considered this game as nothing more than a very well developed game. "But is much more than just a simple game." His experiences in that world, the friends he met, the pain he felt to the happiness¡­ it wasn''t real but it was nothing less than reality. "This game may not be reality that we know, but it most certainly is a reality." A unique reality with its own laws and functions. It was a world different from this one, a world that actually existed independently. was not just a game, it was much more than that. He wanted his best friend to know that as well¡­ "Do you know what I did after I started?" And now that he had this chance, he was going to try and convince her to play this ''game'' as well. Chapter 130 A world of wonders "You have this thing~?" Stars appeared in her eyes as soon as he showed Olive the pictures of Az, Miu, and Sera."Yup. They are my friends." He knew her much better than she knew herself, and the same was true the other way around. They had been together for a long time, so they knew a great lot about one another. "Wow~! Look at them~." Elio had a talent for taking pictures, and when they were inside the game, he had taken hundreds of pictures- screenshots- of various things. Some of them were of his cute friends. And, he knew of all the people in this world, this friend of theirs would love those adorable creatures unconditionally. Especially the gecko. "That smiling one is Miu, the round one is Az, my first friend in that world, and Sera is the most recent one. She hasn''t been around for that long, but she is a nice person." He already told her how his adventures until now have been. How his tutorial went, how he met those slimes, how he met Alex in the new town, and how the town was. He had photos of all the occasions. He showed her all kinds of things. From small things to the pretty things to the creatures that he met in that world. He showed her videos as well. S~ea??h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And, since all of this was [Cloud data] that he was showing her through his cyber watch''s holographic screen, the quality was the same as the quality of his in-game vision. The technology in this era was very convenient. Especially some of the things that have evolved into something that was only concepts a few decades back. He liked this whole development of science, but he did not understand most of the things. The tech was her field, so he preferred to stay out of all of that. "Her name is Miu~? She''s so cute~!" Olive had a unique liking for reptiles. Back at her house, she had made a special greenhouse where twelve different kinds of reptile species lived together. And, she loved shiny crystal things as well¨C combining both of them, and giving it a forever happy bright smile, Miu was someone she could not possibly not like. "If you start playing, you can meet them, you know?" He knew merely telling her about the world, the cool things there, the things that she can do over there, and all various kinds of things would be ineffective. Unlike normal people their age, she was of an older mindset like her mom. Her dad was one cool person that Alex was best buddies with, but that was mainly because of how similar those two were. "Elio¡­ you know I have no time to play games. I have to manage the shop." She looked at him with an upset face. Her love for baking, this shop and seeing the satisfied smiles on her customers was one of the reasons she was not playing those games. She did not find them boring, but there was nothing there that she cannot have here. Plus, if she wastes her precious time playing games like the rest of them, who would look after the shop? "You have plenty of time, Olive. We play for too long, but since time goes on three times faster in that place, even if you just play for three or four hours, that would be three times in that world." Elio scrolled through the images and showed her one of the cuter one of Miu''s smiling photos¡­ which was certainly effective. "You know what? You can cook as you like in that place, and if you open a shop in a big city there, you can attract even more people. Plus, you can fulfill your wish of making a reptile cafe there." A place where snakes serve tea, iguanas pass on sugar, and a place where crocodiles are helpers. She wanted a place where people and these reptiles could live together without the state laws preventing something like that. She obviously cannot do that absurd thing in reality, but things would be different inside this particular game. "I know you have tried it in games before, but this one is different. I don''t think there is something specific like a reptile cafe in but I remember there is a unique cafe belonging to one of the famous tamers." He showed her Miu''s picture when she was looking at the unique Mana plant in the restaurant where they met Miss Aloha for the first time. The amazed look of the little gecko was even more attractive to her since the reptiles that she had in reality were not as expressive as this one. Explore stories on empire This was her first time seeing such a unique creature. "Alex, tell her." "Nah. You''re doing a nice job convincing her." She did not get to see any drama, so she was enjoying this new soap before her while chewing on her bread. It was fun seeing these two. Especially when she was switching between her cute side and her professional side like that. "You''re something else, Alex¡­" Elio really did not know what to do with this girl. He wanted to spank her or something, but he could only glare at her in this place. Still¡­ "Hey. Don''t look at her like that!" Olive hit his resting hand with a spoon while looking at him with an angry look. He was talking with her and if she did not want to interfere in their matters, she had all the right to just sit there and watch. She was doing the right thing in the first place. Unlike this friend of hers, she was at least not doing anything to force her into playing that game. Olive wasn''t interested in it since she knew if she likes that too much then she wouldn''t be able to focus on what she was doing right now. And she did not want that. "Olive¡­" He looked at Alex''s smirking face with another angry glare, but he could not continue it when Olive was here. So he just shook his head, ignored her, and looked back at his friend while showing her a photo of Misha and Miu. Something that instantly caught her attention¡­ Chapter 131 New anticipation "Woh! Didn''t you say something about not being able to hold this cute one? Who''s she~? How''s she holding her~?"Seeing the happy Misha holding the happier gecko excited his friend. "This is Misha. The miserable child I was talking about earlier." He had already told her about the mother and daughter that were now taking care of his friends in the game. They were looking after them in their absence, and thanks to them, he did not have to worry about those curious little troublemakers. "Oh¡­ so, she''s the special child you were talking about?" Olive knew about Misha''s condition and though she did not know much about the concepts of this game, she knew this one was special. Still, she was holding the little gecko. "Then, it isn''t impossible to hold this little one, right? There are just some conditions that one has to fulfill or something." "You can say that¡­ Nothing is impossible in this game, Olive." He looked right in her eyes, sincerely. She could tell he really wanted her to at least try this out. Her father and brother had tried convincing her many times now as well, but she did not play those games. Her dearest friend was abstaining from all kinds of games that he used to love back in the days just for his career and for his work. He was working hard so she had always followed his example and given her best in her work as well. She was already following what she wanted to do, and unlike him, she could not leave all of this behind and retire. She loved this¡­ "Haaa¡­ alright." But at the very least, she can give this one a shot. "I will try it." A smile bloomed on his face, while at the same time, the expression of enjoyment Alex had until now turned into boredom once again. "Tsk." She did not like how the two of them did not have any drama when the matter was serious. They were always going at one another over the smallest things, fighting, laughing, playing with even the most simple things, but when things become serious, they left the drama behind and became adults. "Yes. Just try it." She did not like this aspect of these two serious dummies. "Don''t expect too much though. If I find anything wrong with these ''quests'' or whatever, I will stop playing. Then you will have to make that reptile cafe for me so that I can see the cute photos at the very least." "I promise I will do it." He smiled at her, knowing full well how this person was not going to leave something that she starts and gets interested in that easily. She did not stop until she obtained that world level golden star, so there was no way she was going to stop after seeing the uniqueness of that world. "Hmph." Alex still did not like this¡­ these two dummies of hers were too cute to hate. "You''re a bastard-." "Alex." Olive instantly cut her off when she was about to curse. "We have rules, don''t we?" And then she smiled at her Warmly. "Right. Sorry about that." Olivea was a Cinnamonroll most of the time, but not Alex, not Elio, not anyone from either of their families would want to go on her bad side. Sear?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "As long as you understand, hehe~." Whoever said the sweetest people are the scariest was right. This one right here was the living example of that. "Do you want anything else? I''m sure you still have a lot of things to tell me about this ''game'' right?" Well, as a professional baker, her tolerance level was quite high overall. And she did not get angry that easily either so they did not have to worry about anything at least right now. "Well, there sure are a few things." They would have loved to chat a little more. "But we can talk about them later." Sadly, her break time was over. And he did not want to keep her here when there were still so many people around. The rest of her ''students'' that work here were surely talented and could manage without her, but she still was the one that liked to look after most of the things. She liked it, so he did not want to stop her right now. When she starts playing, he knew there will be a time when she herself adjusts to things, but until then, this much was fine. "Get us the bill please. And go do your things now." The chat they had was good, he loved chatting with her like this, especially when Alex or the rest of their family members were around. Messages and calls were good and all, but this rare face to face chat was much better. "Well, if that''s what you want¡­" Olive smiled at him helplessly, and stood up from her chair. "You can just treat me when I come down to your apartment, how about that?" She took out a pen and paper book from her coat pocket and wrote something down before placing the torn paper on their table. "You will have to bring the groceries if you want that though, Miss Weil." He said his thanks for the sweets as he hugged her. Experience more on empire "Hey, don''t play bargaining with me. I know you are good at it and I''ll lose anyway." And she complained as she usually does at that comment of his while hugging him back. "That''s right! Don''t take advantage of my Olive!" Alex hugged her tightly as usual, claiming her as her own, even kissing her soft cheeks¨C something very normal between them. "Don''t shout, Alex." Olive just shook her head, kissed her back, and picked up the tray full of things. "I''ll call you when my Chariot arrives. Dad will be excited that someone finally convinced me to play." "Haha, Sean definitely will~." Just like how Alex had modified their Chariots, her dad had modified the ones that they use. But the one that he had prepared for her was back at their house, and it would take a while for it to get here even through their special high speed transfer vehicles. "Dad will personally come, I think. But if he doesn''t, set it up for me please." But if there isn''t anything important going on, she knew he would come to meet her and set things up for her, pushing all the work on her brother and his secretaries. "We will deduct the pay from the grocery money-." "Hey, you aren''t even gonna do anything!" Elio wanted to joke one last time before they went back, and it certainly worked. "Ptfff." Alex laughed first, then Olive, and then he also laughed with them. "Hahaha." Things were fun when the three of them were together. And he knew¡­ things would be even more fun when the three of them plays in that unique world together. "Alright then, see you later Olive." "Don''t ignore me again, hehe." "I''ll make sure he doesn''t~." She had work here and they also had work in that world. So, to rest some more and go back refreshed, they parted ways with their friend. And with a new anticipation in their hearts this time¡­ Chapter 132 Back in game ============ID: #### (Level-42) Race: Human (####) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 53 Agility: 55 Endurance: 39 T-T (System stats) Intelligence: 6 Luck: 0 Charm: 2 T-T (Functional stats) Energy:50/50 Stamina: 50/50 Fatigue: 0/50 (Stat points: 0) {Skills: Sword intent, Energy infusion, Blink, Smash, Energy smash.} [Titles: <####>, .] ============ "Pretty good, I''d say." They were back in the room of their inn in Yuta. And, it was evening already. "Only we can see the achievement list in our status windows?" They moved around a little, and before doing anything else, both of them had called up their status windows. ============ ID: Elio (Level-39) Race: Human (Commoner) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 41 Agility: 45 Enjoy new stories from empire Endurance: 43 T-T (System stats) Intelligence: 13 Luck: 2 Charm: 4 T-T (Functional stats) Energy: 50/50 Stamina: 50/50 Fatigue: 0/50 Mana: 60/60 (Stat points: 0) {Skills: Mana sense.} [Titles: .] =Achievement List: Tutorial tamer (Rare), Special Rookie (Common), Combat teacher (Common), Caring master (Rare), Titled special rookie (Rare), Treading the path of Mana (Common), Hunter Duo (Common), Defenders of town (Common), Judge of evil (Rare), Ancient magic caster (Common), Master of a mutant (Common), Recognition by Forgotten enigmas (Rare), Blessed Individual (Common), Mage killer (Rare), Nature''s gratitude (Rare), Hallmaster''s recognition (Common). ============ "Not really. We can see the others'' achievement list, but not mine. Mine¡­ well, even I cannot see mine." Alex could not see her own achievement list, and even though there were some of her past achievement boxes present in her inventory, she could not see them either. She knew they were present there, but she could neither perceive them nor could she open them in the time of need¡­ still, the same was not true for the achievement boxes that she had earned ever since her levels dropped. She could still use them whenever she wanted to, just that there wasn''t anything that she wanted from those things. "Ah¡­ I see. Well, then we are pretty much on the same level." Her level was a little higher than him and she had received a natural blessing in the form of nine physical stat points so she was a little stronger than him stat wise. He now knew about her special sword and circumstances as well, so he knew he needed to get stronger even faster now so that she does not have to use those important ''temporary'' keys of hers to help him with the smallest of things. He knew there were going to be many more difficult times when they would need that power of hers, so until then, he needed to be the strength that protects her and the rest around her. "Hmmm. Alright then¡­" Alex checked up a few things in her inventory, scanned through the community forums for anything going on, and after finishing it, she got out of bed with Elio. "Let''s go check up on the rest of them, see what they are doing, and go to the market." Her special hairstyle from Miss Aloha returned to the state it originally was with only a little bit of Mana so Elio helped her with it. "Are we going shopping? Didn''t you tell Misha that we would be busy all day today?" They tidied up their clothes, looked around the room to confirm it wasn''t messed up, and then tied their shoelaces for each other. -Knock. Knock. Elio opened the door, the two walked out and knocked on the door directly next to theirs. "Anyone-." "Is that brother Elio~?" Even before Alex asked something, from perhaps the knock on the door alone, the young voice behind the door somehow recognised them and came running to open the door. Her mom obviously tried to stop her, but even she knew stopping this one was not an easy task. She was excited, so, the door opened with a sharp movement, and Misha looked at the two of them with a joyous expression. "You''re finally back~!" She first hugged her big sister, showing who she liked more, and then her big brother who was looking at her mother inside the room with a bitter expression. "Miu!" S§×ar?h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Muuuuu~." He did not like how Misha liked her more. He wanted to be the one to receive more attention and affection from her¡­ "Chirp~." [{ Welcome back, master. }] Sera greeted the two as they walked inside the room and closed the door behind them. The inside of the room was ordinary like any normal inn, but since there were two beds here, it was a little more spacious than their room. "Were you all playing some game, Misha?" Miss Rin and Sera were sitting on the floor so it seemed like the two of them, and the rest were playing something. But there was nothing there that could indicate what kind of game they were playing. "Hehe, no~. Az was showing us the new magic it learned recently." "Hmm?" "Muuuuu~!" This was news to them. Az had only learned the magic from the magic scrolls that Alex gave it until now, so if they were saying it learned a new magic, then this was not a simple matter anymore. "Can you show us what new thing you could do, Az?" Elio knew his slime friend well, so he knew it would not use a power that could be dangerous to them. "Muuuuuu~!" The spells that it used were very powerful. So much so that even a mage tower master could almost be killed with them. With its magic wand, it was much more powerful than a (tier-2) mage. In fact, if the slime could create magic on its own, it could become a (tier-3) mage as well. But, it was a slime. So at least Alex and Elio did not expect it to create its own unique spells. -Oooooooooong! Still, the fact that even Miss Rin and Sera looked somewhat confused meant there was something to this new magic they were talking about. "Hmmm?" But, when Az showed it to them, Elio did not understand what was so unique about some simple light particles flowing around the slime''s body. "What''s this light?" They were just blue particles of light that seemed to be dancing around Az. Perhaps it was some kind of light magic or water magic, or a combination of both¡­ but he did not understand what this thing was. "Are those¡­ spirits?" Alex, on the other hand, just like the mother and the Servant on the floor, knew well what these dancing particles of light might be. But, this did not make any sense to her either. Chapter 133 Elemental spirits Elements exist and they make up various parts of the world.Just like atoms, the elements make the base and foundation of this world. Mainly six elements exist independently and in their various divided and combined forms. Namely Water, Wind, Fire, Earth, Darkness and Light, these elements make up various elements of the physical world that every mortal perceives. "Wow¡­" "Seems like even you don''t understand this, Alex." Just like Miss Rin and Sera, Alex also sat down on the floor and observed the dancing particles of light that revolved around Az and occasionally went to the rest of them sitting around it. "There is nothing to understand, Miss Rin." These dancing particles of light, they were Physical manifestations of the water element making up this world. "That slime is just special. So much so that even spirits are interested in it." The Elemental spirits, much like guardian spirits exist in a unique world of their own. This unique word is called a [Realm] by the players and natives, and very few people know about these unique worlds. People know elements exist everywhere and thus a physical manifestation of these elements are also present all around them. They exist everywhere, just that they are beyond a [Boundary] that divides the physical realm of mortals and their own world. "These are spirits? Like, the spirits that the [< Elementalists >] command?" "No, these are spirits that blacksmiths use to forge weapons." She looked at him with squinted eyes, asking him just what kind of stupid question he was asking. They were spirits, the same spirits that Elementalists contract with, the same spirits that fairies are friends with, the same spirits that guide individuals closer to nature, and the same spirits that can very well be fused in weapons and items by the hands of a [Grandmaster] under certain perfect conditions. Spirits were a physical manifestation of the elements that they were made with. They were a conscious existence that had an intelligence, and in their own world, they were divided into various ranks that were divided into the powers that they held. They were unique entities that one could not understand simply as a creature. They were unique beings that were beyond simple understanding. "Dummy. Haaa¡­ just come here and sit down. Look at them closely, you will understand a little bit." Discover hidden content at empire These creatures¡­ in the entire world of NO, they were one of the purest beings. The intelligence they had varied greatly. The little particles of light that were dancing around them right now were all simply children that could not manifest completely in this world. They were using Az''s Mana as a medium, so they could not completely manifest in their original forms. But, even as this most basic form of a light particle, if one focuses enough, they could see a little more than what was visible to the naked eye. These creatures, these energy manifestations were more of a packet of energy than something like a complete physical entity. S§×arch* The N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "You remember the tiger that the guard captain manifested into?" Alex continued looking at the Dancing Lights as she told him a little more about these unique beings. "The guardian spirits, much like the elemental spirits, are unique beings that reside in the spirit world like the elemental spirits." There were only a few ways for the entities of the various Realms to cross the Boundaries dividing these worlds and go into their world. "Elemental spirits are special. They are much closer to nature than the guardian spirits since the elements that they are made of is essentially what nature is made of on the surface level." Nature was a vast entity¨C it was a truth that could not just be limited to what one sees, what one experiences, or what one understands. Guardian spirits were the spirit reincarnations of unique souls that could not pass on to the [Afterlife]. They were energy bodies that did not have any physical properties and could not exist in the world that was essentially for the physical beings. However through certain skills or through certain methods, those spirits could be summoned into the physical world. And, the same was true for the Elemental spirits. "You know the basics about them, right?" "About their ranks and stuff?" "Yes, that." The spirits were divided into six unique ranks according to their powers, their scale, their intelligence, and their control over the elements that they were made of. They are not creatures, but unique Energy entities so they can grow constantly with their increasing age. They do not have a concept of death among them, just a cycle of birth and rebirth. Just like mortals, they grow, they gather energy, reach a supreme state-manifestation, and with a certain probability, their complete forms decay. At least, that''s what was theorized. "Elemental spirits are unique entities, Elio." A smile appeared on her face as she remembered her time in the spirit realm among the countless spirits, and a being that had helped her immensely in the past. "Even after all these years, We do not know much about them." She was one of the few fortunate ones who had ever got the chance to go to their unique world and experience what a mortal could not. Not many people understood these beings as much as she did. Yet, she knew there was a lot that she still did not know about these creatures. "The fact that Az could share its power with the spirits around it means it has a certain affinity for Elementalism. And it somewhat makes sense, you know?" Az was not as powerful without its wand as it was when casting the spells with the Wand. it was weird, and even Alex had always found it weird how a spell could work so differently with and without a wand. Until now, she had theorized that the wand had some kind of special ability that made the spells more powerful than they were. But, with the presence of the spirits, things were clear now. "The power to almost kill a mage tower master, destructive spells more powerful than the limitations of the spells themselves, and a power that was beyond the cost of its Mana." The Wand helped amplify the elemental power through the power of the spirits, which was somewhat the same as what the proper Elementalists and contractors of the spirits do. "Haaa¡­ the Hall master must have known about this as well." As a descendent of elves, as a contractor of a high ranking spirit, and as someone who could perceive the spirits directly, she must have known about them already. But the rest of them were only finding it right now¡­ "Isn''t this good then?" His friend will be like one of those rare few individuals that could use the pure power of the spirits. Elio was excited and happy about it. "It is a good thing, yes." There was nothing wrong with it, certainly. But Elio could not understand the reason why Alex, Miss Rin and even his Sera had a complicated expression on their faces despite nothing being wrong with it. "Well¡­" He wanted to know why they had that look on their faces, but Alex could only give him a new helpless look and sigh at him with a smile. "It''s a slime we are talking about, Elio." The simplest creatures of nature, the creatures that people ignore most of the time, and the beings that should have been nothing less than a blob of slime without any great power. "It''s not everyday that you see a Slime that can become an Elementalist." Just the existence of those with the affinity with the Elemental spirits was miniscule in this world. A slime that had spirits following it around? People would laugh if they heard something so obviously funny. Chapter 134 Preparing a dungeon run "Well, anyway¡­"Az was special. Much more than they had expected and there might still be something that they did not know about this special creature. "We are going on a dungeon run." Az could not keep the spirits around for long so while it recovered it''s Mana, Misha and the rest of them played on the other side of the room, leaving the rest of the adults alone. "On a dungeon run? Here?" Miss Rin knew the dungeons around this area, and all the hunting grounds so she knew most of those places were mostly only good for beginners or knights of much higher levels. There were some low level dungeons in the area that were also restricted from the common public and someone who was of the low level like the two of them were not even allowed to enter them. Experience new tales on empire "Yup. It''s a secret dungeon so don''t think about it the same way as the rest of the dungeons. I know even we can take on the (Level-60)+ monster swarms, but they aren''t gonna be that helpful." They were strong enough to clear those kinds of dungeons, but they would not help them as much as they wanted right now. A dungeon run into those simple dungeons was not going to be much helpful for them. That''s why they were going to a new place that not many people knew about. "A secret dungeon? Such a place exists here?" "Yup. That old man himself cleared it a few times in the past. Not many people know about it, and I got permission from the hall master to clear it this time around." "...?" They did not know when she talked with the Hall master of the archer hall, but if she was saying it¡­ Elio knew it was a lie. It wasn''t in her nature to ask for permission for the things that she can just have herself, so unlike Miss Rin who actually fell for her words, he knew the truth. "It''s a forest environment dungeon, the humidity is high so water magic will be pretty useful. There are (Level-70) mobs, (Level-80) elites, and (Level-100) sub-bosses." With a smirk on her face, she looked at two of her companions. "There are going to be so many mobs there that each of the knight halls has to combine their forces to clear this one periodically. So, we are gonna need some wide angle spells." What she was saying was even more absurd now¡­ "Alex." The knight halls had so many knights above the level of Moongold''s guard captain that there should be hundreds of them. And, if they had to come together to clear the place she was talking about, then it most certainly was not somewhere they should go! "Are you serious?" Elio even had to confirm if she was joking or not. They were pretty high level now compared to a few days ago but, Elio had never defeated any being of high level. "I know you have thought things out but, will it really be safe for us?" He himself had never even killed any creature so he was not the same as her who had at least fought directly against the dark mage and defeated the mage tower master with the powers that she could not use more than once. "He''s right, Alex. And with Misha, I don''t know what we would do in a dungeon with higher difficulty." She might not have any problem going against those creatures and Miss Rin might also be alright with it, but the same was not true for a support like him, a weak being like Az that could not use its power as frequently as them, or Miu who could barely use any power that it had. They were weak, and since Sera was still low leveled, the powers that she had were very, very limited. "Muuu?" "Miu?" S§×ar?h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [{ I know. But it is our collective decision. }] Sera could understand the two of them, so she knew how they had no problem going to a fun sounding place. There was not much that Sera could help with, and that was the reason she wanted to level up faster and become someone who could help them. But the two of them had unique powers that will undoubtedly help them. "Alex, are you sure about this?" He was not worried about himself but he could not bear the thought of seeing any of the people around him getting severely hurt or dying. Alex might come back at one point, but the rest of them only had one life. A life they almost lost a few days ago. "Don''t worry, dummy." If this was dangerous, he did not want any of them to go there with them. And, she knew this would be dangerous, that''s why she also did not want all of them to go with them. "Miss Rin and Misha won''t be going with us, and as long as you hold onto these two troublemakers, things will be alright." He was looking at him confidently, with an excited smile on her face. She knew what she was doing, and she was confident. "I see¡­" This was going to be their dungeon run. They needed to power level once again and boost their levels so that they can use their powers, magic, spells, and techniques in a better manner. Without levels, she could not use a lot of her powers. And without proper powers, she wouldn''t be able to assist them. "There''s nothing to worry about, actually." she reassured him. "I''m stronger now, and from what I''ve heard from that old man, I know you will have fun there." and then she smirked at him. He knew she was up to no good, from that one smirk alone, so¡­ he observed her suspicious look for a moment, and shook his head when he saw how she had no intention of not going to that place. Her blue eyes were already looking ahead in the future, at something he could not understand. There was most certainly something that she was still hiding but he had no choice but to accept it. "Alright then¡­" They were going on a dungeon run. "Muuuuu~!" "Miu~!" And though Misha did not like how she was excluded from this fun activity, after what happened a few days ago, she did not want to see any more bad things. Death, especially. She did not want to see all of that. Chapter 135 Flin birds "Ummm¡­"Now that it was decided that they were going on a dungeon run, they needed some good equipment that would help them in that dangerous place. What they had on was not going to be enough so, right now¡­ they were walking towards a certain place, passing through a dark, silent backalley. There were no people around, the houses on the sides were clean, there was no eerie silence in the air, and from where they were all walking to, it certainly seemed to be the way to some shady place¡­ "Alex¡­ you''re sure this is the way, right?" They were also confused since they did not have any good feelings about this. This was like those movies where they pass through some similar alley, go to some shady place, give some shady code to open a secret door that does not open for all of the people, and get into a secret shop or something. "Don''t be afraid like that, lol. The knights of this town like to sleep early, that''s the only reason the street is like this. Come here early in the morning and you will find people exercising." S§×ar?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Elio especially thought she was taking them to a secret place that will give them good things for lower price, perhaps some kind of underground auction house or something that will give them good deals and a chance to get things at a low price. He wanted to save money. They might need some new gear, but he did not want to splash millions on something once again. He did not have that much money and even if she had it, he did not want her to waste it all on something that might not get past a single dungeon raid. If they were going to get any gears, he wanted them to have some good quality ones. "I''m not taking you all to some secret place either, lol." They finally stopped before a dead end. A wall that did not seem to be a gateway to anywhere. And beyond the tall wall, there was an even taller building that was shining like a night lamp, illuminating even this part of the wall. "You''ve seen shops and places owned by [Candlelight] right? This is just one of them." A whopping six story building covering a large part of the central streets of the town of Yuta. one of the best places to get any kind of essentials and special products one wants. "They have things like consumables, armors, weapons, accessories, to even Flin birds." "Flin birds~?" Mish was with them, walking excitedly with Miu and Az, looking around the empty street merrily humming like a little girl she was. But those last words of Alex caught her attention. "There are birds here~? Really~?" "Yup. Didn''t I say you can have one of your own?" The Flin birds weren''t exclusive to the archers and archer hall, but there was a very complex licensing process if one wanted to obtain the certifications to purchase these birds. Not just anyone could have it, so mostly, only those affiliated with the official places like the knight halls and knight associations could possess it. Thankfully, she had the licenses and IDs that she would require to purchase one of those cuties. "Yeiiii~! Thank you~! Sister Alex is the best~!" The little girl hugged her sister. And Elio was once again jealous of her¡­ "Haha, don''t thank me just yet, dear. The Flins are limited so, you might not find one that you like here." Those birds were unique creatures and they were more like a pet than a servant, a partner, a companion, or a Familiar. Not just anyone could take care of them, but if they wanted to have them, they would have to be ready to take a very good care of them. They came from various parts of the world and were highly trained, some were high maintenance, while some did not even require constant attention from their Owners. "Alright then, let''s jump." "Hmm?" Without saying anything anymore, she picked up the little girl that was standing right before her and jumped away to the other side of the wall¡­ which was kind of not allowed around these parts. "Alex!" He knew there was a reason she did not take them from a roundabout route and took this ''shortcut'' when they just had to go to the town''s center. He knew there was no way around here to get to that place, and he knew jumping off the wall would be the only way¡­ but it was not allowed by the laws! If anyone saw them and they got reported, they would be paying a fine of tens of silver! "That girl is unbelievable¡­" Miss Rin sighed with a smile, and shook her head before jumping up as well. She did not have to step on the wall like Alex to jump all the way to the other side. "Muuuu~!" "Miu~!" Az jumped up the house and the wall to cross to the other side, while Miu the little gecko just walked to the other side. [{ Master¡­ }] She was the only one that was worried about her master and was asking him if it was alright to go to the other side as well. "Haaa. It''s fine, Sera." But now that everyone else had gone over, he had no choice either. "Let''s go." Telling her to fly to the other side, he also used a new earth attribute spell that created temporary footholds on the wall to jump up to the other side. He was not as agile as her, but thanks to the many fights that they have had in reality, he had gotten used to a few things. "Don''t worry, lol. No one saw us." She was smiling at him warmly happily as if seeing him break a law was a blissful thing in her eyes. "I''ll remember this, Alex." He did not like this, but now that they had broken the law anyway, he was going to get back at her for it when the time is right. "Let''s go do some shopping then~!" She was excited for the new gear. "Yeiiii~!" while the little one was excited to see the birds. "Muuuu~!" "Miu!" The little duo was always excited anyway, shopping and seeing new shiny things just made them happier. "Hey, wait a minute." But unlike the rest of them, Elio was looking at the realistic perspective of this whole shopping trip. "What''s our budget?" Even if they spend a little more than the last time for some useful things, he sure as hell did not want to spend millions on useless things. And to avoid useless spending, establishing a budget at the very least has been proven to be an effective tactic. Chapter 136 A little grudge ''I have no value here, haaa¡­''His suggestion to set up a budget for them was blatantly ignored by Alex first, and since Miss Rin could not get in between the two of them, she did not speak anything. Misha and the little creatures did not even understand what a budget was so they were just running ahead with Alex and now, he was walking behind them, with Sera on his shoulder. ''That girl¡­'' Alex just walked inside the shop without any hesitation and behind her, the little creatures- with Miu inside Az''s slime body- also jumped in. Miss Rin waited for him but he told her it was fine to go ahead with his eyes, and with a sigh, Miss Rin walked inside the big shop as well. Sear?h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [{ "Do you think I have any value here, Sera?" }] Value¨C it was a big word, especially to the natives of this world who directly connected it with the importance in this world and their own life. He walked inside the big shop, questions about his worth troubling him. He knew he was not much visible when the rest of them were around, but until now, Elio had just taken this as him experiencing this new world that She loved. One of the reasons he started with this specific game was because of her love for this world that he understood very well, but after meeting her in Moongold, seeing the world from how she saw it, the experiences they had together have been quite different from what he had expected. [{ Of course master! Of course you have value! }] [{ "Haha, right. Of course you would say that." }] Most of the time, she overshadowed him. He was not as familiar with this world as her, he was not as powerful or unique as her, and he also did not have any objectives to become a progression narrator until now. He understood that perhaps much better than she did¡­ [{ "Tell me, Sera." }] They were inside the shop now, and as always, Alex was choosing all the things that they would need for this dungeon run. She was with Misha, the people around them in the shop did not like a Slime jumping around so she was also holding Miu and Az, and now that they were shopping for something they would need for an important dungeon run, Miss Rin was also helping them. Elio on the other hand, was in the back. Watching them and looking around as he mostly does. [{ "I''m not a strong narrative driver, am I?" }] [{ ¡­ }] What he wanted to say and what his servant understood were simply if he had any unique presence among the countless normal people around them. [{ "Tell me honestly. I will appreciate an honest answer." }] Alex had experience of this world, she was strong, she had so many things to tell that there was no better presence around them other than her. And just like Alex, Miu and Az were special, Miss Rin had her secrets, and Misha was a knot that tied everyone together. If Olive was here right now, she would have a better presence than him as well since unlike him who liked to stay at the back and watch them, watch the world around him, and experience this world, she would take part in every little thing that happens around her. [{ Master, you are amazing. If you want, you can be the center point even stronger than someone like Alex. }] She knew how instead of someone who had many secrets, someone strong, or someone special, someone who did not know a lot of things, someone who had no experience, and someone who was looking, hearing, perceiving everything around them would be the best narrator there is. But, unlike someone who would want to be That person, he liked to stay back, click screenshots, and just smile at the cute things around him. When he was with her, unlike the real world, he had no need to act or come in the spotlight. [{ "But that''s the thing na, Sera. I''m faulty because I willingly do not want to to be That voice." }] They were finished with their shopping on the first floor, so they moved on to the second one. And when they were done there as well, they looked around the third, forth, and fifth floor, but there weren''t many things that caught any of their attention, so with Elio walking at the back, they all moved to the top floor where all the birds were living freely without any cage. There were ID check-ups first and other procedures, but again¡­ thanks to some new kind of ID Alex had, they were able to get past a lot of things a lot quicker than they would have. [{ "Look at those birds, adorable creatures." }] He clicked three screenshots as soon as they entered the floor and later, many more. The adorable birds, the fierce birds, the small birds and the big birds. He took grouped pictures and he took single pictures. Some photos came out good so he immediately pushed them in his Liked folder as well. That was what he did most of the time when nothing much was happening, and right now as well, he was doing the same. [{ "Haaa¡­" }] Sera wanted to say something, tell him there was nothing wrong with him being invisible among them, but she could not find the right words to put her thoughts into. [{ Master-. }] [{ "You don''t have to try that hard, Sera." }] He smiled at her, and shook his head as he watched the starry eyes of their younger friends. [{ "Do you see how Misha is smiling?" }] As if she liked all the birds around her, she was trying to talk to every single one of them. Unlike Miu and Az, she surely did not get any special response from them, but she liked these birds. And, only he could see the unique smiles she had for every bird around them. [{ Pardon, master? }] [{ "Haha, I''m just saying if you can tell how Misha smiles a little differently for each bird around her. Or, how Alex is currently thinking about something completely unrelated to these birds¡­ or how the soft eyes of Miss Rin have nostalgia in them at the moment." }] He saw a lot of things. When it came to human emotions, when it came to colors and angles, he knew what he was seeing. But Alex did not see this world the same way he did. [{ I¡­ Do not understand it, master. }] And the same was true for all of the people around him. [{ "Simply put, Sera." }] Sadly, Misha loved all the birds around here. So, she could not choose just one of them. "We can look at the birds in the other shops when we reach the city, Misha. How about that? There''s a bigger place just for the birds." "Really~? Yes~! Let''s do that, Sister~!" [{ "Everyone has a POV." }] He did not know if he had any worth in this world yet. He was not anything special yet, did not have any special strengths, and he was not like the rest of them. But, just like the rest of them, he also had his own point of view. And that point of view had unique ways to perceive things. [{ "I know I''m not as effective of a narrative driver as the rest of them. What I have to offer is very personal and it''s not as dominant as the cuteness of the gecko-slime duo, youth of Misha, Experiences of Alex, or anything like constraints of the past that Miss Rin has. I like to keep what I have." }] Like these screenshots and like the feelings that he does not talk about. [{ "But¡­" }] He was looking at a certain bird for a while now. It was a pretty green owl that had been sleeping and ignoring the rest of them since a while ago, something he found interesting, so he was trying to Observe it. [{ "I don''t like it when she outright ignores me." }] The way she ignored his suggestion about the budget got on his nerves. But he won''t tell her that since she knows about it already. [Ding!] Observation finally resulted in Identification. ============ [Green Flin Owl] -A Flin bird that has been trained very well. ============ He will just do what he usually does not. And make her pay for ignoring his genuine suggestion and once again splashing tens of gold on barely useful stuff. Chapter 137 A new Skill "What''s the difference between other Flin birds and a ''Well trained'' Flin bird?" Elio asked with a curious look, caressing his little slime friend in his hand.Since they were done looking around and did not find any bird they could bring back, they finished their shopping and were going back. "Hmmm? Why ask that? Did you find any ''well trained'' Flin there? Did you use Observation again?" Alex found this out of the blue question quite surprising. "Yeah. Remember that green Owl? The window said it was trained very well." "Wow, really?" It was quite unexpected for her. Elio was able to find out about something that people could not find even with normal appraisal skills with a basic function. "How many times has it been already? You''re most definitely used Observation and Identification more than a few hundred times, right?" "...what about my question? How are the well trained ones different?" As always, she was abruptly changing the topic to something she wanted to know. But, he did not let her do it this time. He wanted his answer, so he gave her the look that said what he desired. "What''s up with you, man? Did something happen?" "No? Well, just answer my question first." He was the one that asked first, so he wanted the answer to his question. It was simple. "Hmmm¡­" She looked at him for a moment, but then she just shook her head as if whatever thought she had just now did not really matter. "Flins are, at the end of the day, birds. They are not creatures, they are of various kinds and they have evolved and adapted to their nature. As you know, they are called Flin birds because of the geographical areas that they are found in, right?" They were going to leave early morning tomorrow, so they needed to rest in what little time they had. They did not dilly-dally after finishing their shopping and quickly came back to their inn. Miu and Az were with them tonight since they all needed to talk and prepare for tomorrow. "So¡­ when they catch a Flin, most of them are not as well behaved as some of the others. Even for master tamers and trainers, they are hard to deal with. But, some are more natural for the training they provide. Only the ones that complete the training are actually called a Flin bird, but those who are Well trained have better chances to do what they are trained." He sat down on the bed first when they reached their room, and Az jumped off of his lap. Miu came out of Az and stretched its crystal limbs, something that had now become a familiar sight to the two of them. "So, in short, they are better products?" "...it''s quite strange when you call them ''products'' Mister Elio." "I was just asking." with a sigh, he nodded at her who was still standing before him. Allowing her to place her head on his lap. She liked it like that, and he did not mind once in a while either. "Hmmm¡­ anyway, I answered your question. Now it''s your turn." She didn''t think there was anything wrong with him, so they moved back to her previous question. "Haven''t you used Observation and Identification a few hundred times already? Shouldn''t you get {Appraisal} by now?" "I should, I think. But I didn''t count how many times I''ve used that function. I practically use it every single day." He used it for all kinds of things. Sear?h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He observed little things outside his window when they were in an inn, when traveling, he Observed all things around him, and even when they were shopping, he looked at all kinds of things in the shops. He even Observed people around him, so it had become a simple daily practice for him. "After I didn''t get the skill after 300th Observation, I thought there was something more to the conditions that Players did not know. I thought I would get it after a certain level, but then¡­ Well¡­ since I use Observation everyday anyway, I didn''t really need a specific appraisal skill." Having an appraisal skill would be better, he understood that better than ever after meeting that old couple in their first village. But he did not need it for now at least. "I don''t think I need it right now actually anyway, so I''ll-." "You dumb human¡­" Cutting him off midway, she shook her head and looked at him as if she was looking at the most ignorant human in this world. "Don''t you know anything about [Skill Qualification evaluation] function?" She got up from his lap and placed her hands on his shoulders with a frustrated look. "..." The look he had right now was not calm anymore. He did not understand what she was talking about. "Do you even know anything about skills or do you believe Players just get it directly like Natives and creatures do?" For a moment there, she had forgotten that he was completely ignorant about most of the things related to this game. "Of course I know¡­ about the Skill evaluation thing." He knew it. He had just never really heard much about the function since no one talked about it or anything. "You¡­ dummy¡­" She pressed her temple with frustration before looking at him angrily. "Repeat after me." "What-." "Just say what I say! ¡­please." She did not want to shout at him, but whenever he did something so obviously dumb, she could not control herself. "Say: Skill Qualification Evaluation." "...skill qualification evaluation." Find more to read at empire [Ding!] "Request." "Request¡­" [Accepting Request¡­] "Search Skill qualification data." "Search for skill qualification data." "Did I say ''for''?!" [Ding!] [Request accepted.] [Searching for your Qualified skills.] "Well, it worked anyway." She wanted to hit him in the head, but she controlled herself. He was so pitifully dumb that he did not even know players had to use a unique function to get the skills that they qualify for, much like a reward claiming system for doing certain things. It was one of the most common functions of the game, and yet he did not know about it even after having worked with some of the best of this game¡­ "You''re unbelievable, El¡­" She did not know what to do with him. So she just kissed him. Chapter 138 Skill qualifications ============1] {Tamer''s command} Conditions: Tame five or more creatures higher level than you at once. Status: Available. 2] {Tamer''s subspace} Condition: Create a [Family] consisting of one evolved creature and three or more creatures added to the family by the Primarily trained beasts. Status: Available. 3] {Pleasure} Condition: Achieve a complete unison with your partner for a prolonged period. Status: Available. 4] {Thread weaving} Condition: Master an ancient spell on the first try. Additional conditions: Possess {Mana senses} and cast fifteen or more types of magic spells. Status: Available. 5] {Compassion} Condition: Show more than fifty acts of compassion within a span of three days. Additional conditions: Show sympathetic pity and concern for the suffering or misfortune of a being unrelated to you. Status: Available. 6] {Mana Search} Conditions: Highlight your senses with Mana while being in an environment dominated by a different kind of unique energy. Additional condition 1: Obtain recognition of someone possessing authority. Additional condition 2: Obtain recognition of someone possessing partial divine essence. Additional condition 3: ¨C Status: In progress. 7] {Light''s grace} Conditions: Defeat a follower of evil. Additional condition 1: Possess Light element affinity. Additional condition 2: Possess Darkness element affinity. Additional condition 3: Catch interest of a being possessing high understanding of [Truth] who is also close with nature. Additional condition 4: ¨C Status: In progress. 8] {Tamer''s heart} Conditions: Befriend unique elemental creatures who are innately born with natural elemental powers without resorting to forceful activities. Additional condition 1: Understand the nature and habits of the creature with Observation. Additional condition 2: Connect with the untamed beasts on a deep level. Additional condition 3: ¨C Status: In progress. 9] {Raguel} Conditions: ¨C Status: Plausibility detection. 10] {Mana Overdrive} Conditions: Experience a Mana counterflow and counter it with only your willpower. Status: Available. 11] {Spell Arrow} Conditions: Infuse a wooden arrow with more than one Spell perfectly and destroy a Training target without destroying the arrow. Additional condition 1: Win against a powerful opponent in a direct standoff. Additional condition 2: Get acknowledgement of a Bowmaster. Additional condition 3: ¨C Additional condition 4: ¨C Status: In progress. 12] {Three Eyes} Conditions: ¨C Status: Plausibility detection. ============ ''There were a lot of skills that I could obtain¡­ but, one could only claim one skill through this function every 50 Levels.'' That was the reason he never really bothered with this function in the first place. ''Still though, thanks to her, I now know what skills I can aim to get directly through the system''s skill grating function.'' Skill evaluation served as a supplementary function, comprehensively assessing an individual''s potential to acquire skills based on predefined criteria. ''She overreacts a lot sometimes.'' He wasn''t hopelessly oblivious to this world at least. He knew about most of the functions there were, especially important things related to the skills and the functions essential to the players. "El, be careful. Come." They were walking through a forest, with Sera flying in the sky, observing all the dangerous things and advising them about them. ''But she cares a lot more.'' There was a steep hill, so she climbed first with the help of his spell, and then helped him to climb up so that he does not have to waste unnecessary energy. "Huup!" He climbed up with her help, and after walking a little further, he looked on the sides, observed the new kind of environment this place had then the rest of the places they had been to. "Is this it?" They were going to a unique dungeon, but even after tracking for three hours, they had not seen anything other than the normal dangerous forest, many creatures, and a lot more plant life. There were all kinds of creatures in the forest, but they were all not something they were after at the moment. Since their target was a dangerous dungeon, they were conserving their energy for when they would actually need it. "A little further. It should be around three miles away." She looked at him up and down and after confirming he was alright, she nodded at him and walked ahead. They were almost there, so she did not want to waste any more time. ''She was concerned and excited yesterday. Hearing I didn''t get the skill that I should have naturally obtained by that point indicated how I could obtain a unique skill of the same category.'' He knew about the function but he wasn''t interested in claiming the skills that were listed there. He would obtain them naturally with time. That''s just how things worked and he knew that. Sear?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She was not the only high level person he knew, so¡­ he at least wasn''t oblivious about these basic things. ''Still, seeing her shocked expression when she saw that strange skill with that unique glow to its name was quite something.'' He did not know what kind of skill {Raguel} was but he certainly knew there was something special about this skill. It was different from the other skills listed there. And she somehow seemed to know what that skill was. Stay updated through empire ''Still though, even she did not know what kind of skill the {Three Eyes} was.'' From the list, it was obvious that this was the skill that he had the chance of obtaining in place of {Appraisal} but, even Alex did not know what that skill was. ''Most of the skills that players could qualify for were similar. In the entire list that we saw, she even knew that strangely shining skill but not {Three Eyes}.'' She was told how if she doesn''t know about it, then the chances of someone else knowing anything about this specific skill were low. Furthermore, she even told him how the skills that someone obtains for the first time are called [Beginning], a unique skill which that certain person alone has ever had. "Haaa¡­ Haaa¡­ finally." He was not of the appropriate level yet, so he could not claim any of those skills, but now that he knew about what skills he could obtain, without worrying about what he did not know anything about, he knew what skill he needed to work for next. "That''s¡­ the dungeon?" A great tree situated in the middle of a forest area that seemed to be experiencing fall when the rest of the forest was wet and green. "That''s not the dungeon." It was a tall tree, three times taller than the rest around it and, from the looks of it, it seemed like this one was a great, great, great grandparent of the rest of the trees present around this area. "Though¡­" Somehow, the trees that seemed to be experiencing autumn were connected to the ever expanding branches and roots of the one ancient giant. "The dungeon is under this tree." They were looking at it from the ground, but Elio knew looking at this scenery from the sky above would be much more thrilling than this ground angle. It was a natural ancient monument, not just a tree in Elio''s eyes. But, in her eyes¡­ "Do you remember I told you how money grows under trees in this world?" There was only a look of excitement. "Miu?" "Muuu~!" The entrance to the dungeon was located on the root covered base of the giant tree. They would have to jump down to reach the unique dungeon area¨C the world located under this great tree. "..." The moment they jump and reach the ''ground'' they would have been teleported in a new world altogether. "Get ready, darling." She had experienced it many times already. So she knew her beloved was going to like it as well. Chapter 139 Dungeon: Elmguardians Nest "So¡­"They were standing before the base of the giant tree. They looked like an ant before a giraffe right now, a little human before the great immortals who had been around since the old ages. "We have to jump down?" There was a hole among the roots that were intertwined to make this particular base area, and she was telling him they had to jump down the abyss like hole. "Hehe, you scared?" she smirked at him with an excited expression, the slime-gecko duo in her hand looking down with excitement as well. There was something down there and they could sense it. The slime, Az, was especially excited about this. It wanted to be the first one to jump down but for now, Alex was holding the two of them. "I''m¡­ just not sure about this." There was only darkness as far as he could see. He even tried throwing down a torch but it vanished in only three seconds. There was a strange kind of energy oozing out of this hole as well. What more, there was something strange in this entire area. He was not sure about this place. He had been to a dungen and it was nothing like this one. "Alex, you''re sure about this, right?" He was just asking her if she was sure about this or not. If she was not, he did not want to face something that they might not be able to face with the creatures around them. "You still don''t believe me, hun?" A warm smile appeared on her face. "Well¡­" He knew this was not good. There was something very wrong if she had that kind of look. "You can wait here if you want, we will be going forward." "...?!" She threw Az down the hole first and jumped in right after them while still smiling at him. "Alex!" And there was no way he was going to just let her fall in that dark abyss, so he instinctively jumped in as well. [{ Master, it''s alright. }] Sera was right behind him at the very back. When they fell, she flew right behind them while reassuring her master. He might not have experienced it himself, but he surely knew how some dungeons were a little different from the others. [Ding!] The dungeon that they entered back when the Dark mage had overtaken it was already turned into something that was not a dungeon anymore. However, this one was a proper dungeon. A unique one at that. [You have entered the dungeon: Elmguardian''s Nest.] [A Dungeon quest has been created.] Stay connected through empire Most of the natural structures that were termed dungeons were either a natural habitat of some certain creatures or were places created by some powerful being. In some cases, the dungeon areas were so big that they were not simply just dungeons anymore, but they were too big to be called a field. In these cases, the dungeons, with the right age, and with the right qualifications, develop their own ecosystem. And this ecosystem further grows into something that becomes an important part of the System flow itself. "Hahahaha~!" "Miu~!" "Muuuuuuu!" They were sliding down the roots while going down a dark tunnel. But, they were soon thrown out of the darkness¡­ into a world that was completely different from where they had been just now. [Ding!] ============ [Dungeon Quest: ] : You have entered the unique region created under the generational evolution of an Elmguardian. The environment has evolved and grown into a unique ecosystem. There are various creatures in this land, most of which are dangerous. Objective: Find the escape platforms created by a Great mage located somewhere in the forest and escape the dungeon. Reward: Exp depending upon the actions in the dungeon. Failure conditions: Death, Death of 60% or more living beings inside the dungeon, Death of Certain important creatures that maintain the environment inside the dungeon. ============ "Alex¡­!" When they were thrown out through the slide, they all found themselves in the air. "Weeeee~!" Alex was enjoying this since she knew she would land on the ground without any worries, but Elio was not as proficient with these things as her. [{ Master! You can grab-. }] Sera was going to help him, but before she could do that, Elio just created a gust of wind with his magic while falling down¨C or it would be better to say he used his natural magic to gather the winds in the area and made a counter current upwards. "Hahahah~." The place that they had ended up in was a forest. And this forest was a magical place. "Muuuuu!" Tall, glowing trees, their leaves shimmering with bright colors without sunlight. Strange flowers bloomed in every color, even more vibrant from the trees and leaves, and the ground was soft yet covered in dry soil and fine dust. It was quiet, except for the whisper of wind through the leaves and the distant chirping of unknown birds. "Miu~!" Alex landed on her feet, Az landed on a tree branch, and the happy gecko adjusted his position and landed on a bush. Elio on the other hand, was covered in dust that was carried up by the winds. [{ Master¡­? }] Sera was alright since she had wings, but he was not fine when he was covered in dust and sand. He did not like this, and yet thanks to that girl, he was experiencing something so unpleasant. "Awwww¡­ look at you baby." Since they were inside the dungeon now, and since she has had her share of fun, she returned back to him and helped him clear himself up. "I am starting to rethink if I like this side of you or not." She cleaned his face with a happy smile, and kissed his cheek. "You''re no fun when we are back home. At least lemme have some fun when you still don''t know much." Sear?h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She knew things would not be the same in a few months. Perhaps by the time they come out of that great jungle, he would have learned more than enough about this world. She knew it would not take them that long to collect the remaining Keys after that with him spearheading most of the paths for her, so¡­ this fun time was much more precious for her than it was frustrating for him. "Anyway." They were inside a dungeon now and when people were inside a dungeon, even with a quest in place, they were going to face beings that they would have to fight against and defeat for the experience points that they were after today. "Looks like the fun starts now." 60% was the limit so, there was going to be a limit to their power leveling, but since this was pretty much a forest existing under a great tree, they were going to have a fun time with the various creatures of this unique ecosystem¡­ Chapter 140 Elm creatures Creatures of wood and greens¨C the forest creatures here were the main enemies and the opponents that they had to face.-Swiiiish! They were powerful creatures of (Level-70) and higher. [{ "Elio!" }] -Oooooooooooong! There were a lot of them as well, and right now, around ten of them had gathered around them. [{ "Alex, right!" }] Elio was at the back, Sera was still in the sky, assisting the two of them with Miu, and Az was on a tree branch, in a secured location. The slime was their main weapon against these high level creatures since the two of them alone could not handle the rest of the creatures present. [{ "I''ll attack right-." }] [{ "Don''t tell me everything you''re gonna do, dummy! Just do whatever you want! I trust you!" }] She was on the frontline, fighting the creatures that resembled various different creatures and yet were made of a plant body. They had flesh and blood but both resembled a creature that was born from an any, a forest spirit, or from an Ent''s essence. The creatures did not have any unique intelligence, but they were not dumb either. With sharp instincts and amazing teamwork, the group of giant ants that had attacked them, were proving to be more dangerous than what they had expected at the beginning. -Oooooooooooong! They weren''t resistant to magic, so the attacks that they were using were especially effective. Alex was also using a unique sword that was enchanted with fire attributes. She had to burn Mana stones to use the enchantment for a brief moment, but the fire attribute was especially effective against the creatures of this dungeon. Since their skin, the limbs and practically their entire being was made out of wood, it was easy to burn them all down with a powerful enough fire. The blade with fire attribute was effective even though these wooden ants were twice their size. They were powerful so even with Restriction spells of Elio, even with the buffs that he gave her, it was becoming difficult for them to keep going. "Ktktktktktktkt!" "Krkrkrkr!" "Kiiiiiii!" The ants were good at working with one another. They were so strong that the giant glowing trees around them were nothing more than a normal tree to them. They were unique, but they could still deal with them. "Now!" "Muuuuuu!" -Oooooooooooong! They had gathered the last of them in an open area, and with a strong condensed ball of water created by the slime, they managed to eradicate the creatures completely. "Shrrrr. At least, they defeated the first wave of the creatures. [{ "Elio, drink a potion. We will be pushing forward this time." }] He was at the back since he still did not like how they were killing these creatures. If he could help it, and if it was possible, he would not bother and instead observe them in their natural habitat. But he knew taming them was not an option. They were aggressive beings so they needed to either deal with them completely or avoid them as much as possible. "Ktatatat?" "Here they come, everyone!" They were here to level up¡­ at least, she wanted to level up. He was here since he did not want her to go alone. But levels were important for the creatures around him. With increasing levels Az, Miu and Sera would become stronger. They would also learn new skills and when they grow stronger, he is ultimately getting stronger as well. The three of them needed to level up as well, so this time at least, he wanted to help them in whatever way he could. [{ "Elio, try that AOE spell." }] [{ "Already?" }] All he had were his Grace and Restriction spells. The physical spells were not effective when going against creatures like them on the beginning tiers of magic, so he wasn''t concerned with them. [{ "There are only three this time. I''ll stall them, so prepare the spell!" }] Alex just went ahead and defended against the creature that was coming for them. It had sharp, long, blade-like pincers. They were dangerous, no one would want to get caught up with these things. Still¡­ -Swish! Alex used her {Blink} and moved across the big creatures. She jumped, used {Smash} and damaged the hard structures of the creatures. They had not encountered other kinds of creatures yet, however, from the briefing they had before coming here, Elio knew all of the creatures in this dungeon were called Elm creatures. They were a native species of a unique environment such as this one. There were quite a lot of places that had similar environments in this world, some were far bigger than this one and covered a land as vast as a state''s. This one was comparatively smaller. Located below a great tree, this place was like an underground world where colors were common things for the plant lives. The Elm creatures, just like the ants that they were fighting right now, were also unique beings with dull colored bodies upon which, different bright plant lives grew. "Huuuu¡­" -Oooooooooooong! The creatures in this kind of environment were unique and were ultimately connected to the ''tree'' that they originate from. ''This is going to be tough.'' This dungeon was called Elmguardian''s nest because of the Elm tree that they were under. All of this existed inside the unique space of that tree, so the creatures present here were also called Elm creatures. ''Think¡­'' Still, since the creatures found here were mostly plant lives with not too complicated characteristics, just the fire element was going to work on it. ''Recreate¡­'' The Spells that Elio could use at the moment were limited to (tier-1) simple spells. He could use natural magic and had his own spell casting method, but he could still not cast magic of the higher levels. The AOE spells that the players and natives conventionally use were one of those difficult spells that he could not use yet. At least, he could not cast the spells that were known to the general public. [{ "I''m ready." }] There were various types of spells. Some were simple and some were complex. The strength of magic depended on the way it was weaved and the intentions that it was cast with. At its core, Magic was a phenomenon where the Mage played with the truths of the world and existing laws of reality that encapsulates everything. It was the conversion of energy, channeling of knowledge, manifestation of beliefs and one''s own World, and recreation of natural elements. [{ "On the count of three, release it!" }] [{ "Alright¡­" }] Magic was a vast subject and so were the countless spells of all kinds and types and series affiliated with it. Your next journey awaits at empire [{ "3¡­2¡­One!" }] There were no limitations to this subject so it offered one the most freedom one could hope for. -Swish! [{ "Now!" }] She gathered all three of the creatures in a single spot, and vanished with a {Blink}. -Oooooooooooong! At the same time, Elio channeled half of his Mana and manifested six red magic circles that looked almost the same as one another. S§×ar?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Ugh!" All six of them were almost similar with only a few elements of the spells looking a little different. However, when they manifested in Elio''s hands, they all fused into a single large magic circle and became a new kind of spell altogether¡­ -OOOOOOOONG! On the other hand, a spell circle also manifested under the ants. "Ktktktktkt?" It was a red magic circle. And though only as big as the area the three ants covered, its mere appearance sent the emergency signals up to their antennas. "...!" Sadly, it was too late by the time they perceived the Restriction series, Fire attribute, Nature series spell of a higher grade than the ones he could handle at the moment. Chapter 141 [Spell fusion] Spells were simply simple or complexly weaved Mana instructions.To cast a spell, there were believed to be three main methods that the mages of today use. The first method was simply the vocal incantations: Chanting of a certain set of incantations that produces the same kind of string combinations that a traditional spell does. There were many mages who solely relied on spell chanting. They were not commonly seen but unlike the conventional games, the [< Magic chanters >] of were wise men who had learned the truth hidden behind those incantations and understood them on a deeper level. They were rare, and they were wise. The other method was what most of the people, and players used¨C the method that solely relied on the imagination of the individuals. A spell, at the end of the day, was a manifestation of one''s will. It was pretty easy for someone possessing an open Mana circuit to cast a spell through their will alone. sea??h th§× Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Players especially could cast at least the basic spells when they learn to wield and feel the Mana around them by converting the Mana in the environment and channeling it through their body. Elio also used this kind of spell casting at first as well. He was good with his imagination, however, along the way, he changed his way into something of his own. The third kind of spell casting method was the Individual method. Something only those individuals could do thanks to their unique abilities. Unlike incantations and the general spell casting method, this method was difficult to teach to someone else since the base of this kind of spell casting was something that was unique to that person alone. -Swish! "Ktktktktkt!" "Kiiiii!" -Swish! Elio had a unique way of looking at things and a unique way to perceive the world around him. He also remembered all things in a different way than most people. His memory was not that good, so he attached a lot of important moments to his life with a certain kind of emotion. He could see the kind of details that not everyone could, especially when it came to things that were unique to someone, a characteristic that was not common, it instantly caught his attention. He clicked a photo of something inside of his head to remember it, and then stored it inside an album that was present in a house that existed inside his head. It was natural for him to be consciously aware of everything that was present inside this specific house, so all the things that were present there were readily available for him. But, putting things there required the ''emotions'' that were attached to those certain things. "See. I knew you could do it~." To cast his spells, he recalled the stored images of the spells that he had learned from a unique album that he had created not long ago. "Well¡­ it takes too much Mana to cast. I don''t think we can use this more than three times. Four tops if you add the effects of the items." He was able to break down and store the spell that was of a higher level, something he knew he could not cast at his current level. He could call out anything that was already stored inside an album so after storing the broken versions of the spells that Alex gave him, he followed her instructions and placed the spells upon one another. Just as she knew, the spells that were like a part of the big puzzle were gathered and got attached to one another when they were around one another and ultimately combined together through the [Spell fusion] process and became a new spell altogether. "Haha, you know, the technique you just used isn''t something even the Magic academy graduates from the empire are capable of." There were many other techniques that the professional Mages used to enhance their spell casting. Common casting methods that integrated incantations with their own spell casting methods was one of them. [Spell fusion] was mainly used to fuse together two spell circles that were of similar wavelength. Not all mages could cast a fusion spell, specially those who could not cast the spells in the fusion process perfectly could never perfectly fuse a spell. "Hmm¡­ it wasn''t that difficult." The reason was able to fuse together those broken spells was thanks to the spells that she had created for him and his unique way of recreating the entirety of the spell. "Don''t say that before the other mages, lol. Those from the magic academy would burn you alive if you say Spell fusion is easy." His unique spell casting method made it possible for him to bypass the entire spell manifestation process. He was able to directly create the spell circles that he wanted with a big chunk of Mana input. It sometimes took a lot of Mana, but if the spell was something he was already familiar with, the Mana consumption decreased by a lot. "Don''t exaggerate it. I know those magic academy kids. They are not that bad." If someone who did not understand enough saw him casting multiple spells at once, they would think he was [Multicasting] four to five together. It was nearly impossible for most of the mages to cast more than one spell even if they dedicated their entire life to their magic. Those who could cast two different spells at once were called geniuses, those who could perform Tri-casting were called prodigies. And those who could cast more than four different kinds of spells at once were chosen directly by the Archmages to be their students. "Besides¡­" [{ More are coming, master. }] Continue your saga on empire "We should move now. Staying here isn''t good anymore." With his unique method which was not Multicasting but more like ''spell summoning'' according to what he understood it as, he was able to cast a higher level spell that enhanced the Elm creature''s fire weakness and increased the damage that they received. It was a wide area spell so it targets all of them in a certain area. "Yeah, let''s go gather a bigger crowd this time~." It proved to be very effective. Much more than even what she had expected when she created this spell¡­ She did not know if it was so powerful because an amazing person like her made it, or because an amazing person like her darling cast it. But whatever the reason might be, they confirmed the spell worked much better than she had anticipated. And that simply meant the time and efforts that they would have to put into their hunting was going to be descred a little. "Kehe¨Chehehehe." The evil in her deep blue eyes gave omen of a massacre. An event he had foreseen long ago¡­ Chapter 142 Kiting Many who are familiar with games involving hunting and killing would be familiar with the term ''kiting'' where someone lures in a bunch of monsters to a specific place without getting attacked by them.It is a very important part of a lot of hunting games, as well as the games that involve a large field. There are some basic rules to Kiting, but the most important of them all is dragging all the aggroed monsters to the predetermined spots without dying. [{ "Ten seconds." }] [{ "Spell is ready." }] In a dungeon filled with hundreds of thousands of high level monsters who mostly had a weakness to fire attribute, simple one to one hunting was not going to be anything fun. -Shrrrrrrrr¡­ "Miu!" "That''s right. She seems to have brought more this time." She had experience with this kind of dungeons that were used for mass leveling of a certain force. The new knights of Yuta used this place for the leveling purposes, the higher level knights were all the spearheads that took the lead and helped the newer knights with leveling up. They called it an inspection, but this was one of the most important training of their days in Yuta. Those specifically handpicked by the hall masters were the only people that got to come to this place. It was a restricted area so not just anyone could come here. The people that could fight with the Elm monsters were low as well. Their hard outer bodies made it difficult to deal significant damage to them. Wounding them was not an option and dealing with them in groups was an even more difficult task, but for a knight, it was the most basic thing to Protect their teammates. "Help me, Sera." [{ Yes, master. }] All those knights and the Hall master came together to defeat the creatures of this dungeon, the same creatures that the two of them were taking on all by themselves. [{ "Three¡­" }] It was absurd that the two of them were the only ones doing it. -SHRRRRRRR¡­! But, an even more absurd thing was how they had already cleared ten percent of the dungeon''s population in the last six hours that they had been in this dungeon. [{ "Two¡­" }] "They are here, Az. Prepare your spells as well." "Muuuuu~!" It was not possible through simply fighting the small bunch of creatures that came to fight them after sensing them in their environment. If they had stuck with the traditional methods, even with their unique spells that were highly useful in this certain scenario, they might still take a week to reach their goal of 60% of the dungeon''s total population. And, they did not have a week. They needed to move out of the town within four days. That was their goal right now, and to achieve that goal, they were kiting an awfully large amount of creatures of various areas into a certain place. [{ "Cast the spell!" }] -SHRRRRRR! "KTKTKTKTKTKTKT!" "KRRRRRRRRR!" "KRIIIIIIIIIII!" Just like right now, Alex went and kited around a hundred or so creatures to the certain place that they had created, an open area where they had engraved a magic circle on the ground, and a perfect spot in this dungeon where they could accommodate that number of creatures. -Ooooooooooooooong! He cast his fire attribute natural series spell and created the wide area magic circle on top of the bigger magic circle. [{ "That''s too much, Alex." }] [{ "It''s only one hundred and thirty! We can fit that many into that big place at least!" }] "KTKTKTKTKTKTKT!" "KRRRRRRRRR!" "KRIIIIIIIIIII!" The noises that these creatures- that seemed to be made of wood but in fact had flesh and blood- were very annoying. Elio did not dislike how these creatures looked, but even he couldn''t stand the kind of noise they made when they gathered them all into one place. He did not want to kill them, but there was no need to keep them alive when he understood how all these creatures, at the end of the day, were not the same as the real creatures¡­ "Az! Now!" "Muuuuuu~!" The creatures, the hundreds of Elm creatures that resembled ants, chameleons, snakes, sloths, beasts, and all kinds of other forest animals were already affected by the red magic circle that they were standing upon right now, but that only gave them the debuff. The real damage was going to be up to Sera, Alex, and Az. -Oooooooooooooooong¡­! Just like the Dark magic circle from the dark mage''s cave, this magic circle engraved on the ground was made with costly materials as well. It was the same as the spell circle of the mages, and required a great amount of Mana to activate and maintain¨C which they had substituted with the Mana crystals. Az was in charge of activating the conductors with its Mana. It had an amazing Mana control so, while it activated the Mana circle that created a gust of wind that combined together with the heat of Elio''s spells and made a tornado of fire, Sera assisted Alex deal with the creatures that were left out from the kited group. "Skiiiiiiiiiiii¡­!" "Kytkytkytkyt!" "Hgiiiiii¡­!" Combined together, they all created a scene that would be recited by the demon bards in the taverns of the underworld. ''I still don''t like this¡­'' S§×ar?h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The tornado of fire, a monstrous, whirling vortex of flame, tore through the ranks of the horde. The Elm creatures, spawns of the Elm guardian, were engulfed in its fiery embrace, their screams covered up by the roaring inferno. The ground trembled under the impact of the strong winds generated by the combination of spells, and the heat from the tornado was so intense it seemed to warp the air itself. [{ "Hahahaha~! Look at this beauty, darling~!" }] The already humid environment of the dungeon made the winds even sharper. The way they tore through the creatures, burned them alive, killed them in a matter of moments was a sight that was, ironically, disheartening to Elio''s eyes. Alex loved it. Stay tuned with empire There was an excited smile on her face as she sliced through the creatures of the dungeon, there was a unique madness that he was familiar with. She was enjoying this. So much so that he did not want to say something that would ruin this whole bright mood of hers. He knew there would be a time to discuss this matter, so he just clenched his fiest¡­ and watched the death, the massacre that was repeating itself for the twelfth time before his eyes. "Chirp!" He was at the back, resting with Miu as he looked down at the dreadful scene from the branch of a tall, colorful tree. Below, Alex''s swift, precise strikes were a blur of steel, while Sera''s light element magic danced like a pianist''s fingers, each spell a destructive spear that found its mark. Their coordinated attack was a ballet of guiltless deaths, their flowing movements a stark contrast to the chaotic frenzy of the tornado. [{ "This was fun, hehe." }] The tornado vanished soon, and along with it, the lives that had been present around them were gone as well. [{ "Can we take a break now?" }] [{ "Sure~! I''m hungry as well~!" }] "Miu!" "Muuuuuuuuu~!" Az, still humming with the residual energy of the spell, Flew back to the top of the tree branch to Elio and its friend Miu. Now that they were finished with this segment and they were going to take a break, Alex would have to climb the tree as well. The ground was still hot and charred. Elio knew that the hot environment in this already humid place wouldn''t help with the resting part at all¡­ so, this higher ground was the better option. Chapter 143 The path to walk… "So, that''s what you remember?"Elio, Alex, Az, Sera, and Miu were in the dungeon right now while Miss Rin and Misha were in the town. "They are something else¡­ I don''t really understand if I''m doing the right thing by following them anymore." The Librarian was visiting after sorting out the mess that was created after the death of the mage tower master. "Your concerns are valid." There was a lot of commotion after the tower people found out about the death of their tower master. First the Main Magic organization''s investigation team visited, the tower was in chaos, all mages were panicking if there was another Dark mage, and the rumores soon spread to the entire Moongold and there was a chaotic environment for a long time. There were people from the magic association checking up on everything in the town, and then they followed the traces of the Mage tower master, and somehow found out that he was after a certain group of individuals who had recently left the town. "Though, I would advise you to hold onto them." By the time the Librarian got back from that certain place after meeting that certain person, it was already too late. The mage tower master was dead, there was commotion in the Moongold, there was commotion in the village that they had stopped in, and since the Mages were involved, there was a general fear among the masses. The Librarian had to overwork himself, convince the mage association investigators and send them back, and then calm the chaos that they left for him to deal with. "That girl¡­ I know her personally." He was supposed to prevent anything like this from happening but the death of the mage tower master as well as the storm of aftermath that was created was a little too exhausting. "I know that much by now¡­ she seems to know a little too much, she even calls you so casually, and your attitude towards her¡­ it all has been quite peculiar to me since the start." If he had not been greedy and left the town, the mage wouldn''t have moved and this kind of mess wouldn''t have been created at all. But, things happened, and he was already done dealing with them so to vent his frustration, to apologize to Alex, and to check up on the rest of them, he was finally visiting them. "Haha, of course it might seem peculiar. But, if I say so myself, I''m the fortunate one to have any kind of connection with that person." When he got here, he found out Alex and Elio had already left for the dungeon and wouldn''t be back for a few days. He had predicted this might be the case, so he had brought some stuff to pass his time in this boring place. Misha was here, though she was asleep now that it was late night, so since he was here for a few days anyway, it was better to take this time and teach her a few new things¨C useful things as well. "She''s someone that has connections with not just individuals of high rank throughout this world, she has connections with forces that we do not even know the existence of. I''m not supposed to say this, but she¡­ that person has had a supper with the gods, has committed arson with the demons, beheaded Giants, and protected this world more than once in the short time she had been here. She''s like those Legends and Heroes that we hear the stories of. But, unlike them¡­ even after being a [Pioneer], she''s dumb enough to give up on all of that just so she could be with Him." From his perspective, she was simply a dumb person. There was nothing in this world that she could not have, and yet, leaving all of that behind, she walked on a path that has a certain chance of [Demolition]. She was not chasing perfection from the start, she was not someone that walked on a certain path either, she was one of the most aloof people that he had ever met in his hundred years of life. She knew more than the Progenitors, she used to be stronger than some of the Divinities, and she was one of the few in this world that possessed something unique of her own in her prime. S§×ar?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She could have ruled this world if she wanted to¡­ there were many more like her Among the Foreigners, but she was quite special even among them. Unlike the TWO of them, she was a simple individual despite her uniqueness. "She has had many unique connections in her life." The Librarian caressed the head of sleeping Misha as gently as caressing a newborn spirit. "And she has looked after each one of them even while risking her life. Many times." There was a unique softness in his eyes that Miss Rin had never seen before as he talked about her. And there was also a bitterness in those festastical eyes of his that only someone who had genuinely loved something, or someone, could understand. "Her character is bad, she is extremely annoying, she has a side to her that most people, most common people in this world would not like, but¡­" He sighed, with a strangely bitter smile. "I''ve met only a few individuals as reliable as her in my lifetime." Then he returned back to his stoic look as he looked back at Miss Rin. "If it''s about following them, I''d say there are some divinities who also wanted to do it but were never given that opportunity by her." She was not following her. Alex was allowing her to follow them. That was the only reason she was still alive right now, and that would be the only reason she reached a stage very few had reached while walking on a certain path. "She saw a lot of unnecessary things, I can tell that much." placing his hand above the head of Misha, the Librarian channeled some of his unique energy. "But you don''t have to worry about her and overthink your decision on following them." -Oooooooooong. A soft light materialized on his hand, and fell on Misha in the form of tiny twinkling stars. "She''s tougher than you know." The whole experience with the mage tower master''s attack was the most traumatic for Misha. She was still recovering from it, he could tell that, and yet, she was smiling even in her sleep. "She can take care of herself." She did not need her mom to look after her all the time anymore¡­ Chapter 144 Boom boom! Bam! "Miu~.""Muuuu!" The forest was burning. -Ooooooooooong~! -Booom! Well, the dungeon was burning. "Miu!" "Muuuuuu~!" Elio was busy casting all the spells to maintain the momentum that they had picked up with much difficulty after the break they took last time, so he did not have time to pay attention to his surroundings. Alex and Sera were busy dealing with the creatures of this unique dungeon. Alex was moving left and right, slashing her sword in all directions, using some unique techniques to deal higher damage to the enemies. She was wielding a blazing sword enchanted with special magic. The damage that she was dealing to the creatures that did not fall to their Exp farming trap was significantly higher even without the magic field''s effect. The AOE spell had its limitations and casting it multiple times was not effective. Additionally, the creatures of the dungeon were not dumb creatures that would fall for their simple tactics. Hit and kite was not going to work for long so, they wanted to maximize whatever Exp they were getting through this method. "Muuuuuuu~!" "Miu! Miu miu!" Sera did not have her complete powers yet since she was still a low leveled servant. She could not use her skills as effectively as she wanted to, but still, the skills that she had were highly effective against a bunch of mobs like these. -Booom! "Miu~!" "Muuuu! Mu! Muuu! Muuuuuuu!" Stay connected with empire "Miu~!" -Booooooooooom! She had {Mana Senses} like Elio and her Mana sensitivity was higher when it came to perception. Unlike Miu who could only perceive things in its immediate vicinity, or Az who used emotions and elements in its surroundings to get an idea of its surroundings, Sera could see and perceive most of the things much more effectively than the rest of her party members. With her {Magic comprehension} skill, she could understand spells that Alex taught her and though not as well as Elio, she could cast the most basic spells of Light element. "Muuu?" "Miu?" "Ktktktkt¡­?" "Muuuu." "Miu~!" "Muuuu~!" -Ooooooooooooong! An ant creature was trying to sneak away from the area, but the Slime-gecko duo who were enjoying this arson happily sent it back to nature''s embrace. They were so nice they even thought about a pitiful creature that did not have any of its friends left in this world. Their joy as they played around on the ground by themselves was quite something, but they even went out of their way to look after the creatures of this dungeon. "Miu~!" -Booooooom! "Muuu~!" Such a precious pair they were~. "Sera!" "Chirp~!" There were explosions going on all the sides since after the flame tornado tectic, they were testing out new things that could be more effective. They did not know just how well various things would work in this unfamiliar environment so, while Alex was conducting her research, Elio was focused on filming the entire climactic scenery that was present before them. Thanks to Sera''s {Energy Infusion} skill, she was able to supply Alex with necessary energy¨C something that was only possible since Alex also possessed the same skill. It allowed the transfer and infusion of one''s body energy into an object, but thanks to this skill, Sera was able to share her innate energy with Alex, something that Sera did not lack thanks to her unique energy body. She was pretty much made up of energy that constantly renewed and circulated with the surrounding energies, so she had a large pool of energy inside her. -Booooooooooom! "Miu~!" "Muuuuu!" "Miu!" "Muuuuu!" "Miu! Miu!" -Boooooooooooooom! -Boom! -Bam! "Miu¡­?!" "Muuuu! Muu?!" "Miu!" "Muuuu~!" "Miu~!!" While {Light of Grace} enhanced a single individual''s stats at the moment, it was a very powerful skill. It was used by individuals like saintesses or those who were close to the light element. Using that skill, Alex set traps all around the field, and then with one of Sera''s most powerful skills, the {Elemental Attack}, they detonated these traps and explosions¨C fireworks, appeared all around the place. -Boooooom! "Miu! Miu miu miu! Miu!!!" "Muuu¡­" "Miu! Miu!" "Muu. Muuu-." -Booooooooooom! "Muuuuu¡­?! Muu!! Muuu!" "Miu¡­ hmph." The Slime and the gecko were just looking at these fireworks from the ground, watching the explosions from the fire, watching pretty green blood of the Elm creatures splashing all over the place, Looking at all the things with excitement and telling one another what they liked, discussing how they liked something more and how something was not to their liking. "Muuu!" "Miu¡­" "Muuuu!!!" Miu was upset after Az did not agree with how the dark green explosions were prettier, and instead of taking the hint, she admired the hotter explosions more. It was quite adorable how the two of them were arguing over elements of this battle that they perceived in their own unique manner. Az could not sense the elements of exploding Mana like Miu can and Miu cannot tell apart the dreadful screams of the creature burning in that fire. "Muuu¡­" "Miu?" "Muuuuu." "Miu! Miu!" They were just enjoying this whole battle in their own way. And, though Elio was not paying attention to these two little ones, he had made sure one of the angles of his recordings is always tracking the two of them. They were just too precious to ignore even in this difficult situation. He was thinking of making a video dedicated to the two of them. "Muuuu~." "Miu? Miu~!" -Booooooooom! "Muuuu~!" "Miu~!" "Muuu!" S~ea??h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Miu~!!" He knew Olive was going to love that video. He had to put in a little more effort especially with the parts where Miu shows expressions. They were precious footages. Perhaps there was some NFT market for it as well. [{ "It''s almost done¡­ hang in there, darling." }] [{ "Haaa¡­ I''m tired." }] Continuously casting spells, activating magic items, using Mana, and keeping track of each of the recording screens in each of the angles was a tedious task. This was perhaps the first time he understood just what sort of difficulty a streamer would face in this game. [{ Master, you can rest if you want. }] [{ "I''m fine Sera." }] They were finished with the mobs anyway. The real challenge was going to start after this¡­ Chapter 145 Recovery herb "Haaa¡­"Day, night, time, or flow of any natural element was almost restricted in this environment. There was no ceiling here so there was no sky. They had been here for two days already and all this time, they had been killing the mobs that they either kited or hunted in their own colonies. They destroyed the entirety of the large habitats of some of the creatures, Alex took the lead and spearheaded the road to higher levels for all of them. There were times they did not even have to expand their own energy. Just inciting some conflict led to internal complications resulting in the death of various large monster groups. "I want to go home¡­" "We don''t have a home, mister Elio. Though, there are some places that are like a house for me. Wanna go there when we get the chance?" "You used to live there? Haven''t you only traveled all your time here?" She was not the kind to stay in a certain place for too long. She just liked travelling and going to the new places and doing various things with various kinds of people that she met during her travels that would make her little time with them worths something. She was pretty social person so whoever she might be with, she would mix in with them and sometimes, even help them in various manner. "Yeah¡­ well, they aren''t a home. I''ve never had one either¡­ but, you know what? I''ve always wanted to make one." "A home?" "Yeah¡­" "Really? Can you stay in that home for more than a few days or weeks though? You know it wouldn''t be a proper house if you are away from it for two thirds of a year." They were camping at the moment since it was night time¡­ the environment inside the dungeon was still bright with all those natural lights still, but they knew it was night right now according to the system clock. So, since they were done with their initial massacre, they were going to start with the bigger fish of this dungeon, one that had a better chance to drop a spirit essence of skills. "Ummm¡­ well, I never said I wanted to live in a home. We already have that outside. I just wanted one here as well so that we can at least have a place to return to from the longer travels that we will do." He already knew how there were some certain things that Alex was searching for and how they all were scattered all throughout this world. It wasn''t going to be possible to collect all of them anytime soon, they would at least need a few years to gather all of them. "Hmmm¡­ that doesn''t sound too bad, you know?" "Right~?" They were going to the great Jungle of Nozama, and it would take at least a month to explore and get to the heart of that place even with the help of the locals that live in the deeper area of the forest. They would need to achieve Level-100 before they can go to that dangerous forest though, so they still needed to level up a little more. "Haha, it''s a fun idea." "I own a lot of land and houses in a lot of places, you know? We can make it anywhere we want to so let''s find the perfect place in this world together~." "Sure. I''d love that." They were eating some well cooked meat since there wasn''t anything else that they could eat in this dungeon. They were saving the other good food that they brought from the outside for later. They had worked hard until now¡­ Elio did not like how they had to kill all of those creatures, but things were beyond saving now. He was soothing his conscience by saying he did not kill any of them by his own hands, but he knew how he was the reason for their death as well. "Soup?" "Yes please." "Miu~!" "Muuuuu!" "You two don''t even eat soup, hahaha." They wanted some as well, cute babies. "How about you two have your own food. Do you not like it?" "Miu!" "Muuuu!" "Then?" They were Mana beasts so they couldn''t eat anyway. Were they going to try having some and ultimately end up evolving again? It would be fun if that happens¡­ but they weren''t after the soup this time. Find more chapters on empire "They want the Mana recovery herbs I mixed in the soup, haha." As creatures of nature sensitive to Mana, they sensed the herbs that Alex had mixed into Elio''s soup portion. He did not notice it until now, but that herb was something he needed the most right now. He had ended up pushing himself too far. So much so that Mana recovery potions weren''t working for him anymore. They would start working again after the current potion''s effects die down. But until then, he needed something more powerful to replenish his Mana reserve. And that precious herb would have been the best for it¡­ "Here, you two can have it." "Miu? Miu~!" "Muuuuu~!" S~ea??h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Still, even though he knew what it was, he placed the five leaf clover before the two little ones. This was no simple plant but something that was mythologically connected with the demons and angels. Finding it was like finding a needle in a haystack even in a dungeon like this one. It was easy to miss and difficult to notice due to its little Mana volume. It wasn''t anything too special, but it was still something that would have helped him immensely had he not given it to the two little creatures with a bright smile. "Olive is gonna love these." "Haaa¡­ of course you did it to click photos. And here I thought you fell in love with these two." "I fell for their cuteness a long time ago, dear Miss Twinkle. Just look at them." They were fighting for the cover. And, one of the leaves was detached from the main stem in their little fight. It was a symbol of demons before but now the clover was a sign of good luck. And, Elio liked this even more. "She loved four leaf clovers." "Yup. I see the pendant you made for her when you were little on her all the time." He was happy right now so, even though she did not like this, she did not want to ruin the mood for him. He was dealing with a lot of things already¡­ she can at least do him a favor by not being a bitch this time. Chapter 146 Ents Ents, the fictional, sentient tree-like creatures of the Middle-earth universe."Depicted as the ancient beings¨C guides of the forest, they are one of the most famous mythical creatures." Slow-moving and conscious by nature, they possess a deep connection to nature. In many of the stories, they are guardians of the forests and possess wisdom that comes from centuries of life. "But the Ents of are divided into three main categories, much like many dungeon creatures that we would see." From their perch high in the canopy, Alex and Elio gazed down upon the monstrous creature that had nestled in the depths of this unique dungeon. Its lumpy, twisted limbs resembled the roots of a banyan tree, and its skin was a sickly green, covered in moss and lichen. It had four glowing eyes of an unnatural red, and its teeth were sharp, jagged, like the claws of a wild animal. "This one falls into the first category: the ugly boogies." Elio''s heart pounded in his chest as he took in the creature''s hideous form. It was so hideous that it was unnaturally beautiful. "They are ugly, and as much as they look unique from the other kind of creatures in a dungeon, they are strong." He had never seen anything like it before, and he couldn''t help but feel a sense of excitement wash over him. This was the perfect kind of model that any wildlife photographer would want to come across. There were not many chances for one to witness a creature as hideous and freaky as this one in its most natural habitat. "This one''s a child, an ungrown Ent that wouldn''t mature into an adult Ent, the main kind of high ranking creatures that even the rankers fear." She knew how he wanted to leave this one and just watch it. If it were up to him, he would just leave all the hunting and stuff to the side and just watch this creature, this otherworldly creature doing its normal things. "A True Ent is not something even rankers can kill since they aren''t meant to be killed in this world¨C they are the same as dragons anyway so killing one is a faraway wish. And unlike those dumb lizards, they have heads and know how to converse with someone." Elio knew she was here to kill this amazing bastard and he knew there was nothing he would be able to do to stop her this time, and yet he seemed to be fascinated by the creature. He stared at it intently, his eyes wide with wonder. It really was horribly ugly. It was breathtaking just looking at it. "Gumoooooo." The creature let out a low growl, and Alexandra and Elio exchanged an excited glance. One wanted to kill this ugly creature while the other wanted to study it, see all the aspects of it and if possible even go ahead and try taming it. He had never wanted to consciously, but he really was interested in this ugly af creature. He couldn''t help wanting to check every inch of it, take samples, and perform a few fun experiments on it. "Will you stop me?" The two of them had left Az and Miu in Sera''s care since they were going to take care of this one by themselves. They were (Level-60) now so they also wanted to test out just how much stronger they had become by fighting against this (Level-81) elite. "Is it true that there are ten times freakier things out there?" He was mesmerized by the ugliness of that creature. It was so disgusting that he even had to question those ugly things he had seen in some of his client''s videos. "There are. The babies in this dungeon are pretty much nothing compared to the big daddies out there, hehe. And, I know this ugly piece of work that you''ll find many times more photogenic than this one. He''s ironically a good family guy as well." She was obviously talking about some kind of a demonic being or something like that if she was praising them so highly. "I will be in the back." He did not like it that they were killing creatures in this dungeon, but¡­ apparently these creatures were born from the spirits of the forest animals that fell into this dungeon. "I''m going to do all the work anyway, haha." He did not like killing them, he did not want to kill this amazing piece of ugliness either. But he didn''t want to ruin the fun for her. "Alright then~!" "Where should we start?" There were more creatures like this one in the dungeon and they weren''t going to kill all of them. It has been late since they entered the dungeon anyway so they were going to finish a few of them, check out the actual Elm Guardian, and then get out of there through the teleportation point. sea??h th§× N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "What do you mean where?" -Swish. She used {Blink} and vanished from the place. [{ "It begins now!" }] It was a big creature. Much stronger than the two of them combined. It had strong magic resistance, it was hard with its strong tree-traits, and it was going to be difficult to use the same kind of tactics against this one that they had used against the other mobs. This one was not a mob, it was an area guardian that commanded those mobs. It was much more intelligent so it was going to be difficult to deal with anyway, but with its whip-like limbs that it had in hundreds, Elio had no idea how she was going to deal with this one by herself. [{ "Wind boost!" }] [{ "Yes, ma''am!" }] She had jumped down from the tree top and using {Blink} she reached the ground area and fell into the detection range of the creature. Ents were creatures close to nature, so they had the power to control all natural elements around them. It was said that some of them could command spirits as well, but this one was obviously not one of them. -Ooooooooooooooooooong! It was one of the weaker ones, so it was going to be much easier to deal with this one for them¡­ perhaps. Chapter 147 While the battle goes on. -Oooooooooooong!A restriction spell of fire attribute made by the blazing fire that she had created using her fire enchanted sword. It was made with the existing flames with the help of the special spells that Alex created. There was something unique about her spells¡­ They even worked on creatures the size of a dump pile. "Gumooooooooo!" With its hundreds of tentacle-like arms, the creature was after a little human that was trying to do something funny in his territory. "Gumoooooooo!" Elio was on a higher ground, there was no one here beside them, not creatures, not Az and group, and not even bugs. They were here alone, so¡­ Alex was taking this precious moment to relive her frustration. -Swish! Swish! Swish! She moved like a butterfly and plunged her flaming sword into the Ent''s trunk like a bee. She was faster now, much faster than she was when they first entered this dungeon. The leveling up was much more important to her since with each level that she recovered, she would recover more than just the powers that normal players acquire. She would get stronger at certain level junctions, and though it might not get reflected in her stats, she could use the techniques that previously could not. Especially after crossing (Level-50), she had regained a certain power. -Swish! The power of those who walked on the path of weapons, those who followed their heart and aimed to unite with the weapons that they held. A power that was not limited just to the knights, the symbol of chivalry. A power not limited to those who had earned the right to follow the path of honor, or adventure, or willingly face turbulent trials. [{ "It''s gorgeous however many times I see it, Alex." }] [{ "Hey! Stop with that flattering and focus! I will die if I get hit by those whips!" }] Aura. The power born from one''s deepest consciousness, the second most prominent natural energy of this world. "Gumoooooooooo¡­!" It wasn''t a simple power like Mana that one could use just because they had unlocked their Mana circuit. Unlike any other kind of special energy in this world, Aura was the symbol of acknowledgement. Being a knight did not mean one got to use Aura. Things did not work like that. Practice, devotion, understanding of the weapon, Talent, dedication and faith to one''s goals. Ambitions. That was the main factor that resulted in acknowledgement. -Swish! Swish! Swish! She had worked very hard to achieve this power in the past. She did not awaken her Aura until she had passed (Level-100), which was weird since her mastery over her weapon was much higher than even the knights of the empire. She had defeated many of them in an official fight without using Aura, sometimes even being mistaken as someone who did not respect the knight''s honors. [{ "So¡­" }] [{ "No talking! Elio! Focus!" }] Holding the flaming sword in her hand, attacking the already debuffed target, she was doing her best to avoid the branches that were coming at her from all around the place. They were after her, following her each movement¨C even the ones that were followed by her {Blink}. [{ "I''m going to die!" }] [{ "I won''t let you though. Why worry so much-." }] [{ "Just shut the hell up then!" }] She wanted him to shut up and keep the buffs coming. That was all she needed from him right now. There was a blazing white flame with a hint of red and blue on her sword. It was a pale flame, which one would recognize as the power of {Aura}. But unlike the {Aura} that Elio had seen until now, during the battle with the Dark mage, and the Aura in the knight''s associations, this Aura was different. There was a certain emptiness to it. Something that made it seem like it was just a shell of the [World] that this Aura was originating from. -Oooooooooooong! By nature, Aura was a destructive power and it most certainly helped her at the moment with the main thing they were doing at the moment. Killing this creature was the goal, and, if it wasn''t for this empty Aura of hers, she wouldn''t have been able to deal even the little damage that she was dealing at the moment. Her attacks were effective only because she was dealing them with a combination of her Aura and Sword''s enchanted fire. There were obviously the effects of her equipment as well, and Elio was there, of course. He was fucking around with the spells and her distracting her to make fun of her, to torture her for making him do this, but¡­ she knew he wasn''t going to let her die by the tentacles of this Ent. [{ "I''m going for double casting." }] [{ "Hmmm? What?" }] [{ "Casting spells with both hands. Get ready." }] Mixing a Restriction spell and adding in a new Physical spell that he had not tried yet. It might not be effective, but it would render the Ent powerless in case it works as he wanted it to be. [{ "Are you fucking crazy?! You just started learning Spell fusion! What do you think you are to try and fuse two already fused spells?! Some kind of main character with plot armor?!" }] She barely avoided that one attack, used {Blink} once again, and got out of the Ent''s perception range by climbing a shorter tree. [{ "Ughhh! Just do what we planned! We can try experiments later!" }] They needed to finish up with this one so that they could move on to the next target¡­ but that would not be possible if they died just because he wanted to punish her and HAVE FUN! [{ "Too late, Miss." }] He used a bottle of Mana recovery spell, went inside his Mind House, picked out the spell book from his shelf, and opened the page with the broken Restriction spells. -Oooooooooooong! Then he turned the pages and brought out the Physical series spell. -Ooooooooooong¡­! Calling out two powerful spells was a difficult task, but he did it, even though his head almost exploded while doing so. "Ugh!" S§×ar?h the N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He had experienced many worse painful experiences in his time here anyway, so he just ignored both of them, and opened his eyes to look at the two spells in his hands. This, the casting of two separate spells at once even with the help of a unique casting technique, would be called multi casting- or Double casting in this case. [{ "Here I go then." }] [{ "Dumbass¡­" }] There was an Ent jerking its limbs around searching for the target that had just hand in its graph and there he was, trying something stupid again that was obviously not going to work! -Booooooooooooom! But, well, just letting him experience this was much better than cursing at him. Chapter 148 Total dungeon progress "Haaa¡­ three Ents, Elio. THREE FUCKING ENTS!"That''s all that he could endure before he genuinely started getting in her way. "And that too after you fucked up with that first Ent!" He couldn''t combine two of his fused spells during their fight with the first Ent either. He just went ahead, blew the best strategic point up and was critically injured. "You still finished it off though, so it''s-." "YOU ARE UNBELIEVABLE!" If it wasn''t for Sera, Az and Miu who were nearby, she wouldn''t have been able to defeat that first Ent either. "You never wanted me to kill them! That''s why you did it!" "Of course I didn''t want to kill them. Just look at those ugly things, haha. How can we kill them?" Defeating the first one was not easy but from the second one, she didn''t take the risk and included Miu and others into the fights as well. Elio assisted her and the rest of them but he was still not being as helpful as he could have been had he been taking things seriously. At one point, she got so frustrated she had to scold him and ask him to do proper work, and he did it. He helped them so well they were able to take down their third Ent in only an hour. But then, when they reached the fourth Ent, he couldn''t just continue helping her anymore and asked her if they could stop. They had made significant progress in that dungeon and there was nothing left here that they could destroy either since they had reached the 55% destruction limit. Going any further might complicate things, but according to her calculations, killing two more Ents wouldn''t cause any problem¡­ but he did not want to do it, so he did everything he could to stop her from even attempting to take on that creature by herself. "I knew it! I fucking knew it! You bastard!" They were resting at another tree top now, since it was time for them to go out of this dungeon. They had achieved their goals for coming here, they even obtained a Skill essence from one of the Ents. "We could have finished Level-65 with this!" "But we don''t have to rush things, Alex. We will get the dungeon clearing reward as well, you know? We might get enough Exp to complete the level." They were (Level-42) and (Level-39) when they came here so after killing those thousands of creatures, this kind of outcome was pretty good. "But that would be an extra Exp addition, Elio! Why act like this when you know how much we will need the levels when we reach the city and meet the Viscount?! Do you have any idea how the high society of this world works?!" They were almost done with everything they wanted to do in this Town. Alex got her item from the Archer hall master, Miss Rin had some idea what kind of path she wanted to walk on, Misha was now aware of the kind of dangers that they were going to face going forward, and Az was confirmed to have Elementalism affinity. Elio was now able to cast new kinds of spells, Sera and Miu had leveled up so their powers had strengthened as well, and lastly, the Two of them were of a higher level now. "You know most of my clients were affiliated with the high nobility of this game, right?" He might not know about high society, the customs of this world, the things that they do, and the kind of etiquette various places follow, but he knew how all these things work. "Besides, if we are talking about knowing about the high society and the people of authority, you know I know about that kind of stuff pretty well." His family might not be some conglomerate or something like that, but his grandfather had built something valuable that his father was maintaining much better than his father. His mom had been a normal Lady, but she was talented¡­ so much so that at one point in time, everyone interested in the Archery sport knew about her. She was an amazing person in his eyes, but unlike his family members, he wasn''t interested in growing what was going to belong to him someday in the future. He wanted something of his own. He wanted his freedom and he did not want to rely on the two of them¡­ That''s why he started by himself. Worked, and worked, and worked until he achieved all that would make his life stable even in the future. He had a capable elder sister to look after their family business, so he had no pressure from their side either. They just wanted to see him being happy, and be with the person that he wanted to. "Hmph." Even Alex couldn''t deny the fact that he was familiar with high society and the general things that go on in most of them at the very least. "Anyway!" At the moment, she was angry about how he didn''t help her with the fourth Ent, how he asked Sera, Az, and Miu to not help her either, and how he had that annoying smile on his face. She did not like it¡­ "We could have obtained some more Exp! Why couldn''t you just help out WITHOUT experimenting with stupid things?! I mean, it''s just an ugly Ent!" "No, Alex." That''s where she was wrong. S§×arch* The n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "It''s The ugliest monster I''ve seen until now. That''s why I want to keep looking at that ugly thing." The thought ''How can something be so ugly?'' was constantly revolving in his head. He was thinking why it looked the way it did, why they perceived it as ''ugliness'' and he even thought about the very concept of ugliness, correlating things that were just too far apart. "You¡­" She looked at him with an annoyed expression. "You fucking piece of shit¡­" and then she cursed at him while slapping his face. "You''re enjoying this¡­ how dare you enjoy my misery you asshole! Is this all a joke to you?!" She takes things too personally and seriously sometimes. "Of course not. How can I take an amazing Game like this as a joke?" After playing this game for so long, the lines between reality and this unique world had blurred for her. She practically lives here nowadays¡­ and, it wasn''t that good a thing sometimes. "And how dare you hit me?" He bit her hand since slapping her pretty cheeks in this setting would be inappropriate. He did not want to start anything on a tree in a damn dungeon like this one¡­ she wouldn''t mind, he knew those wild fantasies of hers, but not yet. "Hey!!!" She was so invested in this world that she was becoming detached with the real world. "Oy¡­ no. Hey! I''ll fall! Alex!" He had only realized her unhealthy attachment to this world recently, and it wasn''t that good a thing for the life that they had in reality. He did not want a special life just in this special world. "You brought this upon yourself!" He loved her too much to limit their bond just to one world¡­ Chapter 149 Clearing difficulty "It is not advised to clear this dungeon."The Elmguardian Spawn, the sub-boss of the dungeon stands at the periphery, its massive form strolling around like an elephant in a park. Its body was covered in rough, weathered bark, and its face was a distorted mask that induced instinctive horror. Its eyes glow with an otherworldly light in this unique world of infinite possibilities and freedom, and its branches reach out like claws of a tiger. It looked dangerous, it was ugly, it was powerful and it was not even the final boss of this dungeon. "Hmm?" "Miu?" "Muuu?" The Elmguardian spawn¨C a horrible sight. It existed at the very edge of the dungeon and looked much uglier than any other creature the two of them had seen in this dungeon until now. Even the Ents were prettier than this one. S§×arch* The n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "The Sub bosses regenerate every couple months and whenever they are born, the dungeon goes berserk, spewing out the creatures that are present in this dungeon at that time. The Elmguardian, this very tree that we are under, is a living entity on its own, but unlike other monsters, it is not something that can move or do anything to anyone. It actually is just a tree. And this entire dungeon, this entire unique world exists inside of it." The creatures were the fruits born from the flower that grew inside the Elmguardian, the Ents were a natural phenomenon that appeared due to the compatible environment and nature''s interference, and these Spawn were the direct creation of this special guardian. And yet, as the experienced people could tell, this unfathomably ugly creature of (Level-102) was not the final target of this dungeon. "No one has seen the real boss of the dungeon until now¡­" The cores of a dungeon that gave it the position of a dungeon, the main bosses that indicated towards the final destination of a dungeon run. The Boss monsters were mostly the strongest or the most special people in their respective dungeons. They were strong and they had their powerful skills, as well as unique abilities that gave them the authority positions. The boss of this dungeon had guarded this Nest for decades, perhaps centuries, and it had done so without ever being caught by even the best experts. "They did try however hard they could, the old man tried finding the boss for three years before he gave up and decided to leave the town to find the answer to his [Question]." The Elmguardian nest''s boss must not be a mindless beast. From how much they had found out about it, it must be a sentient being, and it should be able to communicate with the elements of this dungeon for it to have been hidden all this time. "The rest of them who came here all searched for it as well, but no one found it, and later, since the dungeon''s functionality and use was discovered, it was established that they should not clear this dungeon even if they have the chance." They were at the end of their dungeon run, facing the platform that would take them outside of this dungeon. It was a hill like high ground so they could see the grand ugly creature roaming around the place with somewhat of a joyful expression. Elio could tell there was something unique about this uglier creature, there was something so unique that even though he did not like how this one looked, he did not want to kill it. "I wanted to go around and try finding that one, but, doesn''t seem like it would be possible." Thanks to Elio''s initial help, they were able to deal with the mobs much faster than they had anticipated. But still, three days have passed since they entered this dungeon and now that they had finally achieved Their goal, they were going to say their goodbye to this pretty place. "We will be back, alright? Don''t stress about it. That boss monster isn''t going anywhere anyway." If knights like them could not find it, chances were slim that anyone else would be able to find it unless they were rankers with developed search skills. "Hmmm¡­" She had awakened her Aura power but she was still not too strong. And she did not have any special search skills so they might not be able to find anything anyway. "Well, let''s go. I don''t wanna fight anymore anyway." She knew he liked the sub-boss monster as well and that he wouldn''t let her fight it, much less fight against it with her. He wanted to see the dungeon boss like the rest of them as well, but that would only be possible if they are able to find that creature in this big dungeon. "As you wish, Miss Alex." "Miu~!" "Muuuuuu!" The slime-gecko were happy even though they were going back. The fun that they had here, the kind of things that they saw and the cool things that they met here were all a precious experience to both of them. Az sympathized with the creature even though it killed them and asked for their forgiveness as it demolished them. Miu on the other hand, wasn''t aware of most of the things that had happened around them. Killings of creatures was a natural thing so it didn''t think much about it, but the fireworks, the blasts, the tornadoes of fire, and the destruction that disturbed the environmental Mana was all something that had made a comfortable place in this little gecko''s little head. "Miu~!" Not all of it was fun for the Two of them but they had quite a unique time in this dungeon with the Elm creatures and the Ents. "Ugh¡­ let''s just go." She was frustrated already, she did not want to say something that would lead to a fight in this place. There was a simple plain platform before them that they didn''t take long to find thanks to the Hall master''s instructions. They just had to step onto it to get out of here. And, after what Elio did, she did not have any motivation to stay back here¡­ Chapter 150 Back to the town [Ding!][You have cleared the dungeon quest.] [Exp will be rewarded according to evaluated actions¡­] They came out through the teleportation point and not long after, their dungeon run was concluded. [Ding!] [The Reward Exp calculation has been concluded.] "Hmmm¡­ let''s see." [Ding!] [Level up!] [(Level-63) > (Level-66).] Both Elio and Alex were now (Level-66) even though she was a level higher than him. Sera was also (Level-46) now and since the levels were quite different for Miu and Az as they were creatures, they were on (Level-15) and (Level-18) respectively. They did not gain Exp for the same things as Sera or the two of them, but just like the gained levels, the kind of powers that both of them obtain at each new level were also different. They did not have any need to distribute their stat points like the rest of them, it was a natural process that happened as they leveled up. "See. I told you it would be alright." "Hmph. doesn''t change the fact that you''re a jerk." Looking back, there was only one thing that they needed from this dungeon run and it was Levels. "Haha. We leveled up more than twenty times in just four days, Alex. Isn''t that amazing~?" The Exp requirement for each level was incomparable to the previous one. And with the increasing levels, this Exp requirement increased exponentially. "Hmph. It''s all thanks to my spells. If it weren''t for my genius, you would still be a (Level-20) dimwit." He did not want to kill anything and it was a noble wish. But, he has to understand that if he doesn''t kill things, he would not be able to attain the kind of power he would need to protect the things precious to him. "Oy, I''m no dimwit, alright?" They were outside now, so they were standing under the giant tree. Miu and Az had already run off to somewhere with Sera following behind them¡­ "If it wasn''t for me, who would have cast those spells?" "I''d do it myself!" "Can you even cast spells?" "Do you think I have that mage association ID for nothing?" Well¡­ she was a genius and that much was a fact that he could never deny. He knew she was smart and just from the spells that she created, the spells that helped them demolish almost half of that dungeon''s population, he knew just how amazing of a mage she would have been if she was able to use Mana. "...well, you can''t cast any spells at least for now, right?" He would believe it if she was saying she was capable of casting spells without having access to Mana. Spells weren''t a power limited to only the Mana users. No rule in this world restricted the use of magic to only those who were somehow connected with the mage field. "Even if I can''t cast any spells, I can still kill those small things! I''d just take a little longer, alright?!" He had a faint idea about the kind of resources she possessed. So, he knew if she wanted, she could just destroy this entire Elmguardian and the dungeon that it has within it with just a single spell scroll of high level. But, she was too conscious about the kind of resources that she has. She wouldn''t do something that would put a hole in her wallet, especially when it comes to things that she could very well do on impulse. "Yeah, I know you can destroy half of this world if you want." grabbing her hand and pulling her closer, he kissed her gently, shutting her down and turning her anger into surprise. "But, you''re too soft to do something like that to the world you love so much." He might not know the extent of the powers that she used to have, but he still knew how the players like her, those who had started before anyone else and were one of the [Pinnacle holders] very well possessed the kind of players most other players wouldn''t even dream of possessing. They had worked tirelessly for that kind of power, that kind of authority in this world. And he knew what kind of challenges he would face if he wanted to reach that level. "You¡­ you¡­ you''re a bastard, Elio!" A blush broke out on her face and she started punching his shoulders. "You''re adorable now, hahaha." If the level difference between them was still as great as it was when he came to Moongold, his arm bone would have broken already. But now that both of them were stronger and there wasn''t that great of a stat difference between them, it did not even hurt that much. "Ugh! I''m done with this shit!" -Swish! She stomped, took a look at the great tree behind them one last time and walked away from him using {Blink}. She didn''t want to get caught by him once again so she wasn''t even giving him a chance anymore. -Swiiiiish! "You''re not getting away from me that easily, Miss." Sadly for her though, she was the one who handed him the Ent''s {Physical acceleration} skill, saying he would need it more than her. Coupled with his enhancement spells, he was able to match up with the distance that she was able to cover using her unique movement skill. "I shouldn''t have given that to you!" "Don''t cry over spilled milk now, haha~." He was in a good mood after looking at that ugly face of the Ent. He knew how gross that sounded but it was pretty true. Looking at that ugly mug reminded him how he had a pretty girlfriend that was prettier than most women he had seen in this world. -Swish! "Get away from me!" Sear?h the N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. -Swiiiiiiish! "Why would I~?" He liked this, actually. Chasing after her like this, through this Fall struck a forest area, through these yellow leaves¡­ Even Miu and Az that they passed on their way were excited to see this fun game. "Miu~!" "Muuuuuu~!" Sera was flying right behind them, with a happy smile on her bird face. She was enjoying this chase game as much as him¡­ Chapter 151 A unique sight The way back wasn''t long for them.Unlike the time it took for them to go all the way to the dungeon''s location, they just had to use a (Return scroll) to get back to Yuta. It was one of the most used consumables for players as well as the natives. Not only was it the cheapest kind of teleportation spell, it was a consumable that even many mages of (tier-4) and above could produce without the limitations of the elemental affinities. "Take out my cuties." "Don''t tell me, Miss girlfriend. I know what I have to do." They were back safely in the main plaza of the town, and since they were back, they moved ahead and started walking towards their inn. Though, there was one thing they needed to do before they went back. -Ooooooooong! "...miu?" "Muuuu¡­?" "Hey guys." Elio could not take Az and Miu back with them when they were using the return scrolls. It was a method that was better used by the individuals and not the creatures since there was a strong mental shock involved in the process. "Was it uncomfortable? Do you remember what happened when you went in?" "Miu?" "Muuu?" It wasn''t recommended for one to let their tamed beasts use a return scroll. Tamers especially were advised to get a unique storage device for the tamed beasts that cost more than ten gold coins¡­ too costly. It wasn''t easy to be a simple beast tamer in this world especially when you have unique creatures sensitive to Mana fluctuations like Az and Miu. "You don''t remember what happened after you went in?" "It''s similar to time stopping for them when they go in that unique space, dummy. Don''t you even know how your own skill works?" Alex knew if they used a return scroll, something bad might happen to them that they did not want to see right now. Thus, she urged Elio to get that unique skill {Tamer''s subspace} from the collection menu. "How would I know when it''s not even been an hour since I got this skill. I haven''t even read the description of the skill yet." "Ptfff¡­ dumb Elio." One of the most common skills that renowned tames that had their names famous in their towns and cities had was the unique subspace where they could place their tamed beast into. Different from item storage skills or the {Inventory} that players innately have, this unique subspace was a pocket dimension that made the tamer''s life easier. "Miu~!" "Muuuu~!" As soon as the tamed beasts go inside of the subspace of the tamer, time would almost stop for them and they would only remember the moment of going in that space when they come out. It wasn''t the best kind of experience, Elio knew that after using it just this one time, so he had decided not to use it unless they had to move with the return scrolls and such. "Anyway¡­" Elio now had three skills including his skill that allowed him to perceive Mana in the surroundings in a better manner. He was also the same level as Alex so now she couldn''t bully him like she had done until now. Additionally, since he also knew how to cast spells in a unique manner now, the chances that he would have to unnecessarily submit to her desires were going to decrease as well. "Do you feel anything, Alex?" "Hmm? What does that-..." They were going back to their inn but, right when they reached their inn, Elio sensed something strange, and right after they walked a few steps closer, Alex also sensed something strange¡­ something that she was familiar with. "Misha?" It wasn''t anything threatening. It was faint, but she could tell this was the energy of an Ichorborn that they could only use when they have gained a certain level of control on their power. -Swish! She used {Blink} once again and vanished from the place. She was going inside the inn from where this strange energy was coming from, and Elio also ran behind her. There was no way Misha was using that energy so he found this strange as well. "Miu~!" "Muuuuu!" He was worried, but the little creatures that he was running with were excited after they somehow perceived this unique energy. He did not know why the two were doing it, but there was no time to think about these things either, He just ran straight to her room and went inside the open door. "Misha!" "Hmmm?" But the scene that he found here, in this room, was not what either of them were expecting. "What are you doing here, Conny?" The Librarian was here, Miss Rin was nowhere to be seen, and Misha was on the ground, in a meditating position, with a unique golden energy covering her. "You shouldn''t just barge into someone else''s room, you two." Sear?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He knew the two approaching were these two and that was the only reason he had opened this door for them, or else if the one coming was someone else, that door wouldn''t ever have opened up. "What¡­ what are you doing here? And what''s Misha doing?" As both of them could see, she was covered in a transparent barrier as she tried focusing with her eyes closed. "You wanted me to teach her a thing or two, right? I''m doing exactly that¡­ or at least, I tried to do it." The Librarian was sitting on the bed while Misha was on the floor without knowing how they were back. "I wanted to take things slowly, teach her only the basics of energy control and cultivation as I wait for you to come back¡­ but she ended up mastering both the basics of energy cultivation as well as energy manipulation in just three days." There was an almost helpless expression on his smiling face. He was telling them what was going on, but he knew as well as them that whatever he was saying wouldn''t really make any sense to either of them¡­ "She''s much more talented than we had anticipated." He could see just how much potential one possessed and Misha''s potential was always good. But, it was nowhere near the two of these people, or that slime, or that gecko, or even Sera. He always believed she could have a good and normal life if she wanted, but now that he knew what kind of monstrous talent she had, he knew what kind of trouble the two of them were going to be in when handling her. "Perhaps¡­ she''s a genius." Coming from him directly, they knew this was no exaggeration. But, then again¡­ both of them could tell this was not something they had to worry about. It was not a simple matter, but he was the Librarian. He should already know what they are going to do about this matter¡­ Chapter 152 His mess "So, you mean you will keep teaching her from now on?""Of course not. I have to go back to my library. I''m late anyway." He told them how they needed to keep teaching her about her powers from now on, and how she needed to learn more about herself to realize how she could do many cool things. There was a possibility that she might awaken her powers with some more knowledge about herself, what her powers were, or how she could do much more than what a mage could. "You know much more than I do, so you should obviously be the one to teach her." Besides, as he said, she might just be a genius. Just knowing about a few more things should be enough for her to realize the kind of strength that she had. "You''re just dumping her to me now? Aren''t you the one that has taught her until now?" Alex didn''t mind teaching their little friend. Misha was not a child, she was an adult from this world''s perspective. After that experience with the mage tower master, she knew how the world out there was a dangerous place. There were people, bad people, that would want to harm her and the people around her. She knew her mom was hiding a lot of things from her, but she did not understand a lot of things since she did not know much about the situation they were in. "I''m not as good of a teacher as you could be for her¡­ A genius would shine under the light of a sun much better than a distant star." He believed she would do a better job than him. Besides, this little girl loved them much more than she looked up to a stranger like him. "So, you do care about something other than Them?" Alex was also sitting on the bed, looking at Misha training her powers, with Elio sitting right behind them. "Muuuu~." Miu was walking around the room, mostly on the walls, while Az was happily circling around Misha. "Miu~!" Both of them liked the energy inside this room. This natural energy was something creatures of nature like them could not resist. They were happy to be here, and Az was calling out the spirits to enjoy this special atmosphere as well. They were enjoying this, but it did not last for long¡­ "Looks like she''s done." The golden light around Misha vanished and the barrier that was covering her as well. The spirits vanished as Az''s Mana supply was cut off, and Miu also came down from the ceiling when it saw the golden light vanishing. Both of them waited for her to open her eyes, but her head simply dropped to the ground. "She overdid it." The Librarian picked her up with magic and placed her on the bed beside them. "If you knew this was going to happen, why didn''t you stop her earlier?" Elio was stunned by how she fell uncious right after that light banished from around her. It was almost like a candle exhausting¡­ something he did not expect to witness at the moment. "She just exhausted herself with the energy cultivation. You know this isn''t dangerous, so why do you think I''d stop her?" She was doing much better than he had anticipated and there was nothing wrong with it. She was working hard as a young person her age should. Besides, this was not some simple Mana training. "You know as well as I do, Connie¡­ Ichor can be very dangerous." Alex went up to the young girl and looked at her happy expression as if she had achieved something. She was unconscious, but it seemed like she was having a fun dream or something. "It can certainly be dangerous. However, only when it is being controlled by someone who has awakened her powers. She doesn''t even know what the power she is feeling actually is." Environment and the nature that they live in was an amalgamation of various kinds of energies. Mana occupies a big volume of that energy, but just like water in the atmosphere, it is merely a small fragment of the big pool. "But that doesn''t make it less dangerous-." Elio was going to argue with him. He was being so nonchalant about this whole thing that he couldn''t help feeling worried about Misha. But, Alex put a finger on his face right when he started talking and looked at the librarian with squinted eyes. "So what do you want me to do here, bastard? Do I just go ahead and teach her actual Ichor manipulation when I''ve just got my Aura back?" As he said, she had just started learning the basics. She did not know much about her powers and Alex did not know a lot about these basics. If she were to teach her all the things one by one, she knew she would need months to reach the actual important stuff. S§×ar?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "You know me. If I''m to teach her, I will be thorough with my methods." She had knowledge and teaching skills but her method was very specific. She could not teach anything to someone that did not have the basics cleared. If they did not know the basic things, she would start with the basics. If they know even a little about the basics, she would move up a step and refine their basics along with the other things. "I would have taught her all that she needed¡­ but you came and FUCKED everything I had planned for her." Energy circulation and cultivation on one side, what she was just practicing was called (Energy channeling). This thing was direct channeling of the energy from the environment to one''s body and from there, it was directly thrown out of the body without any kind of process through only mental stamina. It was a difficult process. Certainly not something easy, and more definitely something that she was supposed to teach her until she had learned all about (Circulation), (Breathing), (Materialization) and (Manifestation). "So tell me, Connie." She was angry after what Elio did in the dungeon already, but thanks to the Great things Librarian did here, she was even more pissed off. "Why the hell did you come here to fuck things over when you couldn''t even simply hold that One Dumb Bastard in his tower?" She was smiling right now. And for the first time, that Warm smile wasn''t towards Elio. "Miu?" "Muuu¡­?" He knew there was nothing he could say here, between them, so he just sat back down and watched the Librarian''s anxious look¡­ knowing full well he was going to receive a good little earful of curses. Chapter 153 A fast pass "If you are going to Kalp, I can give you a little ride."She shouted at him for three hours straight. Even Miss Rin came back from her little visit to the knight association and was surprised by this scene. "What do you mean by that? You will use a teleportation spell just for us? Really?" Rin knew the librarian was above (Level-200) easily even though she did not know the exact level. He was able to defeat legions of Dark mages in the wars against the dark forces, so it was a given that he was at least powerful enough to be on the same level as a high noble of this country. And yet, he was being yelled by some simple girl that did not even have a third of his powers. And, the more surprising thing was how he was just sitting there, listening to shouting, curses, and the comments of A girl. "Why would I waste a teleportation spell for such a short distance? That would be a waste of my precious energy, dear great Lady." She was finally done shouting at him, and Misha had also woken up after their little commotion a while back. "Don''t call me that. It''s simply Miss Alex now. Nothing more." Misha was happy that they were back, but since she could tell the adults were talking about something important, she didn''t disturb them and went to Elio and Alex''s room to play with Miu, Az, and Sera. She had a lot of things to tell them, and also a lot of things to know from them. "Right¡­ apologies, Lady Alex." "¡­" Alex didn''t really like being called a ''Lady'' since she knew she was nothing like those elegant women that were actually Lady-like. "Ahem, anyway¡­" The Librarian could tell she did not like being called a Lady either. But he couldn''t address her casually anymore. Not after he found out how she was the one that killed that high level mage¡­ not after finding out about that white sword. "We can fly to the Kalp. I can use an express route." He had already told them all about the commotion in Moongold. The investigation, the commotion, the anxiety in the air¡­ he told them all about those things and, it was surprising. They were stunned how just one death could cause such a commotion, but after hearing how he had already dealt with those issues, they weren''t worried about anything. He was good with his work, handling a library as large as that one was not a simple task. "The express route? Damn, really?" Using teleportation spells would be easy for someone like him. He was not a simple human. He had lived for more than a century. He was also powerful. Using a teleportation spell was not that hard. But he wasn''t going to do it. Casting a (tier-7) spell was a little too much when they just had to cross a distance they can cross in 3 days. It wasn''t too much, they didn''t have to use a spell of that level for such short distances. "I''m going south to pick up a package anyway. I don''t mind dropping you off at Kalp¡­ besides, I think the kids will love the view from the sky." An express route was a flight route that was created especially for the high speed travels of special individuals. Mages, knights of high enough rank, those who had wings, those who had flying mounts, and the royalty. It was a special privilege few could use¡­ She didn''t think he would go out of his way and use that air route just to help them get to Cromwell''s city. "Is this your way to apologize or something? Or is this a bribe to my babies?" Alex was suspicious of him. There was something fishy about him. He was acting somewhat differently since earlier. She couldn''t tell what he was hiding but there was definitely something he had not told them. S§×ar?h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. From what the Two of them could tell from his occasional glance at the white sword, both of them were also wondering if he had found out something about it. "Oh, no no. I''m just suggesting it would be better this way. The horses you had must have suffered significant trauma as well¡­ they might not be able to handle the bandit ridden hilly path." It wouldn''t be surprising if he did know something about it, but they knew there wouldn''t be much that he would know about it. Not even Alex knew much about this sword in the first place, and Elio also only knew about the few powers this sword gave her. "We can just take a shortcut, you know? I was going to avoid the mountain bandits for now anyway¡­ but then again, your offer is pretty good too." She gave it a thought. Flying through the sky, watching the little things below, cutting off their travel time to only a few hours¡­ It was a great offer. "El?" "I''m uncertain, but I think They will be happy about this so I don''t mind." Elio wanted to experience what this Fast pass flight felt like as well. But he wasn''t sure about the librarian''s intentions anymore. Not after seeing how he was glancing at Alex''s white sword while trying to make it seem natural. He was hiding something. But whatever it might be, he did not feel it was anything malicious. "Miss Rin?" "Oh I don''t mind, dear. It''s fine. I''m fine with anything you want. You''re the boss~." Miss Rin seemed to be in a good mood for some reason. And she trusted the Librarian. He might have been absent for a moment which resulted in what happened with them and that mage, but he wouldn''t have foreseen it either. He had stayed here to tell them everything because he believed he was at fault as well. But he made up for his mistake, and she did not resent him for whatever he might have been busy with. "Hmm¡­ well, Connie." Alex knew the children would like that as well. And, she knew this bastard didn''t have the balls to do anything to them anyway. The precious little Things he cared about the most would die if he did anything to her, which he wouldn''t as he had seen her brutality, but then again, she did not have the power that she used to. If he tries to act up once again, she wouldn''t be able to hold back at only a few fatal injuries¡­ She didn''t want to spill unnecessary blood once again. "We''ll take you up on that offer. Let''s depart at dawn." They were done with all they needed to do anyway. If they reach the city before her schedule, they can spend an entire day looking for Misha''s Bird. "Sure then." This was good¡­ In fact, this is Perfect. Chapter 154 Travel through the sky "Did you double check everything?""Yup. Food, clothes, new blades, and items. All set." "Check it again. Here''s the list-." "Do you think I would have forgotten that tiny list?" "Of course not, Miss Savant. I''m just making sure I did not forget anything. So¡­ please check this list and tell me if everything''s fine." As the first rays of dawn kissed the horizon, they prepared to leave Yuta behind. "Elio, I checked that list three times already. Don''t stress about it. We will be visiting the auction house in Kalp and see if there is something good anyway." Alex was ready with her things, Misha was excited about flying so she was excitedly talking with The librarian. He was ready already, waiting for them to finish their last checks. "If you say so¡­ then it''s fine." Elio was done with his complaints, Alex was done answering him, Misha was ready since last night like Miu and Az, and Miss Rin was also looking forward to this. Sera wasn''t really excited about this or anything since, well, flying through the skies wasn''t anything new for her. But, she was still looking forward to how they will be using the Fast passage. "Looks like everyone''s ready." S§×ar?h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The librarian was getting annoyed with Misha''s constant questions so he wanted to just start moving. But, her companions were wasting too much time on useless things. "Yes." "Let''s go, Connie~." "Oh wait." Miss Rin was late since she went out to the knight''s association once again earlier this morning, then Elio was wasting time checking out his inventory, and then Alex¡­ Well, Alex wasn''t really wasting their time but her mere presence was bothering him. Still, he had endured it until now, and right when he finally thought they would finally be moving, Elio spoke up again, blocking their flow. "Oh, no. Wait. It''s nothing. I already sent the letter to the hall master. We can go." He was a good boy, but he was sometimes unpredictable. He did not hate it, but if he kept doing this, he did not know how his point of view of this talented mage/tamer/archer would change. "Then we should depart now." "Yessss~! Finally~!" Misha was 15 and yet she wasn''t like the usual ''adult'' kinds her age. She was a child and she acted like children should, and that was a nice aspect to the people around her. She did not mind what people thought of her actions since she was mostly an introverted reserved person, but after the two of them came into her life, she had become a new person. Someone her mom couldn''t help but be proud of. "Please gather around then." They were on the empty terrace of the archery hall, a place they had reserved for the take off. Alex, Elio, Misha, Miss Rin, Miu, Az, Sera, and their two horses were going to travel with the Librarian from Yuta to Kalp through their highway air route. And now that they were all ready to take off, the pilot did not wait long to unleash his spell. -Ooooooooooooong! A unique silver platform was created under their feet as a transparent barrier shaped like a teardrop enveloped them. "If you feel motion sick, endure it. It will only take a little less than three hours." The travel time of three days was going to be cut down to three hours. Which was a nice thing. But the fact that they were going to fly was even more fun to the young girl. "Then¡­" The teardrop barrier and platform along with the passengers started floating up in the air as purple-blue strings were released from the librarian''s fingertips. "Let us depart. For real this time." Arcanum was a unique power stronger than magic, and the Librarian was also a sorcerer born with the blessings of nature and Mana. He was a scholar and a high level mage, so the kind of spells that he used were not as simple as the spells that Elio used or even as weak as the spells of the mage tower master that they killed. As some of the few high level mages of this world, he was a unique existence. And when it came to [Spell weaving] he was also one of the best in the magic society. -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiish¡­ "Physical series, water attribute¡­ that''s a pretty spell, Connie." "I''m honored you think that way." "And I don''t like how you''ve been acting since earlier. What the hell did you find out about this sword that you are acting like that you piece of shit?" She did not see anything wrong with cursing an individual like him. In fact, this was natural to her, and she really did not like how he was acting. "I simply visited the white sage, nothing else." As they floated up in the sky, the knight halls, the houses, the entire town became smaller in their eyes. They elevated to a point where the entire town looked no bigger than a cat beneath their feet, which was quite high. And then, they started moving forward to the south, towards Kalp, the city of Cromwell viscounty. "You visited white gramps? No wonder you have been acting like that since earlier¡­ he must have told you quite a bit about the sword, correct?" Moving through the sky¡­ it wasn''t the same as the flight of the free birds, but, this was not something simple either. "Not really." They were floating in the sky and through a physical series spell that was creating this airship-like spell barrier, they were able to move through the reserved path where no birds could enter. "Wow¡­ mommy, look." "Miu¡­" "Muuuu¡­" The children were spellbound by the scenery that wasn''t really anything new to the people around her. The sky, the orange painted morning clouds that were just a few meters above them, and the endless world before them were a stunning sight to the younger ones, even the two creatures that did not have the same senses as the rest of them. "He told me what I was allowed to know, as you might have guessed already. Besides, I''m not really acting any differently from earlier." Traveling through the sky was a unique privilege. "I''m just interested in that object a little more than anything else out there at the moment." But, the highway path that they were using was not the best travel method for everyone. Chapter 155 Kalp: The City of Preservation It wouldn''t have taken them long to reach Kalp with the straight highway even with their horse carriage.They were fast and they knew the path so they would have been alright anyway¡­ however, if they had taken that path, they would have had to pass through the mountain area where there were chances of bandits appearing. They would have had to pay a hefty sum to pass through them¡­ and, since they were all nearly (Level-100) people, fighting with them did not really made any sense. They were in hundreds, they had strategic weapons and people who could cast magic of high level as well and they were string individuals. Fighting would not have been an option if they were unlucky enough to get entangled with them, but thankfully, they did not have to go through the road path. They took the sky route and crossed the distance that would have taken them with all the rest and occasional fights with the creatures, in just a few hours. "The Cromwell viscounty''s hairloom, the city that has been preserved in its natural state since its creation." Traveling at a high speed through the road and traveling through the sky at a speed that was considered ''high'' were two different things. Someone who was not experienced with the highspeed travels and motion sickness was more prone to getting unwell after traveling at that kind of speed. "Blaghhhhhhh!" Misha experienced it for the first time today, and that too after she had just started learning about her powers. She was enjoying the pretty view when they started traveling, she was happy and excited and thanks to her Az and Miu were excited as well. "There there¡­" But then, when they picked up the pace and actually started going at a high speed, Misha started feeling weird. And that continued till they had reached their destination, which then resulted in an unwell stomach, headache, and overall physical weakness. And now, as they stand above their first city in this magical world, Misha was throwing up¡­ or throwing down would be a better way to say this since, well, they were still suspended in the sky. "Do you know why they call this place the city of preservation, Elio?" "Will you please shut up, Alex? Don''t you see that Misha isn''t well?" Elio and Miss Rin were looking after the young girl while Miu, Az, and Alex were looking at their destination with Sir Librarian. "She''s fine, you two. She''s just motionsick. She will be alright." "We know that! But how can you act like you don''t care?!" He knew this was her way of showing she did care since she knew the two of them would look after the little one, but he still did not like that. "You know me, Elio. And look at her, she is smiling. She had fun, and she will be better if I keep talking." Instead of worrying about her more than they needed to, it was better to enjoy this scenery. She would join them on her own. Even the Librarian knew that. "Blaugh¡­ ahem. Ahem! Sister Elle¡­ I''m fine." Misha was smiling as well even though she was throwing up. She found it funny how just traveling through the sky could make someone so unwell. This was something new for her. And she couldn''t help but want to chuckle at her current condition. "Of course you''re fine, dear." Alex smiled at her warmly, shook her head at her Darling who was overreacting at this little thing, and turned her head back. "So, as I was saying¡­ Do you know why they call this the city of preservation? It''s not because the Cromwell viscounty follows the path of Preservation or anything." Alex had been with little kids in this world and among the many that she had been close with, she knew this red head one was one of the toughest. She did not have the same mentality as the normal children that they come across on the streets. She was not a child and neither was she a kid that has lived a ''normal'' or simple life. "Miu~?" The little gecko liked the shiny atmosphere around this city, while even from so high up, the little slime could feel the Life that was radiating from this lively city. "It''s smaller compared to the major cities, the walls are bigger and more fortified than the walls of a town, and its scale is on a completely different level." Elio evaluated after confirming Misha was alright. Then he tapped his head with hers after going beside her. "Oy." "There''s no castle here, showing how this place is no capital city. There''s no unique attraction here like Moongold or Yuta either. S§×arch* The n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. However, the houses of this city seem to be from older times." Kalp was established when the Kingdom reclaimed the southwestern lands, and added them into their own land. The southern and western dukedoms were positioned here to guard these fertile plains, and from the cultivation produced by it, the kingdom of Viv was able to sustain itself in the difficult times. "Seeing the geographical importance of this area, the city that was established right after reclamation, the place that stands even to this day in almost an unchanged state¡­ I believe the reason they call this place as such is because of how it has preserved itself for so long." The Cromwells were the guardians of this City, the maintainers of the central region of the southwest. "That''s right." This was their first city and one of the unique cities of that actually boasted a large number of players. There was no unique attraction of this city, so this place wasn''t really for combat oriented players. However, for those who loved the lifestyle aspects of this game, this was one of the finest places, one that has existed for a long time. "Just like its name, oldness isn''t a bad aspect of this city. If anything, the Cromwells have always considered it a compliment." Maintaining and preserving something was not a simple thing. And yet they were able to do it for over two centuries¡­ It was nothing less than an achievement in itself, as Elio believed while looking at this fabulous view under them with an excited, anticipation filled expression. Chapter 156 At the gates "This is it from my side."After landing on the ground and confirming Misha was alright, they all walked towards the grand gates of the big city. "Thanks for the ride, Connie." "Thank you, mister Librarian~!" "Miu!" "Muuu~." The children thanked him after Alex and then Elio and Miss Rin thanked him for the ride as well. It did not take them long and thanks to his help, they were able to cover the distance much quicker than they might have. "It was nothing on my part, haha." He had to leave now. He was on his way to some other place and they did not need him there at the moment. Things about the mage tower master were taken care of so he was also free to do whatever he wanted. "Well then." They talked for a moment, and he also helped them reassemble their carriage and place back their horses. It was easy with his magical help, so they thanked him once again and then he bid his farewell to them. "Call me when you are in the capital. I''ll help you out with a little few things." He smiled at them, took one last glance at Her white sword, and patted the little children. "Look after them-." S~ea??h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "I Am looking after them. I''m not like a certain greedy dumb guy." She wanted to curse at him but after their talk and scolding yesterday, she didn''t really have any more curses left for him. She really gave him an earful yesterday, so now that he was going on his way, she wanted to send him off with a few better words. "Haha, yes yes. I''ll make sure something like this doesn''t happen again." "I''ll cut your legs if something like this does happen to anyone around me, Connie~." She said it so cheerfully one might even ignore the malice hidden behind those serious words. "¡­" A cold shiver even ran down his spine when he thought about how she was actually capable of doing something like that. And when that happened, he didn''t want to stay there anymore. "I''ll see you all later, then." He bid his last farewell to them and vanished from there. -Swiiiiiiiiish¡­ Left alone, they were now looking at the tall gates of the pentagonal city. There was no prominent structure here that would be visible from the high sky, but when they came down and looked at the giant gates from a distance away, the sheer size of the gates overwhelmed a few of them. "Seems like we will have to wait in line." "Nothing we can do about that part." The gates made of old iron still stand as firmly as when they were just finished by the dwarven hands. They were of a simple design. Yet, their functionality was impeccable. "Mom. Why aren''t there as many people on the walls here?" "Because the wall here and the gates you see are different from a town." They were back in their carriage so when Misha looked at the gate at the front, she couldn''t help but feel amazed by the presence of the big structure. There were a lot of people in the line in front and behind them so it was obvious that the city was a popular place. "Have you heard about it? Can you believe such a thing could happen?" "The prices dropped so I bought it~." "I''m also here to see that! What a coincidence!" There were voices all around them, most of which were mundane. However, there certainly were some voices that were talking about the city and their experience with the things in the city. "Unlike a town, a city is a much bigger, larger, diverse, and greater place in most of its aspects." "I know that, Alex. We were just seeing it from above." Even though they cannot compare a city with a city state like the real world outside the game, they can still compare a city with something much bigger than a town. There was an obvious difference to both the places, and one could just see it in the population of that state, in the number of structures present, number of unique structures that might not necessarily be vast, or in its governance. "You''re a dummy. I thought telling you would be better." To enter the city, the procedures were the same. Showing them IDs and paying a toll if required was all they needed to do so the line was moving quickly. It would be their turn soon, but by that time came, they had some free time to chat and talk about a few things. "Miss Rin?" "I don''t really have experience with any specific inn in the city, but I''ve heard about a few of them." "Hmm¡­ how about (Hunter''s house)? I''ve heard it''s a good one." "Ummm¡­ it is good. But I don''t like the vibe in that place. Too many scary looking people." The place she was talking about was one of the safest places in the city exactly due to the fact that all the scary looking guys of the city gathered there. They weren''t bad, but even Alex didn''t want to look at their ugly mugs every morning for the rest of the month. "Alex? Weren''t we supposed to stay at Viscount''s mansion?" Elio did not understand why they would have to go to an inn when they could live in a noble''s house. He had already heard a lot about the big places that the nobles own. And he had seen the place that was supposed to be their destination. "We will go to the mansion later, dear. But we won''t be staying there." "I wouldn''t suggest it either if you want to move freely." "Hmmm?" He didn''t understand what they meant by that, so the little one took the opportunity to explain to her big brother. "They have a lot of procedures to go in or out of the big houses, brother Elio. It takes half an hour just to finish the process, and the more powerful the house is, the more checking there is~." Misha told him how the invitational visits were an exception to this procedure, but they would still have to go through a lenient process. It was mandatory. "So, you mean we would have to go through those check ups regularly when going in and out of his estate? What the hell?" Freedom was the most important to him. He wasn''t going to take permissions and go through those check ups every other day. "Yeah, so we get an Inn and talk with the viscount later." "Alright." He didn''t argue with her since their freedom was involved now. They moved forward and, and just looked forward to seeing the big city beyond these grand gates. Chapter 157 Past memories As they entered the city, the first thing that caught their attention was a big statue."You see that?" Resembling a withered tree, this stone sculpture was crafted by a normal human'' hands that wasn''t even a Master. "Is that the Memorial you talked about?" "Yup. The [Sigh of sorrow]." Once upon a time, there lived a young boy in the city that was established just recently. He was an orphan and he had moved from the central states to this newly founded city with the hopes of turning his life around. He believed he would strike it big since the city was new and there were many opportunities¡­ or at least that''s what he overheard from the old passerby. He believed his life would change if he came here, but that didn''t happen. Even after pushing himself for three more years, he was still the same orphan that he was when he arrived there. It was depressing, and he was in an insurmountable misery. Then one day¡­ an old woman saw his misery, asked him what made his eyes so dark, smiled at him warmly unlike anyone had ever done for him, and sat down with him. She talked with him, took him to her shop, and showed him various pieces of simple stone statues that she had made. "To think that''s the work of an untitled master¡­ there sure are some funny things in this world, Alex." "Oh you still have a ton to see." She taught him how to carve the stones¡­ or at least, she tried to do it before she passed away the very next day. "Stone carving is regarded as one of the superior arts in Kalp." "Not just simple stone carving, Miss Rin." It wasn''t an accident, and it wasn''t an unnatural death. She passed away on her bed, with a smile. And the people of the city looked after her corpse as she did not have any offspring. She was an old lady, someone that many knew and looked up to. One such person, after that point, was the boy that later spent the next twenty years of his life carving a single stone at the end of which, this time withered three was produced. "Kalp is called the city of preservation for two reasons: the first being its innate unchanging nature, and the second being this." sea??h th§× ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Carving. It was also an art form. "Wood carving, stone carving, enchantment, gem carving, cloth carvings that have still survived in this modern era, and the most famous of them all, metal carvings. What better way is there to immortalize something than carving it down on something?" Alex liked this place not just because of its unchanging nature. There was something unique about this city that not all cities of this continent possess. In this constantly changing world, the certain need of a place stuck in its past was what gave meaning to the eternal change. "I wanted to go to the inn first, but how about we take a look around for the time being?" Alex suggested when she saw the unique look Elio had on his face. She could tell he wanted to go and look at that tree, she could tell he wanted to touch that old stone, feel it and understand what kind of emotion the creator of that thing might have felt while creating this beautiful piece. "Ohh~. Yes~. Let''s go play~." For Elio, looking around this city of the past was the same as looking at the past era that he couldn''t find in the other cities. For Misha, looking at the new things around here with her friends was the same as playing. Miss Rin would have to look after the little girl while Alex knew she would have to look after this blessed bastard of hers. "Alright then¡­" The horses needed some rest as well so they were going to leave them a good place before they go on and walk around the town. "Miss Rin?" It was still early morning so the city was just waking up. There were a lot of people around even though this was still morning time, but by the time the sun progressed further away on its path, the city was going to become even more cheerful. There will be people all around the streets. The workshops would start and there would be even more things that they would have to do. "I''ll look after Misha and the two little ones. You three should go and have fun." Sera was going to go with the two of them, but there wasn''t any need for her to come with them right now. They were just going to look at a few things and go to their inn. Even though they weren''t tired, they needed to do a lot of things when they were here. Reaching the (Level-100) was one of those tasks and they needed to do a lot of things to make it happen. "Alright. We should go now." Thanks to The librarian, they reached their destination in no time and unlike a simple flight, since they were using magic, Elio wasn''t affected by any of the effects. And the same was true for the rest of their partners except Misha. But she was going to be fine the next time they did this since, as Alex had predicted already, she would awaken by the time they were going to leave the city through the [Gate] located in the center of the city. "So¡­" The individual that carved this withered tree from the stone didn''t want to portray anything grand. This was his life''s work that he spent most of his waking hours on. He ate, he drank, and he carved the stone with his nail and hammer. That was all that he did in the fifty years that he was alive twenty of which were spent on this one rough piece¡­ "The rawness of this piece, Alex." When the mother-daughter duo along with Slime-gecko duo had left them in the plaza, the two stood before the sculpture once again. "This is unbelievable, you know?" And now that he had the chance, he was once again going to bore her with his Endless talk of deep artistic knowledge¡­ Chapter 158 An idols walk A city of the past for the players who had not been around for more than a decade of their time.A city that doesn''t change¡­ "It''s fascinating, you know?" There was a phenomenon in the world of called [Foreign propagation]. A unique phenomenon that brought a unique wave of change to the entire world that had existed independently before them. When they arrived, the entire world that was functioning just fine started going through a spontaneous adaptation. The existence of beings that could not be killed was not something the natives of this virtual world had experienced until now. But, they knew just how dangerous these people could become. "What''s fascinating? This city? If you think this place is special, I will tell you there are many-." "Not that, Alex¡­" An abnormal growth speed, something that they called Quests and rewards, the existence of special communication channels, their unique knowledge that they brought from the other world, special privileges that only they possessed¨C all of that was not only fascinating to the natives, it was almost unbelievable how there could be someone possessing such powers. When they appear in this world, they are already as strong as a normal adult human, but then they get stronger faster than most of the people of their own world possibly could. "Look at the people around here." If not for the two beta-testings that took place and the measures that were created over time before the global release, things could have been a lot more chaotic than they were when the players first appeared in this world. However, with time, things got better. The people of this world, nature, and the world itself adapted to the players and changed over time. Even to this day, all the nations that had a certain degree of player population were growing, adapting, and changing themselves, keeping up with the momentum that these foreign elements had brought to this world. "Moongold was like a medieval town, Yuta was like the towns of the Revolution era with all the knights and association halls around. On the other hand¡­ look at this place." After walking around the streets for a while, Alex and Elio had stopped by a stall and were eating a skewer. Apparently it was a speciality item of Kalp. "The architecture has been preserved like it was when the city was created, the same with the houses, and the entire vibe of the place." Elio liked this place, he certainly did. Unlike the cultural richness of Moongold and the theme specificity of Yuta, Kalp was pretty cozy, friendly, and classic. The people of this city, as he had seen until now, are pretty friendly. They were peaceful, kind, and cheerful as well. Unlike the towns, the city that he had seen until now was pretty simple and aside from the idols and carvings all around the town, there wasn''t much special to this town. "I feel like I''m in some kind of old movie. You know, those yellow and dull colored ancient things." There was art all around him, but there weren''t that many colors. Stones and carvings. Most of the beautiful things that he had seen since the morning they arrived here were idols of various beings, depictions of various nature deities engraved into the walls and things in the shops. Wooden elements that had stories made from them¡­ there was art around him but there were no colors. So, he was fascinated even more. "It''s just the theme of this place, Elio." Alex could understand well why he was saying that kind of stuff. He is happy right now, and whenever he is happy and is talking about the things that he likes, she knows she has to prepare herself for a few hours of long chatting sessions. "You like these things, I know. But that''s just how this place is. What''s there to be fascinated about?" She wasn''t an artist like him, but she was still closely interested in those things thanks to him. He liked to talk a lot when it came to his stuff, and she liked making fun of him whenever he was talking about things like that. "Well, Alex." He looked at her with a smile while taking out a piece of potato from his skewer. It wasn''t common to have potatoes in the skewers but they had made these special balls of mixed meat with some kind of special herbal mix that they boiled first before roasting them. It was a delicious dish. "They are not ancient." They were only talking about two centuries. "The town was created just because there was a fire in the plains and things burnt down." Kingdom only took the opportunity and claimed the land that the empire could not take. "There was no reason for them to stay the same as they used to be. The players also came here and they also brought the wave of change with them." There were a lot of idols on their path around the town. They were quite fascinating since not many of them were related to the gods that were worshiped by natives and were instead depictions of something that they regarded as a ''supreme'' deity. It was their individual perspective and it was diverse even though their daily lives were pretty much the same¡­ and that very thing was fascinating to him. S§×ar?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "The people of this city, Alex¡­" He looked around himself and saw the nice people that were doing what they usually do, people that were going to try something new today, people that were happy, and also people that were pretty sad at the moment. "They choose to live a common, simple, mundane life that the people of Their past used to follow." All their attire was the same as the common cultural attire that one would find in the Kingdom of Viv and yet, as he looked around, unlike the two towns and the village that he had been to, he could feel something¡­ something that seemed to be from a completely different time. "This is their culture. They carve things to remember their time, and they naturally immortalize the past so that they don''t stray away from what this city, their culture, was originally based on." She already told him the founding story of Kalp, and how Cromewell was appointed as the governors of this city as well as the towns and villages in this entire region. Following that example, the city that used to be at the heart of that whole historic account, Kalp has become what is present before their eyes. "It''s an unconscious cultural process¡­ as a person of science, Alex¡­ don''t you find this fascinating?" This city, the idols and sculptors, even the carvings and statues around them¡­ He could tell not all these things were made from a hammer and nail. As Alex knew, some were made with a sword, some with magic, some with just a hammer, while some carvings in this city were made with bare fingers. There was diversity and there was uniqueness, and along with it, there was a nostalgic feeling in the atmosphere. "It sure is a fun place, if that''s what you mean." It wasn''t that amazing for her to be fascinated by it. But she still liked it here. It was kind of cozy. And, the inn that they had decided to go to was also quite a special place. She knew they would have fun in that Lavish place. Chapter 159 (Goblins den) "Why''s there such a long line?"At the peak of afternoon, they had reached the place that was going to be their abode for the following few weeks. "And are we really going to stay in this biiiiiiiig place~?" The (Goblin''s den) the best inn that was nothing less than a luxurious hotel in Kalp. It was a very rare palace kind of architecture that was made with the help of many mages over the decades a long time ago and since its inception it has stood as one of the best inns not just in this city, but in the entirety of Cromwell viscounty. "Haha, yes we are. And this place is famous as you can tell from this line." Many people, be it players or natives of the areas around this city all wanted to stay in this special place. However, the reason behind this long line despite the lavish appearance of this place was because of the unique way this whole place operated. "Have you seen auctions, Misha?" The gates of this place were huge, there were ladies wearing attractive old fashioned clothes before the gates, and beside them were a few notice boards. Of the many floors of this special establishment that contained many rooms, there weren''t many empty. "Hmm? An auction?" Some people who had financial status to constantly support them had taken permanent residence here, but there were still hundreds of rooms left here. Still, if one is not a permanent resident here, they could only stay in this place for a couple of days. They would have to pay upfront to get to their rooms, and if they could not pay up the next time, they could not renew their temporary residency. "This is a special place that auctions out the rooms to the highest bidder, dear. And, they don''t deal in cash but resources." "That''s right." "An unconventional method, however, perhaps following this method is what made them a strong competitor of [Candlelight]." They did not have to stay in the line or take the same door as the rest of them, but just for the experience, Alex led them through the front gate while crossing the rest of the people in the line. She did not care about them and pulled Elio who was stunned by what she was doing. "Hey Miss! What do you think you are doing?!" There were some high level players among the crowd, there were rich merchants, and there were even important people from various other places. Yet, she just walked past them. "There are some rare resources that are chosen randomly to be the [Core] for that day''s resource code. Anyone that has that certain rare thing can get their room by trading it and some other resources depending on the specially calculated prices. The others would have to bid with the certain resources that are listed in the code, and anyone could participate in one round of auction each day that gives one a chance to bid on one room." The profit they generate with this unique method is substantially higher than their revenue since the maintenance costs of the place are significantly decreased with the High Efficiency Employees. "This place sure is amazing though¡­" The interior of the place was spotless. There was a unique red marble floor, the high ceiling was adorned with precious looking chandeliers, while the three receptions on the left, right, and center of the hall room were the most important aspect of this place. The employees weren''t all humans. Elio could see some beast people, some cat ladies, some wolfkins, and even some half elves¨C all of them were hot as well. They were professionals that were highly trained in all needed aspects, they had perfect kind of attractive bodies that most people uselessly loitering around here were attracted to, and they knew what they were doing. [{ "You can look at them. They offer special services as well, if you are interested-." }] She knew he was just admiring their professionalism and yet Alex started teasing him. She knew he did not like it, but she would get upset if he said anything that he needed to say in that situation. [{ "Sure. Let''s invite some and have some fun together." }] Sadly they were a monogamous couple, but one can have fun in more than one way. "Wait, really?" They knew how to have fun, with just them as well as with some other ''friends'' around. "If you want, why not?" They hadn''t done stuff like that yet, but he surely wouldn''t miss a chance like this. There were otherworldly beings here. He would be a fool to not use their Special services. "Hello there. How can I assist you today~?" Of the three receptions of the main hall, one was completely dedicated to the auction process so it was always the most crowded one. The ones who won the auctions were sent to the right reception hall where they could complete the procedures, while the one on the left was solely dedicated to the Residents as well as people who were there to inquire about something important. "Oh¡­ mom, she''s beautiful~." The lady on the left reception was extremely pretty, had white hair and fox ears, as well as three tails that looked as pretty as her hair. "Dear, we are doing something important." Misha was just admiring the fox lady''s beauty, but in case she didn''t disturb them, Miss Rin asked her to give them a moment. But Alex shook her head at her and brought the young girl to the front. "Oh, it''s alright. She''s not disturbing us." She then looked at the receptionist lady, and just as she was trained, she nodded at Alex with a smile and then smiled at Misha as well. "Not at all." Then she shook her head and gave a chocolate bar to the girl that was looking at her with stars in her eyes. "O-oh! Thank¡­ thank you!" Misha was usually shy, and after receiving this little gift from the pretty person, she couldn''t help her blush and just hid behind her mom while squeezing Az. "Hahaha." The rest of them laughed at her cuteness, even the receptionist lady did¡­ and seeing this, Alex confirmed that this one knew exactly what she was doing. "We would like to get to our room please. Oh, by the way, how long have you been here, Miss?" Alex took out a certain key from her inventory and placed it on the reception desk. "Oh, I''m pretty new around here¡­ only sixty-two years." "Sixty is still pretty good." Alex nodded at her in approval, and seeing the key that was placed on the desk, the receptionist also confirmed these people were also residents that she had either never met, or someone that was just borrowing the rooms of some other resident. In either case, she had nothing to do with it. Who they were and why they had this key had nothing to do with her. She was there to do her job and she had been doing it impeccably for a good long time. S§×arch* The N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Please come with-." She was just about to hand them over to some other employee after checking their key''s authenticity, however, the moment she actually held the key¡­ a certain sensation ran down her spine. "...?!" Then she turned the key, and looked up at the [12] engraved on the crown of the key. "Is anything that matters?" Alex had a smirk on her face once again. And seeing both Alex and the receptionist''s expressions, Elio knew she had done something crazy once again¡­ Chapter 160 Why an inn? [{ "What''s up with that key?" }]Elio instantly figured out how something was wrong with the key that Alex had given to the receptionist. The receptionist was walking them to their room herself for some reason when he knew they mostly give that task to someone else so that they don''t have to leave their positions. It was strange, but since he had seen the expression the fox-kin receptionist had when she handed her that key, he knew the reason for her current upright behavior was that key. [{ "Well¡­" }] They were in the magic elevator at the moment. And the receptionist was taking them all the way to the eighth floor when most of the usual rooms of this inn were on the second to seventh floors. [{ "You know how the special early investors of a place that has a big hand in the establishment and initial prosperity of an organization receive special privileges?" }] (Goblin''s den) was one of the establishments of the organization that offered such privileges. [{ "Yes? So, something like loyalty privileges, right?" }] [{ "Somewhat. Well, anyway, you know what I mean." }] She looked at him with a happy smile and winked. [{ "So, there was this guy I bet up in the past-." }] [{ "I knew it¡­" }] Half of the things that she tells him after winking are like this. Besides, he had foreseen this. [{ "Bastard, listen first before jumping to conclusions." }] -Ding! They reached their desired floor and the elevator door opened up. "This way please." The fox woman continued guiding them as Alex explained to him how there was a guy that she beat up who had obtained this key from a quest in the past from someone that was one of the early supporters of the parent organization of this establishment. He willingly gave him this key in exchange for teaching him the technique that she used to defeat him. [{ "There are 369 Rooms in (Goblin''s den) and of them, the single digit ones are the most premium ones that are only used to accommodate high ranking nobles of various nations, royalties, and some very special people of this organization." }] The smaller the number, the more important they are. And, when it comes to numbers closest to the single digit number rooms, it is an unwritten rule that the employees have to pay extra attention to them. [{ "The single digit rooms are like a presidential suite of an isekai world¡­ on par with the royal and imperial bedroom chambers." }] After walking a little more, they reached the door that had (12) engraved on its finely carved wooden surface. Sear?h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "A moment please." The fox lady inserted the key inside the door, and right when she did it¡­ -Ooooooooooooong! The engravings on the entire door were filled with a colorful light for a moment as they heard movements of some kind of mechanical gears¡­ which stopped in a moment, and a certain clicking sound was heard. -Click! The door was open now. "Have a pleasant stay, valued patrons. We will be here to assist you in any way you may need." She greeted them, and gave them a respectful look before she bowed and walked away from there in the same professional manner that she has had until now. [{ "We should ask for her as well." }] [{ "You liked her that much?" }] [{ "I didn''t, but I''m pretty sure you did." }] He had already seen how she was looking at her throughout the time she was with them. [{ "I was checking her out for you, dummy. I know your type." }] They were quite unique¡­ Miss Rin knew that much by now. "Wow¡­" "Muuuu¡­" "Miu?" Miu, Az, and Misha were stunned as soon as they walked inside this big room. "A nice place, right?" The door opened into the main hall room. There were a total of six doors in this circular hall room with a window wall on the exact opposite side of the door, and there were couches set in the middle of the hall. The lighting was cool and calming, the scent of this place was also pretty simple and pleasing, and of course, with the view of half of the north side of the city, this was in no way a simple inn room. "Why do they call this place an inn? This is obviously not some place that accommodates simple travelers for a night or two and provides simple services like food and warm water." Two rooms to the left were bedrooms and a bathroom, while the one with a white door to the right was the master bedroom. The other two doors adjacent to the white one were a bathroom and a kitchen. Comparatively, this was a simple place. Even though it looked quite posh, it was a simple place. And, that was one of the reasons this place was called an inn. "Why an inn? Well dear, there is no concept like hotels here. Haha, everything that accommodates travelers or people of any position and provides them with various simple or unique services is called an inn. You can''t call it a bar, a tavern, a restaurant, or a brothel. So, it''s an inn. Perhaps, they should call it the inns of the rich, right?" The concepts in this world were pretty different from the world that he had lived in for his entire life. Some things that he could not understand here were common knowledge for the natives and the people that have been in this world for a long time now. Just like this place that could very well be called a presidential suite was merely an advanced version of the common rooms present in this ''inn'' the standards of this world were completely different from their world which had seen many difficult times when it comes to financial systems. "Hehehe~." Misha was running around the place after she ran and looked outside the window with her two little friends. She looked at the left side bedrooms first, was amazed, and then she saw the big bathroom between the two bedrooms. "Wow¡­" There were still the rooms on the right and left, and yet, she was stunned¡­ just standing outside the bathroom. "Hehe." She was pretty cute. That wasn''t even the best thing about this room¡­ Chapter 161 Noble Authorities "I know why you gave them the master bedroom, you know?"After sorting out the stuff and having a light dinner, they went to their bedrooms for the night. It was still early in the evening, but they were going to go and pay a visit to the viscount''s estate tomorrow morning. They were going to go shopping after that if possible so they had planned to go to bed early. "Yeah? You do?" She turned around, facing her bare back to him. "Of course you smart naughty twinkling star." He helped her with her dress''s zip. She was trying out the outfit she would be wearing in the main event that they were invited to by the viscount. "Elio I would have punched you if it wasn''t for this dress." After zipping up her dress, he pushed the zip back, helped her with her sleeves, the jewelry, and both of them sat down on their bed as he started making her hair. "I know you don''t like being called that. But you know why I keep calling you ''twinkle'' miss twinkle?" "I''m going to punch you, Elio." "You can-." -Dhum! "That wasn''t a warning." She used her elbow so it wasn''t a punch, but it still landed around his right kidney. Which was hella painful¡­ iykyk. "¡­" "Oh? No screaming? Seems like you have become well accustomed to Pain, baby." sea??h th§× ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She bit his lips but he did not scream or shout or grumble. He just bit his lips until he was bleeding, endured the pain with his high Endurance, and gulped back the blood that flew out of the wound on his lips. "You''re a bitch, you know?" "I''m your bitch, so shut it and continue what you were doing." He was angry but he was at fault here in the first place so he didn''t complain and continued braiding her hair. "What were you saying though? What was it about you calling me by that disgusting name?" "Oh, calling you tw-." "I''ll use my sword next time, Elio." "You can''t even take a joke, Alex." "I can take many things many times and a joke with that name involved isn''t sadly included in the list." He turned her head to the side and kissed her with his still bleeding lips since the pain was getting worse. "Well, yeah. You can take things quite well." He knew what she was planning when she gave the room with better soundproofing to the mother-daughter duo. With the kitchen and bathroom on both sides, the right side was better in many ways, and even though not as good as the right side, the left one had much better usage for couples like them when they were going to live with someone else. "Anyway¡­" He tried it, but he couldn''t braid her hair as well as Miss Aloha did. He was good, but she was a Master for a reason. "Looks like you will have to change back to the dress that matches the hair. How about the black one?" "Nah. It''s too plain." She got up and took out the stockings first, then the detached sleeves, and her earrings. "What do you think about the blue one?" Half of the bed was already covered in her dresses, and there was an entire pile hanging on the hangers on their left. "We don''t have jewelry for that one, Alex." "I can just wear the items, you know? Look at these¡­" She took out a few items from her inventory and was about to show it to him¡­ when he got up from the bed and hugged her from behind. "Yup. I think the blue one will work." He helped her take down the necklace and other heavy things before the heaviest dress. "You know I don''t care about what I wear, right?" "You look amazing in anything you wear¡­ even more without it." There was a smirk on her face as she felt his nose on her neck. "Look who''s being horny now." "You, yes. I can feel that as well." He took down the zip for her first, then he very respectfully backed down and set back down on their bed. "We can just chat and go to sleep if you want though. I''m fine-." "Hell nah, you bastard. Not after this!" The dress was expensive so even though she wanted to jump on him, she first took down the dress¡­ or at least she tried and got stuck when she was removing it the wrong way. "Ptfff¡­" He had to help her even though he enjoyed that stuck sight of hers. But she was soon out of that damned piece of cloth. "Are you going to act clumsy before the viscount as well?" Looking at his partner with most of her skin bare, he smiled warmly. She was pretty, and she was hot. But at the same time, she was ironically dumb as well. "You''re making fun of me again, Darling." She was angry, he can tell that much. A Viscount was not that high of a noble title in her eyes, but it was still a noble title. The nobles of this world were pretty different from the nobles of the other games that mostly are the cause of most of the troubles. They were nobles in true meaning¡­ At least most of the kingdom''s nobles and a majority of the empire''s nobles on the western continent were like that. They were capable people that the crown trusted as much as they trusted their royal guards. They might not be perfect individuals like the lore accurate nobles should be, but they were good people. Yet she was cursing that good person with that look in her eyes. "You know what I''m going to say now, right?" "Strip down?" "¡­no, hell." Usually he''s the one saying that, but she was already pretty much naked right now. "Haaaa¡­ just shut up, darling." She set back down on the bed, beside him. "Is that what you were-." "Kiss me." "Hmmm?" "Kiss me or I''m going to the room next door." "¡­yes ma''am." She was tired now. He sure knew how to wear one out mentally¡­ as well as physically. Chapter 162 Cromwell mansion "Do I look presentable enough?""You look human enough. That should be fine for now." The two of them had saved Moongold and for that, the Viscount that was in charge of this entire land, the towns and the villages in this part of the kingdom wanted to personally thank them. He has also directly invited both of them to His daughter''s birthday that would be a week from now, so they were also looking forward to that, however, for now, they were going to the viscount mansion to meet the man that not only controlled the entire city of Kalp, but also was in charge of many of the villages as well as towns. Moongold especially held a great importance to him since his wife used to be from that town, and since he was also one of the few people that was directly connected with the Blood-iron Duke of west, he was an important figure in the political circles of the kingdom. "Haaa¡­ I''m nervous, Alex." She had met many people of high authority, but this was going to be the first time for him. "Of course you''re nervous. You''re skipping (Lord) and (Baron) and directly meeting a viscount. A powerful one at that." The authority ranks or the noble titles in Kingdom of Viv were only given by the absolute authority of this land, the Queen and the master of the Eternal throne¡­ as well as one of the few people Alex actually looked up to. And, since the Queen was the only person that granted the noble titles, there were only a handful of individuals that held any noble titles be it the most basic title of a [Lord] or the highest possible authority beside the Queen''s, the title of the [Crown successor]. "Well, it''s not going to be anything complicated. I know the man, he''s a family guy." They were in a carriage right now that was taking them to the Viscount mansion. They were traveling for a while now, so they were expected to reach their destination anytime soon now. "You know the Viscount as well?" He knew she was friends with the Queen as well as the absolute monarch of the Empire, but it was news to him that she knew someone as simple as a Viscount. "Not really. I''ve just seen him at big events. Oh, I know his father though. That old man is in the capital, hahaha." She knew a lot of important people of this kingdom personally, but the viscount and the current head of Cromwell weren''t one of them. She had heard a lot about him from his father though so she knew what kind of person he was, what he liked, and the things that would make a good impression on him. sea??h th§× N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Is that why you got up early to make That thing? Will he really like it that much?" She had heard that the viscount had a certain sweet that he used to love when he was younger. Sadly, the grandma that used to make that sweet, someone that had lived in Kalp for a long time and was an immigrant from the eastern continent, passed away when he was still young. "Only time will tell. Let''s see what happens." He had not had this thing in a long time so she did not know how effective it would be, but she was hoping they would get a good Quest from him so that they could continue their run to the (Level-100). "On that note¡­. They had arrived at their destination, before two not so large gates situated somewhere in the middle of the city. They weren''t too grand either. There were also two mages in knight''s armor standing outside them. "If it''s your first time, you wouldn''t even think this is a noble''s house." Elio climbed off the carriage and respectfully helped Alex climb down as well. Then they gave the carriage driver a tip, patted the horses, and looked at the gates as well as the long garden that starched to around half a mile beyond them. "But if you have Appraisal, then, everything would be different." The gates that they were seeing were highly enchanted with high level magic enchantments and were made from the metal that was said to be the ancient mages'' creation: Kronum. It was a rare metal that was used to create magic staffs, and here¡­ they had used it as a medium for the high level magic enchantments. And that was just the start. "Miu¡­" Experience more on empire "Muuuu? Muuuu!" "Calm down, Az." As Az and Miu both could tell, the Mana concentration in this area was higher than anywhere else in the city, and the reason for that was the magic barrier that was covering this entire estate. "Hehe. Looks like they got excited." The two mages in the knight armor were in fact (Level-108) battle mages that were trained in physical aspects as well. They weren''t a Magic knight like the viscount himself, but they were still much stronger than the conventional mages that only refined their magic powers. They had achieved their first enlightenment so they were in no way anything less special than high ranking knights. "Looks like this will be more fun than we expected, Elio." "Hmmm?" She was looking at the mages at the gate and they were looking at them, at their two little creatures to be more precise. Unlike the mages that they had met until now who did not know what exactly Miu and Az were, these two could tell what exactly these creatures were at a glance. They were highly trained individuals that must have also been to the battlefields. "What do you mean by that?" Elio was focused on the two little ones so he didn''t see the eyes of the two mages, but she knew he would figure that out when they stand before the two do them. "Nothing. Let''s go." She knew he had a thing for observation, so she also knew he would try observing these two as well as this special looking gate. He knew this was no simple gate from what he had read on the community forums, so he was also looking forward to observing that gate. But, if he wanted to do that¡­ { "Halt." } He would first have to prove the two of them were guests of the Viscount. Chapter 163 Andrew Ethan Cromwell { "What business do you have here?" }The guards were blocking them, but instead of blocking them with spears like gate guards usually would, they had their magic wands in their hands, the powerful wands that were bound to them. "Miu¡­" "Muuu¡­" Miu was amazed by the kind of Mana their equipment possessed and Az could tell the two of them were interested in them, so it was trying to hug the guards. However, they would be attacked by a powerful spell if they did anything stupid without providing their purpose of visit. "Here. We are Viscount''s guests. He must be expecting us, so please check in with him." She handed them a special envelope that had the viscount''s unique golden signature made with the unique Mana pen that only a few people could use in this city. { "Please wait for a moment." } They could tell the letter was authentic at a glance, and the Mana signature was also certainly a real thing. But they still checked the letter with an item of their own to confirm if it was something that had any tempered elements. "It will take a minute, Elio." "Oh, I''m alright." "Miu!" "Muuuuu~!" They didn''t find anything wrong with the letter so they used their communication channels to talk with the guards inside and when everything was checked out, they nodded at one another. { "You can enter." } The gates opened for them, and at the same time, Elio, Az and Miu felt a new wave of Man rushing out. "Wow. This place sure has dense Mana. " Elio has his heightened senses so he could tell this new rush of Mana was coming from the inside. There was nothing special about the garden that they were seeing by appearance, but still, the Mana here was dense. "Let''s go, everyone¡­ oh, and you can hug them now, Az." "Muuuuuu!" The slime jumped off from Elio''s hand and started jumping before the guard. The guard found the creature interesting so he picked it up and patted it as well, which Az enjoyed very much. "This is an adorable companion." Until now, the guards were using their Mana voice, but now that they were playing with Az and were looking at the joyous smile of Miu inside of the slime, The two creatures were quite unique and the guards found both of them interesting. They even wanted to touch the Mana beast Miu, and try to see how much they could endure the Mana poisoning. But, they refrained from doing silly things and returned both of them back to Elio. "The viscount is expecting you in the hallroom." They saluted them and went back to their posts. And, as the gates closed behind them, Elio and the little ones said their goodbyes to the good guards as well. "They were nice people." "You won''t find nice people, nice guards to be precise, like them. The Cromwell viscounty has a strict moral standard on which they select their training candidates. Not all guards you will meet in this world would be as nice as them. Especially when we leave this continent. You will find the worst kind of jerks out there among even the simplest of the guards." It wasn''t a warning but a simple reminder of the information that he already knew. As someone that had grown up in a unique family and had lived a unique life of his own, he knew what kind of people the world could have. Discover more content at empire He was good with people, that was one of the reasons he had chosen to do his own business when there were other ways to earn money. He was a big name when it came to the freelance industry. And he had not achieved that name and fame overnight. "Don''t embarrass me, and keep your dumbness locked up inside somewhere, ok? We might lose a quest that would be a direct ticket to the first enlightenment." "I''ll say the same for you. Don''t do stupid things." The viscount estate was just like many of the noble estates. There was a big garden and a mansion was located in the middle of this garden. There was a fountain on their left, a flower garden on the right, and there were also some specially decorated benches present in this garden for some special occasions. Mansion itself was big, a white-gold house with a red rooftop. It seemed to be a simple work of architecture, but in fact, that was not the case¡­ "Can you see this, Alex?" Elio, Az, and even Miu were mesmerized by the grand house which in fact was the center of all the barriers and magic that was present in this garden. "Of course I can''t, dummy." The mana was so dense around the house that it refreshed all of Elio''s senses. And, it wasn''t even harmful to those who couldn''t perceive Mana. This special Mana was present in the atmosphere naturally somehow. So, only those who could perceive this special energy could understand how unique this feeling was. S§×ar?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Let''s go in." The front door, it was the entrance to the estate, and they did not have to open it themselves. The moment they walked up to the platform before the door, the door opened on its own, and a unique aura flowed out from the inside. "Miu¡­" "Muuu¡­" Inside the house that was bigger than He had expected, the master of the house, the master of this city, and the person in charge of this entire region of southwest was sitting on a couch, waiting for them while drinking his coffee. "Welcome, saviors of Moongold." Viscount Andrew Ethan Cromwell, the Magic knight of Kalp, the Saviour of White Princess, the Knight of Golden Lance, the Grand Punisher of Blood-iron Duke. He held many titles. "Hmm? Oh! They are here~?" But instead of these fancy titles, people knew him more as a rule breaker, someone who loved his family, as well as someone who had burned down an entire fief just because the lord disrespected his daughter¡­ Chapter 164 A nobles thanks "Hello~! It''s so nice to finally meet you two~!"The viscount was on the couch in the center of the hall while there was a woman along with him who ran up to the two of them as soon as she saw the doors opening. "It is our honor to make your acquaintance, Lady Deborah." She approached them out of the blue, but unlike what Alex was expecting, Elio formally greeted her in a proper manner. She was a pretty woman, but her beauty could not mesmerize him. "Oho~. You must be Sir Elio! And these two must be the creatures that Eve wanted to meet, right~?" She was a cheerful woman, and there was a warmth to her that both of them could feel instinctively. "Miu?" "Muuu?" She was instantly interested in Miu and Az, her dark midnight black eyes sparking like the night sky filled with stars. "Debbs." She was too excited to greet them, touch the little creatures and hug them perhaps, however, hearing Viscount''s voice once again, she came back to her senses, and backed off a little. "Ahem. Apologies." Then she started acting like a noble lady actually should as she lightly greeted them back first. "Welcome, dear guests. Come, please take a seat." She bowed lightly and walked up to the center of the room along with them. "Greetings, Lord Andrew." Alex was evaluating just how he was ever since they crossed the gates of this house. Her sword became excited as soon as they perceived the natural aura of this individual and wanted to clash with him. Just from that much, Alex knew how this person was as strong as she had heard from his father. But still, the fact that he was still sitting until they walked up to him, sipping his coffee while going over some documents suggested what kind of dynamics he wanted to have between them. "Greetings, heroes of Moongold." Only when they were before him, did he stand up to greet them. Then, he asked them to take a seat as all of them sat down on the comfortable couch. "We''ve heard a lot about you from Roland and the guard''s captain. They have praised your achievements, as well as unique abilities a lot." He was a strong individual, his Mana was definitely on par with the mage tower master that had almost defeated their entire party and at the same time, he seemed to be as strong as the knights they had seen in Yuta. sea??h th§× n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Ah, and they also mentioned you have quite a few special companions¡­ seems like they weren''t exaggerating." Elio could tell he was on the same level as some of the high level mages and almost on par with the Hall masters of Yuta, something that did not match his rather lean physique. He wasn''t muscular like most knights he had seen, and he wasn''t skinny like most mages he had come across. "Miu¡­" "Muuuu¡­" Enjoy new adventures from empire Now that they were before him, Az and Miu couldn''t help getting attracted to this person. "Huhu, seems like they like you, dear." The Mana around him was more fresh than the Mana they had felt outside. Even Elio could tell his Mana was more refined than the natural Mana in the surroundings. It was fresh as well, like his sky blue fresh hair. Completely opposite of the fearsome crimson eyes that were looking at these two unique creatures. "It''s not everyday we see a Mana slime, much less what seems to be a mutant crystal Gecko. They sure are rare beasts that we might never come across in the wild." The viscount removed his white glove and placed it before Az, and sensing his intentions, the slime jumped onto his hand. "Muuuu~." Az could feel the emotions as well as intentions of the individuals around it. And, it knew how some individuals were better than the others. It was more attracted to those that it liked, like the viscount that didn''t seem to have any ill intentions towards them. "Does the unique skills this little one have something unique? Oh, and is that a wand? Can it use magic?" The first thing that caught his attention was the unique behavior of this slime, and then he saw the hairpin-like thing that was attached to the little slime. "It can use magic, though the spells it can use at the moment are very limited. And we don''t yet know the full extent of the skills that they possess." Both of them were pretty young, almost like children. They did not know much about themselves, much less about the powers they possessed. [{ "Shouldn''t you tell them about spirits?" }] Alex talked with the viscount while his wife beside him watched the little creatures with a pleased smile. It was an adorable sight that she knew their daughter would love¡­ sadly though, she was sleeping at the moment. [{ "It''s better to not tell them, right? Like, look at him¡­ he''s still somewhat uncertain of us." }] As the masters of these tamed beasts, he was their guardian as well. He knew there could be people that would want to possess them and their powers. So, if someone couldn''t trust them, he couldn''t trust them either. Telling him about the unique spirit affinity will only cause trouble for them. "Anyway¡­" Some people just have a unique aura to them that represents the high authority they hold. "I wanted to thank you two for saving the wonderful hometown of my love." Not all nobles in this game had this unique air to them, but this person before them certainly possessed that uniqueness that others did not. "I wished to give you something as a token of my gratitude. However, it doesn''t seem like something simple like money or items will be of any use to you." He didn''t beat around the bush too much and got straight to the point after handing the two creatures to his wife. "Plus, I want to see the skills that the two of them praised so much." His daughter wasn''t here at the moment, so he also had to keep them here until she woke up or else he would be in trouble. "How about you all come with Us on a hunting trip tomorrow? It might be useful to you, I believe." This statement was a clue. [Dung!] And the quest window that opened up before them was the precursor to exactly what Alex had been looking forward to¡­ Chapter 165 Hunting operation ============[Personal Quest] : Viscount Andrew Ethan Cromwell has taken a keen interest in your achievements in Moongold town and wants to Thank you for your support in the town. He has decided to take you on a hunting operation. (Accept this quest to go on the hunting operation in the underworld of Kalp.) Objective: Show your skills to the Viscount. Rewards: Achievement: Viscount''s recognition (Rare), A new quest, Access to the unique trade shop of Viscount, additional rewards based on performance in the hunt. Failure conditions: 1) Death during hunt, 2) Failing to get viscount''s recognition, 3) If it is revealed that the Slime (Az) possesses elementalism affinity to the viscount, the quest would be deemed a failure. ============ It was a simple quest, however, the last listed unique failure condition caught their eye. [{ "Seems like it was the right call to not tell him, Elio." }] Alex was smiling at him, which definitely indicated how she already knew how revealing the unique power of the little slime could be a bad idea. [{ "If you put these little one''s life in danger, Alex, I won''t forgive you." }] That was his warning, though he was still not showing any sign of negative emotions on his face. S§×arch* The NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He was a great actor, that was the only reason she didn''t hesitate to play pranks like these. [{ "Hehe. Didn''t I tell you about Eve? Andrew''s daughter? Apparently she''s an elementalist with a special condition where she couldn''t use Mana even though she can perceive it and store it inside her body. She can communicate with the spirits, but it has been proven impossible for her to actually make any contract with these spirits¡­ and apparently, she also has affinity for water attribute." }] [{ "And you''re telling me that right now?" }] For a moment, he forgot all about acting and looked at her with a glare. Then he shook his head and accepted the quest. "It would be our honor to assist you, Lord viscount." She knew about all this, she knew that Az was the perfect Medium for his daughter. ''It is well known just how much he loves his daughter yet she was doing this?'' He couldn''t believe it. She was practically putting the little slime''s life in danger. [{ "It''s alright even if Eve comes in contact with Az, right? I''m pretty sure we aren''t going back without meeting her today." }] She was a crazy woman, but he knew she loved him too much to mess with the ones around him. She wouldn''t put the little creature''s life in danger here. He didn''t want to separate from the first ever friend that he had made in this world. And this quest aside, he sure as hell was not going to let a viscount or any kind of noble take his precious friend away from him. [{ "Don''t worry, haha. She can perceive the spirits but she won''t be able to tell the spirits that she is feeling are following Az specifically. And even if she does perceive it, she''s just a nine year old. Az will have to be with her for hours for her to confirm the spirits are, in fact, following the slime." }] And that wasn''t going to happen, as she knew. "Well then, I''ll be looking forward to seeing you two tomorrow morning as well." He was a noble that had all the power to forcefully take Az away from them. And, he would do it as well since his daughter was struggling every day just because she cannot do magical things even while being the child of two exceptional mages. If he needed to deal with two low level foreigners, he wouldn''t really care about it as long as he could see the bright smile on his daughter''s face. And, she wanted to meet these two creatures everyone was talking about anyway. How would a child have any understanding of the situation they were in? "Oh. Now that you are done with the talk, would you two like some tea? Or are you a Coffee person like him?" Tea was the prominent refreshment among the noble ladies of the empire, while coffee was famous among the men. "I''ll have coffee." "I''d like some tea, thank you." But the opposite was true between the two of them. "Oh?" If they were given the option like this, Elio would always prefer tea since he had always been a tea person, while coffee was somewhat a lifeline for Alex. "Alright then~. Please wait here just a minute." Instead of telling the servants, the viscountess stood up, and almost ran to the back. There was no need for her to do it herself when there were almost three people present just in this hallroom, ready to serve them, but she was doing it herself, which was also a show of admiration of a sort. "My daughter has been looking forward to meeting you as well as these two little ones for a while now¡­ will it be alright to ask you to wait here until she wakes up?" "Oh, yes." "We don''t mind at all. In fact, it would be nice to make acquaintance with the famous Lily of Cromwell." They already knew about the little one and were looking forward to meeting her as well, but since they also had to go shopping for the new quest that would start tomorrow, they had to get back soon so that they could finish some work they had in the city. They also had to go to the bird sanctuary of Kalp to find a partner for Misha¡­ but it didn''t seem to be possible for now. "Seems like my little lily is famous." He had a smile on his face that was typical of fathers. His well maintained light blue hair and the long yellowish hair of his partner had resulted in a dull fresh green in their daughter. While instead of his crimson eyes that he got from his mother or his wife''s midnight black eyes, his daughter had received the previous viscount''s, his father''s deep eyes. She was a little child that was famous all throughout the southwest region of the kingdom thanks to the many things that her father had done for her, and because of her. "Oh, speaking of little Lily, it seems like she''s finally awake." They couldn''t tell, but his highly developed senses picked up a presence walking down from the third floor of their house. "It seems you two won''t have to wait as long as you thought¡­" It wasn''t her waking time since it was still early morning for them, but it seems like she woke up early. It was good for them anyway, but from a father''s perspective¡­ this wasn''t good behavior. She needed sleep. Proper sleep of at least nine hours every single night. Chapter 166 The Eve "I didn''t expect them to be so cool."Unlike their expectations, the little girl did not come down running when she saw the two of them and these two special creatures. Well, she did hurry down as soon as she saw them and came to her father to ask him if they were the ones she had been looking forward to meeting. She even asked his permission to play with them after she greeted Elio and Alex in a graceful manner. "A slime''s mucus body is mostly made by a simple natural membrane that varies depending on their kind and type, but they are unique creatures so not all slimes are the same." He was telling her about the slimes as well as about the Mana beasts that are practically made of Mana. "Miu¡­" "Miu''s saying you''re pretty, Miss Eve." She was like a princess from the fairytales. A short stature of a nine year old, fresh green hair that seemed to have never been cut almost touching the floor, eyes that were far deeper than Alex''s eyes, a unique aura that made her much like her father, while the bright smile she had resembled her mom''s. "Oh? You think I''m pretty? You''re pretty as well." Eve Andrew Deborah Cromwell. The famous child of the Cromwell viscounty, the precious gem that was famous all throughout the north west. "Miu~." As pretty and adorable as she might be, there was a unique maturity in her behavior. The two of them who had seen children grow up before their eyes knew well how this precious child could have experienced things that were beyond that of her own age. "Muuuuu~." "Az says you''re pretty as well. It wants to touch your hair, if it''s not a problem." "Oh, of course not. You want to see my hair, little one?" She was a calm child, the pureness in her eyes and the unique kind of calmness she had as she looked at the two little creatures was quite something as well¡­ [{ "Is that longing, Alex?" }] Elio could tell there was something this little girl wanted. ''She''s not a simple child, and being from noble families while having completely different characteristics than the people around you is quite a difficult thing.'' He knew it well. Complicated things were never his cup of tea. [{ "That''s not longing, Elio¡­ well, it is longing, but I think it''s more like a wish. She wants to have something but she knows she cannot have it. These two little creatures have it, or more like they were born that way. And, she''s envious of them." }] She cannot Use Mana even though she had it and could feel it in the surroundings¡­ The natives called it [Mana release syndrome] but the players had a different name for it. [{ "The [Curse of Mana]... it''s not fair how someone cannot do what they could do well just because of a condition." }] S§×ar?h the N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [{ "It''s a natural condition, Elio. she was born with it, and there is nothing one can do to change that." }] There was no cure to what is part of your being itself. There was no way to cure or treat it since it wasn''t an illness but how her body functioned. [{ "I know. I''m just¡­ sad." }] If this was reality, they could associate this condition with an abnormal physiological anomaly caused by gene mutation. And, there was no cure for such conditions even in their modern society. These things weren''t something they could cure. They were simply how one was born. [{ "Don''t be sad, dummy. Just look at her¡­ she knows her condition, she knows she will never be able to use magic like the rest of you, yet she is smiling." }] Eve of Cromwell¡­ She had seen magic and magical elements all her life. Her father, a magic knight, could use his spells unlike most of the people present in this kingdom. And though not as special as him, her mother was also a simple mage that had her own unique magic. Both of them were amazing people, and since she had lived with these amazing people, this little girl most certainly never had a simple life. [{ "If you are sorry or something about this child, don''t be. She doesn''t need your pity." }] In Alex''s eyes, this little girl was a warrior. A valkyrie that had fought against her natural limitations all her life. "Miu~!" "Muuu~!" "Hehehe, hey that tickles~." She was good with these little creatures, and they liked her as well. "Do you two want some snacks?" "Oh, no. We will directly have our lunch later." "Is that so?" The viscountess seemed sad that they weren''t going to stay for as long as she wished them to. But, it was alright. She knew they were going to come back soon anyway so, for now, she just smiled at her little girl that had a slime and a little gecko playing on her hair. "She''s adorable¡­" She was still in her night clothes, there was a teddy bear with diamond as its eyes with her when she came down, but now she was happily playing with their little friends. She liked them, she liked their owner and the pretty looking sister sitting before her as well, but for now, she was busy playing with the little creatures. She could tell just how amazing these creatures were from the pure and abundant Mana they possessed, and even without that energy, she could tell these two were different from their kind. "Isn''t she?" They were like her in a way, unique entities that could not be considered normal even from an abnormal perspective. "Hehehe." Both of them now knew why she might be so precious to this person sitting before them. And, since they understood it, they knew they would have to be extra careful about everything they do. "Oh, looks like our guests will have to leave soon." Her mom knew they had to leave soon, so she started preparing for their departure. They would have to leave for work with her husband early in the morning, so they must have a lot of things they needed to take care of. She understood that. And, the two of them were thankful for her help. Chapter 167 On a not-so-fine dawn In the Great city of preservation, another dawn broke, spreading its gentle warmth.The wide streets of the city were painted with the first rays of the shining morning sun, the old yet sturdily standing houses were painted with the light of a new day, making it seem like someone had just blown colors into a vintage black-white painting. It was morning, so the citizens that woke up, picked up their tools as the sounds of chiseling and whistling filled the air when these artisans began their daily work. -Swiiiiiiiiiish¡­ Just like every morning, as the sun rose, the once asleep town came back to life with the scent of freshly baked bread and roasting meats, sounds of stone carving artisans, as well as normal people who were starting their daily lives. -Booooooooooom! The central square of the Kalp was home to a majestic stone fountain that could not be compared to the fountain they had in either Moongold or in Yuta. Crafted by an ancient stone, this pure white stone fountain was three times the size of the fountains one could find in the towns around this city. -Oooooooooooooooong¡­! The fountain was a magical piece of artistry, crafted by the hands of the various renowned artists with their combined efforts over a decade in the past. If one looked close enough, they could see the various different styles of the creators of this fine masterpiece. "Ughhh!" "TO THE RIGHT¡­!" -BOOOOOOOM¡­! In the markets of Kalp, just like every Normal day, the artisans proudly displayed their creations in wooden stalls, showcasing delicately crafted wooden figurines, intricately carved wooden boxes, and beautifully crafted stone statues. It was a sight to behold for those who were new in this amazing city, however for those who had been in this fine place for some time, this sight would be something as common as the bright morning sky. -Bang! Bang! Bang! -Clank! Clank! Clank! The sound of hammering grows louder with each hourly bell, signaling the start of another day''s work in Kalp''s many workshops. -BOOOOOOOM! However, the trimmers that fail to make their way to the ground above are never perceived by the common citizens that live a rather simple life in this vast city¡­ [{ "I was not expecting this when we received this Quest, Alex!" }] [{ "Neither was I! Now shut up and give me a buff!" }] -Booooooooooom! As the sun reaches its peak, the town is bathed in a warm, golden light. While at the same time, under the feet of everyone, under the houses that have been standing here since the inception of this city, in the underworld¡­ yet another orange flash of explosives graces the outsiders. [{ "Alex. On your left! Odin! Assist her!" }] The air above was filled with laughter and chatter as people gathered to socialize and enjoy each other''s company. While at the same time, in the underworld that had been changing every single day since the inception of Kalp, yet another bloodbath was unfolding. -Swish! Swish! Swish! -Boooooooooom! -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiish! [{ "Miss Alex-." }] [{ "Less talking more killing, Mister knight!" }] All of this started when the two of them met Viscount Cromwell right before dawn and traveled with him as well as his party to a certain corner of the back alley. He was leading a group of six knights and three battle mages, all who had achieved their first awakening and all of them combined were a kind of force that could take on an entire dungeon all by themselves if they wanted. [{ "Alright, now, Alex. Start kiting them." }] [{ "Alright!" }] [{ "H-hey! What do you mean by-." }] [{ "Just shut up and do what you are told! This is not the time to talk!" }] But, they weren''t going to any dungeon or to any forest area, or even to any Fields. They were going to a different kind of place that not many people knew about, a place that existed right beneath their feet. -Swiiiiiiiiiiish! "Yeeee¨Cghahahahah!" The underground underworld of the city of preservation, the place that had been the only element of this city that had been changing almost every single day since the city was created. The home to the criminals, the area that produced some of the largest profits for the city, as well as the place where the viscount spent most of his time when he wasn''t working. [{ "Elio! We will need Sera''s help!" }] [{ "I know! But just bring a bunch of them here so that we can decrease the load all at once! I''ll call her out after I have some Mana to spare!" }] This underworld, unlike it is the case with most of the places, was not the darkside of Kalp. Yes it was a different place compared to what this city was all about, but it was still an important part of the city since it allowed this city to truly remain unchanging. [{ "Alright!" }] -Swish! It was a place created by the first Masters of Kalp, the ancestors of Cromwell, and it has always been a traditional duty for them to watch over this small village-sized place. -Ooooooooooong! The people that lived here were different from people who didn''t even know the existence of this place. They were delinquents, they were troublemakers, they were unconventional thinkers that could not live in the enclosed nature of the society that existed above. The ideas they had were unique and different, radical and certainly something that would cause a lot of distress among the people that loved the peace that they had. -Booooooooooom! The first masters had foreseen the possibility of something like this in their time. They knew if the city were to remain unchanging, then there would undoubtedly be some elements that would want to break out of it and go out into the vast world with unhealthy ideas that could cause trouble in not just the city above, but in the world outside the city walls as well. [{ "Alright! Elio, get ready!" }] Sear?h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The first masters of the Kalp sent any kind of troublemaker or potential threat to this underground where they could do whatever they wanted. Some of them turned into criminals that made the life of the other people living here a hell, while the others ended up becoming an asset that had a great value to this city, as well as to those who understood their unique styles. -Oooooooooooong! It wasn''t the Lord''s job to look after these delinquents and troublemakers, but the Viscount of this generation found it fun to occasionally come down here and take care of some matters through a fun hunting game. And, though rare, sometimes he would also invite some special candidates to join him, and assign them the task He was here to take care of. [{ "On the count of three!" }] [{ "Alright! Odin! Get out of the way!" }] He had a perfect playground to evaluate the talent and potential someone had. And this time around, he had brought Three Foreigners to help him deal with an individual that had been a high value asset to the City until just a few weeks ago. [{ "What''s¡­ what''s happening?!" }] [{ "Three!" }] [{ "Shut up and move!" }] [{ "Two!" }] -Ooooooooooong¡­! But then he went over to the dark side¡­ and now, with a heavy heart, it was time for this city to let go of the only [Marionette] they have Ever had. Chapter 168 Odin (1Hr proper to descend¡­)"Oh, Master Elio, Lady Alex." They were meeting the Viscount early in the morning, yet he looked even more intimidating than yesterday. "Greetings, Lord Andrew." "Morning~." Yesterday, the viscount told them to be more casual around him. He allowed them to use his name instead of the usual honorifics as a gesture to get closer to them, so Elio was now using his name instead of his title, however, Alex wasn''t paying any attention to his status anymore. [{ "Hey! Aren''t you being a little too casual?!" }] He asked them to be casual with him and she was doing exactly that. However, Elio didn''t like how she was even shaking his hand when they met him. [{ "He asked us to be casual darling. He should have specified what kind of casual." }] Even the knights that were with him couldn''t help their surprise when she shook the viscount''s hand. It was out of the blue. Even Viscount didn''t understand why he instinctively accepted her handshake as if it was the most natural thing he should do at that moment. "Let me introduce to the people that will be joining us today¡­" He didn''t understand why he did that. There was no reason for a noble like him to act like that in front of some low leveled new foreigner that had only a few achievements to their name. She wasn''t even a noble so it was just strange how he couldn''t even feel anything wrong with what he had just done. "Oh~. I see a player. Is he someone that will be coming with us?" This was strange, but he ignored it for the time being and focused on what was important at the moment. "Oh, that''s right. He''s someone I''ve had my eyes on for a while." There were a few battle mages in his party as well as a few knights. However, along with them, there was an individual in black armor that most certainly didn''t seem like a native. "This is Mister Odin. A dark knight with exceptional combat abilities." His dark armor was not black but it was a shade of black close to the actual black. It was shiny armor, and the person that was wearing this armor seemed to be someone in his Late twenties. "Greetings, Mister-." "That''s a cool name, mister! It''s quite refreshing to see someone using a simple name as their ID~." Elio was going to greet him normally, but Alex jumped in and shook his hand as well. And the one in knight armor actually shook it as well. Experiencing something similar to what Viscount had experienced a moment ago. "Oh? You''re welcome, I guess?" Short Black hair and dark brown eyes. He seemed pretty much like those eastern people that go for the samurai path when they reach their first awakening stage. But, this person was different from them. "I''m Elio. And this is Alex¡­ please excuse her rudeness." He smacked her head and bowed to him as he apologized. Elio knew it was inappropriate, especially when the person before them had already achieved their first awakening and had a unique Class. "It''s fine. It''s no big deal." He was a [< Dark knight >] someone that could control the [Darkness], a rare kind of energy that very few people in can access. Plus, he wasn''t a swordsman like most of the knights in this game. "Haha, it seems like we will be doing the same quest~. Let''s do our best~." He was carrying around a large hammer of his own size, and he was holding it with only one hand as if this large hammer didn''t weigh anything to him at all. "Mister Odin has had experience with the underground area, however, it will be your first time so let me tell you a little about it as we walk." The viscount first introduced the rest of the party to the two heroes of Moongold who had become famous in the city recently. Then he introduced the warhammer wielding dark knight, told them how he had known him for a few months now, and finished the small talk. They would know more about one another as they continued with this quest, so the viscount didn''t have to worry about them himself. [{ "What do you think about him?" }] [{ "Can''t tell yet, but it seems like he knows his stuff. Seeing as how he has achieved his first awakening and is still in this city, it seems like he either likes this place, or there''s some reason he''s here." }] "The place we are going to exists under Kalp and only a few people could go there." They already knew about the underground underworld. Alex had already told him all about it yesterday and, though neither of them had been there, they knew what kind place it was. "A few ''special'' individuals reside there and a few ''unique'' things happen there, so I''d like it if you keep what you see there to yourself." It was early morning so the streets of the city were all pretty much empty. The shops were closed, there were no hammering sounds, and the people and children were still sleeping in their houses. There was no one around at this early hour, but they were still using spells to conceal themselves to make their morning walk simple. Their destination was already decided, but they still walked slowly. There was no need to hurry there. "Don''t worry, lol. We know how to keep things to ourselves." Alex wasn''t even following basic curtsies anymore and was chatting with him as if he was her junior or something. And the viscount didn''t even feel anything weird about it. "¡­" The fact that he was unbothered by something that would be intolerable to him usually started concerning him. But, for now, he didn''t have to worry about it. There was a bigger issue they had to take care of today. "This is the gate and once we pass through it, you will find yourself in a new place." They had reached the corner of a back alley that would take them to the underground area. They only had to pass through this one wall¡­ and then their main task would commence. S§×ar?h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 169 The Black Joker -Ooooooooooooong!The only thing viscount told them about their task was how they had to find a certain individual in a black joker outfit and kill Them before they walked through the wall. The viscount was going to watch them as the other party members took care of the other things that they needed to do in that place, and as they dealt with those things, they knew they would have to look after the other challenges that were present in this special Field. That''s right¡­ the underground area of Kalp was categorized as a ''Field''. A place that was filled with all kinds of threats. "Hmmm¡­ at least the air is fresh here." From what they knew, this place was where those with unique ideas and those who had committed crimes resided. These people were dangerous, some of them were simple people but their creations were dangerous, and then there were things that had just appeared here out of nowhere. It was a strange place that had existed since Kalp was created, and since its most basic nature was volatile, everything in this Field, including the small huts, the barren lands that they were seeing right now, to even the very ground they were standing on continuously changed. "Seems like there''s only three of us. How about we plan-." They needed to be extremely cautious since the three of them were the only ones present in this place at the moment with no trace of the other party members. They needed to look after one another and they needed to showcase their talents to fulfill their quest conditions. "Wait." The two of them at least had to show the viscount that must be watching them from somewhere what they had, and impress him without the help of their hidden cards. If possible, they were planning not to use their skills as well and just deal with the black joker with techniques and spells. "Do you sense anything?" That was at least their plan before they got to know there would be another player accompanying them, so now, they had to change their plans and center them around the person that had the most raw strength between them. "What do you mean, Mister Elio? It doesn''t-." "Oh! It looks like the field is changing!" -Oooooooooooooong! S§×arch* The Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. They had just arrived in this place and the field that looked like a barren wasteland was changing already. "Looks like viscount started whatever they were here for." Their objective was a certain someone in this vast field but since the field was a flatland, they only needed to go and check each of the huts that weren''t actually huts but were more like highly advanced apartments. -Ooooooooooooong! -Shrrrrrrr¡­! They just needed to find that black joker, deal with them, and showcase their talents in the process. It was an easy task, and in the process, they were planning to kill the creations of the crazy people that live here, the diabolical creations that shouldn''t exist in the sane societies. "Don''t move! Grab something and don''t fall off your block!" They thought things would be pretty straightforward since this was just the prelude of a chain quest, but that wasn''t the case. -GRGRGRGRGRGRGR¡­! Not even a few moments after they fell into this place, they were already facing a big crisis. The entire area before their eyes was changing. The land that turned into cells of a building block was getting rearranged by some mysterious power and it seemed like everything that they were seeing until now was changing right before their eyes. It was strange and they didn''t understand what was going on at first. Elio and Odin were even stunned in their places. However, after Alex''s shouts, they also grabbed the first thing that met their eyes as the entire ground beneath their feet started moving. -Zaaaaaaa¡­ It was a strange phenomenon that lasted for around three minutes, and after three minutes, they were looking at something completely different than the bee before. "What the hell?" The barren landscape was replaced by a simple alley with simple two to three story buildings on both sides. "Where did these houses come from¡­?" ''If everything was divided into blocks and just got rearranged, how could new structures that weren''t there at first appear out of the blue?'' Elio questioned as he looked around the alley that he was in right now. It was strange, but since they understood this was a game world with magic, even with some logical explanation, this was certainly possible. In a place filled with creators that could manipulate the reality itself, this much was certainly possible. "Can we go inside-." "We don''t have time for all that, darling." Rein took out a sword from her inventory and got into position as soon as she sensed a strange presence in front of them. Then Elio sensed something strange as well, and prepared a spell. "Looks like we will be hunting a little bit before finding the target." This field: the underground underworld of Kalp was a rare opportunity. "Grrrrrr¡­" Just as they experienced a moment ago, there were all kinds of supernatural things in this place. Many strong individuals that they wouldn''t find in the old Kalp were present here, and many of them were special individuals that were famous all around the kingdom as well. "Do either of you have an appraisal skill?" Odin prepared his tall hammer and a unique purple lightning started crackling around it. There was an appraisal scroll in his hand, and he was ready to use it on whatever was coming their way, however, they did not need that. "It''s fine!" ============ [Green goblin replica] (Level-84) -Imperfect Biological replica of a green goblin that was enhanced with blood of various creatures. ============ They knew about a green goblin and they knew what it meant to be a replica. "What''s a chimera doing here?!" "Grrrrr¡­" Though Kalp was famous for simple carvings of various things, it wasn''t a place where just anyone could go. The citizens of Kalp either had to be a heinous criminal, or someone that had genuine unique ideas. There was a unique magic cast over the entire city that automatically sent the people that met a set criteria to this place, and here¡­ they had no restrictions. "Get ready!" Sometimes, they would create something that would help the world while sometimes they would fail and end up creating something dangerous that would sometimes just wander around in this place. "GRRRRRRR!" This ''goblin'' that looked like a Red Orc was an example of such unique creations that wandered this field. Coming across it out of the blue would be a death sentence for those who weren''t strong enough or weren''t prepared to face something like this. But¡­ [{ "Elio, Boost." }] For the people like these three who had been ready for any kind of fight ever since they got here, this was simply the beginning of a fun game¡­ -Oooooooooooong! The Mobs in this place were quite high in level and, since they had the help of a big dark knight as well, they knew they would farm at least a level or two from this quest. Chapter 170 During their search (6Hr following the descent.)"So, you''ve been here for three months now?" "Yeah¡­" After killing the green goblin with not too much difficulty, they killed 101 more chimeras, monsters of alchemical origin, creatures made from wood and metal, things that weren''t even monster like but were ''creatures'' and some undead that gave them a bunch of exp. But after that, they were tired and made a safe zone for themselves to regain their strength. "What kind of quest are you doing that you came to Kalp of all places? I don''t think there''s anything related to the Dark knights here." Alex was cooking for them, and Elio was taking a nap after his head started hurting from excessive spell usage, so Odin and Alex were chatting as they prepared for their lunch. S§×arch* The Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "I cannot tell you the details, Miss. And besides, why is it that I''m the only one that has been doing the talking? Tell me something about yourself as well¡­ How''s that someone with such a low level as you can use a sword even better than many high level sword users I''ve seen? And how can Mister Elio cast five spells at once at that level? I don''t think that''s supposed to be possible." "Yet here we are. Present in flesh." He told them how he was doing a unique quest that required him to get close to the viscount and get something from his treasury. He had been doing all kinds of things to get the attention of the viscount since he got here a few months ago. And he was genuinely jealous of these two when he learned the two of them were the people that saved Moongold¡­ along with many others, of course, but they were the prime contributors. And for that simple achievement, they were directly meeting the viscount when he had to spend weeks and months to build up any kind of affinity with him. "Are you some kind of ranker doing a unique quest? Are you actually high level or something?" He was one of the many that had heard about how these two had saved Moongold from a dark mage at a low level. It was known that their levels weren''t even in their thirties when they fought the high level Mage. And yet right now, they are over (Level-60) and that shouldn''t be possible. There was a limit to power leveling so, if they were actually the people that had saved the Town, their levels didn''t really make any sense. "No, no lol. We aren''t any hidden rankers or anything. I mean, yes I''m doing a special quest of my own, but he''s new. He doesn''t even know half the things about the community." He surely was a strong person now, but Elio was simply a new player in this world. He still had a ton of things to learn, and that was visible in his lack of battle experience. "Hmmm¡­" Odin surely thought both of them were making their levels at first since, under the circumstances, they had revealed a few things about one another. But now that he thought back to the various battles they have had with those weird things all this while, he could tell the insurmountable difference between his and Alex''s level of experience, and the little experience Elio had with complicated battles involving terrain movements. "You don''t use that fancy looking sword either¡­ is that a quest item or just a decorative sword?" "Oh, no. It''s a quest item. But it''s kind of hard to explain what this is." From Elio''s observation until now, he had reached the conclusion that this person, Odin, was actually a pretty decent man. He was a dark knight, but since he had gained this class recently, he didn''t really know about his own powers yet. "A lot of things are complicated about you two, I guess." From their levels to their highly synergistic battle style. The strange spells that he was using with that stranger spell casting technique and even the sword techniques Alex was using¡­ none of it was simple. "We can tell you about us over lunch but there''s nothing much fun we have done yet, you know? It''s only been a few weeks since he started playing." Alex and Elio¡­ "It''s better if it''s not a long chat anyway." Though they were unique people with unique circumstances, he didn''t mind hearing about a couple''s experience in this special world. If anything, he wanted to know about them. "Sure then¡­" They talked a little more and finished lunch preparations before waking Elio up. Then they all ate their lunch, talked about one another a little more, and when they were done with their food, they went out of their little safe zone barricaded by the dead bodies of creatures they had dealt with until now. "We''ve checked the south and west sides, so let''s go north this time." They were looking for a black joker or a person wearing a black joker outfit. They had cracked all kinds of places and met all kinds of psychopaths that threw weapons and bombs at them or made their ''pets'' chase them, but none of them was a black joker. "Elio, do you see anything from up there?" "No!" Alex was walking on the street while Elio was jumping from one rooftop to the other with his assistance spell. Odin was on the ground walking a few feet away from Alex in case something happened. He was looking at the back line, Alex was looking for the black joker, and Elio was looking at everything with his sharp eyes. But they had not found anything until now. "Oh wait. I see another house!" The old connected rooftops were the only things that they had found until now and most of these places were either empty or were filled with a bunch of wild monsters. But there were some isolated houses where the crazy psychopaths or people that were unbothered by their presence there lived. They had found a bunch of these houses until now, and after checking all of them¡­ they all just prayed that this one belonged to the target the three of them were looking for. Chapter 171 A crazy puppeteer "Hello there¡­"They didn''t knock on the door but on the window before they just broke it down with the sheath of their sword. -Craaaak! "Anyone here~?" They entered through the window as they had done until now, but unlike how they had experienced until now, they were not attacked by curses or tools of the people. There wasn''t any screams as there were in a few of these places and there also wasn''t any security trigger that appeared when they entered. "What the hell?" When they were inside, the only thing they saw was a bunch of dolls and a few stuffed animals¡­ and by stuffed, it means creatures killed and then stuffed with cotton. Taxidermy as they call it, was a process in which the stuffed creatures were made into toys¡­ and there were a bunch of small ones present in this room. "Is anyone home?!" Alex was shouting since there didn''t seem to anyone present here, but as soon as she shouted, they all heard footsteps coming their way, and got into their position. Elio even cast a grace spell on Odin just in case they have to directly engage in battle. -Step. Step. Step. [{ "Be prepared¡­" }] They were tired after those last few hours of killing and wandering around. This place wasn''t too big, there shouldn''t be more than a few hundred people present and they had already disturbed a few dozen of them. -Click! They were after a black joker, someone that either wore something like a black joker outfit or had something that would relate to the black joker. That was at least what they were looking for, but they did not know what their target was. "Who''s there?" It was an old voice. "If you''re here for something, I don''t have anything of worth in this room! Please go away!" It seemed like a very old voice. And, from how this person was holding the door without opening it, it was clear that they were afraid of whatever or whoever was behind those doors. "Hello?" Odin put his hammer down, and Alex lowered her guard as Elio called out to the old voice. "Apologies, looks like we ended up in the wrong place. Can you help us, mister?" The voice they were hearing was an old voice of a simple sounding person. "Why are you here?" The door crack opened and an old man, with wrinkled face, a short stature, with a cane in his hand walked inside. He was looking at the intruders that broke his window and were standing there with weapons in their hands. And, seeing this, seeing the shattered glass on the ground, he couldn''t help his anger! "Do you people know just how costly these things are these days!" The old grandpa shouted at them, and looked at each one of them one by one! "How are you going to pay me back?!" The old face of the grandpa became red, and red, and it continued becoming more and more red as a second passed. "Something''s wrong!" A face as red as that wasn''t biologically possible, so Alex knew something was definitely wrong with this thing. She can tell there was something very wrong with this place as well since each one of the dolls that they were seeing right now to each one of the taxidermy dolls that they were seeing seemed to be looking at them. "How will you pay me back!" The red face became so red that it couldn''t be more red than what it already was and¡­ popped like a balloon! { "How dare you destroy my property!" } Then a Mana voice reverberated all throughout the room and, all them knew something was very wrong with this place. "Get out of here!" Mana volume of the entire room skyrocketed in an instant, Elio was almost freezed into his place. -Oooooooooooooong! The things that they were seeing in the room, including the headless body of the old grandpa stood up and glared at them with a strange light in their eyes. [{ "It''s a Marionette!!" }] Alex shouted as soon as she dragged Elio out of that place! -Boooooooooom! The body of the old man that had been growing red until now exploded as well, but unlike the head that popped like a balloon, this one exploded like a bomb! { "How dare you?!" } Soon, out of the blue, the dolls that were glaring at them also jumped outside the house and started changing into something else. -Oooooooooooooong! "It''s dangerous! Odin! Get away!" Elio cast a speed boosting spell on Odin so that he could get away from these strange creatures and dolls, but he was late. -Swish¡­! sea??h th§× novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Ugh!" The simple human dolls were turned into tall full sized human mannequins! The animals turned into creatures that had an unnatural number of eyes and limbs, and that wasn''t even the worst of it! { "Did that viscount send you?! That viscount sent you didn''t he?!" } A strange thing walked out of the floor door of the house¡­ a thing that they couldn''t call a human or doll or something inanimate. { "That bastarddddddddddd¡­!" } It seemed like those strange dark monsters that doesn''t have any definition to their bodies, a black shadow that only had strange red eyes and a white mouth with two rows of sharp white teeth. A body that seemed to be made from a dark energy¡­ a dark energy that Odin recognised well. "Looks like this is it!" He was on a quest to find a being that was not human, not demon, not spirit, and not something like the dwarves or elves. This was a being that was born of darkness, a being that had lived a simple human life until now, and a being that had forgotten its true origin. "Is that the joker, Alex?!" "Are you blind?!" By outline, it seemed like a joker without a hat, and by color¡­ it was as fucking black as the void! And, there were red threads coming out of his hands! [{ "Scatter! Elio! You''re on your own!" }] Out of the blue, the enemies they were facing had become ten times what they had been fighting until now, and that wasn''t even the end. More were coming out of the house, and turning into creatures that seemed to be from the deaths of hell! -Booooooooooooooom! This wasn''t what they thought would be the scene when they meet a ''Joker''! That creature wasn''t even human! ¡­technically. [{ "What do we do now?!" }] The creatures that were turning into multi-eyes multi-limbed beings of hell were simply the interpretation of various emotions of their creator. The one operating them was the puppeteer in black! And what they were fighting against¡­ was a field Boss ranked creature of (Level-112). [{ "What can we even do, fuck?! Start Running for now!" }] Just a single target would have been fine as well, but with all these things that weren''t even creatures that give Exp but simple Tools of the puppeteer¡­ this wasn''t a battle anymore. It was a one sided chase that they knew was wayyyyy beyond their current levels! Chapter 172 End of a chase When they broke into the house of this crazy being, they didn''t think they would be fighting something as weird as this thing.They were practically fighting an endless swarm of monsters, a never ending misery that wasn''t even leaving them alone! -Boooooooom! They ran but these creatures chased after them. They exploded and some of the creatures that were created by the dolls of that dark thing even used a strange kind of magical power to deal various kinds of damage to them. It was strange at first, but by the time they got used to fighting these strange things, they knew they were fighting what they could not kill with simple methods. [{ "You were here for the seed of darkness. I understand why you would go to such lengths now." }] Odin was a dark knight that had received a class quest when he got his class a while back and when he came here, he was searching for this very fragment- or the ''seed'' that had turned a human into that dark creature which now controlled all these dangerous beings. It was a high level individual that knew their art, but with the power of Darkness that they were using, a Pure power of nature that was more like Mana than the dark power that the Dark mages use. By nature, both of these powers were very similar, however, if one thought about it, they were quite different from one another. Unlike the dark power that was corrupt and was a sign of evil, the darkness that had now devoured this individual was the power that Dark knights and Necromancers used in order to interact with the Dark Souls that exist in a similar realm to the Guardian spirits and the elemental spirits. These beings were powerful by nature, but unlike the evil beings that existed in a completely different realm, these souls were individuals that had embraced the darkness in its purest form. They were followers of a certain part that indicated the eternal finality of everything, thus being the same as any other path strider of this world, or someone with a certain kind of Goal and ambitions. -Ooooooooooooong! Darkness was a powerful force, like Aura. However, not everyone possessing it could handle its nature. [{ "I think you''re right, Miss Alex. It seems like you know about this, so I''ll be selfish and ask for your cooperation in this case. I need that seed and extracting it from that person will only be possible after we defeat him! He has already lost his sanity, there''s no way to save them anymore!" }] When someone who was blessed by the dark side was chosen as an agent of darkness, they were given a choice. They had to sacrifice something that they would obtain in the future in exchange for the power they received in that moment. The kind of sacrifice they would have to make is up to them, however, the kind of power they receive from the Darkness is completely random. [{ "Elio, we will be going in. Get ready with Sera." }] [{ "Alright." }] Those who receive a strong physical disposition along with special skills become Dark Knights, those who receive the power of dead become Necromancers, those who wants to follow the Darkness in its purest form become (Dark Worshippers) and those who are chosen by the Gods or the Truth that form the Darkness in its entirety, receive the power of [Shadows]. Something so rare that even Alex only knew two who possessed that special power. [{ "The target has a weak defense but, even if we attack together, we will defeat them with only a long battle. And we might have to deal with all the puppets before that." }] Dealing with the puppets had been a difficult task until now so she knew the simple method wasn''t going to work. Not only Elio had to cast multiple Fusion spells and AOE spells, she even used her skills multiple times to deal with these things. Elio even revealed the existence of his servant, and they knew the people watching them from afar were now aware of her existence. But that was fine. In this moment when they had to deal with hundreds of creatures that didn''t even give any Exp, there was no time to think about things that didn''t really matter. { "That viscount! He used me for years! For decades! And when I wanted to go out of this hell, he did what?! He sent people to kill me! My children!" } Unlike Odin who had received a simple power from the Darkness, the power that this Joker had received was quite unique. Seed Of Darkness, or the permission for housing the [Embryo] of a creature born in the darkness until it reached maturity. This person had received a very special gift from the Darkness. However, they could not handle the overwhelming power that came with this gift. And, when they couldn''t handle what they were given by the primordial Path that they had walked on willingly, the newfound powers hindered their entire philosophy. { "Why must only I suffer?! What did I do to deserve this?!" } The reason he had turned into that monster Joker of darkness is because of the overwhelming contradiction that came with the Truth that was revealed to them. Subconsciously, they couldn''t accept it. And even though it didn''t get reflected outwardly, because of the contradictions, they were suffering. [{ "How much do you know about Darkness, Odin?" }] It must not have been long since he obtained this power and was subjected to this state, that much Alex knew since she had seen what happens to the [Ruptures]. [{ "I don''t know too much about it. I''ve just started learning about this¡­ why do you ask?" }] She had seen how dangerous these people could become to themselves and to this world, so she knew she had to end the suffering of this person. [{ "We will attempt to combine my Aura and your Darkness to deal the required fatal blow to him while Elio casts his magic on us. It might be dangerous for you, but it will definitely be effective!" }] To get past the remaining barricade of puppet creatures, and to deal the required damage to kill a high level being like this one was not easy. Odin and Elio both thought it would be very difficult to deal with this guy and were prepared for a long battle of attrition. But¡­ Alex knew that''s not what He was here to see. [{ "Believe me. This will be more effective." }] S§×arch* The N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The quest wanted them to prove their talent and impress the Viscount. And, she knew the best way to do that in their complicated situation¡­ Chapter 173 Dark-Aura Smash Alex was explaining to Odin something very crazy right now¡­ and, Elio was just watching everything from the high building as he ran away from the creatures that were still chasing them.He was on the higher ground, jumping from one rooftop to the other, dealing damage to the creatures that came too close and avoiding the ranged attacks with his new movement skill. -Boooooooooom! The puppets that ended up exploding around him were a bad experience for him, but at the very least, they did not kill him. He did well increasing his agility and endurance stats. Without them, he didn''t know if he could have survived all those explosions, attacks, and maintained his footing. Falling down from there would result in an instant death. These dark creatures were all on the ground as well¡­ And all of them looked disgustingly creepy. -Oooooooooong! S§×arch* The n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He didn''t hate how they looked but they were certainly dangerous for them. Alex and Odin were more experienced with the terrain battles so they were jumping around the places, taking advantage of the building on both sides, destroying things and using them as blockades if needed, even doing what he mostly wouldn''t¡­ This was the first time they were fighting this type of creature, especially hundreds of them at once with the possibility of them exploding like a (tier-2) spell. [{ "It''s fascinating how one being could control so many of these creatures¡­" }] They weren''t taking help from Az and Miu. He had put them in the special inventory for the time being even though he didn''t like it. [{ "Elio! We don''t have time for chitchat! Cast all the buffs you can on us! We are going to finish this!" }] Odin explained to them why this ''person'' or the black joker was beyond saving. Elio also knew about the characteristics of darkness, and thanks to a certain incident that Alex once talked about, he knew how dangerous this matter could be. He didn''t want to kill this person, and He wasn''t going to do anything either. -Ooooooooong! But just like every time, he was going to have a hand in the death of this person. [{ "Tell me when you are ready!" }] [{ "We already are! Throw them!" }] They were being chased by a lot of puppets ever since they came out of that strange house. It was a simple house yet there were hundreds of those things and most of them even looked as real as actual taxidermy dummies. There were some human ones as well, and they made things difficult for him. He was conflicted whether this person was a good person or just a criminal that deserved death. However, whatever conclusion he might reach, he were still going to end up dead. [{ "Alright! Get on top of that platform." }] Elio prepared six pairs of spells on both of his hands, spells of grace series, and physical series. He was mostly using wind and water elements throughout the battle, but this time, he used spells of all six elements from the grace series to help them with all aspects of this one final blow! [{ "Odin!" }] [{ "Yes!" }] Winds gathered and became wings for them, flames sharpened the edges of their weapons, water enhanced their strength, earth beneath their feet became even more solid and with each step they took, the weight of their weapons increased as well. Darkness rose from their shadows and made their steps lighter, while the light around them condensed and wrapped around them. -OOOOOOOOOOONG! They were ready. { "What did I do wrong?!!" } And the target was about to lose itself in the depths of the darkness that had overwhelmed them. However¡­ [{ "Now!" }] -Zaaaaaaaa! Alex called out her radiantly colorful Aura while Odin called out the dark energy that was less ''black'' than the actual darkness that made up the Joker. [{ "Three!" }] Alex used a {Blink} and left the other creatures behind. While Odin also used his own movement skill to get ahead of the creatures behind him. [{ "Two!" }] When both of them were free from the puppets, they stepped on a platform which was a little higher than the current location of the Joker¡­ and right when they stepped on this platform, the joker''s eyes widened. { "WHAT ARE YOU DOING¡­?!" } He screamed with the loudest voice Elio had heard until now, and at the same time, a pitch black darkness exploded out of his body! [{ "Odin! Now!" }] The energy was going to materialize into a completely new puppet, one that would have contained much more strength then any puppet present there. He would have controlled this new one with even better strings, paid more attention to it and used it to kill all of them that were after him, however¡­ -Ooooooooooooooong! Alex had already jumped in the air along with Odin with her sword slashing downwards along with the giant hammer covered in a purer form of darkness. The darkness of the two distinct energies somehow found harmony as they descended towards the dark creature. { "Noooooooo¡­!" } The joker even perceived their attack, even created a barricade of red strings and smaller puppets¡­ he even used the things around him as puppets in that last moment¡­ However, it was futile. -ZAAAAAAA¡­! When the Aura and Dark Aura were combined, what came out was an energy that had only one effect on the surroundings¡­. Destruction. -Boooooooooooooom! When the smash was hit, an explosion was heard all around the field! ''Damn.'' As Elio saw, the combination of already destructive Aura with the Dark Aura of the dark knight was so powerful it literally obliterated the barricade of Puppets and red strings of the joker, and pierced right through the dark matter that was covering the actual body of the Joker. [{ "You two alive?" }] The explosion of energy was unexpected. The area around them was shattered, the puppets that were flooding the entire place were nowhere to be seen anymore, and there was now a dead human body left on the ground¡­ its face smashed with a hammer, and its body cut in half. [{ "Hopefully." }] [{ "I think I''m dead¡­ ughhh!" }] Ultimately, it seemed like all three of them, as well as Sera made it out alive. [Ding!] And as if the system was announcing it, a screen window popped up before all three of them as they lay on the ground, on top of debris, covered in blood and scars all around their bodies¡­ Chapter 174 Viscounts recognition [Ding!][You''ve completed the personal quest.] [You''ve earned the achievement: Viscount''s recognition (Rare)!] [You''ve earned the achievement: Savior of Darkness (Common)!] [Exp has been awarded for the total achievements!] [Ding!] [Level up!] [(Level-66) > (Level-67).] [As an additional reward for defeating the puppets of the designated target, you have received: Victory pouch [Coins: 30 Silver, 100 Copper; Potion: Healing potion (Basic) Stamina potion (Basic).] [Chain quest will be revealed soon¡­] [Viscount''s unique trade shop will become available soon...] The rewards they received were quite good. And the fact that they both received two new achievements was the best thing. The additional rewards were one thing, but the reward boxes were more important than anything else that they received, aside from the level and Exp, of course. "Haaa¡­ it was exhausting¡­" Elio walked up to Alex and looked down at her as she lay on the destroyed ground, covered in dry blood and dust. "You look like a mess." "I Am a mess¡­" He used up all his Mana so he didn''t even have anything left to cast a water attribute spell to help her clean herself. Sera was also exhausted so Elio already instructed her to go back inside her mark on his hand. She needed rest, but she declined and flew back to look around the place in case there was any danger left. "Man, that was quite something." Odin was also still stunned by what they had just done. "That was the most thrilling thing I''ve done in this game!" He was also out of all energy but there was a bright smile present on his face. His hamlet was destroyed, half of his armor was dented after enduring all those explosions and he was bleeding through his mouth and eyes¡­ but he was still smiling radiantly. "Are you a solo player, Odin?" Alex somehow sat down with Elio''s help and looked beside her at the dark knight that had achieved his goal. The quest from the viscount must have been completed, but since the seed of darkness that was present in the body of the now dead Joker was still present there, his main main task should still be pending. But that was beside the point. "Yes¡­ well, I don''t have any special friends or anything. I just like playing by myself. It''s only been two months IRL time since I started actually so I''ve not met anyone special." was a special game that almost everyone throughout the world knew about. Around thirty percent of the world population was playing this game in this era, and new players that had not joined it in the last few years due to their own circumstances were still joining this world every day. Be it young people that were just becoming eligible for playing this game or had gathered enough money to purchase a head gear, were the main population of the new players. But, occasionally, even older people like him joined in on this fun world. "Is that so? Then, why did you start playing? To earn money or something?" The equipment that he had was pretty basic and seemed to be purchased from this very city or rewards from the quests. He wasn''t like the normal players and like Olive, he seemed to be an old fashioned man. "Not really for money, though money definitely is a great factor in this game. Well¡­ to tell you the truth, I was working in a good position until recently so I didn''t really have any interest in games or anything." "This is your first VR game?" Now that was surprising for both of them. He was somewhat like Elio. S§×arch* The ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Yes¡­ you can say that." He was still laying on the floor, but, right after he said that, he felt a familiar presence from nearby and instinctively raised his body. "Looks like you''re bonding¡­ we should have waited a little longer." It was a familiar voice. A deep familiar voice that they all recognised instantly and looked in the direction it had come from. "Lord Andrew¡­" Elio looked at him with an upset gaze, while Alex was already pouting. "Hey! Why didn''t you tell us it''s going to be so dangerous?!" He was a noble and yet she was shouting at him again. "Mind your words, Lady!" The informal talk was something the knights and the battle mages still overlooked, but this kind of informal way of talking to him was unacceptable! They couldn''t tolerate it. And ended up raising their voice. "It''s alright." However the viscount didn''t mind her words. "That''s right. We should have given you some more information. I apologize." "Hmm?" "¡­" Until now, he had only shown them his tough act and his noble side, but for the first time, he was being humble before them. And, that apology was something that was unexpected even for Alex. "I''ll make sure you have all the information we do the next time." He was saying he would be more transparent with his quests the next time¡­ which actually meant he wasn''t going to test them anymore. "I''d appreciate it if we can continue this cooperative relationship." Relationship¡­ [{ "Is this his recognition? Does this mean we are closer now?" }] [{ "Of course, dummy." }] They had to get the recognition of the viscount to finish their quest, and they did get it at this moment. They proved their worth, and that worth was something too precious for even this person¡­ "Ah, looks like you got hurt a little." Viscount Andrew Cromwell. He was a mage knight. A knight that could wield magic. -Ooooooooooooong! It was known that he had mastered various spells of the Destruction series and even knew various basic spells of the rest of the series. He had fought in the wars alongside the person he followed, so he was an experienced mage. "There. Is it better now?" Casting a healing spell was no big deal for him. "Much better. Thanks." Alex was being informal again, but the two others with her were genuinely surprised how all the wounds were healed in an instant. They even got cleaned up, as if someone had washed them with a few buckets of water without them knowing. "Well then¡­ now that our work is taken care of, how about we all go back? Staying here isn''t the best thing at the moment." Someone that had lived in this underground for a long time was killed¡­ the other inhabitants and The ones that changed the structure of this place every other day weren''t going to like it. "Oh, but before that¡­ you should claim what you''ve worked so much for, Mister Odin." There was a dead body that was already decomposing. However beside this dead body, there was an Embryo¡­ a pulsating life that was searching for a host. "Thank you¡­ Lord viscount." This little dark Crystal wasn''t anything simple. It was very valuable, and precious. "It is what you have been looking for. It is only right that you have it." He could have very well claimed this precious thing as his own and made an enormous profit off of it. But, he didn''t do what many other lords would have done in this situation. He did what was right¡­ just like how he had done for most of his human life. Chapter 175 Bonding (POV: Odin.)(PS: Voice: He is a Dark Knight.) It took me a long time to search for any clues related to the ''Bright Darkness'' that was mentioned in the quest I received even before I became a Dark knight. ''Was it during the tutorial? I think right after the tutorial, right?'' I didn''t find it strange that I was getting a quest out of the blue right after finishing the Tutorial quest. It was a simple thing for someone like me who didn''t even know much about these games and these worlds and the settings and what not¡­ ''Yes I did my research, I surely read all the things I needed to- the guides and the tutorials- some of my colleagues used to play this game so I have heard about it in the past as well.'' So I didn''t think much about this unique quest at that time, but after learning a little more about this game and understanding how the quests in general were a rare thing in this world, especially the ones that one received out of the blue, I was quite confused why I would have gotten this quest. The quest didn''t have many details. It was worded vaguely as well. ''It wanted me to go to the city that was living in its original state.'' The quest didn''t reveal a lot of things, and kept pointing me in some direction¡­ "Go Odin~. Hahaha~. Elio, watch closely~. Something fun is going to happen." I can hear Miss Alex''s voice¡­ she was not like the players that I''ve met until now. ''Rankers¡­ or do they call them the High rankers?'' She was different from any kind of player I had met. She was more like those regressors on manhwa that know about the things that will happen or have far more experience compared to their low level and weak self. She was different from anyone I''ve met, and her partner, Elio was the same. ''I''ve not seen someone use a Sword like she does, not even in the videos.'' And casting six spells and combining them into one spell? Casting two pairs of six spells of different elements at once? ''Is that even legal?'' If I was new to this game, I would think they were using some kind of bug or cheat. ''I actually would have believed at least Elio is using some kind of hacks or cracked additional code.'' Sadly, that wasn''t the case. In a place that was practically an actual world, the ''hacking'' concept couldn''t exist in the first place. ''There was a very unique class that worked with space-time and was too sci-fi to fit into this medieval theme here, and Elio certainly didn''t have that class.'' He was simply a mage, or something else like a mage. ''He just possessed tremendous talent.'' It''s not everyday you meet special people like these two. Elio even had a special servant, so I can''t even imagine what kind of force these two were going to grow into in the upcoming future¡­ ''I have to maintain this connection we have at least.'' After being kicked out, the need for cash is constant. And with acquaintances like these two, who knows? ''I might actually strike it big.'' It was just a wish but hey, a thirsty longs for a paradise, right? "Alright." The quest brought me here. It forced me to get close to the viscount. Thanks to this quest, I spent a big part of my time here doing various things for viscount and I was happy when the quest window said this quest from the viscount would be the final task. ''I knew I was looking for something.'' I knew the quests wanted me to look for something and most of the things I did were somehow related to that. Until now, I didn''t know what I was looking for¡­ however¡­ -Psssssss¡­ The moment I saw that person covered in that dense Darkness, I felt something strange deep inside my heart. It was a strange feeling¡­ I knew what I was Searching for so long at that moment as well. "Should I just pick it up?" "It''s fine, Odin! Just pick it up!" She seemed to know something that I don''t once again but, I don''t know if she knows what''s going on with me, or why I was still feeling so¡­ so, hot. This strange feeling in my heart¡­ In my soul, if I can say that¡­ "Alright then." The little crystal that was the only thing remaining after the decomposition of the former Joker''s body. This little crystal that he was gifted with. It was a living being. A creature born from nature, from darkness itself. "Hello." Picking the little crystal up carefully and gently, feeling the strange sensation intensifying inside of me, I looked at the beautiful movements of darkness inside this jewel. It was beautiful. And, for some reason, it seems like it''s happy to see me as well. -Oooooooooooong. When I picked it up, my raging heart started calming down. A strange sensation washed over me. I felt as if¡­ as if¡­ -OOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG! As if I was liberated. -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiish! I was looking at the crystal a moment ago, and the very next moment, I found myself in an endless void. Underneath my feet, there was black water. In front of me, there was a dark sky starching endlessly on all sides. And dividing all of this, was the surface of the black water¡­ or, the faint silver light being reflected on its surface. ''What''s happening¡­'' I wanted to think something like that, but I didn''t. I couldn''t. There was no need to¡­ -Step. Step. Step. My heart was serene at this moment. -Step. Step. I could Feel footsteps inside of me. Footsteps of not a human¡­ but of a being that seemed to have been part of my long lost soul. -Step. I did not blinked, yet, something appeared before my eyes out of the blue. < ¡­ > And, seeing it¡­ seeing this being, somehow made me tear up. < Master? > A silver horse, a Colt. A being that only had a silver outline, and a body made up of the same darkness as the one present around me. "Now I understand¡­" I instinctively moved forward, and caressed the mane of the gorgeous being that¡­ as they say, was my Soulmate. "Now I understand what they call it¡­ Bonding." I placed my head on its young face. It was cool. Not cold, just cool¡­ < Master? > "You don''t have to call me that¡­" He wasn''t my servant, nor was he going to be my slave. < Then? > "How about Odin? That''s what everyone will call me in this world." < Odin¡­ > He''s young. Just like his pure voice. "That''s right. Ah¡­ you''re going to need a name as well, right?" < Name¡­ My name¡­? > "Yes, haha. Your name." It has been a month since I reached (Level-100). Perhaps, that was also the time I got an actual clue to the purpose of this strange quest. Sear?h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "How about¡­ Sleipnir." It would be funny, but that would be quite lore accurate as well. < Sleipnir¡­ it sounds strong. > "Well, that it is." He doesn''t have eight legs, but I know¡­ I know he is going to become very strong. < We like it. > And I''m going to be the fortunate one to be there with him as he makes his existence known to this world¡­ Chapter 176 The bystander "There are times when one''s soul resonates with a being born from nature at such a deep level that the world itself leads that individual towards that one being."Alex had figured out something from the small hints that Odin gave off starting with the quest information that he shared with them. ''This wasn''t the first part of the quest.'' When she heard him talk about his unique quest as if it was nothing, she knew there was something more to this whole thing than what met her eyes. She thought and as she observed him, how he was so adapted to fighting even after not being a one year old in this world, she knew there was a unique force that was helping him. However, as a veteran, she knew whatever force was behind his tremendous strength, had not given him that power directly. ''He had earned that power¡­'' She could tell the kind of strength that he had was not something that he had received without putting in any effort. That kind of strength and experienced game style could only be cultivated with one''s efforts, system''s support, and tough quests that would take more than a normal teenager''s life experiences. "When one Person finds a being that resonates with their very being on the deepest possible level- a level that is only known to the liberated- that is when the whole process that we call [Bonding] is triggered." Alex had figured out there was something unique going on with this person that they had only met coincidentally. And when she saw the little crystal containing an embryo of a being born from nature, she had figured it out completely. "A familiar and their master''s first meeting doesn''t happen coincidentally even if it might seem like it¡­ we players call this phenomenon [Fate''s mischief]." Odin stood there, covered in a blinding black-silver light, outline of a creature that was not present there until a moment ago having been materialized in front of him. He was lost in a unique world where the being that he had been coming towards with each turn of his life was greeting him for the first time. "A bond is formed when you meet your soulmate." It may seem overly romanticized but that is not really the case. Unlike the normal relationship, an actual intangible bond is formed between the souls of that individual and that creature. This unbreakable bond is, in its truest nature, unbreakable. "Supported by the truth of nature, truth of individual, as well as the truth of preservation: [{(Akash)}] this process is overlooked by the Path owners themselves." They were looking at something very rare at the moment. The process of someone bonding with that one being that is the only one in this entire vast world that resonates with them on a particular level. This is not something simple and more than simple, this is not something just anyone gets to see every day. "A familiar¡­" Alex wanted him to look at this scene closely so that he can at least learn a little from them and understand how this is more important than what the community understood. ''Be it the rankers or just the normal players above level-100. Even when counting all the natives who are above that level, not even ten percent of them would have a familiar.'' S§×arch* The n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And that was a very big deal¡­ having a familiar was the symbol of the Chosen ones. And, having one at an early stage of their (Level-100) was something very rare. "I''ve told you about my experience with them, remember?" She had to spend years to find the being that was The one for her. And when she found the being that was her soulmate, she was already beyond the levels of the rankers of that time. "It''s a magical feeling¡­" Not even the viscount had a familiar, or the knights and mages with him. "And the special thing about this whole bonding process¡­" Alex looked at the smiling face of the dark knight as well as the brightness that was exuding from the creature before him. Both of them seemed happy, and though young, this horse seemed to be quite a pure being. "¡­everyone has a different experience when they Bond with their partners." For her, it was something different. For her acquaintances that had a familiar, it was a unique experience, and for Elio as well¡­ when he meets the being that is meant to be with him forever, it is going to be a unique experience. "No one knows what they experience when they are bonding with their partners." There are speculations saying one experiences the one thing that they had longed for, and some say people experience something they are supposed to experience sometime in the future. But, according to what she had found out, that is not the case. "It''s always different." What one experiences when they bond with their familiars is very, very subjective. It depends only on the two of them and it could very well be influenced by one''s past experiences, one''s expectations, one''s basic personality, or something that is related closely to either of them. [{ "It took me a long time to find my match, but I wish you luck with your search, darling." }] Perhaps he will find the being that he was supposed to be with on their journey, perhaps he will find it while roaming around some place himself, perhaps he will find it in the corner of a street, or perhaps he will find it in the depths of a jungle. She didn''t know when he would meet that one being and she didn''t want to know it either. [{ "Thanks¡­ I wish We meet soon as well." }] His heart was throbbing as he watched Odin and the unique creature. He tried using observation on them but it did not work. Anything he did, however he focused, there was no result¡­ and he knew the reason for that is the nature of this whole process. "Bonding." The process was complete, so the light had subsided, and Odin was coming back to his senses with his new partner before him. "I wonder what my partner will look like." The dark horse with a silver outline body that almost made it seem like an astral being was so beautiful Elio had already taken a dozen screenshots of the two of them. Everything they do is always being recorded so he was also thankful that she installed this amazing feature in their chariots. "I bet it will look cute, just like my cute dumb darling~." This horse was gorgeous, and he was looking forward to meet the gorgeous partner of his Alex for a long time as well. However, after watching these two, he also wanted to meet the being that will be his partner¡­ but for that, he knew he would have to wait for a long time. Reaching (Level-100) was a priority. He can think about other things when he gets to that level. Chapter 177 Sleipnir: The horse of horizon "What did you name him?""Sleipnir." "Oh? Lore accurate, are we? Well¡­ he won''t grow more legs, or else it would have been a perfect name." A body made of pure darkness, outlined by the primordial silver light that was the same as the silver card that Sera came from. Eyes so deep and such a profound shade of black that anyone looking into those eyes would be lost into an entirely different realm. A young body, only as big as a pony for now, however, as a few of them already knew, this little one was going to grow a lot more very soon. "I can''t believe I''m seeing one myself¡­" Viscount had a deep admiration as he looked at this creature, and there was a unique envy hidden within his unique eyes. This being¡­ aside from being a familiar of someone that he had been looking after for a long time now, this creature was also a legend from the old folklores. "The horse of horizon¡­" There exists a horizon that connects all the realms, a dark place that is not habitable to anything. Only beings that have embraced the greatest darkness could live there, though their lives there couldn''t be considered as simply living. "You''ve heard the tale of the Golden emperor, Lord Andrew?" This was perhaps the first time Rein was calling him respectfully. She knew how to act in all kinds of situations, and this was the best way to address someone that was flowing in the memories of his past. "My grandmother used to tell me that story sometimes." Story of a miserable hero that lost everything he had more than once. Someone that kept giving what he had, and someone that kept helping those that needed his help. The one kind person that seems like a mythical existence to the world of today, a selfless man that smiled every time someone was taken away from him, and someone that walked a path of peace, a path of constant bloodshed, and a path that led him to a place that no mortal should have been able to enter. "Shining gold glittering under the darkness of the sky, with his feet bathed in serene silver. He who suffered it all, he who lost it all¡­ he who embraced truth regardless of it all¡­ he found himself facing a family of three in the vast darkness enlightened only by a thin silver lining." The viscount was lost in his memories, warm memories that he seemed to have forgotten about, and he wanted to stay lost forever in that nostalgia. But, he shook his head and came back to reality as he looked at the Brave knight that seemed to be oblivious to what he had just obtained. "Sir Odin." He was calling him with honorifics now, even though the difference between them was still the same. Sear?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Would you bless my little daughter with your presence on her birthday?" And since he was directly giving him this invitation, something he had not even done with the two of them, the knights and mages that were attending him understood what they were supposed to do now. "Hmm? Viscount?" The knights and mages that were standing behind the viscount got on their knees with their weapons dug into the ground. "And¡­" They were bowing before them, or perhaps something else. Elio did not understand it. However, Alex knew exactly what was happening here. "Would you like to be my [Knight], Sir Odin?" Knighthood¡­ a knight was only a knight when he was serving a master, or was a quest of his own. Odin was searching for something ever since he came to this world, but now that he had achieved what the world wanted him to, he did not have anything specific he had to do. Just like every player, he had to find the path that he would take from this point forth. And, within the many paths that he could begin on, he was offered a unique path that very few individuals in this entire world receive. "A knight?" "It''s like sharing their noble authority with someone else¡­ and since a viscount can only appoint fifteen knights at a time, the knights that are more like servants of the viscount would obviously be below him if he accepts that offer." Authority. It was also one of the major things in this world. The nobles weren''t Noble just because they were appointed as nobles by their king or the head¡­ they were Nobles because they also received special privileges from the System when they received this important title. The journey of a simple nobleman started from being a knight and proving their worth to the world and to the crown through their achievements, that is how they could gain independent status. For players, this was one of the most common ways to enter the noble circles of this world, and the more important the master in the political sphere, the more likely it is for them to succeed as a noble of any place they are in. "My lord¡­" It was an amazing opportunity that has a lot of money involved. Any player would know just how much profit an official knight made with simple tasks and through the salary they receive from their lords. But¡­ money wasn''t everything to this amazing game. "I will have to decline the offer of becoming a knight." There was a vast world that one could experience, a kind of freedom that one cannot experience when they are tied to one place, or when they are working under someone else. "Though, it would be my honor to attend Young Lady Eve''s birthday. I believe she would love to see Slee as well." As someone who had already lived the life of an employee, he did not want to be tied to this place anymore. There was a new companion with him. He could finally go to the places that he wanted to instead of the places that the quests wanted him to visit. "Haaa¡­ I expected it." The knights and mages on the ground were shocked. They were even glaring at him with thoughts like ''how can he do that?!'', ''such disrespect! Unacceptable!'', ''we must cut his throat this instant!'', or something similar. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity, and he was declining it without even giving it any thought? They couldn''t understand it like the natives. "Oh~. Odin will be coming as well~?" But the people from the other world like the two of them knew very well why he would be so quick with his answer. "You two were going as well, Miss Alex?" "Obviously~." If money was not the main driving force for a player, it would always be the game, the world, and the fun that all of this brings. Not everyone wanted to be noble and not everyone wanted to fight and kill and get stronger and earn achievements. There were some like Elio, there were some like Alex, and then there are also some like Odin. "Let''s have fun again then~." Ones that simply want to do what they want with those that they feel comfortable with¡­ Chapter 178 Time off (Back to reality¡­)Rest in the real world was important as well so they were resting in the real world after finishing the important quest with the viscount. They were doing something they liked right now, which was different for both of them, but they were doing it in the same room without disturbing one another, so that was a unique thing. "How does this look?" "Hmmm? Oh damn. That''s a good one as well." Elio was printing out some screenshots that he had selected from the thousands that he had taken in the game while Alex was surfing through the community for anything that could catch her eyes. "You remember the one I asked about, right?" "Oh, yes. I sent it to Xin so he''s going to take care of it." "He better do a good job, alright?" "I trust his skills, it''s fine." The last time they were outside, they met up with their friend Olive and then they went back to playing. They had taken a break for a few hours when they reached their chariot''s assigned limits as well, but since they were going to do the viscount''s quest, they went back after a quick break and a little sleep. Now that the quest was over, they were going to take a longer break so that they are ready for the big event that they were going to have in a few days. It wasn''t going to be a simple event. Unlike all the things that they had experienced until now, they were going to the house of a noble for an actual event. There were going to be many people of great importance present in that event, and since this event was the Birthday of the Princess of Cromwell, every neighboring lord, as well as the other smaller fief lords were also going to attend. Some rich merchants, and some special people that were selected by the viscount himself were also going to be there. "You know what Elio, we should go and have some ice cream." "Hmm? Out of the blue?" "I''m craving sweets¡­ well, there''s always the Other option. You know?" They needed to be in their top condition for the event, and to be in the top condition, they needed to rest. But, instead of resting or sleeping, they were high on caffeine and were doing something else. "It''s six in the morning, Alex. I''m not eating ice cream right now. Let''s go and eat some warm cake." "The chocolate cake? Nah. That''s not what I want." She was on her chair a moment ago, but by the time he looked back up, she was standing beside him. "You know what I want, my sweet cinnamon roll?" S§×arch* The N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She was quite agile in the real world as well so he had to keep an eye out for the strange things that she does occasionally. Especially when she''s nearing her cycle, he had to be especially cautious in those times. "No, Alex." When she was just about to get on her knees before him and press him against the desk with the printer, he moved and her head hit the desk instead. "We have to go back to sleep in a bit anyway. Don''t get me started right now!" They knew they needed sleep, but they also knew they were going to go and have some drinks when they go down for some fresh food later. They knew what they do to each other, for each other, and with each other after downing a few good ones, so at least he didn''t want to start right now. The food was necessary, and so was the rest. And if they start right now-. -Buzzz! Buzzz! Alex didn''t like getting hit by that desk so she was about to jump on him and give him a decent beating, but right when she turned back with her sharpened claws ready, they heard their doorbell. [Facial recognition confirmed.] [Biometrics confirmed.] [ID: Olivia confirmed.] [Asking for permission to grant access.] They heard the voice of their house''s AI caretaker Sunday, and looked at each other with a surprised look. "Why''s she here so early in the morning?" "Could it be that the cheriot''s here?" They looked at one another for a few more seconds, evaluated the level of honey they had reached, and concluded they could put this off for the time being before both of them got out of the room and went out of their room. "Sunday, open the door for her. Tell her we will be out in a bit." [Yes, master.] They did not have time so they needed to wear at least something before they went out. Being naked half of the time they were here was one of the reasons they were so Active. "You''re wearing that inside out!" "Well, who cares?" "She will care. Wear it right." Alex was so lazy she didn''t even wear her t-shirt properly. She was hot without those clothes, but most of the time, the clothes that she wore were always something random, oversized, and something that would completely cover the body that she had forged with years of hard work. "Look, Alex." "What?" "You''re hot." He kissed her before he ran out. "¡­" He wanted to do a lot more after seeing that clumsy side of her, but they didn''t have any time right now. There was a guest they had to attend to for now. "What the hell?" He kissed her out of the blue so even she was surprised how he just ran out after only that little peck on her lips. That wasn''t even a proper kiss! "Elio!" She ran out angry after that as well, and by the time she reached the hall room where Olive was sitting already, she realized something. "Hmm? Alex?" She forgot to put on the shirt that he wanted her to wear properly¡­ so she had to run back inside and come back with an embarrassed face instead. "Why were you only wearing a-." "Don''t ask." She sat down beside her, and looked at the bastard that just left her there with that small peck. "Bastard." If he really meant what he said, he should have at least used his tongue or something. That was¡­ disrespectful! "Hmph." He was going to get a beating, Olive could tell that much from that angry expression. Chapter 179 Chariot installation "Dad will be here in a bit now.""He landed?" S~ea??h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "This morning. He was held back at the town hall though, some documentation for the sensitive devices that he was carrying around." "Sensitive devices?" "His jet¡­ well, you know how it''s always full of his work stuff? He left in a hurry so he didn''t get it cleaned up. Military thought it was an assault unit since it didn''t appear on the radar." "Lol he left that Cloak device active? What the hell?" Alex started laughing, and even asked Sunday to play a background laughing track. The matter was just too funny for her, but for the two who understood the severity of the situation, this was not funny at all. "Anyway¡­ he should be here anytime now." The chariot was not considered a sensitive piece of equipment, but the thing that he was bringing here was not something simple. It was a personally modified, disassembled piece of high value equipment that he would be bringing here in around thirty different boxes. As Alex knew, there were going to be many components that he wouldn''t be bringing from all the way there, so he would also pick up a few things that he would need for this one construction. "Sunday, see if you can find any rows of cars coming this way." [Checking for the provided target around the house¡­] [Search successful. There are nine pairs of SUVs coming this way. A quick search of the vehicle plates reveals they all belong to the Weil corporation.] "Yup, that''s him alright." Eighteen cars¡­ good thing he wasn''t bringing all of them together. "Let''s go up. He will bring the stuff up to your place directly." "That I already know, Alex¡­ but what the hell? Eighteen cars? Why the hell would you need so many vehicles?" It was just a transportation thing from her perspective, they could have just bought a truck or something, but they were wasting resources and bringing so many cars some of which wouldn''t even have anything in them! "It''s not as simple as you think, Olive." The assembly of the special chariot that he would be bringing was going to be a complicated task in itself. Even with the support of all her bots in the house, she would need a week just to disassemble their chariots, the one that her dad, Sean had prepared for her was a much more powerful device then theirs. "Just the circuits and detachable program chips, and all the wire and stuff¡­ It''s complicated. And it costs millions so, please understand. At least that level of safety is necessary." She wouldn''t understand since she was not from a tech background or had any particular interest in these things but Alex knew about these things. Her father was her tech buddy, so she was looking forward to this day for a while now. "Anyway, let''s go~." Elio was trying to explain a little more, but Alex stood up and just dragged the two of them with her. "Sunday, call the lift." [Yes, master.] She was going to Olive''s place since all the stuff would be there soon, and since the main stuff would be carried by her father himself, she knew they all would have to wait till everything was gathered in her room. -Ding. Thankfully, a large part of the twenty-first floor belonged to Olive''s family. Her own apartment might be a small place, they were going to have enough room to do their technical stuff. "Haaa¡­" Olive was tired already. It was a holiday for the shop and yet instead of resting, they were doing something else that was tiring her down. She liked her holidays, but here she was, running around the places and waiting for her dad to bring something that could simply be swapped with a little headband. "Do I really need that chariot thing?" "Not really-." "Of course you do! Everyone does, Olive!" If she just wanted to experience this world, there wasn''t really any need for her to get the special chariot. The headgear was good enough. But, if she was going to experience this unique world that Alex and her dad as well as her big brother loved, they all wanted her to experience it the best way anyone possibly could. A simple chariot would be a different story, but if they were talking about something that was practically created by her father, it had more meaning than just a simple piece of equipment. "Lady Olivia!" When they reached the higher floor, there were already a bunch of people present in front of her apartment. And the moment they saw her, all of them bowed respectfully. "Yes yes guys. Jeez. Step aside." All of them were wearing casual clothings, but all of them were holding various big and small boxes filled with special stuff. "How many of you are left?" Olive first went forward so that she could unlock the apartment door, and Elio and Alex were right behind her. "Around two third of us are still left, young Lady. Master will be here with the last of them." The people gathered were respectful to Olive but, when they were greeting Elio and Alex, they were even more polite. If one observed closely, they could see sweat and subtle shaking that indicated fear or rather, intimidation from the two of them. "Haaa¡­ why can''t you just do these things normally." She opened the door and first went inside with Elio and Alex, and only after she took care of a few things inside, did she instruct the rest of them to come in and rest a little. "You must be tired from all that work. Wait just a moment, I''ll cook a few things." "I''ll help~." "I''ll wait here for uncle, call me when you are done with the cooking part." They didn''t need the decorations, but everything was still better when presented in a better way. "Alright~." "All of you, if you''re free for now, can you clean up the place please?" "YES, YOUNG LADY!" "Hey! Don''t shout! The neighbors will complain!" Since all of these strong and experienced people were here anyway, it was better to use them instead of confirming what they had brought with them. The tech stuff wasn''t anything fun for her, and even Alex was only interested in a few things that had not arrived yet. So¡­ "What should we make for them? Hmmm¡­" They were going to wait until He was here, and when he arrived, after a few formalities, they were going to jump right into the assembly. She wanted them gone by dusk or else she would have to sleep with Alex and Elio¡­ Chapter 180 A loving father -Screeech!A car stops in the underground parking lot. -Clik¡­ Dhum. A man in a lavish light gray suit steps out of it. "Which floor was it again?" A pair of feather cufflinks that he received as a gift from his daughter, glasses covering his deep brown eyes, his sharp clean face resembling that of an intellectual, and his eyes observing everything around them. The parking lot was empty at the moment, cars lined up on all sides before them. "Twenty First floor, master." Two men in black also stepped out of the front doors, a black goggles covering their eyes. "Let''s go then." "Yes." Without taking much, the man in a gray suit first walked forward towards the elevator with a silver suitcase in his hand¡­ the green feathers on his cuffs shining under the dim light of the parking lot. "One¡­ two¡­ three." Walking behind the man in gray, the two in black carried a coffin on their shoulders. They didn''t need six people for this task since it was a rather light piece, however, since it was a difficult task even for these muscular men, it certainly was not a light thing. -Ding! Thankfully, the elevator of this building was a big place. There was enough space for all three of them as well as this coffin in there. And, it was quick as well. -Ding! They didn''t have to stop anywhere else and reached their destination. "It''s that way, right?" "Master!" The man walked out and started walking to the left side, however, the two in black called out to him before he took a left turn. "It''s on the right side, [303]." The first one helped the other get the coffin on his back, and then on his shoulder, and with a lifting jerk, he also placed it on his shoulder. A painful movement, but it was effective. "Oh, I see." With him in the lead, the three walked to the right this time, and soon, they stood before an apartment house with its door open. "Master?" "Oh, master''s here!" The others wearing a casual outfit, who were engaged in housework like cleaning and dusting, greeted the man first, but the man looked around inside the place. "Where''s she?" He stepped aside so that the two with the coffin could go in and place the thing down, and the others helped them get it off their shoulder and place it down without damaging the marble floor. It was something their young lady cherished, so they knew what would happen to them if they damaged anything. "What''s going on? Did I hear something?" His deep brown eyes were finding someone inside this Shabby house filled with people and dust and a sweet familiar smell. He was looking around, and when his eyes saw the one they were looking for coming out from the kitchen side, a warm smile broke out on his Young face. "Dad?" "Olive¡­" With his eyes filled with joy, his heart filled with warm blood and his lips curved into a smile, he walked towards her¡­ "Hey, wait!" But she shouted before he had taken even one step in. "Shoes to the side, dad! Don''t you see they''re working!" People wore shoes in their houses usually, but not the same ones they use outside. She especially didn''t like the outside shoes inside the house, certainly not when someone was cleaning up the house. Their efforts would be in vain if he came in with his outside shoes. "Hmmm?" He was confused for a moment, then he looked down at his shoes that were as clean as a newly bought pair, and then he looked back up at his little daughter''s serious face¡­ and a chuckle broke out of him. "Haha, yes. Of course." He placed his shoes on the side stand, and picked a pair of indoor flippers. They resembled the crocs that used to be famous a few decades ago, but nowadays, they use a unique kind of design for the indoor footwear. "Is this better?" He smiled at her warmly, and she nodded with a warm smile of her own. "Much better~." She ran up to her father, and hugged him. "How has my little olive been?" He asked as he hugged his little sunshine back. She had been here for a few weeks now so they had not seen each other in person for a while now. "I''m fine, tired thanks to you and those two friends of mine, but today was a new experience." She was working here, and it wasn''t time to come back home yet so he didn''t think he would be seeing her anytime soon now. But then, she called him one day out of the blue, and asked him if she could have the Chariot he had built for her back home. It was something that belonged to her even though she had never used it, and he had not been as happy in a very long time as he was when he heard her say that. "Hmm? Olive?" "What''s going-¡­ oh!" Alex and Elio had been inside, in the kitchen helping Olive with the sweets and drinks. They thought she only went out to see what was happening, but after she didn''t come back, they came out as well and looked for her¡­ only to find the person they all had been waiting for since earlier. "Uncle Sean-." "Sean~!" Elio was happy to see his uncle, but Alex was so excited to see her friend that she ran up to him even though she was half covered in wine, and hugged both her Olive and her tech Bestie. "Hey! What the hell! Why are you so wet!" "Is that wine¡­ is that wine!" Wine stains on a gray coat¡­ they knew what was going to happen to that pretty piece now. "Hahaha, you''re as energetic as always, Drew." But the one wearing the coat didn''t mind her. He just laughed, and hugged her back. "Hey! Alex! No! Get away!" But the daughter knew how that costly coat wasn''t going to get cleaned up if she kept clinging to him! She pushed her away, and seeing all this¡­ Elio couldn''t help but sigh helplessly since he knew how this was just the start of their craziness. "Alex, come here you dirty little kid." Sean Weil¡­ he was called a genius in the technological field. He was the person that invented the cooling mechanism that''s used in most of the Chariots nowadays, and he was a genius among many smart people of this high standard society. Sear?h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He was respected by many, and in most eyes, he was a fearsome individual. Yet, with his daughter and a friend one and a half decades younger than him, he was nothing more than a simple man. Read latest stories on empire "Hehehehe~. We are gonna have so much fun~." A simple man that loved his craft, that is. Chapter 181 Two enthusiasts "Wow, is that really what I think it is?"They had finally gathered in the main assembly room after their refreshments and were standing before all the stuff gathered in one empty room of her apartment house. All the components of the chariot, from the smallest screws to the biggest outer coating of the lightest and toughest fiber were placed here. "Yup. A fresh RWX3990." The suitcase that he was carrying personally contained exactly twelve super important microchips whiteout which, this entire equipment would be useless. "Damn, man!" Including the red chip, all of the shiny chips with the little elements moving inside of them were like pieces of the finest jewelry in her eyes. She was an enthusiast like him so she had collected a lot of stuff to make the chariots that they use as well, but none of them contained chips that were present here. "Have you tried them? Does yours also have these? How''s the performance? What about the acceptance rate? How much does it consume on a bad day? How about the L-ratio?" Your journey continues at empire She was in her work attire like him now, so as she spoke with those stars in her eyes, the others couldn''t help but chuckle at her excitement. "It''s always fun looking at her when she''s like that." "Right?" Elio and Olive were going to sit out for this one. They didn''t understand even a third of what they were talking about aside from the simple things, and getting in the way of these two would only hinder them. "It''s not as amazing as your homemade ones. Even Yevvy and I use that one after you gifted us that, but since Olive''s just starting out, I thought these would be better for her." A chariot was a high end, sensitive device that not just anyone can have. Not only was it a costly piece of equipment, it was also something that needed a certain kind of environment that not everyone can produce in their houses. The little components that these equipment were made of were delicate, and if there''s a rat inside this machine, or if there''s a cat that likes to sleep in the cabinet of these chariots, or if there''s unusual environmental conditions, the chances of something going wrong were elevated. That''s why it was advised to get insurance for these things. Though¡­ "Hehehe, let''s get started then~." You cannot do it for the ones that you are assembling yourself. "Yeah¡­ it''s going to be fun." Especially with the things that were practically separated till its last screw. It wasn''t just an assembly at that point, it was simply something beyond that. And the two of them that weren''t working with the rest of them knew that well. There were a few things that they needed to do here now that they were starting, but nothing contained helping them with anything. "The Z-tool." With Alex and her dad at the center, the two started from the base circuit and started assembling the motherboard. The first of the many chips that were going to be the brain of the equipment were going to be here, then the chip that will maintain the connection with the big net, then the one that will maintain the house''s system with the other parts of the device. One of the chips was going to be in charge of the in-device safety system, so they needed to check for it intensively. "Jack, start with the cabinet." Instead of making the big things first, they started with the most important things and then moved to the things that were less important. They played with a few devices while they were assembling, but when they were working, their attention to each and every detail, to even the simplest of the wires was unbelievable. "Here, everyone~. Have some water!" Olive knew the two of her tech junkies. They were sometimes so engrossed in their work that they even forget there existed an entire world outside of their little world. "Alex, no you aren''t doing that without gloves! You will bleed again!" Some fine works required special equipment while some technical things required safety measures, and Alex obviously didn''t mind a few of them. "Jeez, it''s alright Elio." Even his uncle, who was almost always a strict person with the rules and safety, ignored a few things that Alex did since he knew she wouldn''t hurt herself even if she wanted to. She was a kind of genius that he had not seen many times in his field. Her attention to details was admirable in itself, but her fineness with her work, the delicacy of her artistic style in things that had nothing to do with art, and her experience¡­ even he didn''t think he had as much experience with opening up and putting back machines as she did. S§×arch* The ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She was amazing¡­ "Alright, we''re finally done with the first part~!" He had known about her even before Elio introduced her to him when he brought her to their home a few years ago. She was a famous personality within the research society since she was one of the few notorious individuals that had owned many patents and was an anonymous publisher of many papers that gave insight into so many things it was helpful to many of them in many areas. No one knew who she was or how she would have come up with some of the ideas and research that she had conducted and recorded on those records, no one knew why she was anonymous, and everyone wanted to know her qualifications, her field, her career achievements. Yet, when he met him, the person he found was not some elderly expert that had dedicated their lives to academics and science. Instead, he met a cheerful young woman that did not even attend school, much less any university. She was just someone that loved her craft, and she did a lot of things to find out the answers to the questions that Many of them had asked themselves and each other for years¡­ She found her side of answers, and though not all of them were proven, she, as the creators of those articles and papers, was a respected figure in the industry because she had shared all her findings with the world. "Sean! Don''t start without me! Lemme finish this part first!" He had not had as much fun doing these things as he did after meeting this person. There was something bright in her that enlightened everything around her. "Hey Alex! No! How can you take it away like that! I was working on it!" "No! We will do it together! This is supposed to be the last part!" "Why can''t we do the last part simultaneously?!" "We can''t do that! Hmph!" "Of course we can! Gimme that!" He didn''t know what happened to her in but she used to be someone that had guided a lot of rankers, high rankers, saints, sages, archmages, rulers, even gods. She was nothing like usual natives or the usual players. She wasn''t even widely known¡­ Yet, for those that had ever known her, like him who knew her in reality and in that other world, like Elio who shared a significant part of his life with her, and like Olive who was like a sister to her¡­ she was someone irreplaceable. "Ugh! You two! Stop it right there!" "Alex! Put it down this instant! You''re going to break that thing!" She was fun to have around, even with these not-so-simple perks. Chapter 182 Erisea "And with this¡­"He connected the chariot with the main power supply core of the house. "We are done." The various lights present on the chariot lit up, illuminating the inside of the comfortable cabinet, the temperature and body-conditions control units, as well as the various panels that indicated the status of various devices inside. "Was there any need to make it transparent? Can''t you just use metal like Alex has?" The final chariot that was left in a relatively clean room was a transparent full dive capsule or pod. A rectangular piece of equipment that took them six hours to assemble. And that was with the help of so many people who had knowledge of these things, and two people with enough brains and skills to have the capacity to do all of this by themselves. "This is better than a sheet of metal, Olive." Her dad had used a unique variety of fiber that was tougher than simple metal and was appropriate enough for this particular type of equipment. "I''d use it if Elio wasn''t so stubborn about the aesthetics of the gaming room. It''s more practical, but just like him, not everyone might like seeing the translucent chariot like this one." The final destiny''s were done, the three Cyberwatches connected to the device gave a green signal, and the external sensor had also given a green light, so the installation was complete in true meaning now. "Hey, I never said we must use those things. I just didn''t like how they look with a translucent fiber cover, that''s all." He liked to keep the house in order. Everything they might need to have a place of its own. And, all of those places were attractive, or at least practical. Like their big bathroom and washrooms. They knew they needed more space in those places, so they had made it that way. "Hmph. Whatever." She didn''t want to argue with him when she had just finished the assembly process of this amazing piece of equipment. "Olive~." Now that it was completed and it was time for her father to go back as well, she wanted to see her try this chariot. "How about you go in? See if it is comfortable or not." Olivea didn''t want to spend her time uselessly like the three of them. After taking only one day off, she had been feeling anxious about the shop downstairs. She had been there three times in the time they were working and had checked up on everyone in the meanwhile. She loved that shop and backing. But, she also wanted to give a try to this new world that all of these people special to her praised so much. "Alright. I''ll try¡­ but what am I supposed to do?" "Oh~! As soon as you go in-." "Alex, can I please teach her that part?" As her friend, she was excited about this. But as a father that loved his daughter as well as that unique world, Sean wanted to teach her about the important device that gave them access to that special world. "Oh, sure~." She wasn''t detached to the world so she knew the basics, obviously, but she did not know everything about a chariot. So, her father explained to her how things inside the Chariot worked. How the holographic screen was projected, how the mind is connected through the sensors present on the seat, and how the various device functions worked. Your next journey awaits at empire "When you go in and start the device, you will find yourself in the pre-created subspace. The installation will take about three or so minutes so you''ll have to wait, and then the bio-id registration process will begin." He told her about the registration, then he told her about how she would have to create a metabody, and assign an Immortal name. He was explaining to his baby daughter, so he explained slowly and in a way she could understand the best. Then, he gave her a few suggestions, told her about the initial tutorial quest, and after that, he looked at her with a warm smile. "I don''t know how they convinced you, but I''m glad they did." "Not you too dad¡­ you know I''m not going to spend hours and days on that thing like you all." A chuckle broke out of him when he heard his stubborn daughter say that. "Of course, silly. Why would my amazing Star backer leave her perfectly famous shop and play around in a unique other world. What will the people in that shop do without you around~?" He was being sarcastic, so she had puffed her cheeks in a cute anger. "Obviously! Hmph! I have to be there for everything to go well!" They knew her, so they knew what she was going to be like after she found her passion in that new world. A world much more amazing than this simple one. "Hehe, relex you hot Olive. He''s just joking, haha." Alex laughed and calmed her angry friend down. "Tell us what special name you''ve come up with for your character instead of being all hot and red. And be more creative than this bastard!" It was common knowledge that you name your game character something other than your real name. Everyone did that, but not her dumb Elio. He named his in-game character Elio as well, and she still found it boring. He had zero naming sense! "Hmm? Can''t I just have (Olivea) name as well? Or Olive?" "Of course you can-." "You shut up!" Elio didn''t find anything wrong with it, but it wasn''t a bad choice. "Haha, an immortal name isn''t that simple, dear." Alex and Elio started fighting over the names and creativity of the names, so her dad took over the conversation and explained to her how the Immortal Names of meant much more than a simple name. They carried great importance to that world, as well as to the ones who owned those names. "Hmmm¡­" It was not so simple, and Olive understood it. "Then." She thought about it for a moment, searched the web for some suitable options, and after a few minutes, she finally created something for herself. "How about Erisea?" It was a unique name. "Hmm?" "It''s a pretty one, just like you." "Ohh~! I love it!" Elio found it unique as well. It was a great name. "Then I''ll go with it." She wanted to try this device and see the world beyond the virtual realm. But before that, she had to send off her dad who had important work to attend to. "Dad?" She would love to play with him and her brother as well, but before she does that, as they knew, she would want to get acquainted with the basic things and concepts of this world. "Yes, I know it''s getting late." She was smart though. For an acknowledged baker and sweets chef, she was quite a smart person. "Let''s wrap things up then, shall we?" She would be fine, they knew that. She wasn''t a child that they would have to save from a little kitten anymore¡­ Sear?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 183 Sanctuary of Flins The city of preservation, Kalp was becoming cheerful with the arrival of new guests that were going to stay in this city with these craftsmen living with their old ways.The carriages filled the city, with the inns becoming more cheerful and, with a new boom of business, the common people were having a unique festival of their own. "Is this the place?" "It sure is." The birthday of the young lady of Cromwell was on the horizon, so with the arrival of guests, the city was filled with a unique kind of freshness that contracted with their vintage style. However, this was a common occurrence for the citizens who had been experiencing this unique kind of festive moment for a few years. "Wow¡­" "This sure is different from the shop we went to the last time." The city was preparing for the big day, just like how the house of Cromwell and their guests were. Elio, Alex, Miss Rin, Misha, even Odin and the little fellas were preparing for the big day. "This place was established a decade after the establishment of this city by the first master of the Cromwell house in order to house the best Flins that they could obtain from all over the kingdom. Do you all know how the first master of Cromwell used to be a Tamer himself and had almost an army of trained beasts of diverse kinds?" Elio and his group were out shopping for the Event, but before they went to the shops with accessories and clothes and gifts for the young Eve and a lot much more¡­ they had arrived before one of the finest establishments of the city of preservation. "Oh? How do you know that, Miss Alex?" Odin was with them as well since, well, he also wanted to come and see the sanctuary of Flins from where most of the Flin birds were supplied in the southwestern region of the kingdom. "I like reading, haha. I know a good lot about history so ask me anything you might be interested in~." That much was true. There were few people as knowledgeable about the Past as her. "I''ll make sure to do that, thanks." He was being humble, but he was definitely thankful for her. She had been helpful to him and his new partner ever since they logged back in, and even now, they were helping him with a lot of things. "It''s no big deal~." A large building resembling an observatory made inside a greenhouse, this special place had glass windows which had a tint of black, giving off an old feeling. The soil around it was covered in the shadow of the building, making it darker like the old soil of a barren land. There were weird sounds coming from inside of this building, sounds that one would hear in an aviary or a bird area of a park or the zoo. They were quite peculiar, and to those who did not know about it and were passing by this haunted building, they were nothing short of horrific. But, to the people that were standing before the small door of the building, this place was quite¡­ fun. "Just how many birds are there~? I''m so excited!" "Muuuuuuu~." "Miu~!" The slime was jumping with the gecko inside of it, and beside them, the young girl was also excitedly shaking her hands. She wanted to go in as quickly as possible and look at all the amazing birds, see the big ones that her sister Alex told her about and find someone that she could bring back with herself. But before she could do that, they would have to go through the mandatory checking and the general procedures. And there was no exception to that even for the guests of the viscount himself. "Then, if everyone''s ready, should we go?" "Yesssss~!" "Yeah, Elio. We should go." S§×ar?h the N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Miss Rin had looked after the little ones in their absence and with Misha there, he didn''t have to worry about anything. They had a big place to play around so they didn''t even have to go out when they were gone. And now that they were here, they were going to have some fun once again~. "Hello there~. I believe you must be Mr. Elio and Odin, Miss Rin and Alex, and this must be Misha, right?" At the reception right inside the door, there was a lady who recognised them and greeted them with a bright smile. "That right~." "Miu~!" "Muuuuu~." She was wearing a simple outfit that one would find in any kind of office in the other places, but for Kalp, this was a unique attire. "We have been expecting you. Please, allow me to guide you all." They had already taken an appointment to observe and choose a suitable Flin for the young member of their party through Lord Andrew. They had enough credentials and credibility, so they didn''t have to wait in a long queue, but still, they would have to go through the necessary procedures. Continue your adventure at empire "Let''s go, everyone." The bird sanctuary that they were going to was a big place, and it would take them half a day just to look at the various birds present in certain unique environments that were maintained inside this facility. There were around a bunch of unique Flins that weren''t going to be something they could purchase and take away with them, but they could still see all those special birds. [{ "I''m looking forward to seeing the one you''ve been so excited about, you know?" }] [{ "Of course I know. Even Odin knows at this point, haha." }] Among Flins, there were some special Creatures as well. And, not just Alex, even Elio and Odin had a few of the famous ones that they had been looking forward to seeing, and touching as well, if they allowed it. [{ "Well¡­" }] The inside of the observatory was brighter than how it seemed from the inside. The air was fresh here, it was divided into various sections to accommodate various kinds of Flins, and magic was used for enchantment and preservation of various things as well. But, above all, the one thing they all found interesting as soon as they went inside for their necessary checkup¡­ was the person with wings and a beak. A bird person: An Aerokin¡ª similar to the ocean people: Aquakins, or the volcano people that are practically like flame spirits: the Pyrokins¡ª this was a unique being unlike Elves or Dwarves that were pretty common in this otherworld. "Hailoo mah friends~." Even though this wasn''t a Flin, this was the one Elio was looking forward to meet. He had heard about them, and, for a long time now, he wanted to meet one and hear the unique accent that these guys used directly. Chapter 184 Bald… who isnt bald Aside from the usual unique species, there existed intelligent kinds that were rare even in this world.Humanoid birds, fish that resembled mermaids but were actually fish, creatures born and raised in scorching flames that did not have any connection to the ethereal spirits¡­ giant golems with superior intelligence, Druids that look after forests, Children of Light and Darkness¡­ There were many unique species in this world that one doesn''t see often. And, aside from their set habitats and communities, and nations, there were only a few places where they could meet these beings and individuals. "Huuuh! Haaa! Ye must be the Lord''s friends~!" The big humanoid resembling the ancient painting of Horus, a falcon headed god that didn''t actually look like an eagle or had a muscular body. He was wearing a thin cardigan on his upper body, but the lower part was certainly covered in proper clothing. "Woh! Are you a bird, mister!?" Misha was excited to see this being. They even had feathers connected to their hands like bats do, so they were certainly something that caught the little ones off guard. "Muuuuu¡­!" The little slime that could perceive emotions was especially excited to see this person. It could tell the pureness that their emotions contained, and the little slime was excited to meet such a unique person. "Huhuhahaha~! Seums like thee little guys luck me~." The way he spoke was quite funny, especially to Elio who associated this individual with the Forgotten Enigma that had blessed him. They weren''t wearing any expensive jewelry like those people of sand and pyramids, and unlike what he knew about them, this being was quite humble. "Anyway~. Buds! Shel Woll get goin." This person¡­ this bird person, was from a faraway land who had been in this city for perhaps the longest. He had been in this position ever since the third lord of the Cromwell assigned them this position, and ever since then, they had been here¡­ as they knew. "Em called Bald, and this Pwetty Lady here is Trischel." Funnily enough, this person was named Bald even though they were covered in feathers from head to toe. Instead of legs, they had bird-like claws, and even their hands with five fingers resembled that of a strong bird''s. They did not have any muscular features as one would find in special humanoid creatures that actually resembled that of the Ancient Egyptian gods. These beings were special, there was no simple way to describe them, but they were different from an Aerokin like him. And, unlike him, they were monsters that players and natives hunted¡ª just like the sirens. "Hehehe~. It tickles~." Mr. Bald and Miss Trischel were doing the necessary checks before they all went inside, but the feathers that Mr. Bald had were tickling her. "Quite, Misha." Her mom could tell she was being unnecessarily loud, so she asked her to tone it down. But why would the children do that when they were having fun? "It is alglight~." The Aerokins had wings but not like the Angels. They had beaks, but they did not just gulp down meat. They had certain things they liked, and some of them were also herbivores. They also had proper etiquette and manners unlike the wild beasts, and that made them different from the Creatures that resemble them closely. "Okya~. You''re alchecked~." In the time they were doing the check-ups, Elio had observed this person closely. From how he was dressed to how he was speaking to how his feathers looked to how he was a being of the physical world instead of a being born from nature. Sear?h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Sera was interested in this creature, but not because it was something unique, but simply because there was something about these creatures that reminded her of something special. This being, it wasn''t a creature¡­ It was a person, and Elio understood the meaning behind it after talking with them and asking them about some personal things. [{ "It''s not everyday you''ll meet someone like him." }] [{ "I know." }] Alex had met others of his kind, as well as kinds that they might not see while they travel together in this world. [{ "They are quite peculiar, you know." }] They were quite simple creatures, not that different from humans, and the reason behind that might not be the constant interaction with human society. They must have had their own unique beliefs and since they were not ''human'' they would have also faced prejudice from the people around them. [{ "They are simple people, though just like the other species when we go and meet them in their own habitat, you''ll be surprised." }] Especially in a city that lived in the past¡­ "After we go in, please be careful of the Flins. Some of them are sensitive so they might not like direct touch. However, do not worry. With these bands on your hand, most of them will not attack you or harm you." They were going to go inside now that they had finished the procedures. They were going to meet the birds and the creatures that were quite special for their kind. Some of them were quite old, however, most of the ones here were less than a decade old¡­ which was still a good time for Flins. "Is everyone ready?" "Muuuu~." "Miu~!" "Yeiiiiii~!" The door that they were going to cross now was simply a wooden door, and beyond it was world completely different from this office like place. "Alright then¡­" Odin did not know much about these things, but he had seen this place in videos so he wasn''t as excited as the children who were going to see this place for the first time. -Click. As they entered the place, they found themselves in a place filled with many trees, some big and some small. -Chip! Chip! Chip! -Chirp! Chirp! Chirp! -Craw! Draw! Fraw! -Skiiiiiiiiiiii¡­! All kinds of bird sounds and calls and screams and noises greeted their eyes, along with a peculiar smell that was maintained here for the visitors as well as the workers. There were some simple birds here and there were some that weren''t as simple¡­ like the bird that came and greeted them before anyone else. "Chirp!" Explore more stories with empire A silver bird that had a long tail as well as a beautiful crown. "Hmmm?" The bird was greeting them¡­ However, the one that it was greeting wasn''t actually the People that had arrived. "Muuuu?" It was the slime who was the most prominent member of Elio''s Family¡­ Chapter 185 Perks of being attractive Az was apparently more attractive to the birds than any of them present there."Muuu~! Muuuu~!" It was jumping around the place, and there were around a dozen birds following after them. Miu inside of him was having fun since the friend that she had been with for so long was just running around and trying to get away from these birds that seemed to be interested in them. It was strange seeing Flins showing direct interest in someone or anyone for that matter, especially a Slime. Most of them present there didn''t understand why it was happening or why they were following Az around or why they were so interested in them it seemed like they were in love with them or something. But Alex knew exactly why this was happening¡­ "Since Az is a Mana slime with Elemental affinity with water and light, the ones that are following him around are the Flins that were highly trained for the dark environment. They are also attracted by the Mana that Miu has, and since the two of them are together, there is something unique going on with the birds." "Gruuuug~. Thy think thee slime and thai friend isha torch~." As Bald said, the slime and gecko had become the torch that these special Flins were trained to follow. They were trained by the tamers using some special methods that were established and worked well in a diverse variety of beings of the Flin category. And, unlike the unique method of Elio, this taming methods were used with various objects that were used in training them. One of them being a torch that was used to teach them how to find the sources of fire, light, water, and Mana in a forest or cave environment. These birds were then conditioned to follow these things and find them, or be attracted to them. "This is funny, haha~." For Elio who understood how troubled his little friend was and how the other little one was enjoying the misery of her friend, this entire thing was just fun. He was sitting on one side with Misha going around to various birds with her mom and Odin to see how they behaved around her. But, unlike the slime, she was treated coldly by the birds that didn''t find anything special from her. They could sense Mana but since they weren''t creatures born from nature, they weren''t something that could perceive her special Ichor. They were simple birds that thought she was also a simple being and mostly either ignored her or showed only a little interest in her. On the other hand, they were all afraid of Alex as well as Odin who were either Aura users or were affiliated with a certain power that didn''t go well with these birds. Odin especially was terrifying some of the birds and had to go to the other area where the birds that actually worked with the Dark knights were. So, he was there, and Misha was with her mom who was pretty attractive to the Birds thanks to her Holy powers. Some birds that were trained for the light element mistook her holy power as a light element and were following her if they weren''t after Az, and the rest of them were gathered around Elio¡­ who was the most attractive to them out of the rest of them. "You should pay at least some attention to these little ones" There were around three or four dozen birds gathered before Elio. They were all tamed beasts and they were gathered before a tamer that knew how to treat them. Thanks to his title, he had even more affinity with these creatures than the simple creatures that could be trained. These birds, especially the ones who could be called ''Well trained'' ones among the others, could tell this person was not just a simple observer. He was also exuding all kinds of energies, be it the elemental Mana, the energy of a Tamer, or the magic powers of a mage. They were simply attracted to him, but Elio was just enjoying the show happening with Az. "Haha, I''m not the one that needs a Flin here Alex, and there''s nothing else here for me. I''m just having fun, haha." She was being rejected by every one of them. Sear?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. With her Aura frightening them, and and without any kind of Elemental affinity, she was pretty much hated by them instead of just being invisible to them like Misha. But, she liked these creatures. They were adorable, and the diverse ones present around him were quite a unique bunch that she would love to have in reality as well. Explore new worlds at empire But, they didn''t like her¡­ he knew if they didn''t like her now, there''s no way they used like her when she was much stronger, so at the very least, he wanted to let her have a little fun with them. "You¡­ dummy." They were gathered around him and were avoiding her since their attraction to Elio was much greater than their dislike for Alex. They simply didn''t want to interact with her so they weren''t paying attention to her, however, since they were before her, they couldn''t help it when someone as strong as her picked them and played with them. "Thanks." She was gentle with them and after a while, they also started liking her soft touch, so it was a fun experience for her who actually couldn''t do something like this in the past. "We should go though¡­ there''s a lot to see here and this is just the first area." "Yeah. Let''s go after five more minutes, hehe." He was still looking at Az who had somehow managed to get away from those birds. But, from beside him, Alex was looking at him with a warm expression. She was thankful to him and she wanted to say that as well, but she didn''t say it. "Dummy." She just kissed his cheeks and continued playing with the green crow which had submitted to her gentle touch. She was a swordsman so she knew how to handle delicate things well. Especially the living ones. She might not be a taming expert like him or someone who understood these creatures as he did, but she was still well aware of the uniqueness of these creatures. Her worldly experiences with various kinds of creatures had made her an expert of her own unique craft¡­ Chapter 186 Diversity of Flins Since Flin birds are a kind of bird that are found in a unique geological region, they are not bound by some certain characteristics.They are creatures that are diverse and can be considered as different beings completely if one did not know much about them. The regions that Flins live in, that particular geological region, are protected places all over the world. And in this world, these little birds are considered an important part of various individuals'' daily lives. The people that tame them and train them are not that rare, however, they are highly trained individuals who had to master their craft first before they could start training Flins commercially. The Central association of Tamers, much like various other organizations, are the ones who provide the tamers who have mastered their craft and training methods of Flins and grant them licenses. They also assign them various types of Flins to train in a given period to evaluate their skills, and, much like the adventurer''s rankings, the Knight''s ranks, and the mages'' positions within the association or the towers that they are part of, a Tamer''s competency is determined by the number of Flins under them that have passed the official screening process. It''s a tough job so not many are able to succeed as a Flin tamer, but there are some in this world who have accepted this job as their calling. "Wow¡­" They are so good that they overshadow a lot of beginners and those who have worked in this field for more than they have even lived for. "We can divide Flins into three broad categories." They were in the place that was called the Sanctuary of Flin birds, the place from where these birds were distributed to the entire southwestern region. So, there were bound to be birds of a grand variety that they couldn''t possibly categorize with simple methods. "The first and some of the cheapest ones are called Friendly Fairies." Starting from the small birds and the ones that were physically weaker compared to the others, and at the same time, could not understand complex instructions from the humans, fell into this category. The small sparrows, the simple pigeons, some birds whose relatives one could find in the urban areas, and those who were prone to some kind of injuries under even a little tough conditions were also among them. "Does that little pink one also fall under Friendly Fairies?" They had moved to the inner area that was much cooler than the other place they had been to until now. The birds here were the ones that lived in a relatively cooler environment, and were better for the mountains. They were mostly big or strong looking since mountains are never something simple or good or easy. "Oh no no." If they wanted to survive there, they needed to adapt to that environment and develop some weapons that could help them survive in these places. The other birds in this place, thus, were strong looking. Like that Eagle almost as big as Misha. "Though small and fragile looking, that one is one of the toughest you will find. A rare breed that doesn''t appear in many places, but wherever they are, you''d find at least three generations of these birds." Unlike that small and cute looking bird, that one was strong enough to even fly with their masters if needed. And at the same time, they had a great memory and vision that could see things even at faraway places. These kinds of birds were the ones that the people who worked mostly in the mountain regions or dealt with the areas with that kind of environment would need. But, who would need small birds that just knew how to survive in harsh environments? Elio wondered for a moment before coming up with a few possibilities. "Does the pink one fall into a different category?" "Correct." Since the simple Friendly ones were used by the most people for common work like that big eagle might do, the ones with unique features and powers would need some special masters that needed their unique set of skills. "The pink one falls into the third category: Experts. And the ones just below them, like that yellow duck, fall into the second category: Helpers." Different Flins were trained for different things. Some were good with finding things, some were good with creating things, some were good at destroying things, while some were simply good with using their senses. "The pink one is especially famous within the high ranking individuals, scouts, and hunters with a high degree of mastery." The more things they could do, the costlier they are, the more unique things they could do, the better they are considered to be within those who own a Flin. They weren''t a simple pet, but a partner that was the same as a familiar for those who didn''t have one. And since anyone could have a Flin if they have certain traits and acknowledgment from certain organizations, they were considered much more useful than the familiars that not many people have. They were friendly, and sometimes they were needy. But, be it the simple Flins or the well trained ones or the unique ones, these creatures were not something that one could consider the same as normal birds. "Well, these ones are still simple birds compared to the ones that actually only a few individuals could ever have." Alex looked to the other side, inside a cage where only one bird was resting. "That vulture¡­ it''s a (Level-30) creature with not one or two, but six different skills." "Woh¡­" Inside the dark cage rested a being covered in silver feathers so shiny they did not need any light to illuminate the cage they were in. It was a majestic being, and Elio couldn''t help but admire this beautiful beast. Find adventures at empire "Including that one, I wanted to see the three eyed Owls, the Devil''s messengers, and the Heavenly Swan that they have here." S~ea??h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Special creatures that one could only rarely see even in the wilderness. Beings that were brought here from all over the continent. They were Lucky that they were even allowed near these creatures and could see them all, or else not even the wealthiest could get access to these special places with these special creatures that require special attention from their caretakers. "I want to touch its feathers¡­ let''s go." The birds in this place, every single Flin as well as the creatures that live here weren''t imprisoned. They were free and they could go anywhere they wanted within their designated environment. They had a place to go back to, and as they were trained, after playing around, at exactly the ninth bell of the afternoon, they would go back to their nests for rest. "Hey wait, shouldn''t we wait for Sir Bald or-." "It''s fine, this one''s the calmest." She knew these vultures¡­ one of her Servants dealt with exactly these kinds of creatures before she passed away. So, Alex knew how to handle these fragile ones well. Chapter 187 The hearts connection "Hmmm¡­"There were a lot of birds here. S§×ar?h the N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Hmmmmm¡­" There were too many of them, actually. "Hmmmmmmmm¡­" It was impossible for her to choose just one of them and take them home, besides, she didn''t really feel like out of these hundreds of birds present there, even one of them could be of any use to her in her daily things. She wasn''t an archer, and she wasn''t even a weapon user. Continue reading on empire She didn''t go into dungeons like these people around her, and she didn''t do anything dangerous like those adventurers do everyday. She wasn''t a hunter and she didn''t live in any kind of mountain lands. The only thing that she did every day was sit in the house, play with her two friends and sometimes Sera, and sometimes with her mom and brother and sister. Misha was mostly bored since she didn''t have anything fun to do at home aside from doing the things that the Librarian taught her recently. That was the only thing she did¡­ perhaps she was getting stronger as she did that, but that wasn''t the point. "I''m not sure! Ughh!" She was here to get a Flin and there were a lot of them present here. All of them had things they could do and all of them had limitations. Though, they were able to do something that many others could do as well, so there were a lot of options that she could choose from. But¡­ she loved a loooot of them present there and wanted to get as many of them as she possibly can. She just wanted to live here if possible, or have this many friends that she could play with outside, and that was possible, certainly. What was not possible, though, was taking more than one of these Flins with her. "You don''t find anyone here either? Should we go to the other side then?" Miss Rin was going with her from here to there and there were just too many things that she had on her mind right now. Misha and her choice, Elio and the kind of attraction all the birds present here had for him, Alex and how all the birds disliked her and still were feeling blissful in her hands, to the concerns about Misha''s future. There were so many fun creatures here, and she could just get a pretty one like the girls her age would or the toughest looking one like the boys her age would. But, instead of finding the coolest one or the prettiest one, she was finding someone that could help her in her daily tasks, someone that could help us with our tasks in daily lives, or someone that will be of some actual use to her. She knew Misha understood how she could only choose one of these hundreds of thousands of creatures and, instead of taking this lightly, she put it before everything else and was considering everything she could possibly think of that would affect our daily lives. "Hmmm¡­" She had a certain white bird in her hand for a while now, something that was small and something that she was caressing since a while ago, but she didn''t think she was going to choose this random bird that was just going around with her. It was a simple white bird with no special unique features anyway, as her mom, she understood this one was not the one that she was going to have as her one and only to take out of the other unique ones present there. But then again, this one was the only one out of all that she was carrying around to see the other birds. There might just be some connection to these two¡­ or something like that. "Mom¡­ what''s that big bird?" There were many big birds in this place, some were even bigger than me and Mr. Bald. These birds were placed in special places that not just anyone could enter, and these special places were only places where special people could enter- or their caretaker, Mr. Bald. They could come out and they weren''t supposed to either. They were not dangerous, but they were placed in the best environment possible for them. With their size as big as that of a giant, these creatures were more of monsters than simple birds. "Mish~. It us called Becky! It''s a storm chaser~." "Hmm? That bird is a storm bird? Like the ones who guide the ships in dense storms?" She had heard about these creatures. They were the reasons many of the ships don''t lose their ways even in the worst weather conditions. "Wow¡­" "I''ve heard people ride these birds as well, like a mount." Even though they weren''t creatures, or monsters, these beings were the same as a flying mount¡­ sadly, there weren''t that many of them in this continent anymore. "They are amazing~!" "Aren''t they?" Seeing her happy was at least a good thing for her, but as Sir Bald instructed them, this was not a simple creature. They weren''t going to go in the special environment made for them, so the chances that they could see them was small. They were here since they had been here for a long time and didn''t want to leave this place and the person that they had been with for so long. They had made this place their home¡­ "Haaa. Well, looks like we will have to move to the next place." "Chhhhip!" This was the first time the small bird in her hand had made any noise, and it seemed like it was a mocking voice to the creature that was beyond the glass window. And, somehow, the big guy even notices this relatively small voice, and, as they all saw, it seemed like there was a hint of fear in the grand eyes of the great creature tens of times bigger than this small furball. "What?" "Did anyone hear anything?" "Oh lord!" All of a sudden, Mr. Bald shouted out as if they had suddenly seen a ghost, and at the same time, Misha noticed the small bird in her hand that she had been caressing since a while ago. "Hmm? Who''s this small guy?" It seemed like she was seeing this creature for the first time¡­ but to the person that had been looking at this simple creature since a while ago, this was a surprising sight. Chapter 188 A Picky Bird A small round head that didn''t seem anything special to anyone that looked at it, a small body that was just big enough to fit into the small hands of Misha, and feathers that were white, but not as white as that of The special swan they had seen a while back.This small bird had deep blue eyes that seemed to be similar to Alex''s eyes, but unlike her experienced gaze, the gaze of this little one was that of a carefree guy. The silver beak that it had seemed normal as well, and the little feet that it had, which were half covered in its feathers, were also small and practically harmless. "They are called (Shan Eugenes) or the Furball ''Lords'' as their discoverer used to call them." After they suddenly found this little guy in Misha''s hand, a lot of commotion was spread throughout the facility. A lot of caretakers that had been doing their own daily work had gathered around Misha and this little creature, and seeing all this, even Alex and Elio had gathered here. Miss Rin had no idea why this was happening, how this little bird could scare a bird as big as that, and why there would be such a commotion out there, but, as someone who loved the most peculiar things of this game, Elio and not Alex was the one that was explaining Miss Rin why there was such a commotion out there. Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "These little birds, some of the rarest of their kind, are a long life species and are so rare it''s almost believed that they are an extinct species. There are so few of these little guys in this world that it is said that whoever even gets to see them out in the wild, have gained a great luck that would last them for a month, or week, or whatever they believe in." Though small, and though without any great powers or skills, these birds bear the title of a ''Lord'' in the wilderness. In the food chain, they hold a very important position not because they possess any special skills, but because of their mere importance in this nature¡­ plus their ability to manipulate Ichor. "They are like Miu, if we have to compare them to anyone or anything." Just like how Miu had the ability to control the very Nature to a certain degree, these little guys could change Micro changes to the Ichor present in their environment. These seemingly unperceivable changes are something that doesn''t affect beings like humans or those with high intelligence, but for the creatures of nature, or the beings that live in this nature and perceive even the smallest change to the environment, these creatures are the same as the gods of their kind. "Though small and very fragile, they are also a long life species. Plus, they are as intelligent as the humans, or even more in some cases." These creatures are perfect beings when it comes to cuteness. Your journey continues with empire There is a separate fan following of these creatures among the players, there''s even a fan club for these furballs, and Elio, being the great appreciator of Art he is, is part of almost all of them. He adores these creatures¡­ and he had always wished to meet one if fate allowed it. But, there was one flaw to these creatures that makes it impossible to see or meet them in controlled settings. "They are one of the pickiest animals in this world." They don''t show themselves to even the other creatures, much less humans or other beings. Even to their own kind, they are not a friendly species. "They are one of the rare long life species that lives for hundreds of years so they don''t find it necessary to ''mate'' and produce offspring unless they Accidentally come across a partner and end up together. Plus, they are extremely lazy so they don''t like doing practical things, and by that¡­ I mean anything including walking six steps to reach the place where their food is placed. That aside, thanks to their unique ability to manipulate Ichor, they are almost always invisible to most normal senses. Even if they are around you, you won''t even notice them. And, since they are the pickiest animals out there, they don''t just go to anyone, not even the highly trained caretakers that feed them." They are called Lords by the ornithologists while by the players, they are known with the name ''Royal princesses'' because of their distinct laziness, cuteness, and pickiness. "I think that''s the only one in this sanctuary, right?" "Yup." Alex wanted to touch it as well, but it was not going anywhere from Misha''s hands. It jumped on her head or shoulder if someone tried anything funny, and it made them fall down on their face if they tried touching Misha in any way to get to it. It was being protective of her, just like it is to the ones that it likes. "The founder of this place, the first lord of Cromwell personally found this little one somewhere around the corner of the continent and brought it here. There are some stories saying this little guy was actually the reason the founder even got the idea to create this whole facility in Kalp that was just being constructed at that time." Alex had only heard rumors so she wasn''t certain either. That little bird was a legend in this sanctuary, there were a few caretakers that had never even known about the existence of this creature, but Sir Bald who had heard stories of this little guy from the following Lords of Cromwell knew well how it had never taken such liking to any other person. In the many decades he had worked here, he had only had a few sightings of this little guy, and most of the time, it was either bullying the biggest birds in the area, or was sleeping around like a little carefree baby. "Anyway¡­ it looks like we''ve found Misha''s partner." Considered as some of the most competent, smart, resourceful, and Lazy creatures, these little furballs only had a few people that showed any liking towards them. And, as the caretaker of this place knew, there were hardly any people every century that it would ever show such liking to. "You know what, Elio? I think they are perfect together." "I was thinking the same thing." These creatures were pretty clingy as well, so once they found someone that they actually liked, be it a human or a partner, they would spend the rest of their lives being lazy together with them. And, among the millions of players that play this game every single day, there were less than a dozen that had been blessed by these creatures'' affection. "Haaa¡­" He adored these furballs like no other being in this game, and wished for their affection as well. But, sadly, even after his trials, he didn''t gain any attention from them. "At least, someone found a friend." A high maintenance, lazy and picky friend, yes¡­ but, its adorable features made all the negative aspects of its existence meaningless. Chapter 189 Loneliness and being alone After the one and only Lord Furball showed interest in someone after so many years, as it was wished by the founder who brought this creature here, the little guy had its own freedom and no one could do anything to it.If it wants to go, it can go at any time and if it wants to come back, it can come back to this home anytime it wants. The current Lord of Cromwell had a will written by the founding lord about this and after Mr. Bald informed him about what had happened here, he came running to see the creature with his own eyes. Even an old person like him had not seen this being in all these years he had been in this city. It was a big day for him actually since his grandfather used to tell him stories about this special creature and how he longed to see it at least once before passing away. For the Cromwells, this creature was more special than Any of them had expected. Lord Andrew was impressed once again and was confused how unique things were happening around these people and around the people around them. "What are we going to do about the gift?" As the current lord of Cromwell, he found it his honor to see the creature finally find someone that he could go out with. Instead of protesting against this, he thanked them for giving him such honor, and since he did that before all the employees of the sanctuary, there were going to be rumors and talks about it soon¡­ And, all of it was going to be highlighted with the grand event that was only a night away from the City of Kalp. "I have an idea, but I think we should prepare two gifts." "Hmm? Why so." Misha named the little furball [Kivi] a name that contradicted its physical appearance, but it was a cute name. And given by a little girl that also fell in love with its cuteness, the lazy bird also smiled at the name before it fell asleep on her red head. Seeing it sleep was a sight to behold for the people around them, however, this was an amazing opportunity that Elio didn''t miss and Clicked a photo of this special little furball. There weren''t many of them like this one, so even a photo of a new one on the various communities would create a great commotion. And, as someone who genuinely loved these creatures, he was going to use this opportunity to do everything to spread the cuteness of this amazing being. "So, the thing is, the gift I''m planning is a little personal. It wouldn''t really represent all of us, and I want to give it to her myself." After all the drama, they were back to their inn, on their bed, fully rested, fully prepared for the Birthday of the city lord''s daughter. "Hmm? Is it because of her condition?" And, like always, Alex knew what Elio was after with only the look he had in his pretty green eyes. "Yeah¡­ how sad must she feel, you know? Having a power that you can only feel and not use, a body that restricts you from using the very gift that you''re born with, an incurable condition that couldn''t be fixed even if they wanted to." sea??h th§× N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. After all of that, Elio at least knew one thing: Just like how happy Misha was after getting the first friend of her own that only belonged to her, Lady Eve was lonely without any friends that she could play with. As a noble, gathering and all were a formality for her. He knew how she must have been with many other friends and made friends among various circles, within her own house. It wasn''t like she was alone. Just like Misha, she had people that she could be happy with even in the absence of her special powers. "She and Misha aren''t that different if we look at it from this angle, right?" Misha only had her mom and Lady Eve had her mom and dad that look after her. However, only her mom is with her most of the time with her dad being busy with a lot of things. She has people that she can be around, but just like how Misha couldn''t be with someone for long because of her constant travels, Lady Ana only has a few people that she had been around for as long as she might remember. They were a family more than they were a friend at that point, and with her being able to perceive spirits, there must have been a lot of instances where she might have had the urge to talk with them, call them to her house and play with them. She was even younger than Misha so the chances that she had longed for companionship was pretty high. And, Elio understood that. "Since we can''t give Her Az, shouldn''t we at least give her something that will help her in some way, instead of just something that will make her feel even more lonely?" Elio knew how it felt to be lonely even with many people around you. The strange feeling of alienation, that you don''t belong to somewhere even though it is the only place you have known for your entire life. Your next chapter is on empire The distinction between loneliness and having the company of people that we have known for the most part of our lives¡­ It''s thin for those who don''t understand it, and thick for those who have lived through something similar. "Hmmm¡­" Elio had been through something similar, and Alex had been through something exactly opposite of it. So, she understood it as well. "Well, then what do you want to do?" The gift that he was thinking for her, was something pretty personal, but for the gift that they would give from their side, he only had a few ideas. "The ideal thing to give would be something or someone like Az." But that wasn''t going to be possible-. "Sure then. Let''s give her something like Az." He knew it. He had a hunch but, now that he was seeing that smirk on her face, he knew he was going to see or experience something extremely extraordinary. Chapter 190 Secret shop and the dealers As the reward for their first quest from the viscount, they had obtained access to a ''special'' shop.A special place that one could only get access to through the referral of someone who held a certain amount of authority within the empire. "While being system operated, (Omega) is one of the biggest private organizations that deal with items that one couldn''t just get through simple means." With their connection portals located in every single city of the kingdom and beyond, they were some of the rare organizations that catered to a certain level of people¡­ mostly, ones who had money or a way to get it. "They have all kinds of things on in here, some so crazy that even you would be surprised, darling." The connection point existed in a normal looking house of the city which was also old and didn''t have anything special about it. People lived in this house, however, they did not know much about the special connection point since the building''s upper floor did not belong to anyone. Occasionally, a few people would come and go there but, the ones who actually lived here and maintained the house did not know much about what happened in that place. And, since they weren''t really interested in the dealings of strangers, they didn''t pay any attention to them either. "Come, take a look." There were outdoor stairs that directly took them to the upper floor so they didn''t have to disturb the residents when they came here. There was a certain painting in one of the normal rooms through which they could access this special shop. And, since the interface of this shop was pretty simple as well, Elio didn''t need a long time to understand the design and its use. "¡­" While he was looking at the things listed on the front page, the categories that were similar to their modern day shopping websites, and the other tabs which had other functions of this shop, he couldn''t help but wonder just how much the player''s ''trading area'' or their unique system feature was behind this one. Enjoy new stories from empire They had a simple interface which was highly user friendly, plus it was attractive and aesthetically pleasant. While looking at each of the things present, each of the categories, and the items in all the categories, he couldn''t help but wonder how well made this thing was. And, since this existed on the System, he knew Magic was highly involved in the creation of this particular Shop. "There sure are all kinds of things here¡­" "Right~?" The entire shop was divided into three major sections: the Highlight field, the Auction, and the Private Trade Center. The first one included the homepage of the store, as well as the other components that one could access through the home window. There were all kinds of weird things in that place. Things made of gold and silver, items that had features that any player would pay a fortune for, and accessories that could save anyone''s life in most of the critical situations. But that was not the weird part¡­ There were all kinds of monster meat present on the listings on the very first page, various kinds of human and other intelligent species'' meat and body parts, things that one would find disgusting, and things that Elio actually found interesting¡­ There were even some monsters listed there, some domesticated, some tamed, and some that were especially starved for days and were much more ferocious than they usually are. There were some that were highly maintained and taken care of, and among many of these creatures, some were quite rare ones. But, the actual rare ones were kept inside the auctions that were going on in the other tab. "Wow." There was always an auction going on for various items and there were various bids placed by many anonymous individuals. From slaves to property, and from heirlooms to things that were forgotten in history and were merely legends, the auction section had a lot of things listed on it, things that people were bidding on, things that people were fighting over with their hundreds of thousands of gold coins. "This is quite well made as well." Though some of the things that were listed here were disturbing, though some of the things that were present there weren''t appropriate, though some people were even offering sexual services and people were bidding like crazy over them, what he liked here was how well made this Shop corner was. "This isn''t even the best one out there, lol." He was mesmerized by the compartmentalized sections present in each of the categories. They were not only showing what they were selling at the moment, they were even showing what was going to come up next, what they would have tomorrow, and a special blind lot section for those who liked gambling. "This is still quite something¡­" The first two sections were anything but simple. They were well made and were pleasing to the eyes even with their disturbing products. The last section though, was something close to a number pad. The simplest section among the three, but the one that Alex had the most interest in. "Alright then, if you''re done looking¡­" She ignored the rest of the sections as if this entire shop was nothing more than a small thing for her, and opened the last tab present there. "Let''s get the perfect gift for that little girl." Alex typed some kind of special code on the number pad and pressed the enter key. -Oooooooooooooooooong! And as soon as she did that, not that just the interface of the shop window, half of the room that they were present in, the entire wall before them was covered in a strange blue light. [Entering personal Dealer space of Omega.] S§×arch* The Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [Dealer rank: Dimond.] [Dealer ranking: 15th.] [Please wait while the dealer prepares their products.] Even two chairs appeared out of the blue for them and surprised Elio. This wasn''t what he was expecting when he saw that simple number pad at first, but he knew something unexpected was going to happen for sure. So, he didn''t let his surprise get reflected in his behavior. Not even when the strange masked man''s hologram came out and sat down on a chair that was present before us along with a few transparent glass boxes containing his merchandise. Chapter 191 Eves present "Yo, wassup Micky."{ "I should have known it would be you from that emergency code. Who else but the would use that call code?" } The masked individual was wearing a lavish coat, no jewelry, and black gloves. The shoes that they were wearing seemed to be expensive, but to those who did not know what material they were made of, they were nothing more than a simple pair of expensive shoes. "Hehe, why do you look so tired~? Were we having some kind of important business meeting?" For Alex, this person was an old friend, but in Elio''s eyes, this person was someone that was wearing a pair of shoes made from the Dragon''s skin. It was a very distinct leather that he had only seen in photos before and wanted to see someday if fate allowed it. Trying a pair was out of the question, but now that he was actually before someone who was wearing one, he couldn''t help but be in awe of this person. { "Obviously. What do you think? I was watering my garden?" } This person¡­ though only a hologram, was most definitely a strong individual. At least compared to them, they were someone many times stronger than what met to one''s eyes. The aura that their mere hologram was exuding was making him feel a strange emotion he had only felt from a few people, but Elio wasn''t surprised even though Alex was speaking in that tone with this person. After going through all those weird things with her over these last few months, he at least knew the kind of connections that she had. "Hehe, sorry to call you out of the blue like this, but you see, there''s something important I want." { "Obviously there''s something important that you want. Why else would the great Lady would remember some lowly street side merchant?" } The way he was being sarcastic also indicated how deep their relationship was. He was wearing a mask, but Elio could already imagine the kind of tired face he might be making at the moment. { "Oh, by the way¡­" } Since he appeared there, he had been looking at her only. But, finally, he turned his gaze to the side and looked at Elio. { "Who might this be? Another poor soul you picked up somewhere?" } He seemed to be uninterested in Elio at first. And yet there was pity in his voice. "Oh, this~?" There was a joyous smirk on her face now. "This is the love of my life, my joy and pride, the stars of my eyes, and the happiness of my existence~. Remember I told you about him a while back? This is him~. Elio, my darling~." It was an exaggerated introduction, but as soon as he heard who Elio was, the merchant with a black mask visibly flinched. { "That''s him?!" } Experience more on empire The way he shouted was completely out of the character impression that he had made until now. He was shocked, and he was almost shaking. { "Ahem¡­ excuse me for a second." } Now, there seemed to be some kind of fear present in his voice, and after he said that, he also vanished from his seat¡­ reappearing only after an entire minute had passed. { "Greeting, Mr. Elio. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." } He was being sincere even though he was trying to hide how he had just acted at the moment. "The pleasure is all mine actually." But Elio didn''t mind him. By now, this was a normal thing for him and just ignored his behavior for now. There was something more important they needed to talk about at the moment. "So¡­ mister Micky?" { "Oh, where are my manners? I didn''t even greet you properly thanks to this Great Lady." } He passed down a card to Elio, a card that was made of metal and only had a name and a contact code written on it. { "I''m Michklean, a Beast merchant." } The products that were present around him were all creatures of various kinds¡­ creatures that were famous and rare, something one couldn''t procure through simple means. "I''m Elio." He nodded at the merchant as he introduced himself with just a name since he knew the other party knew most that there was to know about him and perhaps much more. "If your greetings and personal evaluations of one another are done, shouldn''t we start talking business? Micky? Don''t have to go back to that meeting?" { "Of course I have to! Jeez!" } He had somewhere to go soon, so she didn''t want to beat around the bush. She knew how busy this person was. { "What are you looking for this time? A dragon tooth? Phoenix''s feather? I got a pair of (Silver goats) a while back if you want to do another crazy summoning." } The way he was calling out those Epic materials with such ease indicated how respectful this person was and how much Alex must have Used him for her various crazy plans. Elio was also feeling pity for this person now. "Nah man. I''m not doing anything fun like that anytime soon. I just want something that can be of use to Viscount Cromwell''s daughter." S~ea??h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. { "Hmm? Viscount Cromwell? Are you two in Kalp? For the viscount''s daughter''s birthday? Did the old man send you there or what? Hahah." } He was misunderstanding something¡­ "Something like that, so. Do you have something that can help her? You know her condition, right? I''m looking for something that can help her materialize the spirits that she can perceive, make a contract with them if possible and supply them with energy." She knew what she wanted this time at least. The merchant didn''t have to waste his hours helping her decide what she even wanted from him. { "Hmm¡­" } It was a complicated request since there weren''t many beasts in this world that could have spirit affinity, having one like Az was nearly impossible. Yet¡­ { "I''ve got what you might be looking for. Wait a minute¡­ let me get it." } This merchant seemed to have what they were looking for. And from how he left so confidently, Elio at least knew the gift that they were looking for might just be in their grasp. Eve was a nice girl, he knew that. And he wanted her to be happy. She deserved to be happy, make real friends, and go out into that vast world on her own. And see what she was not able to for a long time now despite being a Native¡­ Chapter 192 A secret friend (Viscount''s house: Eve''s room¡­)"There are so many people coming." It was a special day for the little girl. She turned ten today. "I never understood why so many people come here whenever it''s my birthday." For the city of Kalp that lived in a unique past of its own, the festival that they were celebrating for the last decade was a pretty new thing. The city''s history was not that long, but whatever history was known of Kalp, a father''s affection for his little girl was highlighted in the last decade that was known by most of the citizens. The world knew how much the Viscount loved his little daughter, and they knew how special his beautiful little girl was. For the people of Kalp or anywhere around this part of the kingdom, her birthday was a special occasion that was celebrated by many noble and important people of the world. Find more to read at empire Even if they had not seen her or met her themselves, they knew how this special occasion was celebrated. "It is my birthday, so why do they get so happy about it? Just because of this party?" The viscount''s affection for his child might perhaps also have something to do with his wife''s past, but they did not know that, and yet, whenever it was her birthday, not just the people that come to her house, even the normal people of their city celebrate it as if it is somehow connected to them. She had never understood why it was like that. [ "They are¡­ greedy." ] And, she also never really understood why her Special Friend didn''t like these people. "Greedy?" Though smart, She was just a little girl. [ "Greed is a selfish desire for something one wants, something that they cannot have perhaps, but¡­ something they want. Something one longs for¡­ something one wants with all their heart." ] "Oh?" Not many knew about it, but she had a secret friend. A friend that only talked to her, someone no one could see, including her. They were always there to answer her questions, to tell her why someone did something they did, to teach her about the world that her mom and dad did not. "Then¡­ am I greedy as well?" As They said, she also longed for something with all her heart. Just like Them, she could also feel the Spirits of elements in nature. She could not see them, but she knew they were there. She could even talk to them like she did with this Special friend. But she could not see them, meet with them, play with them like the others could, and¡­ even though she felt an intense desire to become friends with Them, she could not call them to her side to play with her. [ "You''re not greedy, Eve." ] She wanted to meet those special beings that she felt such a deep connection with, she wanted to see them, befriend them, and even help them if they needed. She wanted to play with them like she had seen other children like Her do with the ones they befriended. Because of her physique, she could not do it, but her father had told her he would find a way for her to do what she desired by the time she gets old enough. And now¡­ she is a decade old. [ "Unlike them, you do not do anything to please anyone else, you do not follow anyone else''s instructions, and unlike them¡­ you don''t do anything with ulterior motives." ] "¡­I see." They were her secret friend that no one else knew about. She knew they weren''t spirits, so the fact that only she could talk with them and not even her mom and dad could perceive them made them someone Very unique. [ "You''re much better than them." ] She had always known they were special. And, though they were mysterious, she liked talking with them. They were always helpful to her. [ "You''re much better than any of them." ] S~ea??h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Come on now. Don''t be like that." [ "Compared to those people wearing a mask of smile and happiness, you''re a much better Human. You don''t have to pay any attention to those fake people. You''re better off without them-." ] "Haha, alright alright. Enough of praises now. Let us go down~." Dressed like a princess, wearing a shiny dress covered in ribbons, she looked like a fragment of nature itself. Her green hair, never cut or trimmed, was finely braided by her lovely mom, while the pretty shoes that she was wearing were something her father had bought for her personally. Their garden was filled with the guests right now, since it was the venue for the event, so there were a lot of people out there that she could see through her window. She was alone in her room right now and she didn''t really want to go where all those people were, but since her mom and dad, as well as a few people that she was looking forward to see again, People like master Elio and Miss Elle, the little Slime and Gecko, as well as the people that they were going to bring with her. She had heard her dad had invited a few more guests this time around since she was turning ten, so she was also looking forward to meeting these special people that, hopefully, weren''t Greedy as the Voice had described them. "Oh, at least, we can look forward to all the fun gifts~." There were always a lot of people here for her birthday, some important people and some that her father served under. [ "Gifts¡­" ] As she could tell, many of them were also strong people, some being even stronger than her father. And, her mom was always anxious whenever there were many people around, so she doesn''t like going out to gatherings, or parties or things like that. She couldn''t help the gatherings that they have in their house so she has to deal with it on her own, but she doesn''t mind it. [ "Yes, gifts¡­" ] Especially, her little one''s birthday. In all of the year Eve sees her, she''s the happiest on this special day since not only is this her birthday, it is also the day when her mom''s bright Evening came to this world. [ "Gifts¡­ are good. You should look forward to them¡­ the gifts¡­" ] "Right~?" She was happy in the morning when she played with her father and mother, she was happy when the three of them did all those fun things together in the morning, and even as she walked out of her room, there was a bright smile present on her adorable face. Usually, she seemed mature for her age. But, she was still a child. [ "Gifts." ] A child that Knew how to make friends, at the very least. Chapter 193 A happy Evening "Hahah~."She didn''t think she was going to have so much fun when she came downstairs with her mom who had been waiting for her outside of her room since a while back. "Weeeeee-heheheh~!" She was riding Sleipnir, Odin''s familiar. And she was having fun even with Odin holding her from the sides. She had rode horses before, but that was mostly normal horses, not one this shiny, and pretty, and amazing~. It was a simple horse ride, but it was a completely unexpected kind of birthday gift, especially from someone like Sir Odin that she had seen around in her house before. He was a simple person that treated her nicely, and even gave her a unique candy that he got from a different town so she didn''t dislike him. Continue your saga on empire But, after this fun ride all around their garden, she knew she was going to ask him for this special experience many more times in the future. "Alright, Miss Eve. Seems like we should stop now." Odin stopped in the front of the house where the viscount was waiting along with the viscountess, Elio and Alex. There were some important guests coming, so they needed to go and greet them. "Awwww¡­ I wanted to ride a little more!" "Ah, we can do that anytime you want though. I''ll be here for a few more days." "Hmm? What?! You''re going to go away?!" She was shocked to hear that after seeing him around the house and city for the last few months, but those who come to your lives also have to go, that was just how things were. "Yes¡­ well, you see¡­" He helped her get off the young horse, which seemed just like a pony and was perfect to her, and the little girl looked down with puffed cheeks and sad eyes. She liked this horse quite a lot, but she understood how this was Sir Odin''s familiar. It was a creature that was more than just a friend to him. As her mom has told her many times, as a familiar, this horse was part of Sir Odin''s existence now. There was no way he could separate from them, so she cannot have them. And, since they weren''t someone she could order around like many in her house, she knew being stubborn would be pointless. "Haaa. You don''t have to explain, Sir Odin." She shook her head and smiled at Odin, and then she caressed the ethereal horse that still seemed like a ghost to her. "And thanks for the ride, pretty one." "Weeeee¡ªhehehehe~!" Slei also had fun with the first ever person that rode him. They did not have a saddle or any foot holdings attached yet, and, unlike the traditional horses, they all knew this special being wasn''t going to need all that. It was going to grow into a strong and powerful horse, so if anything, the one who would ride him would simply require enough strength to hold onto him at the speed that he will achieve when he is old enough. "Did you have fun, dear?" Lady Deborah was happy to see her daughter happy like this. "Yes~. This was one of the best gifts I''ve received~!" She was happy, smiling brightly like a little girl she was¡­ and that childish smile was more precious to both her parents than any jewel or ornaments they might have received from the people present around this garden. "Thanks~." The little girl hugged her father as well, and then her mom, and then the three started chatting as they also waited for the arrival of the important guests that they were waiting for. "It''s cheating, you know?" When Odin came to the other side, to Elio and Alex, she couldn''t help but give him an upset look. "That''s right, Sir Odin. The gifts were supposed to be given much later¡­ I would have gone ahead as well, you know?" Even Elio was upset, but he didn''t show it on his face like Alex. He knew how to maintain his expressions, and he knew how to look at the people that were present around them. They were important and all, surely, but they were still just guests of this party like the rest of them. They all might be important in their own ways, but for someone that didn''t have anything to do with all of them, just like Alex, he also had no interest in any of them present in this garden. "Hey hey! Don''t blame me! She wanted to see Slei and I couldn''t just say no to her, alright! I didn''t mean to do it¡­ it just happened." He had no intention to give his gift in this manner, he wanted to have her ride his special partner all around the city at night when all of the people would be immersed in the party. But things went south and he had to improvise. "You will have to get punished, you know?" "Punished for what?! I didn''t even do anything!" "Shhhhh, keep your voice down, dummy." The viscount was standing right next to them. Speaking at all wasn''t a good thing, yet he was shouting with a loud voice, and it most definitely wasn''t a good thing. "Look, Odin. You will have to show up for something I need you for later, alright? That''s all I want from you." She was saying it like Odin had to do something for her. "You¡­" He knew that already, and he wanted to ask her why he would have to do anything for her in the first place. Their friendship aside, if he was doing something important, he most certainly couldn''t just leave all that and come to help her with whatever she might need. "Alright." Yet, he couldn''t say no to her when she was looking at her like that. There was this strange feeling in his mind that something bad would happen if he declined at that moment. "Good decision." And Elio knew exactly what that feeling he might be experiencing was. "Alright then~." They were pretty close by now, so they were pretty much friends. There were still a lot of things he did not know about either of them, but he knew being with them was a profitable thing, so at the very least, he wanted to stay in contact with them. "Miss Alex, Mister Elio and Sir Odin, seems like the Duke''s envoys are here. I''ll go escort them." The viscount was a close companion of the Duke of west, the Iron-blood Master of the entire north. And, though he was a busy man, he made sure to attend at least the most important event of his subject''s life. Sadly, he had some work coming up this time and couldn''t visit personally¡­ Still, he had sent his most trusted people for the party, and the Viscount wanted the three of them to meet them. S§×ar?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Yes, Lord Andrew." "Yes~. We can finally start the party." "Miu~." "Muuuuuu~!" They all had been waiting for these important guests, so now that they were here, the noble''s party could finally see its actual beginning. Chapter 194 Important guests Politically, the Kingdom of Viv was divided into six distinct parts which were different from the eight directional sections and the center: The cardinal directions controlled by three dukes and six marquis, the Center governed by the royalty, and the special places like the southwestern plains, the northern jungle, the eastern gorge, and the northern border that divides them from the Empire that were under the supervision of special people.The Queen was the supreme authority in this kingdom, and then there were the individuals that held the position of Crown successors that would take over the kingdom after her. There used to be a King that ruled the kingdom alongside her, however, that Great person passed away heroically while protecting what he loved the most. But the kingdom had always belonged to the Queen, and she had been the one ruling over it for the last few centuries as the sole supreme authority of the land. Under her, the Crown successors existed, however, they did not yet have any authority like the Princes and the Princesses of the Empire and the other nations do. They were just individuals that were selected directly by the Queen as her replacement candidates and when the time comes, all of them would have to prove themselves as the valid master of the Grand throne. "We apologize on behalf of the-." "Oh no no. You don''t have to do that, Lord Cale." As the successors, they had their special privileges, but all of it was unrelated to any actual authority within the kingdom. Thus, under the Queen, the three Dukedoms and the six Marquis families were the only high ranking nobles that actually had any hand in the working of the kingdom, the maintenance of the people''s lives, and the way of individual living. And¡­ the Queen cherished these Nine families quite dearly. "These are not my words, Lord Andrew. These are our lord''s words. Please do not stop me from delivering the message my lord personally wanted to deliver." Among the various dukedoms of the kingdom, the Luthor dukedom was among the special ones that the Players were especially interested in. The Blood-iron duke was one of the strongest people in this kingdom, and was considered to be on par with the high rankers. He wasn''t on the level of the Successors when it came to the abilities, but still, as a duke, a Grandmaster, as well as the master of the entire Northern region of the kingdom, he was one of the most prominent figures among the players. And, as the players knew, he was currently doing a rune exploration and wasn''t present in the kingdom. [{ "You know what? I know that guy." }] The viscount was one of the closest aides of the Duke, and just like him, Lord Cale that had arrived here on his behalf was also his close aide. But, unlike the viscount, Lord Cale was more of an administrator than a fighter that went to the battlefield, knew magic, or was good with various things. He was smart and famous for his abilities, but unlike the viscount, he was simply a lord that served a greater Lord. [{ "Well Alex, you know the dragons and gods as well so it doesn''t really matter." }] [{ "No, jeez, dummy. That''s not what I meant." }] The duke had sent his close aides along with Lord Cale, which included his knight captain who was a (Level-201) swordmaster. He didn''t have a noble title but just being a captain of the Duke''s knights gave him a reputation close to someone like Viscount. Explore stories on empire [{ "That Cale guy, he knows me as well. And Black sword of the Blood-iron duke, even the knight with him knows me." }] [{ "Hmmm?" }] She had fallen to a much lower level and they wouldn''t expect someone like her in a place like this on a simple occasion like this, but both of them knew the main reason they might not recognize her, would be because of the pretty dress that she was wearing. [{ "Shouldn''t we go and say hello then? You should greet them at least." }] [{ "That we should do. Let''s go." }] She was wearing a pretty dress that went perfectly with her long black hair that looked as pretty as they looked right after Miss Aloha had made them. They couldn''t find a master in a place like this, so she was just using that hairstyle with a pretty matching jewelry and dress set, and¡­ with some makeup and a little bit of smile on her face, she was the center of attraction on the level of Viscountess or the little Eve who looked as noble as the knights in shining armor. "Greetings, gentlemen." She looked nothing like the bloodstained sword maiden that they knew her as, so, when she and Elio, who looked just as stunning as her went to them and greeted the knight and Lord, neither of them recognised her. "Oh, Miss Alex, Mister Elio." The viscount had been eager to introduce these two to the Duke''s people since a while ago, so he didn''t wait long and introduced all six of them together. "Friends, these are some promising individuals that has been helping me with many Important things lately." Starting with Elio, Lord Andrew introduced Alex, Odin, Az, Miu, and Sleipnir to the gentlemen before them. He shared how Elio and Alex had helped him with his ''work'' and he shared how Odin and Slei were helpful to him for a while now. He told them how Slei was a special being, something they all had understood already the moment they laid their eyes on them. But, they also understood how this creature was a familiar of this dark knight. There was no way to obtain this being, so, the Lords and the knight captain went ahead and actively engaged in a conversation with them. They didn''t really find anything weird with Alex, aside from the fact that she was Extremely pretty. There were only a few ladies that they had met who had been as pretty as her, as elegant as her¡­ who also possessed as sharp eyes as hers. When they were looking at her, her attractive way of dressing, the way she carried herself, her smile, and those deep blue eyes¡­ they couldn''t help getting enchanted by all those features despite their direct encounter with the pinnacle of beauties. S§×ar?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. There was something unique about her, something nostalgic. Initially, some of them, including the knights and the others, were going to greet her personally as well. However, they did not do so¡­ "Hey, shuuu." "Ahem." After they saw the look in her eyes while she was smiling at her partner, Sir Elio¡­ that certain look that the adults like them all understood the meaning of, they did not try anything. They could see she was taken. And just like them, the young ladies present in the garden could see Elio was taken as well, which was sad. Some of them still went ahead and tried greeting them, some adults tried introducing their younger children to them, and socializing¡­ but it did not work. At the end of the day, Elio did not leave Alex''s side, and Alex did not leave Elio. They just, stuck together throughout the introduction phase of this Amazing party. Chapter 195 Friendship… "His name is Kivi?""Yes~." Misha found Eve, and then, the little girls left the adults alone and went inside the house. It was getting suffocating even though they were outside in the garden. "He''s so cute~." "Isn''t he~?" Misha was showing her the new little partner that she got a few days ago, and the little white furball that was now wearing a funny looking bowtie, who was again sitting on Misha''s head, was grumpy about the bowtie. He did not like it. He was a bird, why did he have to wear clothes like them humans anyway?! "Can I hold him? Please?" Eve was meeting Misha for the first time today, but she had met Az and Miu before. Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And, though not many people noticed it, she had seen how Misha was touching Miu. It was strange how someone was touching a creature like Miu, but instead of being cautious of it, the little girl found it fascinating. "Oh Eve¡­ I don''t know." Misha tried picking up Kivi and placing it on Eve but the creature did not stay in Eve''s hand. Misha even tried asking the little one, and the furball clearly denied going anywhere near her. "Ummm¡­" Misha was then confused why he was being like that. He had at least greeted the other people they met, he didn''t like anyone other than her but at least, he wasn''t as rude with others as he was with her. "It''s fine. I understand why he''s like that." She didn''t know why the little bird was being like that, but Eve understood it. Enjoy new tales from empire She had seen some other creatures doing it as well, so she knew. "He''s special, isn''t he? He can tell something''s wrong with me." "Hmm? Something''s wrong with you?" Misha didn''t know about Eve''s condition. She was meeting her for the first time so she only knew Eve was an important nobleman''s sole child. And that was a big thing. Misha knew that. "Well¡­ you see¡­" Elio had at least asked her not to tell anyone about Az''s special powers so she knew how important of a secret it was. She wasn''t going to tell anyone. "I have this physical condition where I use my Mana. I can feel it, I can sense it, but I can''t release it. They call it [Mana release syndrome], but¡­ I don''t know¡­ some creatures just don''t like me because of that." A curse, as the players called it. Even some of the players had this condition for some reason where they cannot release any of the Mana that they accumulate in their body. And it was worse than having a complete Mana opposing body like Alex does. "Oh¡­ I''m sorry." "Why are you sorry, Miss Misha? I was just born like this. There''s nothing wrong with accepting the way you are." "But¡­" She couldn''t play with the little bird, but at least, Az and Miu didn''t mind her. They played with her well, and she was happy to meet them. "Accepting something we are born with doesn''t always mean you''re accepting how you are, or how you want to be, right?" Misha knew Kivi well enough by now, so she knew he wasn''t going to mind even if she did something to him or forced him to do something against his will. "Here." That''s why, even though he did not want to, Misha grabbed him and placed it before Eve. "¡­" And though Eve didn''t understand why she was doing it at first, now that she had the chance, she patted the little bird with cotton like feathers. "Soft¡­" She couldn''t help but be amazed at how soft, how pretty, how cute this creature was. "I wish I had someone like him as well." Ultimately, he didn''t like her though, so when Misha released him, he went straight over her head and hid himself. Misha found it funny, but seeing the behavior of that cute bird, Eve couldn''t help feeling a bitter feeling inside her heart. "You''ll find a friend as well, Miss Eve~. I know someone who''s old and rude sometimes, but he''s very smart and has a looooot of books. He once told me how he also didn''t have any friends for a long time! He didn''t even know much about his parents, and only after he was much, much older than us or Big sis Alex or brother Elio, did he meet his partner and his best friend~." She was talking about the Librarian and his familiar, obviously, But Eve only saw this as something bad. "Then¡­ will I have to wait for a long time to have friends like you do as well, Miss Misha?" "No, silly~. I''m just saying there''s no reason to Accept something that can be overcome!" Misha had her mom, she had Alex and Elio, she even had Az, Miu, and Kivi. Odin just told her he''d stay with Elio and others for a while as well, she''d also have the fun black pony with her. "You''ll find friends as well. I was alone with mom until I met sister Alex and brother Elio a few months ago as well. I''m sure you''ll find friends soon as well~." Misha believed she was helping Eve and Eve wanted to believe that as well. But sadly, Eve didn''t really like all this waiting, and waiting and waiting. "Friendship¡­" It wasn''t like she didn''t have friends. She had friends in this house, she had her mom and dad, she even had the Voice with her. So, she didn''t really lack any friends. "Yeah. I hope I meet them soon as well." Eve knew Misha meant well. She knew this girl in that pretty red dress was simply a young child from a small town that didn''t understand much of the Real world, or the lives that They lived, so she wasn''t angry at her. [ "Don''t worry¡­ we''re here for you." ] She just, had this weird feeling in her heart that she cannot explain. It was something she didn''t usually feel, but today¡­ "I think we should go out now. Dad and mom must be waiting." "Yes~. Let''s go~." Today, for some reason, with all these people, with Misha around¡­ that strange feeling was weirdly more Present there. She, couldn''t explain what it was but it might just be jealousy. Yeah, that might just be jealousy towards what this Simple Girl had. Chapter 196 Why dont I have that…? The party continues, and the one this party is organized for, sits alone in a corner with her Friend."Did you also like the show?" [ "It was decent." ] She was eating something, or so it seemed with the plate of dessert before her. "Hmmm¡­" A while ago, as they started the celebration of her fun birthday with her dad''s speech like they do each year. Her father had prepared a special surprise for her, a performance from the Elementalists. It was a surprise performance where a few individuals who had contracted multiple spirits came together and artistically performed with their spirits¡ª a unique but famous entertainment that the nobles of got a high enough status could afford. "Well, it was fun." Eve looked around the garden, and a few people met her eyes. Alex was with Elio, chatting in another corner. They didn''t seem to be interested in the other people that had arrived here, and for some reason, she could even tell both of them were bored. The red-head woman that had come with them was trying to avoid people so she was smiling at Misha from a distance, and Sir Odin was with his familiar, smiling and laughing as he had found some old knights to chat with, and then there was Misha¡­ "Why''s she so happy all the time?" She was smiling brightly, and she giggled a lot even though she was older than her. She was a simple girl, yet she was pretty. And because of her smile, she also attracted the attention of many people around her as well. But, she did not pay any attention to any of them and just played with Miu and Az. Her little friend is still sitting on her head with his upset look. [ "She enjoys living. Since she has everything she wants to have in her life, she''s happy." ] "Wouldn''t having everything you want in your life make you content? Both are different, aren''t they?" [ "Perhaps. However, looking closely¡­ we just see a child that has all that it wants." ] She wasn''t wearing anything costly, she didn''t have any item on her that would have special skills, she didn''t even have that much jewelry even though she was traveling with forefingers. But her dress was pretty attractive, and with her natural appearance, she looked prettier. She had friends, but her happy nature wasn''t exactly a great thing in Eve''s eyes. [ "She has a mom that can always be with her On her Travels, she has friends and people that can teach her about special things, she can have anything she wants with the resources of the people around her, and, more than that¡­ she''s healthy." ] People wanted to talk with her but she avoided them all and just played with the slime that can use magic and a creature that was the same as poison to anyone that got near it. She was happy¡­ "And here I am, haaa." This was her party and people certainly paid attention to her, but since she came and sat down here, no one had even approached her. She was by herself, and since her mom and dad had many people they needed to talk with at the moment, she didn''t mind them doing what they had to do. But Misha''s mom was watching her, and was there for her if she needed anything. "Why don''t I have all that, friend. Family that can be there for me, special friends that understand me, a simple life, a simple mindset, ability to smile as freely as I want¡­ why not me?" She wasn''t jealous anymore. And she didn''t dislike her sweet big sister Misha. She understood she wasn''t like her. She wasn''t raised like her so she didn''t understand much of the things around her, and since she didn''t have any conditions like her, she also shouldn''t be compared with her. She was different, so she had done nothing to be envied or hated for. She was Misha. And Eve was different from her, she understood that much. "Is¡­ something wrong with me?" [ "No, Eve." ] The voice spoke from the shadows. [ "There''s nothing wrong with you." ] And it reassured the little girl. [ "Everyone is different. She, the two with her, the two in the corner, her mother, the people around her¡­ all of them are different. Comparing yourself with them will only bring sadness and anger." ] The Voice didn''t want her to feel all those emotions. [ "You''re much better than them, even with your condition. Experience more content on empire You''re not faulty, you''ve done nothing wrong either. You''re unique, more special than anyone else." ] And thanks to the Voice, the little girl cheered up a little bit as well. [ "You''re Eve. And the others are others. Don''t lower yourself to the level of those people." ] The voice was not right. "Right." But the little girl nodded, washed away her anxiety and sadness, and stood up from her chair when she saw her dad looking at her. S~ea??h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "I''m not like the others." It was time for the gifts, so, instead of being all sad and confused¡­ "I''m different." She should just look forward to the fun things that she''s going to get this time around. "Well then¡­" Sir Odin had already given his gift, and she wasn''t looking forward to the gifts of the other people that would bring the same kind of things this time around as well. And, since this was her tenth birthday, her mom and dad had given her their gifts in the morning already. Which she loved, actually. "How about we start with the gifts?" It was a tradition in the Noble society of the Kingdom to bring gifts for anyone''s birthday. The kind of gift did not matter since it was more about the emotions behind them, so¡­ Eve who had been seeing all the people giving half-hearted gifts to not her but indirectly to her parents, had never liked them. But, it was different when it came to people like Sir Odin. All their gifts were something she had always looked forward to for as long as she could remember. And this time as well, she was looking forward to seeing the gifts that she receives from Miss Alex, Sir Elio, the Sword grandpa and¡­ the amazing gifts that a certain person sends to her each year. There were more gifts that she was looking forward to this time around as well, so, when she reached the center of the garden with a few people already present there, there was a glimmer of excitement in her eyes. [ "¡­" ] A bright glimmer that was perceived as a Good sign by many others present in that garden¡­ Chapter 197 Oh… no. "Oh! Is this what I think it is~?"Eve had a special grandpa that she had only met a few times in all these years. Someone who was very busy and lived in the capital most of the time. "That most certainly looks like an appraisal glass. How about you try using it though." He was out for work most of the time, sometimes for years, and these past few years, he was not able to come back home to Ben though he was here until he passed on his position as the lord to her dad. He was amazing apparently, famous all throughout the land as one of the most trusted knights of the Queen. However, since he was such an important figure, he could not give as much time as he wanted to his family. In all the ten years of Eve''s life in this city, she had only met him occasionally, but she knew he was someone amazing. And, though he could not come home permanently for now until he retires from his duties after five more years of service, he makes sure his gift reaches his beloved granddaughter. "Oh! Yes, this is an Appraisal item~." A golden monocle with blue jewels embedded on its periphery, attached to a simple looking silver chain. A device that was only found in dungeons of past civilizations and runes of ancient times. Though simple looking, these things were something invaluable to anyone who knew its value. "Hehe, this is amazing~." It was a special gift to his beloved that Alex knew he cherished deeply, and from the smile she had, it seemed like she certainly liked it as well. "Alright then~. Is it time, Miss Alex?" She revived a unique dress with self defense functions from the Blood-iron duke or the sword grandpa as he called him. From Elio personally, she received a recording crystal that had pictures of all kinds of creatures and brings. It contained videos that others had not seen yet, there were a bunch of pretty pictures, and most of all, it had a lot more space where she can record and store her own things. It was a costly item, as rare as the monocle that she had received from her grandfather, and Elio wasn''t sure if Alex would have it or not, but she did have it. And, since that item was the only thing with which players can share their screenshots, it was the perfect personal gift for her. "Alright alright. Here, you can open it now." Elio''s gift was also invaluable for her. Plus there were so many pictures in this crystal that she knew she would need an entire day just to go through those things. It was different from all the other gifts she had received from those Greedy people. It was genuinely something that someone wanted her to have. And, she loved it. "Yes! Mommy, help me. Help me open it." His gift reflected their adventures and the fun His Friends have had until now, and in a way, he wanted her to know there were other ways she could be happy. Making food, going around new places, playing with the creatures you find on your journey, making friends that like you for who you are, she could do a lot of things even if she was like this. There was no need for her to be lonely when she had so many more things she could do instead of focusing on her elementalism. But, she had not yet understood the entirety of that message¡­ "Where did you even find a temporary pocket dimension?" "Trade secrets, Lord Andrew. Trade secrets." Alex had requested Eve to open Their gift at the end and now that all the other gifts were opened, only the unique glass cube was left on the big table. S§×arch* The n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Her dad had already told them how these special cubes were called (Temporary pocket dimensions) and were used only by the best merchants for living organisms. They were pretty rare and costly, but the fact that they were seeing one here, simply meant someone had that kind of resources and connections to obtain something like this. And, since this wasn''t a TPD for items but for ''living organisms'' it was obvious that someone was inside of it. "What could it be~? What could it be~?" "Calm down, Eve. I''m opening it now, okay?" Alex and Elio did not know if she had ever received a creature as a birthday present, but seeing her reaction right now, it did not seem to be the case. Plus, Eve was extremely excited right now. "Yes~! Let''s goooo~." Ornaments, items, books, clothes, jewelry, things¡­ all those things had become pretty common for her. But a creature, a pet, a friend, a partner, someone that would be with her just like how Elio was with Alex, how Miss Rin was with Misha, how Az was with Miu, or how Sir Odin was with his familiar~. -Ooooooooooooooong. She would get a friend that was Hers, and not someone else''s¡­ perhaps not someone like Kivi, but definitely someone she could finally be with, play with, and talk with like she does with the Voice. So, she was excited right now. This might just be the best gift that she might have ever received~. -Click. And, when her mom opened the box with a little bit of Mana, Eve''s excitement reached its peak, with her heart beating so fast that she believed it would jump right out of her chest. "Ready?" "Huuuuuu. Yes." But, she calmed herself down with deep breath as everyone present in the garden focused on the pretty blue light that illuminated the entire area around them. "Pi-kyu?" As the box vanished along with the light, with a low sound of something unique, a being materialized on top of the table. "Wow¡­" And the first one that came out of Eve when she saw this creature, was the gasp of admiration. "Oh, my lord." "Is that¡­" Find exclusive stories on empire "No way¡­" "Haven''t they gone extinct?! What is this?!" "How is that thing here?!" "Oh! Oh! To think I''ve lived long enough to see a [Blue Mystic Fox] with my own eyes!" A cute, white, furry creature with large, blue eyes and glowing crystalline ears, that had magical energy swirling around its body¡­ it was a being of myths. But, it was a baby. A creature just a little bigger than Az, with a foxian white tail glowing in a serene blue energy, its eyes looking around the entire garden, a unique curiosity resting in them. "Hello there." Eve slowly walked up to this amazing creature, feeling the clear presence of the spirits around it. She could tell it was special, she could tell this being, this creature was exactly what she needed to not only do what she had not been able to because of her physique, but also the friend, and the freedom that she had been searching for. With this mystical creature, she believed she would finally find the Joy that was lost from her life. With this creature¡­ "You''re so pretty¡­" She thought all her problems would go away. "Pi-kyu." Sadly, all beings in this world had the inherent right to Choose what they wanted to do in their lives. Even the ones who had been trained by the best tamers of the industry. "Hmm?" Sadly, the amazing creature which was gifted to her¡­ did not choose her to be her friend. "Pi-Kyu~." It chose her father. The lord of Cromwell. -Oooooooong! And that too as not a friend¡­ "Oh¡­ no." But a lifelong partner that she''d spend the next nine of her lives with. Chapter 198 Hurtful play of fate "This was unexpected.""Too unexpected¡­" Alex and Elio watched in shock as the creature that they had obtained from the special merchant for the young daughter of the viscount jumped passed the young girl and stood before her master. The blue eyes of the creature locked with the red eyes of the person who now seemed to be in a daze. He was looking down at the small mysterious beast that he knew little about, feeling as if he had known about this creature for an eternity. And the creature was looking up at him as well, a calm expression present on her face. She was looking up at him, and he was looking down at her. Which went on for a moment more, before both of them were covered in a storm of blue energy. "Should we call it a coincidence, Alex, or simply fate?" Of hundreds and thousands of creatures that exist in this world, they obtained a certain creature that also had elementalism affinity like Az so that Elio doesn''t have to part ways with his little friend. The creature that they obtained didn''t cost them money since there was some kind of Tab going on between the merchant and Alex, but Elio knew they would have to pay him back for this creature. But, he was fine with it thinking his connection with this person would make them good enough profit for something like that. However, that did not work as he had intended¡­ "Fate is a bitch most of the time, Elio. Just like a poisonous mosquito, it shows its true colors exactly when you are paying the least attention." The present that they had brought for the little Eve was now Bonding with her father, something that didn''t really make any sense since the Viscount was a battle mage instead of someone who worked with elemental spirits. He was a pure mage, and from what they knew, he did not have any affinity with the elemental spirits, and yet, the creature of lores that was famous for their unique relationship with the spirits, was now bonding with the viscount who had already given up the hope to meet his familiar. "It''s unexpected¡­" Alex looked at Eve who was now looking down at the ground with a look that seemed to be confused, and angry at the moment. But, there was nothing that she could do for this little girl. Sometimes, some things aren''t just meant to be. "But it is what it is." What they were seeing right now was, once again, a rare sight. "Some things are just out of our control." Not long ago, they had seen Odin bond with Slei, and not long after that, they were watching viscount bonding with the creature that his daughter was looking forward to greeting. Just a moment ago, she was cheerful and happy, but now, she didn''t even know how she should feel. "At least though¡­" Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The present that she was looking forward to the most could not be hers, but that wasn''t really the end of this world. There were a lot many beings that she could have as her friend and channel, this one fox was simply an exception. Obtaining another one of the creatures with such specific traits would be difficult but, at least, it wasn''t impossible. Explore stories at empire Unlike a familiar that was one of a kind for a certain being in this entire world, a being with powers similar to this little fox''s or Az''s weren''t limited. "I''ll go talk with her." Eve was still a child, a pitiful little girl that wasn''t supposed to go through so much at such a young age. This little incident¡­ her father''s bonding with the creature that could solve all her problems according to her perspective, was certainly a big thing. But, it wasn''t a bad thing for her. She was just confused right now over what she should feel, how she should react to this, or weather the things happening right now were even right or not. "Be careful, she must be vulnerable right now." Her mom wanted to talk with her, but on one side was her husband who was bonding with the being that he had been searching for decades, and on the other side was her baby girl who couldn''t understand why her gift had just ignored her. She wanted to talk with her, help her, but she did not have any words. "Miss Eve?" But Elio did have those words and so, he walked up to her and looked at her with a bitter expression. "Miss Eve." He knew what he needed to say at the moment, he knew what was the best thing that she needed to hear right now, and he knew how he should go from here on out. But¡­ "Miss Eve¡­?" She wasn''t listening to him. "Miss Eve?" He looked at her mom, after she didn''t even react to his calling. And, seeing this, even her mom got worried. "Eve dear?" She called out to her, and even grabbed her shoulder, but she did not respond. "Eve! What''s wrong!?" Most others around them were focused on the grand sight of viscount and the mystic fox''s bonding, so their focus only arrived on the birthday girl and her mom. "Eve¡­!" The guards, Alex, Odin, and Miss Rin also looked in their direction after that desperate scream of the mother, however, that voice did not reach the girl who was lost in the Darkness¡­ "Why¡­" She was murmuring something, but it was inaudible for the rest of them. "Why me¡­" Her skin was becoming paler. And, the shadow under her feet was reacting¡­ [ "Even your father doesn''t want you to be happy, young one." ] "How could they¡­" [ "They don''t care about you, they only pay attention to you to get closer to your parents, they are Greedy, they are Selfish, and they are Envious¡­" ] -Ooooooooooooooong! "Hmm?" "Muuu¡­?" "Miu!" Miu sensed it first, and Alex was the second. "Elio! Get away from there!" "What did I¡­ how could they¡­" [ "They don''t want you to have what you deserve. They aren''t worthy of you¡­ young one." ] -OOOOOOOOOOONG! Alex used {Blink} in a hurry, closed the distance, pushed Elio away from the little girl, took the viscountess and with another {Blink} to barely make it to a safe distance. [ "We are the only one who cherish you." ] A familiar darkness enveloped the young girl. [ "Only we want to help you get what should be yours, and yours alone." ] The viscount finished his bonding exactly at that moment and saw a heinous darkness enveloping around his little girl. [ "Only we are your friends." ] "Friends¡­" -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiish! A sinister energy sprung forth from the young girl''s body. [ "You are better than any of them. Better than everyone. The best. The Supreme¡­" ] "The best¡­" The darkness enveloped her body, and turned her little self¡­ into something that could not even be called human. [ "You don''t need any of them." ] A chill ran down every one of their spines who witnessed this horrific transformation¡­ [Ding!] "No¡­" And, with a sudden quest window''s appearance¡­ [ "WE are the only ones you need, oh young one." ] Elio''s heart froze in its place. Chapter 199 Advent of Evil ============[Area Quest: ] S§×ar?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. : Viscount Cromwell''s daughter who has always longed for the elemental Spirit''s affection but could not befriend them due to her innate physical condition caught the attention of the Evil beings of the Dark realm. Taking advantage of the young girl''s weakness, they befriended her and when she did not receive what she had longed for and became vulnerable, they started corrupting her. And with the severe mental trigger that they had been searching for, they have taken over her being with their perpetual Impurity. Objective: 1) Defeat the Evil who have taken over Eve Andrew Deborah Cromwell | Survive the descended evil and get out of the viscount estate | Kill the enemy. 2) Save Viscount and the delegates of other important noble households. 3) Limit the Dark Energy Outburst. Your journey continues with empire Rewards: Will depend on individual actions. Failure conditions: 1) Death by the Evil beings. 2) Death by any actions caused by evil beings. 3) Death by individual actions. 4) Death by environmental causes. 5) Death on the field. 6) Death of Viscount and his family. 7) Survival of the evil beings who have taken over Eve Cromwell. 8) Death of any individual present outside of the quest area due to Evil being''s actions. 9) Acceptance of [Impurity]. ============ It was a unique quest given not by any individual, but by the system itself. And, this was an area quest so every single individual present in that area had received it including the parents of the being who had become the target of the evil beings. "Shit. Shit!" Eve¡­ the adorable little girl who was smiling just a moment ago, had now turned into a creature that resembled the Joker that Elio and his party had seen when they went underground a few days ago. Back then, the being that they had fought was a creature of darkness, someone who had failed to align itself with the pure darkness and was overwhelmed by the power that it received. It wasn''t evil from the beginning but the overwhelming power corrupted them, however, even though Eve looked somewhat similar to that creature with her body that now resembled a bewitching demoness, was not the same as that joker. She was being possessed by the evil creatures that are responsible for the birth of the Dark mages¡­ "What do we do, Alex?!" "Shut up for now! That''s all we can do right now!" -OOOOOOOOOONG! Eve wasn''t like that joker who initially followed the pure darkness, a truth that indicated the ''finality'' of all beings, she had turned into an ''impure'' creature close to that Dark magician that the two of them had fought in Moongold. Unlike that joker, she wasn''t in control of her body at the moment, so, whatever was happening right now, wasn''t exactly her fault. -Swish! Swish! Swish! Dark spikes made of that impure darkness were now coming out of the ground from all around the garden, breaking through even the platforms made in various places. The knights who were on standby including the knight captain who had arrived from Luthor was on guard. The entire estate was sealed off by the estate mages, and though stunned by the quest window that had popped up before him as well, the viscount was taking command of the forces. [{ "How the hell did it come to this?!" }] Eve¡­ the creature that had taken over her was trying to kill every single person present in the garden, every single greedy person that had ignored her and had envied her in any manner. [{ "It''s those fucking Evil bastards! Fuck! This is bad! Very, very fucking bad!" }] The Evil beings of the Dark realm were responsible for all the impurity that existed in this physical realm. They were beings closer to the spirits, or gods, or the ghosts. They were abstract in nature, they were evil, and¡­ they had only one objective: Chaos. Following the truth of Impurity, these beings were worse than the demons who had their own ideology- one that could still be dealt with in a simple manner. But not these beings¡­ They were Evil. They wanted Chaos. And to cause that chaos, they used their abundant power of Impure Darkness on anything that they could take advantage of. [{ "Elio! Forget about everything else! We have to deal with that Dark energy Collector!" }] [{ "But¡­!" }] [{ "If that thing explodes, the entire Kalp will be done for! Elio!" }] The knights that had arrived to save the other people were being wounded by the spikes that were popping out the blue from the ground. It was something that directly pierced through their armors, and when it got into contact with them, they started turning into creatures that resembled the Dark joker, covered in dark energy, with no control over their bodies anymore. [{ "Just leave them! Odin! Miss Rin! Get the children and the Important noble people out of here! And tell anyone you see fighting those things to stop and focus on evaluation! Priorities taking them outside of the estate! I''m going to help Andrew! Many lives are on the line right now so don''t fucking do anything stupid!" }] That creature flying with its dark wings, smirking down at all of them as if it was enjoying all the chaos happening there¡­ It wasn''t Eve. That poor girl just fell victim to those evil bunch and, though Alex didn''t want to admit it¡­ it was too late now. "Lord Andrew!" "Pi-kyu!" He had taken out his magic wand and was helping the guides while the fox creature that he had just bonded with was helping the people get out of this estate with the help of water and wind sprints. It was a mystical creature, so it had the power to not only use Mana in the environment directly, even though it was young, it was able to summon at least three basic spirits. It was going to be weakened after using so much energy, but since Lord Andrew was sharing his own Mana with the creature, they should be fine for now. "Miss Alex! What''s-." "Andrew! I know you''re confused right now, but you know exactly what''s happening! And you know what that form means!" "No¡­!" As a father, he would never accept the fact that his child that he had cared for as the most precious treasure in this world, someone he had given his everything to, the one he had nurtured so preciously¡­ had fallen to those fucking evil beings! He could see what had become of his little one, but he would never accept the fact that she was gone completely! "She''s there! I know she''s there!" "Yes she is!" The knights who had fallen to the evil''s darkness and became a dark creature came and attacked them, but the Viscount sliced them all into pieces without mercy. The only thing that he could see right now was his precious daughter who was being controlled by those damned evil beings! She wasn''t doing all this purpose, THEY were making her do all of this! He knew that! "But you know as well as I do! It''s too late!" "No¡­!" -Ooooooooooooong! Those evil beings start taking over one''s being from the very moment they get into contact with them. "I know she''s there¡­!" This was a well known phenomenon which had resulted into a Main scenario six years ago and everyone knew how those Evil bastards worked very well. "Yes she''s still there!" The father who had cherished his precious treasure so dearly would never accept this fact. She knew that better than anyone else¡­ "But she''s just a little girl, Andrew!" Right now, if it wasn''t for the Knight captain of the Duke holding that being back, many of them would have died already. He was the only one who could hold it back even though it was merely a (Level-180) creature at the moment. "Do you think she can defy the Impurity of those evil bastards?!" There was chaos all around the viscount mansion which was celebrating a grand occasion just a moment ago. The one who was at the center of this festive event, the precious gem of Cromwell, had now become the murderer thirsty for the blood and screams of all the individuals present there. Now a representation of Evil, she was blocking the Knight captain of the Blood-iron duke with one hand, while controlling the dark spells to take lives on the ground. Her mother who was overwhelmed by the trauma of seeing her child turning into that monster had lost her mind and was moved outside of the estate already. And her father, who cherished her unlike anyone else in this world, was helping the knight that was blocking her from killing the rest of them present there¡­ [ "Khehahahaha~!" ] There was a giant orb of energy that was gathering dark energy from the surrounding as well as from the body of the creature (Eve) and anyone seeing this orb¡­ could instinctively tell it wasn''t a good thing. As mentioned in the quest window, it was something that''d cause a Dark Energy Outburst, and anyone familiar with that name, or, anyone who was more than ten years old, knew exactly what it was. "Eve¡­" And, as even Elio knew¡­ they had to stop that thing from exploding. Above anything else, even the life of the little miserable girl, what all of them present there had to focus on right now, was that Dark orb hanging above their heads. If that explodes¡­ the tragedy of the Empire''s western gate from six years ago would be repeated in the Kingdom of Viv as well. Chapter 200 Miserable father… [Elio''s POV: ]Up in the sky, there was a creature, the reason for many deaths that have already occurred in this garden, as well as the deaths that might happen if that thing above its head explodes. [{ "How do we stop it?!" }] Those fucking bastards¡­ those damned evil¡­ they took advantage of that little girl who knew little of the truth about this world. She was a child! [{ "The only way to stop that bomb from exploding would be to ''Dismantle'' the energy that makes it. But only the one who made it could do that!" }] [{ "There has to be another way!" }] Alex knew what she had to do right now, and she was doing it. She was helping the viscount and Knight captain with Odin and Miss Rin. Miss Rin was the only person who could use Holy power here, and though it was a dangerous idea to show that to others present, in all this chaos, without her help, the knight captain and the viscount might not have been able to survive the brutal attacks of the being that was constantly getting strong. Its level was increasing as well, and there was nothing that we could do about it. Helping the ones who were fighting and evacuating the others who could not fight took priority, so we were doing that right now. The pretty garden that was present before our eyes not long ago was already a mess and all of that aside¡­ the child who was smiling joyfully not even an hour ago, was now possessed by those damned evil beings! ''Damn it!'' Forgetting how many lives are already lost, setting aside the fact that there was a big commotion around me, even forgetting how I had to move Misha away with the viscountess against her will after knocking her off since she Wanted to help, we were fighting a little girl that wasn''t even at fault here¡­! [{ "The only other way to stop that thing would be with a power almost as powerful as the being that is behind all this!" }] Just a while ago, Alex told me how this must be the work of those evil bastards, and one of the lowest of them since they were going after a girl that had a condition where she could not use Mana. ''Since she had mana release syndrome, she couldn''t use the Mana inside her body, which made her body much stronger than a ten year old''s. And since her mentality was much stronger for her age, Alex already explained how she was the best candidate for some of those low lives!'' The birthday and everything that happened until now, along with their constant ''whispers'' must be what became the trigger for all this. It must have been what made that strong little girl''s heart shatter into pieces! ''Those damned bastards¡­!'' They took advantage of that bright little girl and¡­ and¡­! Your next chapter is on empire [{ "I can''t do it, Elio! Andrew isn''t strong enough and the rest of us, even with the special powers, won''t be able to stop it with just us! I''ll have to use that key-!" }] "Fuck!" [{ "You can''t do that!" }] She had already gone over this. ''If she uses that unique power of hers, she would kill the creature along with destroying that bomb hanging above their head.'' If she does that and kills that creature, Eve who was currently inside that creature, which she Was, would die as well. The corruption had already progressed too much. Viscount was in tears already as he fought the dearest piece of his heart. He knew as well as I did that there was no other way. His beloved daughter¡­ ''Fuck!'' I was on the ground, helping them with my supporting spells. No magic was working on the creature that had taken over the Little girl, and even with holy power, and magic attacks of Az, it was only barely scratching that creature. The only ones who were dealing any damage to that creature right now was the viscount who did not want to hurt his child and the knight captain who was using his powerful aura to get past the defenses of that creature! [{ "Elio! I have to do this!" }] We did not have any time to stop and cast big magic spells, to create any kind of combination techniques, to use any powerful items, or even look away for even a minute! [ "Muhahahahahahahahaha¡­!" ] The creature''s very existence was a debuff for the rest of us. It was similar to when we fought that dark mage, but unlike that being, the Creature that Eve had turned into was much more powerful, could use the evil darkness in a way that that dark mage had never, and to make matters worse, the creature had only now slowed down growing in levels¡­ but that was after it crossed (Level-207). Perhaps the little girl''s body could only hold that much experience at the moment, or perhaps it was something else, but it was dangerous. That creature, that bomb, the very air that we were breathing filled with evil energy was going to kill us if we didn''t deal with it in-. [{ "Elio! We don''t have any fucking time!" }] [{ "Alex! Isn''t there anything else-." }] [{ "Nothing that''s worth using right now! No!" }] She had special items and scrolls that could deal with this situation, but she either couldn''t use them herself, or didn''t want to since there was a much better solution right before her eyes right now. ''She wanted to kill that thing.'' Her white sword¡­ it was reacting to something and it wanted to come out. And for that sword to come out, she''ll have to use the temporary key that we were saving for Nozama! ''And right now, she was fine with that as well¡­'' The only reason she was fighting her urge to take out her sword, was because of me. "¡­" I didn''t want that child to die. She had done nothing wrong, she was just a kid! Those bastards, those evil bastards¡­! They were the ones doing that to her, not Eve. She didn''t have to die for something she wasn''t even aware of! ''She didn''t have to die¡­'' [{ "¡­I''m sorry darling." }] And no one else wanted her to go either. But¡­ we did not have any other choice. [{ "Miss Rin, please tie her up for a moment with Odin and Andrew." }] Even the father that had cherished the girl more than his own life could not overlook the life of all the citizens that he was responsible for. He was a father, and he was a lord¡­ so¡­ even if he didn''t want to, even if his soul had shattered into a million pieces, he chose his duty over his dearest little daughter. He was ready to sacrifice her if it would save hundreds of thousands of lives. But¡­ [Ding!] I didn''t want that. -Ooooooooooooooooooooong! I couldn''t just watch the death of an innocent little girl who only wanted to make some friends and be happy. [{( Conditions have been met. )}] She was innocent, the only one wanting to cause harm to any person present in this garden, this estate, or this city¡­ were those evil beings. [A Blessing has been realized.] They were the only sinners here. [ "Hmmm?" ] [{( Plausibility calculations have completed. )}] Sear?h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "¡­!?" "¡­!" "¡­" [The genuine desire: Punishment to the evil sinners, will now be realized.] -OOOOOOOOOOOOOONG¡­! -Zaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! They were the only ones who needed to be punished, not a little innocent child. Chapter 201 A Divine Punishment Piercing the night sky twinkling with countless stars, a golden light ascended to the heavens, catching the attention of every single individual present in this garden dominated by evil energy."Elio?" The origin of this golden light¡­ was a dumb boy who cared a little too much about a young child that he had known only for a little while. "Muuu?" "Miu?" He was the master of two little creatures so adorable and so special, even nature paid attention to each of their actions. "Big brother¡­?" For the young girl that accompanied them, the special young girl that a mother wanted to protect with all her being, someone who had fought the guards to get back to where her Family was fighting against that Creature, this scene was¡­ a little confusing. { "I''ll take care of her, Alex." } He was covered in a golden light right now, something resembling chunks of gold were slowly covering his body along with a bright blue cape that wrapped around his back to his torso, and, with his green eyes glowing strangely brightly¡­ his light brown hair were glowing gold as if illuminated from their base. She was looking at him from a distance, yet she could see his bright self clearly. And he could see her as well¡­ { "Dumb Misha." } Alex was not the only one who had seen a scene like this in her life, even the viscount and the knight captain of the Blood-iron duke who had fought on the battlefield countless times had witnessed this¡­ phenomenon in the past. "Elio¡­" she released her grip on the hilt of her white sword while looking at his unique form with a little surprise in her eyes. He low-key looked hotter with all that gold on him. But she couldn''t say it out loud. A blessing was a direct permission to use the Authority of a divine being. Elio was using that transcendental power right now, something that only those chosen by the divine could ever use in their lifetime. And of all things, he was using that grand power for something as small as helping an innocent child. { "Don''t worry." } He reassured the father, while his unfathomably furious eyes were fixed on the evil being that seemed to be confused at the appearance of this divine power. { "Eve will be fine." } But its confusion was of no concern to him. -Swish! In a blink of an eye, he vanished from the ground and reappeared in the air before her, leaving a straight golden dash in his path. -Ooooooooooooooooong! Then, before the creature could even react, he dug his hand inside the murky darkness that felt no different from blood to his hands. [ "Aghhhhhhhh¡­!" ] The touch of divine power was several times more intense than the holy energy¡­ it was like Holy water to the lost souls who wander this earth aimlessly. { "That body isn''t something you can have with mere sweet talk." } Elio knew how these evil beings coerced innocent souls, broke them apart with years of sweet talk, and overtook them for as long as possible to create as much chaos as they possibly could with that temporary vessel. [ "Ughhhhhhh¡­! No! She belongs with¡­ aghhhhhhhh! With¡­ US!" ] THEY tried their best to throw him away, used force, used the darkness that could have corrupted even the holy swords of the great Swordmasters, but, it did not work against someone who was blessed by a divine power. Elio used the power that was granted to him Like Mana and tied the creature with it. At the same time¡­ { "You made a mistake choosing this child, you know?" } With the resonating of his Voice that reached far beyond the gates of this estate, far beyond this district into the old city of preservation, he was using the gold covering his body to encapsulate the Bomb of dark energy that had become too big at that point. { "Eve Andrew Deborah Cromwell¡­ they don''t call her the jewel of Cromwell because she''s small, or adorable, or smart¡­ no." } Elio did not understand the power that was granted to him much, but as far as he knew, with this power, he could do whatever he wanted. So, he was doing what he wanted by interfering with the Connection that those Evil beings had established with this world through the little Eve. Experience more tales on empire S~ea??h the N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. On one hand, he was forcefully dismantling the very structure of the dark energy that was creating that Bomb, and on the other hand, he was spreading the gold that was around his body, to atomically destroy every single particle of the darkness that those Evil beings had manifested into this world. [ "Stop¡­ stop this¡­!" ] { "She''s a strong child, you bastards." } The voice that was reaching even the mother who had just woken up, pierced through the deep fog of darkness and reached the slumbering child as well. { "Even if you''ve made it this far¡­" } -Oooooooooooooooooong! { "Eve, that child¡­ she knows how to make friends." } Divinity that had manifested with the purest intentions could never be defeated by an evil who wanted nothing more than chaos. In the hierarchy Truths that are known and followed and believed in, [{(Prakriti)}] or the freedom of each and every individual, would always overcome the confined philosophies of the [{(Ashuddha)}]. { "She''s strong, unlike you fucked up bunch." } The gold overwhelmed the darkness, and before the darkness evaporated into where it had come from, Elio grabbed a small hand and pulled it out of the disappearing fog. { "She has always been strong, even with her limitations." } Though unconscious, Eve was fine. She had fought against the whispers of those evil, and, even after a long mental battle with herself, she had maintained her dignity, her sanity, and her Identity. -Oooooooooooooooooooooooong! The Outburst was taken care of, the evil were gone, the viscount was safe, and¡­ the failure conditions were avoided as well. So¡­ [Ding!] [Area Quest has been completed.] [Calculating results¡­] The quest was over now. "Haaaaa!" And since the quest was over, they were free to finally take a breath of fresh air free of that disgusting darkness. "Huuuu." Elio came down to the ground, and handed the little sleeping princess to her dear father who had broken out into tears of joy and pain. -Oooooooooong. With the objective achieved, and his wish fulfilled, the power that was granted to him also vanished. "Bastard¡­" He looked at his partner who had fallen to the ground, exhausted. She was cursing him again, so it meant she was fine. And since she was fine, he looked around the devastated garden, the lost lives, the fallen bodies of the knights that he could not save, as well as the wounded men who had shared a conversation with not long ago¡­ "¡­" The outcome of this brief battle was devastating, and it reminded him just how powerless he was without that unique kind of support¡­ He was weak, and he could have been helpless this time as well, but, thanks to the Blessing, he was able to save the little girl this time. [Ding!] The power that he had experienced was something that belonged to those who were called High rankers and individuals who existed beyond them. -Ooooooooooooong! It wasn''t something that he should have been able to use. But he did use it, even though it was through the blessing of a divine authority. "Hmmm?" And, it wasn''t a power that he had obtained without consequences. "Elio?" [Rebound will now start.] "¡­?!" "Elio!" -Ooooooooooooooooooooooong! Each conclusion was followed by a premise, just like how each result was an inevitable consequence of a hypothesis. "Elio¡­!" "Ale-." -Oooooooooooooong! He fulfilled his genuine desire¡­ "¡­" And now, it was time for him to get what he was supposed to. (Volume 1: Prologue: Complete.) Chapter 202 Painful awakening Headache.Chest pain. Back pain. sea??h th§× ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. His legs were still sore, perhaps entropied. His eyes were shut, but he could sense the bits of light that were present on his retinas. Though, with his arms almost as heavy as a boulder, he couldn''t feel much of anything. He was barely conscious. But, he could tell he wasn''t dead¡­ yet. He was on the verge of death, but he was alive. And he had been alive for the last few hours, just that the state he was in, was not something that could medically be described as ''alive''. Still¡­ -Lu-dub. Lu-dub. His heart was beating. His neurons were firing. And he knew he was alive with his barely conscious mind. Just that the kind of pain he was feeling throughout his body at the moment was so high that it had crossed the threshold of his perception. Aside from the knowledge of the fact that he was, in fact, in pain, he did not know what was going on around him. And, that wasn''t a bad thing. [Ding!] [Connection time limit reached.] [You will be forcefully logged out.] Finally, after an unknown period of time, his connection with this world was severed. And, on the other side¡­ [Master, the other master has woken up.] With the opening of his chariot case, a sound was heard by his ears after a long, long time. "Ughhh¡­" He wasn''t hurt here, but the mental trauma was still present so he grabbed his head with both hands and tried to get back to his senses. "What¡­" The only thing he could see right now was darkness, but he understood that it was because of the prolonged gaming session, so he stayed inside his chariot until his senses calmed down. "¡­" And only after his headache subsided, only after his vision returned to normal, and only after his body had realized how he was back to his original body, was when he slowly opened his eyes¡­ and greeted the gorgeous face of his crying girlfriend. "Hey there¡­ Alex." There were tears in her eyes even though she''s tough and calm most of the time. They were only playing a game, so even if he had died there, it wouldn''t really mean real death¡­ he wanted to say all that to her at the moment, but, no word came out of his mouth. Instead, his eyes teared up as well. "Don''t Hey me, you fucking bastard!" He had just climbed out of the chariot somehow, and was just about to trip down when he caught him, and hugged his weak self. Discover more content at empire "What the fuck did you do?!" She was shouting. She couldn''t help it, she had been worried sick for the last nine hours. "I¡­ I''m sorry." He didn''t know why he said that, but that was the only thing that came out of his mouth when he hugged her back. Seeing her crying wasn''t actually new for him¡­ but, seeing her crying like this, over something he did, had certainly never been the case. She was crying, and it was because of something he did. Something he wasn''t even aware of, but he worried her. And, he didn''t like that fact. "You¡­ damn bastard¡­" The evil from the dark realm had overtaken Eve and the only way to save her at the moment was to defeat them through the obvious means, something he did not want. He didn''t like it, even though that was the only way to save her. Even when they were getting to the undesirable part, his desire to save that child still resonated inside his heart and soul, and perhaps, that was the reason the Blessing that he had obtained in the Library event was triggered. "I''m sorry¡­ Alex¡­ I''m alright¡­ I''m not hurt¡­" He didn''t know what he was doing when the blessing was triggered, but he at least knew at that moment that he could do anything he wanted¡­ He could fly, he could use any kind of magic he wished for, he could see far away into the city, he could see how Miu and Az looked in the eyes of the spirits that follow them, and¡­ he could also defeat those damned bastards that had done something that should never have. He was able to do everything he wanted, his genuine desire to defeat those bastards was fulfilled at that time. And when he was done taking care of those bastards as well as the bomb that could have become another tragedy, he came back down to the ground. [Physical scan of the other master indicates that he is hungry, thirsty, and sleep deprived.] He had no idea what was happening to him since the last few hours, the last thing he could remember was how seeing Alex on the ground, her worried look to be more precise. He knew¡­ "Shut up¡­ Sunday¡­" He knew something had happened to him, and because of whatever had happened to him, he was in extreme pain at that time. He knew that he wasn''t in the viscount''s mansion when he was going through that pain since if that were the case, she would have done her best to relieve the endless pain he was feeling throughout his body. His very consciousness was crumbling, and he did not know why he had not died or logged out much earlier. "I''m sorry¡­" He had no idea what was happening with him, but the fact that she was crying because of him remained true. "Stop apologizing, you piece of shit." She kissed him¡­ and, he kissed her back. By saving that little girl, he was at least feeling better that he wasn''t completely powerless for once in that damned game. He felt better, and though that power was temporary, he now knew what it felt like to have actual Freedom to do anything one wanted, what actual power was in that world, as well as how Weak he still was. "Let''s go eat something first." The kiss wasn''t enough to quench his thirst, so he needed some hydration as well. He was also weak after suffering that extreme mental trauma, and needed a long rest. Right now at least, it wasn''t time to blame him for her worries. For now at least¡­ "Yes." Alex knew she needed to take care of her bastard for now. She can yell at him after he is rested and all better¡­ Chapter 203 Backlash of excessive Power "Do you wanna know what happens to you?" S§×arch* The N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality."Hmmm?" He was gulping down the food like a pig right now, with his face covered with some sauces and spices¡­ which was a cute sight to her who was used to seeing him eat with all that etiquette and manners. "Gu knuw wha happen ta mi?" "Are you really the Elio I know or are you doing some kind of role playing? I''ll tell you it''s not working if you think that''s the case, alright?" "And here I thought you''d like it." She knew it, actually. But she had been enjoying this Wild side of him for a while now. It sure was fun seeing him like that, at least. "I love it. Keep doing it, and just answer my question." He was quite good at acting as well, so it would have been difficult to tell the difference between a pig and the current him if she didn''t know him better. "Gus muaam~." There wasn''t even food in his mouth this time and yet he was able to produce that funny voice. He was amazing with this little things, at least. "Hahaha." She laughed, then she looked at him, and he smirked, which made her laugh a little more. "Bastard." But she liked this. She was still angry at him but since he hadn''t slept yet, she couldn''t vent her anger out just yet. "Anyway¡­" Taking a deep breath and remembering how this was just acting from his side, she sighed and looked at him with a new interested look. "You know how it feels to have actual strength now, right?" Interlocking her fingers and placing her chin on it, she enjoyed the funny nod that Elio gave her at that question. "But, do you know how much time and effort it requires for one to gain that kind of power?" He was blessed by a Divinity and was able to use only a fragment of their Authority. What he had gained was only as much as what his physical and mental bodies were able to handle, even a fraction more than that and he would have exploded himself and destroyed the estate that they were so desperately trying to protect. "You were able to do what you wanted, making any thought you had into reality through the power of that blessing¡­ something the true path striders or, the Truth Chasers as we call them are able to do with their skills and the Power of the Truths that they follow. The power that you used is something that they only gain after slaying countless beings for years and years, by having a kind of talent that could not be defined with logical reasoning, or by having such deep understanding of that world and what they are doing that it would allow them to access the Origin of the philosophies that make up that world." Simply put, the power that he used was something that was not something someone who hasn''t even achieved their first awakening should have been able to possess. "You just got a free pass to use that power because of that blessing, and it was fine till then, just that the power had terms and conditions applied to it." It wasn''t like this in most cases since blessings were meant to be a special gift by those Higher beings. It was different from a stigma where they make that individual their own, or mark them as something that belonged to the Truths that they governed. But then again, most of the things that happen with him are strange or unusual. As she knew, that blessing which was supposed to help him achieve one of his genuine desires was also somehow meant to aid him in his growth. "Did you hear any weird voices before the blessing activated, El? Something similar to what we hear when we just start the game?" "Gumting gimilar¡­ ho! I gid gear gumting gimilar!" He was cute when he did that, even though he looked filthy doing it. "Did it say something about Plausibility? Calculations maybe?" "Hmm?" He nodded once again, and as he did, a helpless sigh escaped her mouth. "What''s up? Is it serious? What happened to me-, the game body of mine?" It seemed like she knew something about this as well, and it seemed concerning. "You¡­" She looked up at him, who had wiped out his filthy face for now and was looking back at her with a serious, worried expression. "Well, it''s rare but, there''s this phenomenon where people who suddenly receive excessive strength for a small period through whatever means experience a Backlash in proportion to the strength difference between their current self and their strengthened self." He certainly remembered seeing a strange Red window about backlash or something. "This backlash happens through the Plausibility correction where the System calculates the entire plausibility difference and sets a backlash that''d perfectly offset the plausibility that was lost during the moment they gained those temporary superpowers." "Then¡­" "It''s random what happens to those people suffering from this kind of backlash, but one of the most common phenomena that occurs in this scenario is an abrupt random spatial transfer." "¡­?" "And it seems like that happened with you as well." Her words were pretty simple so he understood them perfectly. Just that¡­ what she was saying made sense, and confused him at the same time. "You were out for nine hours real world time after suffering from backlash but you were alive, so wherever you''ve ended up in, doesn''t seem to be that dangerous of a place. Though, your vitals were fluctuating all the time you were out, so it seems aside from a spatial transfer, something else also happened to you." She told him how he had vanished from right in front of her eyes, as well as how she was monitoring his data in real time right after that had happened. "There are cases where people''s accounts get permanently deleted, or though very, very rare, there are cases where those people turn into a monster and have to live as a monster without any control over their actions for the rest of their life. Thankfully¡­ it''s just a spatial transfer this time." A sudden influx of strength is always followed by consequences. While freedom is a birthright of every sentient being, one could not say the same for an abstract concept like Power. Not everyone was as Lucky as that Dragonslayer (Rank-2) of the unified rankings. Not everyone was destined for greatness like those TWO. Elio was lucky to face only a simple rebound like that. But still¡­ "That means we''ve been separated¡­ right?" "Damn right we are." He wasn''t with her anymore. And wherever he was right now, the chances were greater that it was no simple place according to what that Blessing, had wanted for him. Chapter 204 Ill be fine, dummy. "Is that so? Oh, haha. Didn''t we tell you~?Of course of course~. Oh! Yes! We wanna know about the tutorial as well~! Tell us when we meet next time. Yes. Yes, alright, go go. It''s almost time to open the store. Yeah, alright." He waved his hand at Olive and closed down the holographic window that was present before the two of them. Then he placed the watch back on his wrist, and looked beside him, at Alex. "Seems like she''s having fun." "And unlike a certain someone, it seems like she finished up the tutorial as well. That''s a good thing." Olive or Erisea to be more precise, had finished up her first few days in that fun world, and it seemed like she had fun with all the new kinds of experiences. "I didn''t take that long for the tutorial because I wanted to. It just happened to be like that!" Alex still teased him over how he took so many days just with a simple tutorial where he had to deal with a bunch of slimes. It was no big deal, he could have finished the job had he killed them after gaining a few levels through his observation ability, but he didn''t do that. Instead, he went ahead and tamed them, made a family, and spent almost a week of real time with them. "Of course you didn''t want that. You''re just a dumb little Good Boy." "Hey!" He didn''t like it when she called him that. It was embarrassing since she called him that because of how close he was with his mom. "Alright alright, big baby." With a kiss on his angry face, she got up while shaking her head, a smile present on her lips. "Anyway¡­" She walked up to the kitchen, and with a fun smile, Elio walked behind her as well. "Try to find out where you are when you get back in, and, if possible, check if the message system''s working or not. That [Friendzone] shit never works when something like this happens." She took out a bottle of white wine, picked up two coffee mugs, and then, avoiding Elio who was coming at her with no-so-pure intentions, she walked out into the hallroom. "Where do you think I''d be? Some kind of cave or something? A forest?" "Nah, you''d be dead by now if that were the case. You were alive for, like, over a day in that place. No player could stay alive even in the most simple cave or forest for that long." She poured him a cup, and half for herself as well. It was an expensive wine that they were saving for a special occasion, but right now was more special than anything else could have been. These mugs were something his mom gave them as a couple gift on their third ''dating'' anniversary so they cherished them much more than some wine glasses as well. "Then? Where am I? In some kind of elvan settlement? In the east, perhaps in some hidden master''s crib?" "You''ve read too much of those eastern novels, Elio¡­ oh, wait. You''ve written a few as well." She shook her head with a smile while flicking his head. "Yeah, sure. There are countless possibilities. You could be anywhere on the six continents of [Areht]. On the west would be better since we had to go to that Jungle, but there''s the eastern continent filled with the eastern stuff that you''ve been so interested in, there''s the North filled with ''modern'' stuff, and then there are the other three smaller continents that Players don''t know much about yet. Closer would be better, much better if you are around some city or at least a town, but if you are lost in some dangerous place, we''d take a while to meet back." She had her fears. He knew that much. And he had his own fears as well. "Welp, you''re somewhere at least. That much is a good sign, right~?" But at least, she didn''t take this matter too negatively. It was a game, he was somewhere, he was fine most probably, and if they found out where he was, she could use one of the three High-distance Teleportation scrolls to get to him so that they could be together. "Az and Miu, Miss Rin and Misha will be fine without you if you''re worried about them, so let''s not think about bad things and work on getting back together, ok?" "Yeah¡­" He wanted to say something right now, he wanted to ask Her if She would be fine without him or not, but he didn''t. He just took another sip from his Blue mug and smiled bitterly at her. "Don''t be all sad on me now, bastard. It''s not like we will be apart forever." "Yeah¡­" It''d be better if that were the case. "But¡­" He placed his mug to the side and grabbed her hands. "Promise me you''ll continue playing without me there, alright? Without doing anything funny as well¡­ Az needs people around, they get scared when they''re alone and Miu needs light so try to keep the two of them together. Misha is starting to get a hold of her power, so she might awaken them pretty soon, look after her¡­ and Miss Rin will think all of this is her fault so try telling her it''s fine. Odin¡­ well, we don''t have to worry about him. But at least tell Viscount that I''m fine. If it''s not too far, I''ll get back to you all as quickly as I can, but even if I can''t do that, promise me you''ll keep looking for your Keys as you come to where I might be, alright? We don''t have to do everything together." Though, that was the whole point of Them playing this game. "Alright¡­" She didn''t like it, this was fucked up for her as well, but there was little she could do about this. They did not know where he was yet, so she was still thinking positively, but if worse came to worst, she knew she would have to be prepared. "Alex." Elio knew she would be alright as well, but that wasn''t going to be enough. "¡­" "If you start crying right now, neither of us will get to play today, and we won''t know where I am either." "I know that!" She wasn''t crying. There was no sign indicating she was about to do so either. But he knew her better than anyone else. "I''ll be fine, you Dummy!" She finished her cup, and stood up from her seat. And then she made him stand up as well. "Go now. Go and start, find out where you are somehow. And don''t you dare die wherever you are!" If he died, he''d get a penalty. And if he couldn''t play, she won''t be playing either, which will only hinder their progress. "Of course, I know what''ll happen to me if I do." Dying wasn''t an option for him. Or else he would have to suffer IRL. "Right? Let''s go now. Let''s go!" He didn''t know what was going to happen to him when he got back, but at least, for now, he was also thinking positively. And¡­ he was hoping for the best, even though he knew it was not what he should be doing according to the common lore of the separation tales. S~ea??h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 205 Light, and rewards [Ding!][Ding!] [Ding!] [Ding!] [Ding!] [Ding!] He was used to these piles of notifications when logging in by now. "Ughh¡­" Though, logging back with pain all over his body was not something he was used to just yet. "Well, it''s not that bad anymore." He could move his body, he could open his eyes, there was some bright light all around him so he was keeping them closed and was waiting till they get adjusted to it, but aside from a lot of manageable pain, he was alright. The ground below him seemed a little moist and it was mostly earth so it didn''t seem like he was inside some house or facility, so at least that meant he was in the wild. Plus there was a very unique smell around him, a fresh smell that you don''t experience in most of the places. There was also quite a lot of space around him, so it wasn''t like he was in some kind of cramped up place. "Seems like this is a cave or something similar." That was his ultimate deduction, and it turned out to be right from what he could tell after opening his eyes. sea??h th§× NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Wow¡­" The place he was in was quite large, he was at a dead end, with nowhere on his left but on his right, it seemed like there was an entire cavern. It was quite vast, however, he could also see the end of the cave with his good vision on the other end. But, that wasn''t what he was focused on at the moment. All his attention was focused on the end of the cavern that was around him. "What the hell is this¡­?" It was glowing, it was green, it was warm, and for some reason, he seemed to realize while being in the presence of the light that they were producing. "They seem like a moth? A firefly, I guess?" There were bugs as big as his hand all around him. They were resting, however, the light that they were producing seemed to somehow relive the mental and physical pain that he had. "Hmmm¡­" They were quite an interesting creature, so he tried to focus his eyes on them. He was going to try and use Observation on them so that he could somehow Identify them, however, when he tried focusing on these creatures, he didn''t have to stare at them for as long as he usually does. [Ding!] A status window, a Green status window opened before his eyes. "Hmmm?" And, unlike most of the status windows that he had seen in his lifetime in this game, this one had quite a unique design. "What is this¡­?" ===Status=== [Havin Bugs] : Unique bugs carrying Bioluminescent organisms that produce a calming light containing healing properties. (Can be used as a portable healing lamp.) ¡ª Creatures can be tamed. [Advice: They have excellent spatial awareness and decent memory. They can be used as good partners in dark places such as caves.] ============ "¡­" He stared at the window that had appeared before him just now. Looked at it for a moment more, and then¡­ he immediately opened up the message windows that he had put aside a while ago. [Ding!] [You have completed the Area Quest.] [You have received: Money pouch (100 gold).] [You have received: Grace''s feather.] [You have received: Victory''s gift.] [Ding!] [You have earned the achievement: Avenger of Freedom (Epic)!] [You have earned an Epic Achievement before reaching (Level-100)! Earning an achievement!] [Ding!] [Achievement: Achievement Hunter (Rare) has been awarded.] [For defeating the Evil beings of the Dark Realm, for saving A Young Life, and for desiring something selflessly, you will be Rewarded¡­] [Ding!] [You have received a title for your accumulative achievements!] [Title has been awarded.] ============ Effect 1: You''ll receive a favorable treatment from Neutral and Noble individuals when meeting with them for the first time. Effect 2: Effect could be activated at will, which will affect an area of six meters around you. ¡ª Individuals affected by this effect will look up to you in awe. Effect 3: When you are in the City of Kalp, you will not die. ============ [Ding!] [You have experienced a divine authority.] [You''ve unlocked the unique stat: Avatar.] [Each time you encounter divinity, Avatar stat will increase. Every time you are affected by divine power, Avatar stat will increase in proportion to your connection with that divine power.] [Ding!] [You have met the Requirements.] [You have earned the skill: {Three Eyes}.] "What the¡­ hell?" Two achievements, things that he didn''t even know the use of, and a title. And if that wasn''t enough¡­ he had a new skill as well? "Is it because of that skill?" He stared at the green status window before him for a moment, and then he stared at a few other things to check if that same status window opened up for him or not. Apparently¡­ "Oh, damn." A similar status window actually opened up for him. And, depending on what he was staring at, the way things were explained in these stats windows also changed. "This is quite something¡­" Unlike simple appraisal skills, this one told him about things that he should know. [Rock.] It did not show him anything more than what something obviously was when he was being stupid, however¡­ ===Status=== [Giodide: (1-Star).] ¡ª Can be sold. [Advice: You should keep this.] ============ "Oho? I should?" Some rocks weren''t just rocks. And, he wouldn''t have known that without this new ability. And, it kind of seemed interactive to him. Which was something he needed at the moment¡­ "Alright~." He had no idea where he was, but this was a cave that had precious stones inside of it. He didn''t need these things, but the status windows, his new eyes, weren''t advising him to keep all of the special rocks that he came across. There were hardly anything worth taking in this place so for now at least, he was going to try and somehow tame these special healing bugs. The exit to the cave was near, so he will go out first, and then he will look for the clues for his current location. However, before he did that, he had to check what exactly he had obtained from that area quest. "Oh, right¡­" And even before that, he had to check something else. ''Status window.'' Chapter 206 The cave ============id: elio (level-75) race: human (commoner) t-t (physical stats) strength: 60 agility: 66 endurance: 69 t-t (system stats) continue your story on empire intelligence: 30 luck: 6 charm: 9 avatar: 1 t-t (functional stats) energy: 55/60 stamina: 50/60 fatigue: 10/60 mana: 66/70 (stat points: 12.) {skills: mana sense, physical acceleration, tamer''s subspace, three eyes.} [titles: , .] =achievement list: tutorial tamer (rare), special rookie (common), ¡­ ============ "hmmm¡­" his stats looked good, and the long list of achievements that he had made until now also looked quite attractive. they were the proof of his adventures until now, and though not too much, they were pretty good. "what do you think?" [{ i know about the avatar stat if you''re asking about that master, however, please do not try to change the subject. }] he was in a unique place with a new skill in his arsenal so right now, he was testing it out however well he could. and thankfully, he wasn''t alone in that place. "sera, i''ve apologized already. i don''t know what more i should do." [{ "you should have called me, at least! why didn''t you do that!?" }] "sera¡­ we were at the viscount''s estate, remember? there were a lot of people so we decided to not call you for the time being. and yes i know you asked me to call if something happened, but those evil beings, that fight, eve¡­ everything happened so quickly that i couldn''t even find any time to call you for help. and besides, you know as well as i do¡­" she was still too weak even with her support abilities. he didn''t have to say that out loud since she already knew that much. "well, things happened, okay? and none of us had any control over it." there were many things that he could blame at the moment but he did not do that, there was little that would affect anything that has already happened, so for now, he was more focused on what was more important. "well, good thing is, we won''t have to worry about water for the time being." there was a unique spring inside the cave made of natural minerals. and the water that it had, according to his eyes, was good for mana as well and consuming it regularly would make his mana pool grow. it was no simple water, so he was happy about that. and since he also had some food and stuff packed for now, he won''t have to worry about staring and getting out of energy for the time being. "and this place isn''t so bad either¡­" inside the cool and dark cave, there was a damp, earthy smell in the air. the walls were uneven and covered in shimmering minerals that caught what little light there was, creating a sparkling effect in certain aras. stalactites, which were icicle-like formations hanging from the ceiling, dripped slowly, their tips glowing faintly in the dim light. in the heart of the cave, a small spring bubbled up from the ground. the water was crystal clear and flowed steadily from between the rocks. it was filled with tiny flecks of minerals that made it sparkle as if it was sprinkled with glitter. the spring formed a little pool where the water gathered before continuing its slow journey across the cave floor. the sound of the water flowing was soft and soothing, a gentle, constant trickle that echoed slightly off the stone walls being mesmerizing. this whole scene created a calming, rhythmic noise that filled the cave, enhancing its serene and tranquil atmosphere. the cave felt like a hidden, magical place, untouched and peaceful. it was magical, and perhaps the reason he was thrown in here had exactly to do with this atmosphere¡­ as well as the bugs that produced that healing green light. "alright, this one''s done as well." with sera''s help, he was able to isolate a few of the bugs from the big group to a different area and with the mana crystals that he had, he was able to take them through a similar method to what he had used with the manawater slimes. plus, since this place seemed safe as well, he had made preparations inside in the time he spent observing and noticing the unique creatures that were present inside this cave. "huuuuu¡­" [{ that should be enough, master. they will be difficult to maintain with their monstrous appetite. }] in the cave, there was a small hut made from rough cloths and stones. its roof, covered in dried grasses, had kept out the damp cave air. inside, there was a cold fireplace and simple furniture: an old wooden table, a couple of stools, and a straw bed with blankets. it was surprising how he was able to create all this with the simple spell scrolls that alex had given him, but thanks to all those creation scrolls, and the things that he found around the place, he was able to make this good enough place. "yeah, i think three are enough as well." the air here already smelled of earth and wood, mixed with the fresh scent of the nearby spring. although it was dusty and cobwebs of a poisonous monster spider species hung in the corners, the hut still felt like a cozy house, especially with the unique green flame torch burning inside of it. "how about we go out and look around as well. you said there''s nothing dangerous right?" [{ not in the vicinity, no. there''s a few monsters of around (level-50) some distance away from here though. }] a few hours had passed since he opened his eyes and he was able to tame three healing bugs in that time in addition to making this place as well as surviving the forest area outside of this cave. there were quite a bit of fun things inside of this cave that he was able to get a detailed description of through his new eyes, but still, he did not know where he was or what this place exactly was. "alright then, let''s go." so, as the new and most important matter right now, he was going to go out of this safe haven and check just what kind of wilderness existed outside of here. and if fate was on his side, he was hoping that this would at least be somewhere humans or any kind of beings resided. only that way he would know what to do next¡­ only then will alex be able to reunite with him, he knew that much. so, he picked up his things, and his bugs, as he looked at the end of the cave present on the other side of this dim darkness. s§×ar?h the n?velfire.net website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 207 Current location -chirp! chirp!-swiiiiiiiiiiiiiiish¡­ enjoy exclusive chapters from empire -sherr. sherrr. sherrr¡­ as elio stepped out of the dark cave, he shielded his eyes from the bright sunlight that greeted him. it took his eyes a little bit to adjust to this new light, however, he it was normal¡­ and right now, normal was a good sign for him, "hmmm." after the cool, shadowy cave, the sun felt warm and bright, lively as well. "huuuuuuu." he took a deep breath of fresh, crisp air, which smelled of pine and earth. the forest area¡­ it actually was just like how he had felt when he was around the city or town areas. "seems good." s~ea??h the ¦Çovelfire.¦Çet website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. in front of him stretched a wide, open forest, and he was surrounded by tall trees that seemed to touch the sky. the trees had thick, sturdy trunks covered in rough bark, and their branches formed a green canopy over his head. rays of sunlight filtered through the leaves, creating tindle patterns of light and shadow on the forest floor. [{ the last time i went to the north, however, there''s this big slope or something around ten kilometers away from here. we should go to the south or the west this time, master. }] "let''s not be haisty though." the ground was soft here and covered with a mix of fallen leaves, needle leaves, and small patches of unique grass. as he moved his eyes around the opene area, he could see colorful wildflowers growing here and there, adding splashes of red, purple, and yellow among the green. birds chirped and sang in the trees, though there were some creatures among them as well, their songs mixing with the gentle rustling of the leaves in the breeze. "you should go and check for any threats nearby once again. even the smallest things could be as dangerous as those evil bastards in an unknown place." as he took in the scene, he noticed a few small animals darting between the trees and across the forest floor. squirrel-like beings with horns and three eyes scurried up and down the trunks, while a black-yellow bird cautiously peeked out from behind a bush before bounding away into the underbrush. he was a foreign element in this environment¡­ [{ i''ll do that, master, but don''t run around and try ''befriending'' those beings, alright? }] "haha, i''ll try to do that if they are harmful." [{ ¡­ }] elio felt a sense of wonder and excitement along with a certain fear and anxiety. the forest was so different from the dark, quiet cave he had just left that he wondered how these two distinct places could feel so different and yet so daringly similar. both the forest and the cave were alive with their own colors, sounds, and their wildlife. he smiled, as a tamer and an enthusiast, feeling the warmth of the sun on his face and the softness of the ground beneath his feet. "enough with that glaring, miss sera. go now. see if you can find any sign of civilization here." [{ yes, master. }] the first thing he had to do right now was to find out where he was exactly, and he was going to do that with the help of various things that were present here. first of all, he was going to check the plant and animal lives of this area and try to find out where they were, and then he would have to cross reference them from the database that alex had installed in his personal search engine. it should not be difficult with the help of all the things that he had given him, plus he also had his eyes now. "can you tell me where i am right now if i use you?" as if he was asking himself and his new skill, he just said it out loud before focusing on a tree present nearby. and, as if to have heard what he was looking for¡­ [ding!] [activating analysis function of the {green gaze}.] [analyzing the target¡­] a green light shot out of his eyes and in the very next instance, the light that had shot out returned back in his eyes. [analysis complete.] alex did once say that there are skills in this world that only a single individual possesses, called the unique skills, and she also said some of those skills appear for the first time in some cases¡­ but, elio had not paid much attention to that in the past. though¡­ [displaying analysis results¡­] now that he was looking at this crazy window filled with all kinds of data, he was finally realizing the skill that he had unknowingly acquired, was in fact no simple skill. "the hell?" however, the kind of data that was presented before him was so detailed that he did not even understand what half of these things even meant. [analysis function will now be on the definite cooldown of (72 hours).] all these status screens that he had just seen were all green instead of being blue, like the ones that he got after using his skills. plus they were quite weird, and though he did not understand what they were or how they worked or what even the things present there even meant¡­ "wait¡­ eastern continent?" he at least knew what he wanted to know for now. and, though it was good news that he was in a place that was pretty much good news for them, it was a different continent from where alex was right now. and, in intercontinental travels were not yet established. "this is going to be difficult¡­" they weren''t on the same continent, so he at least wasn''t going to meet her for a while now. he did not know how she will get here, or how he will get out of this unknown area, but he will have to figure something out somehow. and, for that¡­ "let''s see." he knew for sure that this unknown chunk of data will prove to be quite helpful to him, at the very least. "three eyes." he looked around him and it seemed like the creatures that were present here weren''t affected by that green light in any manner. it was a strange skill, and since there was no given description of this skill, he knew he will have to find out more about it on his own with trial and error¡­ Chapter 208 A safe forest? his new skill, {three eyes} was quite a unique skill.not only was he able to see the unknown information of various things and creatures, he was able to get suggestions, various uses, and warnings that he needed to heed if he wanted to make use of the information given to him. it was more than something that could be considered ''appraisal''. it was quite a unique skill. that much he knew for certain as he explored the forest area around this place, and saw all the creatures that were present here. he didn''t engage in any battles this time since he was only observing the area around here, however, the variety of wildlife that he saw here was certainly something more interesting with his new eyes. he looked around the place, he saw the diverse trees and plants, he saw the creatures that weren''t over (level-80) and after his observations, he concluded none of the creatures in his vicinity were threatening to him. the entire ecosystem around here was as stable as it could be. aside from him being an anomaly that shouldn''t be here, the creatures in this ''forest'' were quite adapted to their environment. the herbivores consumed plant lives, the ones who feed on the other creatures weren''t mad enough to go after their entire families, no one was particularly interested in him since he was a foreign species, and they were only worried about him, a few that could be tamed showing interest in him. these creatures in this place were also quite different from the creatures that they could find in the west. they were simple yet unique. there was a particular kind of elegance in their appearance, and they were fun to have around as well. [{ it''s surrounded on all sides so it seems we''re at some mountain top. it doesn''t seem like it''d be that difficult to climb off the tall walls though. and this seems to be a safe forest as well. }] "a safe forest?" he looked around the place. there were some creatures that had taken a liking to him and were following him around while there were some creatures that were following him secretly thinking he had not noticed him. but he knew about them thanks to his {mana senses} and sera''s unique senses. they weren''t going to be harmful to him since he knew these creatures weren''t exactly something that wanted to harm him. instead of something that they should show bloodlust to, they were more interested in him as a unique thing. despite their obviously stronger physique, they didn''t try to aggressively analyze what he could do. it was as if¡­ "it''s like this isn''t a forest, to begin with." it''s more like someone''s personal garden or something. a controlled environment that was made by someone else to have as his own. "there''s no ''monster'' not even the most basic of the slimes here. there''s also no particularly dangerous beast here that could disturb the environment." and if they consider this to be a normal forest that would have gone through a long period of evolution, the fact that there''s nothing imbalancing this environment just didn''t make sense to him. but then again, this was the eastern continent as he had found out thanks to the data that his eyes gave him. from what was known about this place, they knew most of the areas in this continent was untouched wilderness. he could be anywhere on that continent, and since there were only a few nations on the entire continent that are divided into various factions and cults, this entire continent was what he had always wished to experience: the murim. he was excited to experience this new world until he could find any way to get back, but before that, he wanted to know more about this simple forest that didn''t seem like anything harmful for the time being. "sera, did you check what''s there above that big lake in the center?" [{ mostly creature houses, master. most of the stronger creatures of the forest live there and drink the water of that place. should we go there? }] "yeah, for now, let''s go there." he had wandered around and it was getting late as well. he did not know just how badly this place would change when it was night like it is in some novels. it was better to be in that cave at night, but then again, that cave wasn''t exactly a place that he should consider safe just yet. the creatures that lived there weren''t particularly threatening, but they were most definitely creatures that they couldn''t ignore. still, it was still a bright evening. they had time, and since this place wasn''t particularly that vast, it wouldn''t really be a bad idea to go and check that lake. they might actually find out some clues about their exact location through the unique creatures that might be present there. having more information about this place would be helpful for alex since she will be able to get here more easily. "hmmm¡­" since the trees had pretty good space between them for maneuvering, they were able to get to the lake area in the center more clearly. there, as soon as they saw the sight of the vast water lake, they also saw various creatures that they had not seen in the outer parts of the forest. "they seem pretty interesting." a bright orange moose drinking water with his baby, a swan that was green and blue, with eyes as red as blood in the water, there was also a good looking family of monkeys, white as jade and unlike their stereotypical simple appearance, this family was even more prettier than the swan in the water. they were like nobles as well, exuding a kind of dignity that one does not see in many creatures. s~ea??h the n?vel?ire.net website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. discover stories at empire "still though, those fishes in the water are the most beautiful creatures among any of them." they were fishes, colorful fishes resembling koi. however, unlike the simple creatures that were present there, these fishes were ginormous. almost as big as the dolphins. they were just swimming around the water, feeding on the grass that grew inside of the waters, and though it did not seem like it, from the looks of these creatures, they seemed omnivorous. they were bright and vibrant, when they opened their mouths, one could see the rows of sharp teeth resembling that of predators of waters, and there were also struggle marks on some of these fishes, so it seemed like they had also fought among one another. [{ they are still pretty though. }] "that they are." they weren''t eating one another, and they also weren''t attacking the birds that were resting on the water. it was difficult to tell why they had these special teeth, but he did not have to care about that for the time being. there was something else that he was more interested in at the moment. "sera, let''s go that way." there was a big tree on the other side of the lake. it was the tallest tree that he had seen in this forest until now. so¡­ he was going to go there. he wanted to see how this place would look from a higher ground. that tree was perfect for that. Chapter 209 Next course of actions read new chapters at empirealex was back after a few days, and she had left out of the blue the moment elio vanished from the viscount''s garden. the entire aftermath was taken care of by the viscount and the duke''s people, however, this thing still blew up like crazy. by the time she was back, everyone was talking about what had happened in the viscount''s mansion. things were even getting out of hand by the time she was back. there were talks of issuing a gag order, but it wasn''t imposed just yet, so everyone was talking about that incident all around the city and beyond. just the fact that the evil beings took over the sole daughter of the viscount was a big news that must have even reached the ears of the queen and, since there were many spectators at that time, the information of the golden hero who sacrificed himself to save eve was spreading like a wildfire as well. "this is a mess¡­" when she came back, she first met up with the viscount and got a detailed report of what was happening there. the viscount also told her how he had obtained a letter from his father asking him to follow her, so he was being more careful around her at the moment. he was not someone that would ask him to follow just anyone, so he knew alex was in fact someone that special. he had even received a few special letters in secret that she knew about already, but he wasn''t going to tell her about them and she didn''t need to know anything about those things either. the most concerning thing right now was elio and his whereabouts. "hopefully, master elio is alright." "he''s fine. don''t say all negative things, andrew." she had put down all kinds of honorifics and was calling him by his name, and he didn''t mind it anymore. after getting letters from even the supreme throne, he wouldn''t even dare to guess her identity anymore. they all had asked to help her for the time being, and he had intended to do that from the start. elio had saved not only his daughter, but the entire cromwell family. he was indebted to them for his life, and helping them with a few things for the time being wasn''t going to be nearly enough to make up for what they had done for him. "alright then. for now, let''s just say he''s dead." "hmm?" just a moment ago, she was telling him to not speak negatively, and now she was telling him to announce the great help that had helped the viscount and the kalp had passed away? even though the fact that he was a player was known by everyone? "i mean, dude¡­ let''s just say he''s dead and the penalty that he received was big so he couldn''t log back for a while. people will stop asking about him if he isn''t here, and since we will be going soon as well, they won''t really have anyone to ask anything about the great golden hero or whatever they are calling him." it was also known that he had used the power of a blessing so this was even more interesting for him since according to what was known about him, he was the same person who had helped the moongold along with alex. he was pretty famous because of the slime and the gecko that he had with him all the time, but now that those creatures were with her instead of by his side, she didn''t know what they were going to do about the little children. she wasn''t sure if they would stick around with him, but then again, misha was here. and she was their friend. if things go well, they should be able to have them with them, but they weren''t their familiars, or servants. they belonged with elio and elio, their master wasn''t here anymore. they were free to do anything they wanted, but at the very least, since they were going to find him anyway, sticking with them would be more helpful for them. they were part of his [family] so being away from for so long wasn''t going to be a good thing. s~ea??h the nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "the communication doesn''t work even though he is logged in, so he must be in some faraway place. considering how sera''s with him, he shouldn''t have any problem at least surviving for the time being and with his food and water supplies, he should be fine even if he''s stuck in some cave or something. but i''ll still consider the possibility of him dying multiple times in whatever place he''s in and will have to go back to my world more frequently." she looked at the viscount with a serious gaze, and placed her hands on the table before them. "i would have asked you to look after rin and misha if i could move on my own, but they belong with elio as well so i can''t just leave them behind. that''s why, andrew." she was sitting in the chair that only his father had ever set in so the kind of pressure that he was feeling from her was beyond any level or experience. "i want you to get rid of the attention that the kalp has on us. i don''t care how you do it but we need to get out of this place and for that, we will need to move carefully. i''ll go back as soon as i meet misha and rin and tell them about that bastard, but i''ll be back pretty soon, and when i come back and have any idea of his current location, i want you to keep the transportation medium ready. we might have to move to the center if needed, so make preparations for that as well." she wasn''t asking him, but telling him to do all that. and in this situation¡­ "as you wish, lady alex." he didn''t even have the authority to ask her to be polite. she was like the deputy of the monarch of this land at the moment. even asking her anything against her wishes would mean treason. and he did not want to go to jail right after getting his little daughter back from those damned evil. there was so much that he needed to do now that he knew what threats those damned evil could pose to them. and, he knew he would need her help for that as well. so¡­ "don''t call me with honorifics dude. just call me alex. as if we are friends." "i''ll do that then." he''d do anything if it was for his daughter. he had almost lost her once but¡­ not again. he wasn''t strong enough to go through all that one more time, not even as a lord. Chapter 210 Poison of Peace "wow¡­"standing atop the tallest tree in the forest, he was greeted with a panorama that stretched quite far in all directions. from this elevated branch somewhere just below the top of the tall tree, the once-imposing canopy of trees before him looked like a vast, green sea, dotted with patches of vibrant color where unique trees with different colored leaves and unique plants had broken through. the treetops rippled like waves in a gentle breeze, creating a mesmerizing dance of light and shadow. [{ it''s quite decent, master. you''d like the view of the other side better though. }] in the distance, the forest''s edge had become apparent, the tall walls covering the area from all sides being visible from this point, giving way to other landscapes¡ª a shimmering lake that caught the sunlight in dazzling flashes. "is that so? then, let''s go check it out tomorrow, alright?" [{ yes¡­ master. }] the sky above was a boundless expanse, streaked with clear clouds or tinged with the golden hues of sunset, casting a warm glow over everything below. large birds soared and dived in the open sky, their calls echoing faintly as they navigated the air currents. "well¡­ i think we should go back now." [{ yes. it should be dark soon. }] the forest below had seemed alive with movement and sound¡ªthe rustling of leaves, the distant noises of animals, and the occasional flicker of color as a deer or other creature darted through the bushes below. from this height, the serene patterns of the forest floor had been more apparent, revealing trails, clearings, and the diverse textures of the foliage. it helped him understand the place that he was in as well. "haaaa¡­" in that moment, he had felt both a sense of exhilaration from the vastness before him and a deep connection to the natural world, as if he had been witnessing a grand, living entity from the very top of the world. -click. s§×ar?h the n?vel_fire.¦Çet website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. and, he took a picture of this ''living'' being before he parted ways with this gorgeous scenery and climbed down from the tree. "it''s fascinating how they aren''t attacking me." he didn''t have any reason to attack them if they were just minding their own business, so he left them, and with his movement skill, he crossed the long distance in relatively short time, stopping right outside his cave. "should we wait and see what happens at night?" sera was worried about him since this was a new environment however, they had no choice in this matter. if they wanted to know what kind of creatures they would have to go against in the dark, they needed to see what happens when the night falls. [{ we should hide first though. }] "of course we would have to hide first." they would also have to erase their presence just in case, and it wasn''t going to be easy. but, thanks to the item that he obtained from his last quest, (grace''s feather), they were able to hide themselves and erase most of their presence. "¡­" he looked at the time and it was around late evening so the sunset should be happening anytime soon now. they were on the eastern continent so he was considering the fact that they would experience it a little later, however¡­ ''hmmm?'' time passed, and the quiet remained. your adventure continues at empire the serene forest stayed bright, even though it was past seven, the sky above him was still as bright as it was a moment ago, and even as time went on and it was already past nine, the light remained the same. "what the¡­?" he waited, and waited, and waited. but, the light remained the same. in fact, by the time it was midnight, the sky became a little brighter and he was stunned even more. [{ master¡­ }] it should have been dark by now, if that wasn''t happening. and, if that was the case, the possibility that this forest never faces a night became more prominent. "we should wait a little longer, sera." this was not right. they were in the east, not the north. this wasn''t the pole of the world so the possibility that this brightness was a natural phenomenon was small. it was strange, and it picked his curiosity. ¡­ he stayed in that place for a little longer. his crib inside was still fine so he went in when he found things to be boring as well and after a little rest, he came out to check up on anything that might be out of place. but, nothing like that was happening in this peaceful forest. it was horribly quiet. but he didn''t hate it¡­ he spent one more day in that forest, checked out a few things, and he even went to where the walls of this forest were. but, after a closer inspection of these walls, he found out that they weren''t something they could climb because of the sharp scale-like surface that it was made of. it was impossible to climb the wall, a conclusion he had reached after his long experiments that had gone on for more than a few hours. he even sent sera flying above to the edges, only to find a very powerful wind current blocking the entire top of these walls. it wasn''t the same inside the forest. she could fly above the sky to a certain height however, after a closer inspection, they found out the wind currents also existed a little above the middle part as well. in fact, they existed everywhere, and they were so strong that they acted almost as a glass shield. "sera¡­ this could be bad." there must be a way to get out of this place, but if the simple ways weren''t going to work, he didn''t know what would happen to him and sera. [{ there must be a way to get out of here, master. i don''t know how but i can tell there is a way to get out of this place. out of this forest. }] a simple forest where night doesn''t fall, where peace is the norm, and where almost all of the beings live in harmony. a closed environment that is, in and of itself, complete. "i have a bad feeling about this, sera." there was a reason communication didn''t work here. there must be a reason behind this unnatural harmony as well, and if they really were in the east, the fact that it wasn''t getting dark here would only be something unnatural. perhaps, it wasn''t a coincidence that he was here. the blessing that he used wanted him to grow, and if this was connected to that, there must be something here that would help him grow in some way. now¡­ he just had to find what that thing was exactly. Chapter 211 Days and weeks elio stayed in that forest for a few more days and now that he had long days before him, he could do practically anything he wanted in there.there were a lot of creatures but no monsters so they couldn''t do the hunting, but at the very least, since he had so much time on his hands in this quiet place, he finally had the time to do anything he wanted. so, he started with registering all the events of the last few days in his special diary, and after he was done with that, he ate a little and then went on a walk to the other side of the forest this time. the forest wasn''t that big so he knew he would explore almost all of it by the time it''s time to log out of the game. there was pretty much a good lot of things he could do so, while strolling around the forest, he made a list of all the thing that he needed and wanted to do in his free time while figuring out a way to get out of this place. he also created a specific time table dividing each of his hours into what he needed to do, what he had to do, and what he could do to spend his excess time. sleeping and resting aside, there were a lot more bright hours that he could spend here, and there were quite a lot of fun creatures in this place as well, so he could also try taming a few of them, or at least make a few more friends. "i''m like an anomaly in this place, you know?" experience tales with empire [{ i know already, master. and i wouldn''t have tolerated it if someone else was saying that. you know how dangerous this place is and yet you''re so carelessly just going around! what would happen to you if you die here!? }] they didn''t know what kind of place this was, so if he died here and something happened, things would be complicated for all of them. "it''s fine, sera. there''s nothing to worry about for now." he had his items and he had food and water. there was nothing too threatening here so he was able to practice his magic in this place as well and master the spells that he had just started learning. he was also going to try and increase his level by various different activities, and if he succeeded in reaching a good enough level, he was going to use the chance to claim spell weaving skill that he was qualified for. but for that, he would have to do things that weren''t as simple as hunting. thankfully, there were many things that an anomaly could do in this perfectly controlled nature. "let''s just enjoy our time here." s§×arch* the novel(f~)ire.net website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. it wasn''t all that bad, if one thought about it from a different perspective. there was water, there was space to stroll, the air was fresh, there were many places and creatures here to test his spells, and there was also a lot of free time due to this constant brightness. from what he had observed until now, the creatures of the forest had their own unique natural clocks that they had developed over time. they didn''t follow the time like the usual creatures. since this place was bright constantly, they either slept only when they were tired, or went to sleep when they needed to. the birds here lived in the deep parts of the trees, while the fishes in the water that were constantly reviving that good enough sunlight didn''t have to worry about resting. ''many of the creatures here had adapted to the conditions here and had evolved features that were focused on storing their energy.'' many of them were either so lazy that they only moved when they needed to like kivi, while the others who had to use the abundant energy they had were pretty active. the forest was big so they had a good enough space to run around. some low intelligence species had also developed some ''games'' to pass their time here. and it was quite fun looking at all of them. [ding!] "seems like i''ll have to go now." he was having fun spending his days with these creatures, slowly adapting to this new environment and the forest. after a few days, he had also made some friends so he wasn''t alone here anymore. he wasn''t worried about logging out even though it had been a few days already. it didn''t even seem like that long had passed. for him, who hadn''t slept since the last 48 hours, this whole experience was the same as a single day''s worth of work. [{ please rest when you go back, master. we still have to find a way out of here. }] "i know, i know. we will start the routine when i come back." this was a good place. so good that he wouldn''t mind spending his next few days and weeks here. there was a lot that he could do here anyway, so for the time being, until alex figures out where this place is, he was planning to stay here and try improving a few spells. but for now, he was going to go out and give this data to her. "then, i''ll be back." he said his goodbyes to the friends that he had made, and logged out of the game¡­ * -shwaaaaaaa¡­ and when he came out of his chariot, alex was waiting for him right in front of his chariot. "so, what''s up? what were you doing for a day when you should have come out in an hour? did you not find anything about where you are?" she seemed worried. but she was also angry right now. she was just hiding it since they weren''t important at the moment, and was looking at him for answers. "don''t worry, dummy." thankfully, he had the answer to the most important question that they were looking for. "here, take a look at this." climbing out of his chariot, he found the file that he had sent to his watch through the game interface, and opened it before her. "hmmm?" the projection of the detailed information stunned her. it was out of the blue, and she didn''t understand why he would have something like this. "where did you¡­ hmm?" she wanted to ask him where he got this data, but while skimming through the information projecting before her, her eyes fell on a certain section, on a string of geological coordinates. "¡­!" and, as soon as she saw the first and last three digits of this information, her eyes widened in utter shock, and¡­ "what the heck?!" she shouted her lungs out right in his face. Chapter 212 The blank areas "there are places on that planet that, when seen from a higher ground- like space or from a different planet- would look blank.the people who haven''t been there wouldn''t know what''s present there, so if you have some kind of ''divine'' item or [artifact] similar to a map, you cannot see those places. some people say it happens due to the extreme environmental conditions in those places while some people say it''s because of some concentrated ''divine'' presence, but no one really knows what those places actually have. considering that, and according to this data, you are in one of those places, the [blank areas] that one could not enter with simple means." she had calmed down just now, so he offered her a glass of water as soon as she paused. she had been shouting at him, asking him how he was in that place or about how he got this data. she was worried about him at first, but when she saw those coordinates, she got a little scared as well. "it''s true that that place, the [hollow mountains] are present on the eastern continent, but they are located deep within a very dangerous region where even the mobs are of (level-150) and above. it''s some of the most dangerous hunting grounds so only the craziest of the bunch hunt there, but still, the mountain that these coordinates suggest is definitely an area that falls under those unknown areas. some simply don''t come out of it alive, and even the rankers or high rankers just die multiple times due to environmental factors or by the dangers of creatures that find them to be a nuisance." she looked at him questioningly. she had heard his side of the story of how he found himself in a cave, how he went out, and got that new skill that gave him this data. he already told her all about his time in that fun place when he was calming her down, and now that he was better, she was wondering just how he was even alive in that dangerous place. s§×arch* the novel(f~)ire.net website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "are you sure this data is right? it does look too good to have come from a skill¡­" she did not know whether to trust this data or not anymore. she had been to that place and though she had never been able to climb that mountain herself, she knew even if there was some paradise present at the top of that dangerous mountain, it wouldn''t simply be harmless to someone who did not belong in that place. "i don''t really know. i just got that data and i gave it to you. i believe it''s true since most of the things that skill told me about have been true until now. i''ve tested it myself, so i do believe it is true." though, he did not know much about the analysis function of the skill. he had only used it once until now. the cooldown had ended before he came out of the game, however, he wanted to consult with her about how he should use the skill the next time. using it on something that wouldn''t really be of any use to them wasn''t a good idea, and she knew about these special skills more than him anyway. "elio¡­" still, the fact that he was in such a place meant they wouldn''t be seeing each other for quite a long time. and that very fact made her mood worse¡­ "i''ll get out of there on my own, you know?" he could see just how sad she was right now, but they couldn''t really do anything about this situation anyway. it wasn''t like he was being held by someone, or was being used as a test subject for something. he simply was in a place that was difficult to reach and had to get out of there. "ptfff. don''t be stupid, el¡­ i just told you how dangerous that place is. you''re better where you are right now. climbing down the mountain, or even getting out of that place would mean death." discover hidden tales at empire he was weak right now, and even if he got a little stronger by doing whatever he was planning, the chances that he would survive against creatures that were too difficult even for her in her prime mortal state, were extremely low. "unless you''re achieving your third awakening somehow or becoming a god or something¡­" she mumbled under her breath but then, shook her head and looked at him bitterly. "it''s going to be difficult." "but you''ll come there somehow?" though he didn''t like how she had to save him every time, how useless he was, and how she had to go out of her way for him every time, this situation was different. "yes¡­ though, i believe it will take a few months." a few months¡­ "it''s too long." he believed he would be fine without her, but he couldn''t tell the same for her. she was crazy already. he didn''t know what crazier things she''d do to reach that ''blank'' area. "i''ll try to find a way as well." "but-¡­!" "i have sera. we will be alright." he was useless when it came to actual damage dealing part of the battles, but with sera, he believed they could find some way to deal with those dangerous beings existing outside of that mountain top. plus, he was a tamer in a forest full of tamable beasts. he wasn''t going to be alone, if anything, he believed he would survive even in a dangerous place. "¡­" he was a fool. even after experiencing that world for so long, he was still as good as a fledgling. he didn''t know what she meant when she was talking about ''dangerous'' creatures. he had not met any ranker much less a high ranker. the only strong opponent he had fought until now, was those evil beings. he had not even fought them directly, so she understood how he was severely underestimating just how ferocious that world could be. "just¡­ be careful even if you find your way out of that place." he was stubborn as she knew him, but explaining things to him wasn''t going to be effective. she wasn''t with him anymore. he was on his own¡­ she didn''t know how he''d do without her, but she at least believed in him. he wasn''t dumb, so she knew he''d figure things out on his own end. "of course i will. i''m not alone, remember?" he was smiling at her, but she didn''t like that smile. she wanted to play together with him and she had to wait for a long time for that. but the world didn''t want them together¡­ "just wait there if you can." she''d have to pick up the pace on her end, but if she collects three, even two of the next permanent keys on her list, she knew that place wouldn''t be impossible with a little help. she just needed time¡­ but as she knew, she did not have that luxury. not if she wanted to complete her trial along with him. Chapter 213 Finding the escape route "hmmmm¡­"he was back inside after some rest, and now that he knew the predicament he was in, he was contemplating what to exactly do about it. "it''s not like we can fight a bunch of strong beasts at our level, much less many comparable to those evil beings. so, if we want even a little chance of getting out of here, we''d have to get stronger first." he was contemplating what to do with sera, the green glowing bugs that he had befriended from the cave, a squirrel with three eyes, and a giant snake who only ate a special kind of poisonous fruit around this area. they were his new friends, and though there were more, only these had come to play with him for today. [{ i can deal with a few creatures here, master-. }] "we aren''t going to harm anyone here, sera. we have already discussed that part. suggest me something else. something that will help us get experience faster." there were a few things that he had considered for now. the first and the toughest thing would be to tame every single being present in this place, but if he wanted to do that, he would need to understand all the creatures present here on a deep level. it could take days, weeks, or perhaps months depending on the diversity of the creatures present here. and, he did not really have that much time. the second thing he could do would be to increase the abilities of his first title that grew with him. ''thanks to the title, if i help wounded creatures, i''d get stronger. however, to do that, we would need to have injured creatures.'' and in a place as peaceful as this one, they weren''t going to find many creatures to help. the next thing he thought would be to ''observe'' all the new things present here, however, now that he had the eye skill that activated at his will, the observation feature was automatically turning all the information into what his eyes might show him. it was a great skill, but because of that skill, he couldn''t gain experience points like he used to. there was also no dungeon or place with monsters that they could kill here, so hunting was out of question as well. [{ you can try creating something¡­ like, everything we do is practically an experience, no? the experience that we are rewarded is greater when hunting because we are technically taking a life and obtaining all the experience that life had accumulated over their lifetime. creating something new entirely pretty much does the exact opposite. }] "you mean creating something new means creating something that would also have its own experiences?" [{ something like that? i''m not sure, however, from what i understand, experience is essentially what one experiences. be it a death or a new kind of experience, one is bound to grow stronger as they experience new things. }] "hmmm¡­" he remembered a certain individual that had wanted him to work on his videos many times, but since those videos weren''t anything about action but simple exploration, he had never taken on those jobs. he was a high ranker, someone who had dedicated his life to exploration completely. almost all the detailed guides about any area that existed on the markets of this world, as well as on the player forums, had been created by that individual and his two partners. they explored all the new corners of the world, went to places that one might not have known about until now, and just like alex, they were also wanderers. free spirits that went on the search of new places. ''they don''t do ''hunting'' like normal people. and they are still on the rankings.'' a big reason behind that would be their exploration and the new experiences that they have on their journey. ''first discovery rewards also exist for the players.'' your next read is at empire alex had told him about them, so the fact that he did not get anything like that would mean some other player must have come here before him. and since there was no sign of them present here anymore, it also meant they had somehow left this place as well. so¡­ "there''s at least some way to get out of here." maybe there''s some gap in the wind barrier that covers this forest, perhaps there''s a set time when the winds get weaker, or perhaps there''s something here that could help him get out of here. ultimately though, there was a way to get out. and he just had to find that way. and while he does that, he also has to create something of his own to gain exp and level up. understand and master spells of higher level, and gain more (intelligence) to increase his spellcasting ability. he still had to advance 25-levels to achieve his first awakening. that was the bare minimum target he needed to achieve to even think of getting out of this place. finding a way out would be a priority, but under the circumstances, he was going to assign more of his time into improving himself. and thanks to all the knowledge available on the forums, all the knowledge available in the special books that he had, he didn''t have to worry about running out of new things to learn anytime soon. if anything, in this special place, he believed his learning efficiency would improve even further. and with the eternal daylight on his side, he wouldn''t have to worry about a shift in natural lights. "hmmm¡­ alright then. let''s start doing something at least." thanks to sera''s insight and the silent help of the other creatures, he had decided on what he would have to do next. s§×arch* the n??elfir§×.net website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. his ultimate goal to achieve the first swanking was set now, so he got up from his place and stretched his legs. his food would end at one point as well so he would have to look for the other food sources as well. and to do that, he would have to explore the rest of the forest and try out various plants and fruits that he could find in this pretty forest. "lead the way, sera." [{ yes, master. this way¡­ }] he would also have to grow stronger for sera since they were going to share all the experience he earns from this point forth. just his growth wasn''t important if they wanted to defeat a threat that might come in their way. he needed her to deal any kind of damage since he himself was pretty much useless in the damage dealing section. and they had to achieve all that as quickly as they possibly could. since¡­ the purple gaze watching them from the other side of the forest- who did not yet know what to do about these foreign substances- might decide to deal with them permanently. and neither elio nor sera would want that to happen. so, they had to work faster. or, at the very least, prove their importance in this already pleasant equilibrium. Chapter 214 Different beginnings (in a different part of the virtual world: )experience more content on empire "oho! young girl! you sure know your cooking~." "it is nothing special." olive was in a small village right now. she wanted to go to moongold town first, but alex and elio recently told her how they were separated, so she also had no reason to start in the same place as them anymore. they were figuring things out on their end, so she decided to go on her own until they were done with their matter. she just went ahead to a different place that was decided randomly by the system. "can i have one more of these brown ones? what do you even make them from?" she was in a small village right now, selling a few things that she had cooked a while back to the natives. she was planning to leave the village and move to the nearby town soon, but before she did that she had to get stronger. and selling these little things wasn''t going to make her any stronger. "oh, it''s simple flour. i just added some good quality meat that i came across, you can think of it like a stuffed bread ma''am." if she told people the thing they were eating was made with monster meat, they wouldn''t eat it even if it was delicious and safe. "oho? stuffed bread? sounds like what those rich people would eat, huhuhu." so she just didn''t tell anyone about those unnecessary things. she was enjoying this game, almost everything here was real. it didn''t even feel like a game and she didn''t know if it was because of the chariot that she used or because it naturally just was like this. she liked playing with various things, like the fake natives that didn''t know how amazing the meat of the creatures that they just sold out to the various merchants actually was. "it''s a pleasure that you like it, ma''am. would you like to take some with you as well?" "oh, of course i would like some. i''ll take three of those brown ones." "of course~." olive''s tutorial was all about gathering some simple herbs in a big place which didn''t even take a few hours with her excellent eyes. she had worked in the kitchen for years now, and after having experienced cooking techniques of various cultures all around the world, she knew how to distinguish between a wild grass and a precious sweet herb. she had obtained that golden star with much difficulty. and unexpectedly, her years of practice had helped her in her tutorial as well. "please come again~." "huhuhu. i''d like to come back, but are you going to stay here for longer?" she was on a shopping street right now, in a stall that she had rented from a local for the day. the old lady that she was tending to this time looked quite simple, but her deep crimson eyes seemed to be that of the people who had played with life and death their entire life. "well¡­" she knew olive was a foreigner, one that wasn''t going to stay in this small place for too long. she could even see how talented olive was, so when she couldn''t answer her question honestly and was looking back at her with an awkward smile, the old lady just smiled and shook her head. "can i know your name, young one?" the old lady asked with a genuine smile. innocent olive couldn''t not answer that simple and affectionate look. "it''s erisea, ma''am." it was her immortal name in this world, so that was the only true name that this world was going to recognize her as. "hmmm¡­ a fine name indeed." the woman smiled at her, and placed a bronze coin on her stall. "you''re young, and it seems like you''re new to this world as well. there''s no need to be tied down to a place that holds no significance to you. go, wander around, and find a place that''s better suited for your interests. make friends, or better, find someone you love." with another happy look, the old woman was just about to leave her alone, but she remembered something in that instance. "oh, and before we part ways¡­" she leaned in closer to olive and whispered in her ear. "red goblin meat tastes better after you smoke it. try doing it for your next batch." backing off, the old woman bid her farewell, took another bite from her stuffed bread, and departed with a delighted expression. the bread was the best among all that she has had until now, but the filling could get even better. she knew olive would figure it out by herself. so she didn''t say much. but still¡­ "she knew?" olive was left stunned in her place. she didn''t think that simple looking old lady would figure it out on her own, not after she had worked so hard on the filling. it was surprising for her, and more than that, the bronze ''coin'' that she had left for her surprised her even more. "hmmm? what''s this?" it wasn''t money. it looked similar to a common bronze coin but in fact, it wasn''t anything like that. "excuse me-¡­ hmmm? where did she go?" it wasn''t money so olive thought that lady made a mistake and wanted to return the coin. however, by the time olive realized that and turned her head, the old lady in that simple white cloak had already vanished in the relatively empty streets. she couldn''t find her, olive even left her stall to find her, but she was nowhere to be seen. it was as if she had vanished into thin air¡­ "what in the hide and seek?" she didn''t understand where she had vanished, but the fact that she had figured out what her bread contained remin true. "will it be problematic?" the only reason people preferred to sell monster bodies instead of using them was because they couldn''t use them properly. s§×ar?h the novelfire.net* website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. they were naturally poisonous to the humans, however, she had learned from many videos online that this monster meat was in fact edible. the people in higher positions who could afford costly things consumed these things on regular bases. there was a simple way to make these things edible but common people of this world did not know it yet since it was a trade secret. but she knew it, as well as how to make various kinds of meat even better. she was a baker primarily, but there were various ingredients that she liked to use in her cooking. meat was one of the simple things¡­ though, it wasn''t easy to tell what someone was eating was in fact meat of monsters. she didn''t think someone from a small village like this would figure it out, but that old lady did¡­ and now that she had vanished, olive didn''t know what to do with her stall, as well as with the strange coin that she had left for her. "haaaa." well, it was evening so it was peak time for sales. there were other customers gathering around her stall, so before she left town, she was planning to at least sell everything she had right now. she can think about the coin and other things later¡­ Chapter 215 His training magic, stats, and external support.he knew there were three things that he needed to progress if he wanted to survive in the area that was present outside somewhere. s~ea??h the n?velfire.net website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. and, he also had to get stronger so he had chosen creation, taming, and learning as his primary ways to gain more experience. -ooooooooooooooooooooong! "chirp!" [{ yes, master! that''s it! we can do it this time! }] "go!" "ptsssssss~!" "chirp! chirp!" "grawllllllllllll¡­!" it has been a month since he was stuck in this peaceful forest, little over a week in real world time, and in this time, he had progressed quite well in all three of the aspects. -booooom! "yes!" he had befriended a bunch of creatures so now he had two different teams consisting of some strong creatures who were pretty strong individuals. and as a group, with a little more practice, they would be able to work as a strong team as well. "good work, everyone!" "gurrrrrr~!" "ptsssss~!" "chip! chip!" when he started, there were only a few creatures that followed him but now, there were over a dozen creatures. one of them was a strong tiger, a strong muscular creature over three meters in height, a beast that he simply tamed with some fish that he had cooked for himself one day. he was lucky with this one, but a lot of the others present there took days before they became friends with him even with his title. they were difficult ones, but still, even right now, only had enough creatures to go against a (level-150)+ beast. none of the creatures he had met here were over (level-100) aside from the big fishes that were in the lake at the center of the forest. but those were fishes, so he knew they couldn''t be with him outside of the lake. still, he now had enough force to set a combat training and use his newly learned assistance spells, restricting spells, and physical series spells to help his own smaller party against the bigger party. sera, the big snake, a little melodious horned crow, and he was on one side. they didn''t have as much combat powers as the tiger but they were useful in their own ways. he just had to use right spells while fighting against the opponents who all almost worked together with another as he had taught them. "no, hey! you can''t do that." [{ haha, she''s still after him. }] their tiger friend was friendly, but there was a little squirrel among her team that she had gone after many times. she didn''t try to attack the squirrel, but she simply wanted to play with his furry tale. stay connected via empire he was like a toy to her, so it was always funny to sera whenever she sneaked up on the squirrel and he tried to get away from her. "how many times do i have to tell you, miss! that''s not a toy!" "chip! chip! chip chip chip! chip!!" the squirrel obviously didn''t like being treated as a plaything. but it couldn''t do anything to the big tiger either, so he simply went ahead and hid behind the big snake, the only other creature that could go against the big cat. "haaa¡­ this is going to be difficult if it grows more." he had mastered many new spells, he was on the verge of creating his (mana core) and entering the new stage as a mage as well, but that aside, the way his group of creatures was increasing, he knew he wouldn''t be able to handle all of them in an actual battle. [{ it''s going to be alright, master." ] many of them would have to work by themselves, while the others who couldn''t fight as well as the others would have to rely on the others. they had other roles and as long as they fulfilled those roles, they would be alright even in the tough battles. he wasn''t going to take all of them out with him anyway, he knew his limits and the fact that he wouldn''t be able to handle too many of these creatures. they weren''t like az or miu. though useful and friendly, they weren''t as intelligent as the two of his initial friends who understood him on a deep level. he would need a long time to make a bond like that with these creatures, besides, he didn''t even know if they would follow him outside of this place yet. they belonged here so going with him would mean forsaking this peaceful life that they have here. additionally, he had not yet connected with them on as deep a level as he wanted. there was something holding these creatures back, something that had more influence over them than him. they were different from az and miu in many ways. but he had not yet figured out what exactly was holding them back from connecting with him on a deeper level. "well, should we wrap things up for today?" he had mastered another spell today, a physical series, earth attribute grace spell that made it easier for his snake friend to move faster. it was a spell that would only work on creatures that crawled, or creatures that rolled around, but it was a powerful spell. and after he improved this spell, he knew he would be able to help anyone with it. [{ will you do your training again, master? }] "yeah, we don''t really have any other choice, do we? we will need those extra stats." aside from leveling and bonus stats that they receive from the system, simple physical training could also increase physical stats. strength, agility, and endurance could be increased with physical training like the knights do as well. but not the system stats. he just had never done it until now, but now that he had no choice but to get stronger, he did everything he could. he fought with the creatures that he had trained. got wounded on purpose to increase his endurance, and since he had the healing bugs, he didn''t really need any precious potions. since he was in a vast forest, running around all day with his spell''s assistance also increased his agility, and he meditated for a few hours to increase his mental strength. he was also practicing archery on the side so that he wouldn''t be in any trouble even if he gets separated from his new teammates. unlike a servant that primarily resides inside the bond markings, these creatures were simply his friends. this forest was their home and they belonged here. even if he couldn''t take any of them with him, he was going to make sure he''s at least strong enough to get past the dangerous place that existed beyond this closed off paradise. "let''s start then." he had a daily routine, and now that it was time for his stat training, he would focus on that. "we will have to go south later as well." after that, since it would still be bright here, he would go and find another creature to befriend. thankfully, there would be someone he still hasn''t met yet. meeting new creatures in this peaceful and quiet place had been his salvation since a few days ago¡­ Chapter 216 A strange encounter walking through the familiar woods, he saw various creatures that he had seen in this specific part of the forest already.this particular area was comparatively darker than the other areas around the forest so quite fascinating creatures lived here. "sera?" [{ no, master. there''s nothing around. }] it was a small part of the forest so there weren''t really that many creatures in this part aside from some simple birds that just slept in their nests most of the time, however aside from them, this place was a house of species that one might consider as nocturnal. "hmmm." flying squirrels are different from the horned squirrels that were part of their gang, bats as small as a firefly, even predator creatures that went out of this area to get food. it wasn''t a place suited for the cold blooded creatures, but for those who naturally had warm blood inside them, this place was the best resting place. "let''s go that way then." the temperature here was a little lower than the other parts of the forest. the trees were denser and the humidity was lower. it was a good place, but even he liked it. but, there weren''t any creatures that had shown any particular interest in him until now. this place was like an onion. the more layers he explored, the newer creatures he found each time. some of them were dangerous, but they still didn''t attack him. enjoy exclusive adventures from empire many of them were afraid of him instead. they were dangerous, yet they were afraid of someone almost the same level as him. and that did not make any sense since he wasn''t even traveling with the rest of his gang like the first time he came here. he was alone, and even sera was inside her mark many times so they knew there was something wrong with either him or the creatures present there. or there was something else that made them act like that as he had theorized. though he wasn''t sure about his assumptions, he was aware that there were still many things that he had not learned about this first yet. he might have been to most of the places here, he might have explored this place, and he might have seen many of the creatures of this small paradise, he was still far from discovering everything about this forest. and that was a good thing actually. "oho. did we see this one last time, sera?" [{ hmmm? i don''t think so, master. }] "nice." he was leaning something new every single day, he was advancing further, he was certainly getting stronger, with only sera here, he didn''t really have anyone else to talk to. the creatures here were pretty different from az and miu so they didn''t respond to him like they did. with each passing day, with each new thing crossing off of his list of things he needed to learn, he was becoming a little anxious. "it''s a simple looking grass, but it glows. would it be because of mana or something else?" he had explored most of the forest and they had still not found any way out of this place. they were going around, they were meeting new creatures, with his new eyes, he was also observing and researching the unique wildlife present in this forest. but he had not found any exit yet. and with the diminishing numbers of things he could observe and study in this forest, he was becoming anxious with each passing day. the motivation to get out of here, to find a way out that he had on his first day here, was slowly decreasing as well. it wasn''t a good sign. if anything, he didn''t know what they would do if they couldn''t find anything to do anymore. sera might be fine since she was a servant, but he did not know what he''d do¡­ so he was trying to avoid paying attention to that part. he just did what was fun for now, followed his routine and sang a song as he worked in the forest. he was doing the same today as well¡­ just that, there was something that was bugging him since earlier. [{ "sera, do you feel like someone''s looking at you from afar or something?" }] [{ hmmm? no? what happened, master? }] he didn''t know why, but he had been feeling a set of eyes glaring at him from a distance away since he entered this part of the forest. he could tell those eyes were close, but they still felt distant in a different sense. s~ea??h the n?velfire.net website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. it was mysterious. he had thought it was just his imagination or something simple that he was overreacting to. but, when he found this strange grass, that strange feeling intensified. he almost felt like there was something looking at him, glaring at him even. he wanted to overlook it this time as well, but he simply couldn''t. his eyes were itching for some reason, and it made him associate it to that strange feeling. "tsk." he didn''t like that itching. it was annoying, so he pressed his eyes and turned around to calm this itching down. and then he turned back. "hmm?" and, when he did turn back, for a very, very brief moment, his eyes met a strange pair of purple eyes around an unfamiliar silver background. "¡­?" but that moment was very brief. less than a blinking moment. "what?" at the end of this moment, when he finally blinked and his eyes tried finding the grass they were observing once again, they could not find it. [{ hmm? where did that grass go? }] the grass was gone. there was no trace of it left on the ground either. elio couldn''t even see any markings on the ground that would indicate that grass existed there. "i saw¡­ something." it had just vanished into thin air¡­ just like those¡­ eyes that he had seen in that brief moment. "i definitely saw something." he knew he wasn''t mistaken. in that fraction of a second, he definitely saw two bright purple orbs that had also looked back at him before vanishing. he wasn''t mistaken about them. they were definitely there, and somehow, that grass was connected to those orbs¡­ those eyes. "strange¡­" he didn''t know if it was some creature or some phenomenon, but something happened in that brief moment. something so fascinating that elio now had a new smile on his previously bored face. "sera." he had a new objective now. a goal that was going to decide their future in this ''blank'' area. Chapter 217 Brunchtime talk "you know what? i still don''t understand how you''re going to get back to the mainland, el."a fine afternoon of the same day, they had gathered in olive''s apartment once again. after they told her about the little event that threw elio all the way over to the eastern continent''s some strange corner, they hadn''t had any chance to meet. they certainly talked, alex and olive talked when they were inside the game as well, but since the two of them were busy with their own things, she was playing with her dad and father. and, they had helped her a lot in the little time she had been playing this game. "dad said it''s a place filled with various wild beasts that even he couldn''t defeat. he told me how he tried going to that place with his entire clan, but they all ended up dead in less than two hours after entering that area. he told me about this biiiiiiiig tiger that attacked and killed all their mages at the start and then aimed for the other support units before taking care of them with swift movements as well. according to his team, the creature was (level-270), which he said was absurd, and then he told me about how there were many more like this the next time they went there." she had baked a variation of lasagna for them this time. and it was delicious. so much so that they were almost about to finish the entire thing even though it hadn''t even been an hour since they started. "he said they died so many times that they had to forget about the forest and go back. it was that dangerous." she had told them about her experiences in the game until now, about her tutorial, her backing experiences, some small things like how she met that strange old woman and the coin that she game her, and also about how she was now (level-80) thanks to all the exp that her dad and brother shared with her when they went out hunting. both of them were rankers, and her dad even owned a clan so she had a luxury cruise that helped her with the leveling process. "so, if elio''s there¡­ how are you planning to come back? do you have some special plan or method or something?" "hmm? no, silly. this dumb bastard doesn''t even know what kind of dangerous creature there even are exactly." but still, she knew just leveling like that wasn''t going to be as good a thing as fighting creatures and gaining experience herself. not that she would need it as someone who was going to focus on baking and cooking and selling, and perhaps finding a good place to start a business as well. the only reason she started playing was because they wanted her to, and she surely was having fun in it¡­ just that the main thing that she liked doing remained to be baking. "i told him i''ll get there somehow but you know him¡­ i think he''ll find a way and just risk a few deaths before realizing what we meant when we said ''dangerous'' creatures." he knew what kind of dangerous creatures they were talking about by now, so he knew what he was going to be against. and yet, he was not going to just sit there and continue with whatever he was doing. he had to get out of there, meet back up with her and help her find the rest of the keys so that she can unlock her powers completely. "yeah yeah. i''m dumb. say whatever you want." he knew what he wanted, so he was going to try it even if it was impossible. "just know that if i get out of there before you could reach there, you''ll have to admit you were wrong and treat all of us to the fanciest meal you have made until now." "hmm? ohh! i''d love that as well~." olive had nothing to lose here. a free meal from her was always welcome in her soul~. "hey, hey. how did it come to me? you''re the one that''s going to-¡­ alright. you know what? let''s do it like this." she looked at both of them with a smirk on her face. "if you get out of there safely, i''ll throw a big party at your house and we will invite everyone. but if i get there and take you out before that¡­ you''re going to give me the ring in that same party." find your next read at empire this was unexpected, for both that heard it. "hmm? what?!" "hey hey. where did this come from?" they weren''t planning anything like that. they were too young for that anyway! "if you want a fancy meal, you at least have to give that much in return. it''s not even like i''m telling you to propose to me or anything. i just want a pretty ring~." "you can have a pretty ring right now if you just want that!" "then what would be the meaning of that party!" he was shouting, so she shouted back. "shut up or else i''m kicking you both out." and since both of them were shouting in her house, on her dining table, olive had all the right to throw both of them out. and they knew she''d do that as well so they lowered their voices. "haaa¡­" elio didn''t know where this came from, but if it was simply a ring that she wanted, and no promises or anything, he didn''t mind it. "alright." it was a simple thing, but it made her happy. "yei~. i hope you don''t find that exist at all then~." "i''m telling you alex, you''ll lose this one." "we will see that~." sear?h the n??elfir§×.net website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. she was excited about this. a little more than usual. this wasn''t the first time they had bet on something. many of the time, it had happened on this very table as well. but this time was different¡­ "hey, if you are giving her a ring before anyway, why not get engaged as well? you know what? i''ll make a cake for the party as well." "you will~? thanks, olive~!" her hands were full right now so alex just kissed her friend. "hey. whose side are you on?" he didn''t want to do it like this¡­ he had his own plans for these special things. and here they were, ruining everything. "i''m on no one''s side. the party''s happening anyway so why not make it better? right, alex?" "absolutely~!" he didn''t like it, but both the girls liked this idea. it was perfect actually. his birthday was coming as well, so if she could make it to the mountain before that and get him out, they would be able to do it in an even better way. "haaa¡­" it was a really good idea. but, he didn''t really like it for many reasons. so, he knew he had to win this bet somehow. there would be some complications in his future arrangements if the two of these ladies succeeded this time. Chapter 218 Searching for the clues "hmmm¡­"he was back inside, and now that there were his future plans on the line, he had to get out of this place before she did something crazy and reached here. he knew getting past the big forest filled with all those creatures wasn''t going to be an easy thing but after that unique encounter, he had a clue to what might help them get out of there. "it was fast, like too fast." he was searching through the vast encyclopedia on the creatures of the east to find creatures that could move as fast as that creature. "it had purple eyes and they were different from the simple eyes so that creature might be a unique one as well. i couldn''t see much of it last time, but it definitely came there for that grass." he was just walking around and then he found that grass. it was glowing and it was small unlike most of the grass blades of this forest. s~ea??h the novelfire.net* website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. it was quite unique so he was observing it, however, in that small instance, that creature took the grass blade. [{ master¡­ }] but since sera didn''t see it herself, she was still not sure if there was some mysterious creature with purple eyes in this forest or not. "i know what i saw, sera." [{ i''m not doubting you, master. i''m just¡­ worried. don''t you think there''s a little¡­ too many of them here? }] "hmmm?" he was sitting outside his cave while contemplating like he usually did, and he wasn''t alone today either. just like last few days, there were creatures, his friends from the forest here. they were either listening to him or were playing by themselves¡­ just that, there were a few more aside from those creatures. "yeah, i noticed it as well." for some reason, there were more creatures around here today. some of them were ones that he had seen before, while some were from the darker part of the forest. there were some creatures from the other parts of the forest that he had seen before, while some that he had never actually met personally but knew about. "this might also be because of those creatures we saw yesterday, you know?" [{ ¡­ }] sera still doubted him. she had not seen any creatures in that place, and even after she looked around the entire forest more than a few times, she neither found any creatures with any kind of purple eyes, nor did she find anything that would be small and have a silver body or outline. she didn''t know if the creature existed or not, but the fact that there were suddenly so many creatures interested in them confused her as well. there were definitely some reasons behind this sudden interest, but since she had not seen that creature herself, she wasn''t yet sure what to think about it, or the supernatural speed that it showed. "hmmm. nope. there''s nothing with such descriptions." the data on the characteristics of the creature that he had seen was too little. he had not even seen the creature completely, just those eyes and that outline. so, he did not know much. "you all won''t tell me about that creature at all? not even a little?" he was asking creatures around him but these beings knew little about what he was talking about or were unconsciously avoiding giving him even a hint related to the creature that could move as fast as that being. he didn''t know if it was because of some kind of restriction that these creatures had, or if they simply just didn''t know about it at all. "not even you, tiger?" "grrrr?" the tiger was sleeping, but it still nodded its head in denial. it did not know what these creatures were here, but it didn''t want to waste any of its energy on them since it wasn''t even hungry right now. besides, the fish that elio made for them was something she was becoming addicted to, so eating these bunch here wasn''t going to be anything fun to her. "hmmm¡­" he wasn''t getting anything from these beings, and there was no information in the data that he had either. "alright then¡­" so he just got up and threw everything away. "we will go and look for another one of those glowing grass in the other regions. perhaps we will get to see it again?" if there wasn''t anything that these creatures would tell him, he had no other choice but to go and look for something that would surely help him get what he wanted. [{ but, master. i didn''t see anything like it the last time i was checking there. }] "you didn''t see anything since you weren''t looking for it, sera. we just stumbled upon it after my eyes caught it accidentally." that grass blade had been right before them from the start. sera was there as well and she could have seen that grass earlier than him as well, but she didn''t. not even with her special sensing ability. that creature wasn''t simply something that could move too fast, it had looked back at him in that brief moment that it was there. he had looked at that creature, but even he did not know whether he saw it when it was taking the grass out, or if when it was cleaning the area from where it had taken the grass. "there''s definitely something special about that grass." if that creature didn''t reveal itself all this time and only came out when they found that grass, he definitely knew there was something more to this grass than just its glowing surface and its unique nature. perhaps, it wasn''t grass at all and something else. he did not know yet, but he was sure of one fact: it was something that grew naturally. he could perhaps tell it because of his affinity for all the elements or because of something else, but he knew it was a natural life form. and if it was something that grew in this forest, there definitely was more than one of these. perhaps there were very few of these and they were somehow important. there was something to it that was different from anything else in this forest. elio had inferred that much. stay tuned with empire so¡­ "let''s try it at least. we might find at least one of them somewhere, no?" he was going to find it. there was even something that was going to help him with it that he hadn''t tried yet, but he now had the chance that he was looking for. so, he sat down on the ground once again, and placed his hand on the ground. then¡­ he focused on his eyes. Chapter 219 Finding grass "what do you think when you hear the word ''grass''?green blades of thin green leaves growing out of the ground directly? a green grassland present in a plain flatland? what about the green floors present in the forest areas? what about the lawns, or grass that one grows in their backyard? or in small pots?" he was asking her an abstract question, but sera knew he wasn''t simply asking about grass. [{ i think about the grass in the flowerpot present in the room where you summoned me for the first time, master. }] there were various things one could think when they heard any word. and much of the thought process is a lifelong conditioning. one adapts to certain things, they learn, and they acquire various knowledge. that acquired knowledge, skills and experience are retained through a periodic recall and without it, the skills and the knowledge that one has acquired slowly gets forgotten. if they do recall it after a long time, some parts of it might come back, however, not all of it. there is always something that is left out, and that is simple because how the mind functions. "you''re too kind to say that, sera." [{ haha, not at all, master~. }] s§×ar?h the nov§×lf~ire.net website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. she was cheerful, but there was still a lot that she wasn''t thinking about at the moment. it had not been long since she was summoned by her master so the memories that she has are limited. though, the knowledge about this world that she had from her past was surely something beyond simple common sense. "well, anyway¡­" he was simply asking her what it is that she thought about their current situation. they were in a forest that also had many open areas filled with diverse kinds of plants and mainly, various kinds of grass. there was wild grass and there were medicinal herbs that looked just like simple blades of grass. however, in this closed off environment where most of the plant life was pretty independent and free from a great lot of outside interference, most of the herbs and plants and even the most common of the grass here was a little different from their ancestral species. it was quite big, it had adapted to this environment with less predators, and since there were certain distinctions within the areas, some of them were scattered throughout the forest and were focused in places that had comparatively less natural predators. still, that one blade of grass was a lot more different from the other things that he had seen here. "while some of the plants here have developed many protective features, the one that we saw was simply a plain grass blade." he did not yet know why it was glowing, but he knew there was some kind of phenomenon, or at least some kind of specialness of it that made it glow. there were various possibilities that they were considering about this particular grass. it also grew alone in a certain area and was taken by a unique creature from right before their eyes. and, since elio did not feel any mana, or any element for that matter, he wasn''t really certain what was so special about it that that creature felt his presence about it threatening. "did it want the grass blade, or was it protecting us from it? or was it simply hungry?" he did not know. but he wanted to know what the reason could have been so¡­ he was searching for that grass along with the gang of his new friends. he had showed them what they were looking for since he fortunately had a picture of that grass, so now, all the dozens of them and the two of them were searching through the forest, going to various places and looking at not just the ground but the trees as well. it was a single blade of grass, but the things that they were focusing on right now was its luminosity, it''s comparatively smaller size, and it''s rather simple features compared to the other things that the creatures might have seen around here. he wasn''t expecting much from them, but at the very least, with their help, they might stumble upon another one of those grass blades. [{ i''m moving to the next area, master. }] "alright, sera. come back here in ten minutes if you don''t find anything." [{ alright~. }] apparently, he thought he could get a map or something of this entire forest if he used his eye skill''s analysis feature on this entire forest. however, he found out something new about his unique skill. "i''ll continue looking around here." [{ yes, master. }] the eye skill that he had, {three eyes} was not simply a skill that can show him the uses, and traits of something, or someone. aside from analysis, his eyes had more abilities as well, and he could certainly get an entire map of something with that skill however¡­ there were limitations of this unique skill. and one of those limitations, as he had just found out, was how he needed to actually see someone or something to use his analysis ability on it. "be careful." [{ yes¡­ master. }] be it a creature, a tree, a small blade of grass, an item, or an entire forest. if he wanted to analyze it, if he wanted his eyes to analyze it all for him, he would have to see all of it directly. plus, as he had learned from his experience last time, he couldn''t use his eye skill on all the things equally. there were some things that he needed to stare at for longer if he wanted to get any information from it, and there were some things that took a shorter time. if he knew anything about something, he didn''t need much time at all, while on the other hand, like that grass, he would need a lot more than just a little staring to get any information on it. but, then again, that was not the only limitation that this skill had. read the latest on empire and¡­ he will take a long time to understand that simple fact. Chapter 220 While the world moves there were various elements to a world that one could not just see from one angle. to understand a world, or any object in that world, one first had to either understand every single element of that world or the world in its entirety.elements, energies, powers, skills, items, gods, faith, truths, paths, be it the simplest of the simple creature of this world or the most complex being that could only exist through philosophical concepts. in this world, there were places of all kinds and types. there were beings in this world that could do things that are unfathomable to the reality existing beyond these virtual reality. there were concepts here that were developed from the simple things, from things as simple as words, actions, faith, values, motivation, aspirations, or, existence. both worlds were connected closely, and they existed independently. there were all kinds of magical beings in this world while there were all kinds of unique things in the world that existed beyond the virtual realm. one existing in the material world can connect to the meta world through something they called a chariot, or a head gear, or simply through something that could turn themselves into a virtual body. and there were various ways to connect oneself like that. -oooooooooooooooooong! still, while it was a simple thing for the beings of that foreign world to enter this world of magic and truths, for the beings who existed in this world, beings who were limited to this world and its restrictions, it wasn''t even an entertaining thought to cross over to the other side¡­ into the reality that was not metaphysical. the world from which those beings come from, that unique world which could not be confined to simple descriptions or narrations, was something they did not even desire¡­ the power of immortality, there were more than one ways to obtain this unfathomable power. they could gain power or gain a blessing from those higher beings existing as the superior maintainers of this world, they can walk down a path, towards a truth, and find a strength that could not be limited to being ''immortal''. "when one asks you about the truths, misha, there are three things that they could be talking about, not just one." -swiiiiiiiiiiiiiiish! the beings of this world did not even desire to go to that other world form where these unique beings, players, come from. there already existed many unique worlds beyond their own and they could go to that world, those realms, filled with many more unique things than forests made of concrete and stones and steel. they knew about their world already, they knew about it and there were countless books about them in their world as well. they knew the way they came to their world, they knew about the chariots, and they knew how their world existed beyond the truths, the universe, and the guardian maintainers themselves. "sister alex." -swiiiiish! s§×ar?h the n?vel(f)ire.n§×t website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. your journey continues on empire -kashhh-ick! "if there are three meanings, why don''t they just call it something else instead of ''truth''. wouldn''t there be many misunderstandings with so many meanings of a simple thing?" -ooooooooooooooooooong! "no, not really." it wasn''t possible for the natives to go beyond this world and into the world of the mortals since they did not have one very important thing that was required for them to come here: a physical body. "most of the time, when one is talking about the truth, they are simply talking about something that isn''t false, or something that is proven or established, or even something logical, or at least something that could have a certain ''answer'' to them." one of the reasons this world was created, as many conspiracy theories talk about, was to test whether a limited consciousness like that of the natives of this world who did not possess a physical body, could ultimately obtain the mind and ''consciousness'' that the humans are defined with. "not many would talk about it, but whenever truth is talked about in the context of this world, as in the truth about this world, truth about this reality and the truth that the natives like you could not understand with a simple life, they are talking about the truth that one wants to know but, could not because of their innate limitations." in their journey until now, they had seen and met beings who knew about these truths, beings who followed a path and were blessed by the ''gods'' who maintain these truths. "you won''t really understand even if i tell you myself since these things are something one has to understand by themselves. but, i can give you a hint about the general meaning of these truths through the third kind of truth that one might talk about when they are talking about truth." "hmmm?" they were on the border of the nozama, the great forest filled with countless creatures that periodically attacked them in groups. there were brief moments where they could take a breather from these relentless attacks and catch a breath, but they were fighting since the moment they arrived here three days ago. "what might that be then, sister?" "you wanna know? really?" truths were complicated, but those complicated things were the foundation upon which this entire world existed. "yes¡­? i should know about this since you''re telling me out of the blue, right?" "of course you should know about them." she gave her a mysterious smile that somewhat sent a shiver down the younger girl''s back. "well, then let me tell you about it." the truths. they were complicated, but at the same time, too simple to understand by a mind that was born with an unlimited potential. "so¡­" alex looked at the young girl who was growing at a much faster pace now that she had awakened her true powers. "you see, all the natives of this world, everything that is born here actually, all of it, all the beings with a soul¡­" they were fighting powerful creatures, az and miss rin was fighting right now while misha had created a powerful barrier that even these high level monsters could not break with her ichor, the pure power of nature. "all the things that could think as well as react to natural forces in any way¡­ when one talks about the truth, they might also be talking about how none of this, none of you, nothing of this world, is actually ''real''." "hmmm?" she was stronger now and she was going to get even stronger. with her willingness to grow further, she will also accept the fact that she had to kill other binges for the sake of her own survival, for the people that were around her. she will understand that, and while she is doing that, alex was going to keep giving her what she needed to grow further. to become better¡­ to reach the unfathomable potential that not just she¡­ "what does that mean now, sister alex?" but every single one of these ''unreal'' beings possessed. Chapter 221 A story and serenity "haaa¡­ haaa¡­"alex had finished her turn as well, and she was going to rest now that they were done for the day. s§×arch* the n?velfire(.)net website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. and, since this was a night of full moon, they were going to have a peaceful time after three whole days of relentless fighting. "haaaaa¡­ fuck." she was exhausted. she had experience fighting for days, weeks actually, and she was good at these long fights due to her unique fighting style as well. there were many names that she had received from all around the world from not just the system in the form of titles, but also from people who practically owned a realm, or were so strong that they held a unique position in this world. one of those names that she had received from the monarch of the east, the heavenly crimson queen, was . a name that was quite famous in the east where elio was right now. she had obtained that name after fighting alongside the eastern nations in a war against the [yakshas] a species that lived in some parts of the east. they were unique creatures, however, due to the influence of the dark powers who had almost corrupted eve of cromwell, these beings of immense strength were turned into creatures that could not be controlled or restricted to certain areas. "sister, come here. sit down for a little." "haaaa¡­ yes. thanks, misha." those yakshas tore down nations, burned valleys, and emptied rivers. their might was so great that the entirety of the east had to come together to fend them off, and since she was there at that time as well, alex had also joined them¡­ and when this epic battle was going on half a decade ago, she also fought those powerful creatures for many days, which slowly turned into weeks, and then months. she fought with them, defeated so many of them that even the best of the mathematicians of the east lost count of the enemies that were slain by her blades. she sliced those creatures, she fought, she completed quests on that battlefield, and she refined her skills there as well. it was on that battlefield that she had perfected her blink skill, perfected her first ever skill, obtained her first ever heroic achievement, and then earned the very first (honorable weapon) that is now well known throughout this world. she had done many amazing things in her time as a traveler. and she had met many people who still remember her with the names that they had given her at that time, with the titles that were famous throughout this world. "huuuuu¡­ this is only going to get tough." the forest of nozama, one of the deadliest hunting areas for the individuals in their early hundreds. this was not a place that just anyone could survive in, the mobs that they had been fighting since earlier were all of (level-60) and beyond. they were powerful, so much so that there was little they could do against them with just weapons of steel. to fight these creatures, they had obtained weapons forged by a master craftsman. they were using weapons that could cut through various thick trees, so the creatures were at least killable. and yet, the intensity of these battles that they were having was so great that they couldn''t help but get injured occasionally. getting tired was a normal thing, but thankfully, they did not have to fight too many of these dangerous creatures of all kinds of types. the entire forest was divided in various turfs. they were scattered all around the forest and if they took the right path, they would have to fight the least amount of creatures or the weakest ones that this dangerous forest had to offer. they were merely approaching their first awakening, and even with az who had grown to a significant degree, and with miu who had gathered a few friends to help us, they weren''t yet strong enough to face even the elite monsters of this forest, much less the side bosses or the main bosses. "haaa. misha, pass the-." "here!" "¡­thanks." misha wasn''t fighting like the rest of them and was simply maintaining the barrier whenever they were fighting. her mom and alex were taking turns with the fighting part and az was helping them, but the creatures here weren''t that easy to kill. they were monsters, and by monsters, one actually meant monsters that one would see in movies¡­ creatures beyond goblins, orcs, and beasts. misha did not know how to use her powers offensively just yet so she thought she was useless for the rest of them, but alex as well as the rest of them knew now that she knew how to use her energy, and how to absorb it, with a little more time, she will be able to manifest more than a simple barrier as well. "miu!" "muuuuuuu~!" she was talented. she just had to learn a little more and direct practical experience was the best thing if one was talking about learning¡­ "haha, i''m not sad or anything, you two. go and see if there''s anything around." they were inside one of the most dangerous forests now and they were moving towards the very center of the forest to retrieve the thing that alex was finding here. she was going to find it no matter what anyway, but now that elio had made such a bet with her, she knew she had to do it much faster than she needed. this one was going to be the first key that she obtains after the crimson one, and just like the crimson sword that could slice though anything, the new key that she obtains will have something unique about it as well. she was going to use that, and the power of another one of her skills. she was also going to pray to the gods to unlock the powers that she needed right now the most instead of something random like the last time, and when she reached (level-100) she was going to recover a lot of her powers as well so she was praying she gets something that will help her reach that bastard faster. read the latest on empire she was racing against him so, even though this entire forest had fallen quite right now, her heart was racing like crazy at the thought of¡­ getting that ring from him with everyone present around them Chapter 222 The first night "no luck today either?"[{ no, master. }] since they started looking for that glowing grass, it had been around a month. and it had been two months since they came here. they had not found any way to get out of this place and they were still searching for it every single day. "haaa¡­" they were tired after looking for even a single blade of some simple grass for all day. their creature friends from the forest didn''t come to help them for some reason either, so the two of them were the only ones looking around for the grass today. "i''m tired, sera." he had done his physical training in the early morning and he had done his magic training later in the afternoon. he had looked for that grass for six hours today as well and now that it was evening time, he was going to eat and go to his cave, and sleep for the night¡­ which wasn''t really like a night at all. enjoy new stories from empire "i''m going to go crazy one of these days, sera." this bright blue sky filled with clouds that seemed as close as a monkey in the zoo cage, the slowly moving clouds, the brightness of the day that was present for all day long, and even the silence of the darker forest side most of the side. sometimes, he felt all alone even though he was with the creatures that were present all around him. and sometimes, when sera was gone, he was actually alone. [{ don''t say things like that, master. }] it was not a good thing that he was always alone in this place. even with sera being there, even with all those creatures that play along with him and the always increasing number of creatures that had an interest in him, he was still the only human in that place. sera wasn''t human but she was with him and she saw him suffering through loneliness all the time. she knew how he was a people person and liked being around people. at the very least, he needed someone like alex or olive around him to not get bored. and, sera had already seen him do all kinds of things in the time he wasn''t training or reading or creating something out of anything that he found. "haaaa¡­ it is what it is, sera." he had carved sculptures out of wood, he had created spells that were useful as well as useless in the time they were stuck here, and he had gotten stronger with each day of his training. he wasn''t hurting himself physically since he had those healing bugs, but he was curtaining mentally exhausted. unlike the last few weeks, he wasn''t even clicking photos of the things that they came across anymore. he wasn''t painting things, or drawing anything. he simply went on with finding that grass and ultimately those purple eyes that he had seen that one time even though he had no idea if it actually existed or not. "anyway¡­ do you feel anything weird sera? no creatures came out today, did you see any creatures on your way back?" [{ hmm? yes i did, master. though¡­ most, oh, almost all of them were inside their houses. }] sera was worried about him, but she had to help him with anything he needed her, and more. she was the only one here with him and she didn''t want him to go crazy. she couldn''t see him any more miserable than he already was. so, she did all that she could to help him. "hmmm. isn''t that weird." his condition aside, he was right this time. "they weren''t like this a few hours ago, right?" just this morning, they were all training together and working on their teamwork. they were with their group that had grown up to a few dozen now, and were having fun, but then they all went back and didn''t come back at all. [{ now that you mention it¡­ }] it definitely was strange, for her as well. many of them didn''t even like staying in their house most of the time. the tiger, especially, was never in his house but today, he went back today for some reason. and, now that they had noticed it, they also thought it was weird¡­ "there should be some reason behind it, right?" [{ there should be¡­ }] in the two months they had been here, this was their first time encountering this weird situation. elio especially found it strange, as well as motivating. sea??h th§× n?vel?ire.net website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "how about we go and check up on them?" [{ master, you''re tired right now. how will you even walk to the other side? }] they were still at the edge of the darker side of the forest. most of the creatures with them live on the other side of the forest so they would have to walk back to check up on them, but he was too tired for that. [{ we should rest a little first. }] the situation right now was even more weird now that they thought about it. the entire forest was too quiet right now. there was nothing, no creature in sight right now. even the sounds of the creatures that are almost always filled with the sounds were eerily quiet right now. "hmmm¡­" he looked around himself, a strange sensation foaming up inside him. he didn''t know what was happening but he wanted to know. and¡­ -oooooooooooooooooong! he didn''t have to wait for long to find out the reason for this eerie silence. [{ master¡­ }] he was outside of the dark area, so he could see the sky above him clearly. "yes, sera?" it didn''t take him too long to find out how the sky that had always been bright and sunny, as sera was seeing, was turning darker for some reason. "what¡­?" the white clouds turned gray and the sky became darker. the blue vanished and a stark red took over its place. [{ we should find a shelter, master. }] they had been living under a bright sunny sky for the last two months. so, when they faced a situation that they had never experienced before, they simply stood stunned in their places. and, it wasn''t a good thing. -oooooooooooooooooooong! a red night befell on this eternally bright paradise. [{ master! watch out! }] a night that was going to change many things that they knew about this place until now. Chapter 223 Truth of the paradise a red sky, almost crimson.clouds as black as the darkness of the caves that they were experienced with. a strange energy that was now dominating the entire environment around them, and it wasn''t a good thing. -awooooooooooo¡­! strange sounds started appearing all around the forest, as well as from beyond the mountain, an area that had been unreachable to them until now. [{ master! it seems like the wind barrier is gone somehow! }] there was a strong wind current around this area. until now, that wind barrier had been the main factor blocking them and restricting them in this place but now, sera could freely fly above, and¡­ what she was seeing right now was no good thing. -boooooooooooooom. "shit¡­" creatures that were dangerous looking, creatures that they had never seen in this forest, creatures that were strong, too strong for the current them¡­ monsters. there were all kinds of dangerous beings popping up around the forest now, with the lake area of the forest being the center of it all. "do you see this, sera?" the lake that was located at the center of the forest, as he was seeing from top of the tree, was somehow related to that red sky above them. [{ what¡­ what is happening? }] the water from that lake had somehow turned red and that red water was now moving upwards for some reason¡­ from their point of view, the lake water was being connected to the sky above. it almost seemed like the red sky and the water of the lake were connected. "it''s like a waterfall¡­ just backwards." s§×ar?h the n?vel_fire.¦Çet website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. it was an unexplainable sight. what he was seeing right now, all the creatures that were appearing from all around the forest, creatures that were climbing up the mountain, creatures that were as dangerous as he had known the forest monsters of this area to be. this was not something he had foreseen, he did not even understand what was happening right now, but from the looks of it, whatever was happening was not something that he should have been a part of. [{ master! what about the creatures of the forest?! }] she was worried about the creatures, their friends. elio was worried about them as well, and was thinking of what would happen to them with all those monsters present there. he was on top of a tall tree right now, and he was still using the item that concealed his presence to hide away from the creatures that were now flying all around the forest. the noise that he could hear came from beasts, from creatures that did not have any reason or intelligence. they were monsters that were here solely for something, for destruction, and were looking for something else. [{ what do we do now, master? }] sera could see what was happening right now and she did not like it one bit. all the monsters that were coming there were dangerous monsters that should not be there in the first place. she flew up a while back and there were all kinds of creatures climbing this mountain around them. "i don''t really know¡­ what do we do?" many of them were flying as well. those who were flying were ignoring her completely and yet, the kind of innate threat that she felt from them was beyond anything that she had experienced in a long time. they were dangerous and there were hundreds of those creatures all around them. in this forest, in the sky, around them, and more were coming. since the barrier was gone now, they were all just climbing up the mountain and were destroying the entire forest. elio could see them with his sharp eyes and they were currently all around them. there were hundreds of them in that place. there were more than a few dozen just walking in his hundred meter radius. they were powerful beings, and they were here for something. [{ staying here is not safe, master. }] they did not know if this was an occasional event or if the place that had been safe for all this time was in fact getting destroyed by those creatures for good. he did not know what was going to happen to the creatures that he had known until now, but he sure as hell didn''t go down to find that out. continue your adventure at empire "i know that, sera." he had to stay alive first and he was not being selfish right now. he was thinking of what was best against what he should be doing in this situation. his own life mattered right now since if he stays alive and finds some way to help those creatures, then he would be able to help most of them instead of just one or two before falling to a being that he obviously could not go against. "is there anything we can do in the first place?" these creatures didn''t seem to be interested in him in the first place. they were also not interested in the creatures of the forest and were simply destroying anything in their paths to get to some place¡­ specifically to the center of that forest. the flying creatures had already gathered there, and the ones who walked were also going there right now. they were either here because of that lake, or that lake was simply attracting them all to something completely else. [{ master¡­ }] whatever the case, he was stuck on this tree, and since there was no quest window popping up, he knew there was nothing he could do to stop this, or help anyone present here with anything. he was useless once again, and since he was useless anyway, he had to watch all of this happening and understand what exactly was happening at the very least. "those creatures aren''t something we are supposed to fight in the first place so, since we are here anyway, we should just watch what the hell is this all about." he had a feeling that he was going to see something crazier pretty soon. he could feel it¡­ there was no quest but there was something more than a quest involved here. this was happening for a reason. there were many creatures here and this entire phenomenon was definitely the result of something else. he could feel it, something was happening. and there was something more to this¡­ -oooooooooooooooooooong! and, he was right. [{ master! look! }] in the distance, something happened with a herd of creatures. and, elio instantly associated that happening and the silver-purple lightning involved in that happening with a certain pair of eyes that had been haunting him for the last couple of weeks¡­ Chapter 224 The second Throne a creature.a creature that could fly. a creature that could fly but did not have any wings or was a bird of any kind. it was simply just a creature, a creature that wasn''t visible at the moment. all they could see was a flash of purple lighting that moved at a speed that only left a dash of lightening of that creature''s movements. they couldn''t see anything of that creature, but, one thing that they could see for certain right now¡­ [{ master¡­ }] was the absurdity that was transpiring before their eyes. "yeah¡­ didn''t i say? there existed something with these characteristics. someone who had those eyes." right now, a purple lightning that was moving at a speed that was only leaving a flash of light in its path was moving all around the forest. it most certainly had originated from somewhere around them as well, however, it was moving at a speed that was faster than the speed of sound. this silver-purple lightning was so fast that they could barely keep a track on its movements throughout the forest area. in one instance it was at the start of the center boundary around the lake, while the very next moment it had vanished into somewhere at the edge of the forest. the only way to keep a track of this creature was through the sudden fall of the monsters that were invading this forest area. wherever this lighting passed through, groups and legions of monsters fell to the ground, their dead bodies shivering with a strong lightening still present around their bodies. this was a strange phenomenon that was happening all around them as well so the fact that there was something happening here simply wasn''t anything simple. [{ that''s divine power, master. }] "i could tell that much already, sera." a creature that possessed lighting that was killing creatures that they couldn''t even imagine to defeat anytime soon, a creature that had already killed hundreds of these monsters, a being that was so strong that they were having difficulty finding what they were seeing was believable. this was, simply, absurd. [{ it''s amazing how you actually saw this creature back then, master. }] "i don''t know how i did it either, but yeah. that thing is fast as fuck¡­" less than a minute. that was the time it took for that being to kill every single one of the monsters that was present in their line of sight, and it continued killing them mercilessly even right now. the creatures that were present around the reverse waterfall in the center of the forest, around the red water of the lake that was connecting to the sky above, the creatures that were flying as well as the ones on the ground, were all pierced by that purple lightning that which continued on killing these creatures. "just¡­ look at them. that silver and purple¡­ both are distinct powers." the purple power was related to the speed and the strength of the lightning while at the same time, the silver that was present alongside it had a unique role in this whole process as well. [{ that silver light¡­ that''s not even decomposition, master. it''s just dismantling the entire being of those creatures on an atomic level. that''s insane! }] enjoy exclusive adventures from empire they had been surprised since the moment they started seeing this purple lightning accompanied by that silver light. however, until they saw the dead bodies of the monsters being disintegrated into nothingness, they had not thought much about it. they thought both the colors were part of the same power, however, that was not the case. this creature, there was something more about this ''divine'' creature than the seed and the strength that it possessed. sea??h th§× n?vel(f)ire.n§×t website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "it''s fascinating as well though¡­" he looked at the mess that was being made before his eyes and he saw the red sky that was slowly turning back into its former natural state. he saw the mad creatures that did not care about their diminishing numbers, and just continued on towards the creatures at the center of the lake. both elio and sera were seeing what that strange being was doing to these creatures, and at the same time, they were admiring the absurdity of the strength that that strange being possessed. "we fought that dark mage, and the one who defeated him was a guardian spirit manifested form, we fought that mage tower master, and we fought the creatures of the elm guardian dungeon. (level-100) seemed to be an achievable goal after seeing what those at that level could do. however, seeing the powers of the viscount was beyond my imagination, and then, experiencing the power of those evil beings who took over eve, as well as experiencing that power from that blessing¡­ i thought i had glimpsed what true power was in this world, sera. but, it seems like i was terribly mistaken." he was looking at that silent lightening that was moving so fast that it wasn''t even producing any sound anymore. there was simply a ''zooop'' that they could hear and that too wasn''t the sound of the movements of that creature but instead the sound that was produced by the other elements around it that were getting affected by its movements, it was strange, but it wasn''t just strange. it was mesmerizing. seeing this creature, seeing the power that was not only killing the monsters that produced an primordial fear inside of him, but was also completely taking care of the creatures'' bodies that were left behind on the forest floor which had now turned into a battlefield. [{ master, you can get that strong as well. }] levels weren''t really a great way to measure the strength of any being in this world, and stats that they possessed weren''t either. aside from the divinity, authority, and knowledge of truths that an individual being possessed, there were not many elements that could be considered for the true measurement of strength. still¡­ "of course i can be that strong, haha. but, how many years will it take me to get that kind of strength, sera? just how many experiences will i need to have for that kind of crazy power?" he knew what was logical and what was best left in the fantasy. he was a realist, pluralist. when it came to understanding his own self and what he could do, he understood himself the best. so, this time as well, he knew what was doable and what would take him a few years of dedicated journey. Chapter 225 The next goal "we can be a god sera¡­"he looked at the creature that was pretty much done with the monsters. "but to become a god, we would need to have the qualities of that god." the same was true for being strong or having divinity or being something or someone like that creature. it wasn''t simple, and, if anything, it was not something that he could achieve overnight. not unless there was an almost dead dragon and he just had to poke a sword in its head to relive it from its eternal suffering. he wasn''t [april 3rd]. he wasn''t on the rankings in the first place, much less on the second place among the millions that play this game. getting strong was a goal that he would achieve eventually as he went on with his journey, but he was still not going to achieve it as quickly as that lucky person did, or through something unique like the other high rankers had done. he had only been here for a few months. he wasn''t here since the beginning like many others and he wasn''t like alex. he couldn''t go around the world and keep going on all around this vast world for eternity. he liked having a house and calling it home. he liked seeing things all around the world but he was not going to keep traveling every single day even though there were countless things for them to see here. eventually, he wanted to find a home for them, or built one in a forest as simple as this one. he kind of liked the peace that this forest had, but being alone in this place was like a curse¡­ and no one liked being cursed. "anyway¡­" the sky returned to its normal self in about half an hour since it had turned red. the ''night'' was over, but elio had a feeling that this was not going to be the last night of their time in this forest. this most definitely was an event¡­ a regular one that repeated periodically at that. those creatures, there was something that they were after and that something was present somewhere around that lake, or under that lake. the creature with silver light and purple lightning was either guarding that thing in the lake, or was guarding this entire forest and the creatures of this forest. it was powerful, and that fact was established already. "do you think it will join us as well, sera?" elio smiled as he saw the purple soundless lightning vanishing into the dark forest once again. [{ hmm? what do you mean by that, master? are you still going to search for it? don''t we know it already exists and could kill us in a fraction of a second? why are you trying to kill yourself again?! }] she didn''t like that he was trying to throw his life away one more time. but, he didn''t want to die a meaningless death either. "sera, that creature could have killed us anytime if it wanted to, you know?" they had been here for more than two months now. they were going to stay here since they didn''t have any way to get out of this place yet, but now that they knew ''a little'' about the creature that they had been looking for all this time, elio knew there was more to this creature than just that speed and power. "all this time, i had felt as if someone was watching me. all this time, i thought it was just my imagination and ignored it, but after the day i accidentally made eye contact with that creature, i didn''t feel like someone was watching us that many times. it became occasional, like someone who had been on a constant look out was being cautious around someone that they didn''t want to see directly." the creature that they had seen just now might have been somewhat of a shy being that didn''t yet want to meet them since they were an outsider. it might still be uncertain of what to do with us and could be contemplating about it. he was good with the creatures of this forest and slowly, they were getting closer. that creature might also be uncertain of what to do with them because of the way they were getting closer. still¡­ "i know it could be dangerous." he knew he could die a few times, he knew this was dangerous, and after seeing the kind of powers that creature possessed, he also had his doubts. but still¡­ he wanted to give it a try. "we just want to get out of here anyway." if they have that creature with them, they will be able to get through that dangerous forest with clear ease. if they do well, they might also be able to meet back with alex more quickly. they were in the east and alex was coming to the east, but she would still need a little longer for that. she still needed to get one more permanent key for that¡­ she had to secure the second one as well, but she was almost done with that. discover hidden tales at empire "that creature will help us pretty well, wouldn''t it?" yesterday, she was telling him about how she had found it already, so now, she was going to defeat the guardian creature and take the key. then she will move on to further north and go to an underwater kingdom to collect the third key that was being guarded by the kingdom that not many people knew even existed. she was going to get that, contact olive''s dad who was here, and assemble a team of rankers and some high rankers to challenge this forest for real. "i''m sure there will be complications, but we can try at least." she was determined to get past this forest so she was going to do whatever she could to get that ring¡­ she was looking forward to it. now, the only thing that remained for her was to get the keys and recover her lost strengths. "trying is better than just mindlessly searching for the exit. who knows, that creature might also know about the existence that we had been searching for like dumb ones all this time?" he was searching for that creature anyway. sea??h th§× n?vel(f)ire.¦Çet website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. now, there simply was a better reason to go and find it. Chapter 226 The second key the moon casts a silver glow over a pristine small gazebo-like shrine, a silver white structure no bigger than a small hut.its light reflects off the giant crystal stone at the center, a marvel of an otherworldly wonder¡­ at least, that''s how they all had perceived it when they first came here. embedded within the crystal was a unique green dagger, its emerald hue pulsing with a bright present worldly energy. it was the item that she had been looking for since she entered this jungle. and she had found it a night ago. she could have just made it her own had this been a simple scenario, but, a treasure is never obtained so easily in any of the heroic tale present in this, or their original world. -booooooooooooooooooooom! guarding this treasure was a formidable creature, a being so unique that it gave them goosebumps just looking at it. lord of capybara. that''s what these creatures were called by the players, but unlike the funny name that was given to them, these beings were a field boss of (level-180) a creature that was several times stronger than a simple (level-180) creature. this was a being that one could not fathom the power of, a being that was visibly so terrible that the cute name given by the players was a stark contradiction of their actual, deadly appearance. "scriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiag!!!" a giant creature with fur as tough as armor and eyes that glowed with ancient wisdom, an intelligent being that was guarding a treasure of primordial history. a being that was not simply a field boss, but also a guardian that had existed before this shrine ever since the previous owner of that dagger built this place. "muuuuuuuuuu!" -swish! swish! swish! s~ea??h the n?vel?ire.net website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. -oooooooooooooooong! "now!" she had been fighting this creature for over a day now, and after fighting for so long, she had finally reached the point where they could finish this long battle of attention! "muuuuuuuu!" alex stood her ground before the beast. her sword gleamed under the moonlight, ready to strike like it had been since the last many hours. to her side, her partners rin and misha lay heavily wounded, cornered and unable to assist her, under the protective barrier of misha''s natural ichor, their breaths ragged, and their eyes filled with worry as they watched the final battle unfold. "scriiiiiiiiiiiag¡­!" -ooooooooooooooooong! the lord of capybara let out a thunderous roar in its last moments, charging at alex with surprising speed for its enormous size. -swish! but she dodged the attack with her {blink}, her movements fluid and precise, even with the unfathomable exhaustion. "muuuuuuuuuu!" -swiiiiiish! with a swift motion, she slashed at the creature''s flank, but her blade barely scratched its tough, bloodied hide¡­ the creature was using ancient magic runes to fortify its body with whatever life force still remained in its wounded body. "tsk!" "miu!" a voice gurgled from behind her. "miu!" -ooooooooooooooooooong¡­! miu used the power to control nature for the last time, and created a passage on the body of the lord that would decide this battle for them. and then it fell to the ground, too exhausted to even stand on its small reptilian feet. "muuuuuuuuu!" at the same time, az came and positioned itself between alex and the capybara lord, summoning higher ranking spirits than it had ever been able to, materializing them with its mana, and using their powers to create waters so sharp that¡­ when released, they tore through the very atmosphere before crashing into the passage miu had created! "scarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!" the lord of capybara screamed with every fiber of its being, but this time, it was met with a crimson sword slash that pushed it back, rupturing the most innate parts of the being that kept it alive. "muuuuuuuuuuuu!" the slime urged her to not waste this opportunity. it could tell that despite the utter pain that it was feeling, that creature was still alive from the raging storm of hatred and anger that was surging within it! "this is it!" -swish! seizing the opportunity, alex blinked forward, her sword aimed at the creature''s vulnerable underbelly that was now exposed, all of the inside of the creature including its heart, the core of this ancient being, in her line of sight! -zaaaaaaaaaaaaaa¡­! "ghaaaaaa!" "scarrrrrrrrr¡­" with a powerful thrust, added with a swirling twist of her powerful, colorful aura, she drove her blade into the beast, causing it to howl in pain once again¡­ however, this was the last bit of sound that he had left inside of it¡­ lord of capybara staggered, its strength waning. it was not dead just yet, there was some life left in it still, so¡­ "muuuuuuuuuuu!" az, the slime, continued to assault the creature with waves of water, each strike weakening it further. -swish! "hmph¡­!" finally, with a mighty swing, she struck the creature''s head, and¡­ "grrrr¡­" the lord of capybara collapsed to the ground, defeated. [ding.] the message window was a testament to the end of what had taken them nearly an eternity. but, it was over now¡­ "haaaa¡­ haaaa¡­" breathing heavily, almost on her last bit of energy points and barely conscious at that point, alex turned to her fallen comrades, a triumphant smile present on her blood-ridden face. "rin¡­ misha¡­" she fell to the ground, her hand still grabbing the handle of her crimson sword. "it''s over¡­" she lay down on the ground, before them, with a smile, with a joyous expression of victory, with a feeling that she thought she had forgotten a while ago¡­ "we did it." she was happy. and she knew¡­ "muuuuu~!" it would not have been possible without even one of these individuals. alone by herself? she wouldn''t even consider the possibility at the level she was at. "miu~!" read latest stories on empire az and miu bounced over to them, an excited expression present on the adorable gecko and the grown up faceless slime creature as well. "we did it¡­" she was unnaturally happy right now, misha and rin seeing this smile couldn''t understand the reasoning behind it, however they understood the kind of emotions that alex might be feeling right now. "then¡­" her eyes turned to the center of the shrine, at the giant crystal holding her trophy. "shall we?" she had worked hard, the hardest she had ever since she fell to this lower level. and that green dagger was her reward. a reward that she had earned with her, as well as her companion''s blood sweat and tears¡­ she had earned it, and she had proven herself before the second key on her [existential quest]. the white sword acknowledged her efforts, but it was sad that it didn''t get to experience the fun battle. alex had won, and she was going to be rewarded for that victory, but¡­ a battle was more important than the rewards that one gets. experience, the concept of [{(kal)}], the truth of perpetual learning of an existence, was prevalent among the truth seekers. she knew what she had experienced here was more precious than that dagger¡­ but, that dagger was the key that was going to bring her closer to her darling. not this experience which was still an abstract ''concept'' branched from a truth that shaped the entirety of this world. Chapter 227 Concepts that shape the world alex approached the giant crystal stone in the center of the gazebo-like shrine, her eyes fixed on the green dagger.her white hair sword reacted with a magical light, a colorful aurora shining around it. her blue eyes glowed like the clear sky of a starry night, the moonlight reflecting from the marble around her highlighting the distinctness of the hues of blue. starting from the most basic of the blues that one understood as color blue to the lighter and darker shades of it, there were all kinds of blue colors present here right now, and yet, shining among all those blues was the distinctness of the green that shined like a single tree growing in an endless oceans on all sides. "it''s gorgeous." "all three of them are¡­" run had seen countless swords on the battlefield in her lifetime. she had seen divine weapons granted to the heroes by the absolute beings, she had seen holy swords that the righteous warriors possessed and she had seen the world weapons manifesting from the sheer absolute power that they called truth. she had experienced a lot of things during the wars she fought against the empire as nothing more than a solder, a sacrificial pawn like countless others who had devoted themselves to the rulers who, at the end, couldn''t protect anything that they cherished. she had believed in them until recently, but after meeting these two strange young people who were unimaginably dedicated to one another and their own ideas, so much so that they didn''t care about their own life or about their plans, she started thinking¡­ there was so much that the holy king of their nation could have done to go against the empire. there was so much that they could have done to save so many people that they were responsible for. there was so much that they could have done in order to spill even a little less blood than what was spilled on and off the battlefield. "the green dagger recognises the crimson sword and the white sheathed sword¡­ are they a set or something? could they be part of the white sword somehow? is that why you call them keys?" "hmm¡­ something like that." alex¡­ even elio. that boy¡­ he was always good to the people and creatures around them. he treated everything as if they were his equal or someone of even higher importance. different from other people who have power and try to show it at every chance they get, he didn''t brag about what he could do. actually, now that she thought about it, she didn''t know much about either of their past lives or what kind of people they were in the world that they come from. they were extraordinary, that much was obvious, but the fact that they were able to do so much, the fact that he would chose to save a little girl even at the cost of an unimaginable penalty like that, and the fact that she would spend a fortune just to come to this forest to get this dagger and go to him¡­ made then even more amazing. he was selfless, while she was selfish. weirdly, they were not perfect for one another and yet somehow, they completed one another. "alright¡­" several profound philosophical questions shape this reality and influence each and every element''s conscious and unconscious actions. the nature of power and responsibility are one of the vague questions that shape this world, but the fact that great powers attract greater responsibilities remains true. alex understood that better than most other elements of this world as someone who formerly held a great responsibility within this world. she had fulfilled her duties, she did not have any obligations left, so she chose to do what she had always wanted, and gave up what powers she had just to play with the person that mattered the most to her. sear?h the nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "haaaa¡­" holding the dagger that had already recognised her as its new owner, she slowly pulled it out of the crystal seal that, in the very next moment, shattered into a fine power¡­ something which vanished the very next moment. "the first key is called crimson of unrestricted. and this one¡­" she looked at the dagger in her hand from all angles, a weapon so beautifully crafted that even rin had never seen something like this in her long journey. there was something more to this dagger than what one could understand. it contained powers, powers that were even more diverse than the simple ability to freely slash through anything like her crimson sword could. "it''s called jade of justice." the interconnectedness of life is highlighted by the dagger''s ability to control nature, control laws that are set for anyone and everyone, and the ability to justify things that are too abstract for even the enlightened minds. this looked like a smile and small weapon, a small dagger no bigger than misha''s forearm, but in fact, just like the crimson sword that could cut through even the fragmented evil beings of near divine nature, this was more than what met to their eyes. "it''s pretty¡­" misha''s eyes gleamed as she saw this dagger. she could feel something familiar from this dagger, something she attributed to her ichor. but, it was something more than just the energy that she could use. this dagger¡­ there was something more to this. be it the material that it was made from or the very fact that it was something that could affect not just the nature but even the other abstract elements of nature that aren''t just, this beautiful dagger was a powerful item. so powerful and important that just obtaining this item had unlocked a bunch of her lost levels, a few skills, and above everything else¡­ ''it''s victor. this is better than i expected¡­'' similar to the silver ancient markings of the servants that elio had, there was now a golden marking on her hand as well. and, the appearance of this mark had made her happier than when she defeated that lord capybara. "this is great." the struggle between good and evil, in this case, is examined through the presence of the lord of capybara, raising questions about the subjective nature of abstract concepts like if the creature needed to die or not. if the dagger was a representation of justice, the truth known as [{(nyaya)}] the truth that maintained order this world, then did the death of a powerful and wise creature like that capybara actually mean something? tension between fate and free will being a recurring theme here, alex''s quest for the dagger actually challenged elio''s belief of ''not'' killing things that didn''t need death. "we shall rest a little before departing." "yes¡­ i need that¡­" "muuuu!" "miu~." the pursuit of knowledge and truth¡­ their journey¡­ the importance of curiosity and learning, is not a central theme anymore. "yeah¡­ can i see that dagger, sister alex?" "oh, yes. here." explore hidden tales at empire elio''s ways, alex''s longing for him, misha''s search for strength, and her mother''s search for her purpose in this life¡­ these philosophical questions add depth to the very world and their journey. a journey that a few had been enjoying since a long time ago¡­ Chapter 228 A stall in the capital in the heart of viv''s bustling capital, a modest stall could be seen between rows of merchants and artisans.the smell of freshly baked bread and pastries spreading through the air drew curious glances from passersby. behind the counter, erisea, the pretty girl in her early twenties, her light-brown hair loosely braided and tucked beneath a flour-dusted cap, greeted her customers with a smile. her hands, worn from long hours of kneading dough, burned a little from the magical baking fire that she used, her face still bright and cheery, worked swiftly and precisely as she arranged her golden loaves, donuts of non-round shape, rolls filled with various meats and fruit jellies, biscuits, cookies, and delicately crafted pastries on display. the sign above her stall simply read maru''s bakes, but it didn''t really belong to her, just like this shop. she was simply renting it after paying a little silver to the owner. "can i have two of those?" "please give us that one!" "hey! i''ll pay more! just let me have that one!" "no! rules are rules! the line is there! no breaking the line!" the foreign visitors, with their distinct clothing in this capital city and casual demeanor, often referred to her as the "baker newbie." it hadn''t been too long since she appeared in this street. at most, it was a little over a week, and yet she had become the talk of the town in the capital city. "the rules are rules! breaking them will have consequences!" these foreigners were not like the other inhabitants of viv who had lived here for a long time; they were players from another world. to them, erisea, who was wearing a concealing item hiding her player status, was an npc. s~ea??h the ¦Çov§×lfire .net website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. she appeared out of nowhere one day and then she started selling her fresh goods that were preserved in enchanted plates so that they are always warm. she wasn''t the owner of this shabby shop, but the things that she was selling were unlike anything that they could find in this simple street. it most definitely wasn''t street food. the things that she was selling gave them high quality buffs that the players don''t find with things as cheap as what she was selling. the things that she was selling were too good to be made by a newbie player that didn''t even seem to have achieved their first awakening and they were also so cheap that a player who understood the prices of their goods would sell at such a cheap price. she was also strict with the rules that she had set. anyone who wanted to buy anything from her stall would first have to form a line. breaking the line wasn''t allowed and breaking into the line wasn''t allowed. she would open according to her convenience and only after she is open would she start selling her goods. the things that she would sell every day were limited, and it did not matter if someone from a big guild or was the queen of this nation itself, if one wanted to buy anything from her, they would have to stand in line and wait for their turn. she also didn''t care about money. the price for each and every thing she sold was already set and even if one was ready to pay a thousand times more than what the rates were, she wouldn''t sell them if they weren''t in the line. one person could only purchase a maximum of three things of any category. and, a guild or a group can only purchase a maximum of twelve items from her per day regardless of their actual size. she was strict with her rules, and as the one who temporarily owned this stall, she knew her rights as a seller so she had asked for help from the capital guards, the elite guards of (level-200)+ who were famous all throughout the world for their strengths and abilities. they knew even with one of these guards present, they couldn''t do anything to her or to that stall. they can try and break her rules if they wanted to dare, but they would immediately be blacklisted and would never be allowed anywhere near this stall. "next~." your next chapter awaits on empire there was a new line in this street that started from the face of her stall and went all the way to the main road more than half a kilometer away from there. she was dominating the market since she appeared, and thanks to her, the other people were also getting more business, so they didn''t mind her at all. especially when they were getting free things from her that they can sell out to these desperate players for much more money than what they would make through their goods each day. she was a blessing to them¡­ and¡­ you don''t curse the goddess that blesses you. you worship them. so, they did just that. and embraced her warm grace. "how''s the baker newbie doing today~?" one of the regulars who she had somehow seen multiple times by now called out, her tone light and teasing as she handed over a handful of coins for a warm, stuffed roll. "you like that a lot, i see." "half of the capital likes this¡­ i won''t be surprised if the queen comes here and says she likes these as well." "haha, don''t say silly things. why would the queen be here~?" erisea smiled, though the compliment made her cheeks flush slightly. the queen was still not someone she can approach even with her high status within these streets or among these players. her father or big brother could perhaps, perhaps alex as well, but she was still not so popular that the queen of the only kingdom of the western continent would come to this shabby place just to try her stuffed bread. "i''m not being silly, huhuhu. this is great. every time i eat this, i feel like it is improving little by little. it''s not even a question that you''re working hard for this each and every day." she complimented her once again, took a bite from her meat stuffed bread, and placed her free hand on her cheek as she felt the delight run though her entire soul. this bread, and the filling, was amazing. so much so that she always thought the limit of three items per person was nothing less than a curse. "haaa¡­ if i could, i''d buy everything you have in a heartbeat, erisea." "yeah, no. that''s not happening, miss. everyone is standing here for these things as well. there are rules and we should follow those rules at least a little bit." she packed the rest of the stuff in a special, premium bag and urged her to go in her way. the people looking at her eating that bread was almost drooling right now. and though it was a great sign for a creator, for someone who still looked after their personal hygiene, she couldn''t see them like that. "please come again~." erisea had gotten used to saying that after having her irl shop for so long. "oh, of course~. see ya in three days~." "sure~." she didn''t know if she would still be in the capital in three days, but she didn''t have any motivation to leave this place anytime soon. she was having fun being called the baker newbie and this whole gig. seeing people long for something so simple, something made from the things that they usually don''t even eat, was a new and fun experience for her. the whole ''fame'' and the new customer drama that she got to see was much more fun than her irl work where she just made and made and made all kinds of things. she was a baker and a creator but at the same time, she also enjoyed seeing the reactions of the people who ate her dishes. it was something she had left behind as she moved ahead of intrapersonal boundaries and gratifications. she worked on herself and she continued working on herself until she was able to create things that earned her that golden star, and she had struggled to achieve what she had. "next~." she was used to compliments and praises by now¡ª but unlike what she had thought, opening a stall and not a fancy shop that might put more restrictions on her customer base was a great idea. she had not yet forgotten what it actually meant to have fun with the selling part instead of just the creating part, and with all these people and this specific open setting, she was having fun¡­ that much was certain. "i''ll have three of the snowflake donuts please." "yes~!" this stall, these baked goods, were her passion, not a quest objective. she was simply doing what she liked, and she was doing it in a much better environment where she was still not recognised. people called her a newbie and at the same time, they praised her just as much as how people in their reality praised her. "thank you~. please come again~." "if fate allows it, yes." "haha~." despite the foreign nickname, she was proud of her work. she may have been new to the market, but each day she sold her bread, her pastries, she felt a little closer to becoming something more¡ªsomething much more than what she already was. ''this is more fun than when i was hunting with dad.'' she was carried on by her dad and big brother and thanks to them, she was already (level-110). she had achieved her first awakening already and she had earned some unique abilities like they have, but she wasn''t yet sure what she actually wanted to do in this world. she liked playing, she liked baking, and she liked selling as well. so, she wanted to reach out to even more people, but to do that she would have to do something more than what she was doing right now. a stall in the capital, unlike what she had anticipated, wasn''t that big a deal. she needed something more than that¡­ if possible she wanted as much traffic as what the capital''s magic tower, or the adventurer''s association has. but that would be crazy, and she would need a castle to fit that many people. and, a castle would not be a cafe or bakery or something modest as she liked it. she had a plan, but she still needed some time to properly prepare herself for what she was thinking right now¡­ "next~." but until then, she was happy with these small things. she was happy. that was more than enough. Chapter 229 Celestial essence "so from what we know until now¡­"elio was sitting inside of his cave this time, and it had been around four months since he came to this forest/mountain top. "this mountain is the center of the blank area that no one knows much about. the forest below this mountain is saturated with monsters of high level, monsters so dangerous that they could kill even the strongest of the individuals. there are hundreds of them down there and only the strongest of them can climb the mountain and reach this ''paradise'' which directly connects them with the high heavens." [{ ummm¡­ master? why are we calling the river the high heavens? }] "it simply sounds good, sera. don''t mind that." sera didn''t understand why she asked that question when she knew there was no great reason behind him calling it like that but she ignored it for now. "so, this place is somehow connected to what all those monsters want innately. they cannot approach this place in normal circumstances, however, every month, there comes a day when the strong wind barrier around the top of this mountain vanishes and a red night befalls us¡­ it specifically happens when the moon is between the sun and the planet, on the nights of new moons." he had experienced the red night three times by now. and just like the first time, the other two times were just as horrible as the first one. "the red night is skipped after three months, just like how it''s happening today, and instead of that, a unique blue radiance spreads across the mountain top. enjoy new chapters from empire this is also the time when this unique grass grows in some parts of the mountain." even after finding relentlessly, he had not found that green grass for a reason. "that creature, as we saw yesterday, needs this grass but it cannot detect the grass like we do. it needs it and it tries to hide its existence, but we know what it wants now." the grass started appearing early this morning and since his friends had been on the move for a long time, and thanks to his eyes, he knew about this grass earlier than that creature. procuring it faster than a being that could move faster than sound was difficult, very difficult, but he had still obtained a fair share of this grass thanks to his eyes that seemed to be the only element that could actually perceive this grass. "hmmm¡­" the grass, now that he was looking at it closely, was not a simple thing. and, by nature, it was something that wasn''t supposed to be revealed to anyone. ===status=== [lunar fangs] : when the moonlight is condensed with the natural ichor, and concentrates in a certain kind of soil abundant with nutrients, a grass containing the properties of the [lunar celestial] or better known as the moon, is born on the physical world. being the essence of the lunar celestial''s power, this grass contains an abundance of ichor, nutrients, and the ability to sustain and harmonize one''s innate energy. ¡ª can be used as an ingredient, as an elixir, as a material for taming, as a substitute for an energy source, as a material for magic wand, or as a medium in magic casting. [advice: collect as many of these as possible within the given time frame: 5 days.] ============ "at least, we now know why that creature wanted this grass. but still, the fact that it didn''t let go of even a single blade of this grass the first time, it seems like it''s more important for it than what we expect." they had seen the power of this creature. they had seen just how strong it was and they had seen just how that power would need a great amount of energy. divine power was not something that one just obtained and could use eternally. the base of all power was the energy that would power it. for most individuals of high rank who possessed the [divinity] stat, the sustenance and preservation of their power was one of the important aspects to take care of. not the high rankers or the people who had progressed far on their paths and could obtain strength from the truth itself, could use their unimaginable powers continuously. they also have limitations, just that those limitations are a little different from the limitations of the simpler players. "if this thing is so important to that creature, i''m telling you, sera. it will come to us." he had thought for a long time on how they could meet this creature. about what they would do even if they come across it once again. there were many ways that he could use this grass to his advantage. he was the only one that could see this grass despite its mystical nature so he could help that creature get more of this grass. however, if he played nice here and just helped it, he wouldn''t get what he wanted. he wouldn''t get the exit that he needed to get out of here, and he wouldn''t get the creature that could take him out of the forest below either. "it will come here and either negotiate with us if it knows killing us won''t do it any good, or it will try and deal with us in some different manner." elio knew that creature would come to them at the very least. he was hoarding over four dozen of these grass blades, these lunar fangs in his inventory so, the creature that couldn''t let go of even one of these grass blades, would definitely reveal itself to them. the main reason he was back to his cave was exactly because of his fears and concerns of what that creature would do when it confronts them. he was sure that they would come here even though he didn''t know what they would do, at the very least. that''s why he was in the safest place he knew. and¡­ { "human! } he was right. { "answer me!" } at last, they finally showed themselves before the two of them. s~ea??h the n?velfire(.)net website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 230 Conversation with the divine the voice that they heard out of the blue was not something simple. it was deep, and yet there was a unique kind of pureness in this voice that elio couldn''t understand."¡­hello?" { "human!" } the being whose voice they were hearing right now, was not visible this time either. it was simply there, but at the same time, they couldn''t really see it. it wasn''t visible, but at least, their voice was present here. and that was more than enough. "hello? who''s this?" elio was looking around but his eyes wanted to be focused in a certain corner of this cave. but he avoided looking in that direction knowing that creature might actually be there. { "that! i can tell you can see me! how are you doing that! human! answer me!" } "hmmm?" he didn''t look that way to avoid scaring the creature, but he was found out. the creature somehow knew he was there, though elio didn''t know for certain if it was there or not. his eyes reacting and pointing him in that direction, that was simply all that he was seeing. he didn''t really know if that creature was there or not, he didn''t feel anything special from that place, aside from his eyes'' reaction to that place, he had no idea where that voice was coming from, but that creature knew he knew about it. so there was no reason to hide it anymore. "well, i''ll clarify the fact that i have no idea how i am doing this either. just like the lunar fangs, my eyes just pointed me that way as well." { "¡­! how do you know about that name?!" } elio unconsciously moved his head since his eyes were reacting to some kind of movements, but he knew he was actually reacting to the movements of that invisible creature at the moment. "i don''t really know that either. these eyes of mine told me." { "what?!" } he heard that voice, and, in the very next moment, in a fraction of a second, he felt something he had felt the first time he perceived this creature. he also ''saw'' two distinct eyes looking back at his eyes that he had seen before, the same purple eyes that had been the driving force which made him continue his search for this possibly nonexistent creature. { "¡­!" } it was only for a split second this time as well, but this time, elio was the one who looked back into those unique purple eyes. actually, it was his eyes that looked back at them, but he did not understand that well. { "those eyes¡­!" } with a timid voice, the afraid creature screamed. { "what are those eyes¡­!" } "hmmm?" it seemed like his eyes somehow frightened the creature. for some reason, the voice that had felt to be coming from around him, had felt to be at a distance this time around. and then, the cave fell silent¡­ "hello?" [{ what just happened, master? }] "i have no idea either¡­ sera." he looked around, but his eyes didn''t react. he looked above him and there was nothing there either. then he felt something with his eyes once again, and this time, he squinted his eyes to see at a distance. { "aik¡­!" } and it was at this moment that they heard the mana voice of that creature once again. { "you''re scary!" } they heard a distant scream, and then, the creature disappeared from there for real. "¡­?" and elio was left there confused. ''the creature that killed hundreds of those monsters in a blink of my eyes says i am the scary one? what the hell?'' sera was just as confused as him since she had also seen the kind of calamity that being was. she did not expect it to be so timid. she had not expected to fear someone''s eyes either. it was unprecedented that a creature as powerful as that would be afraid of someone simply because of their eyes. but it was happening right now. a divine being had run away after being seen through by someone, or perhaps the reason behind it was something deeper than what either of them could understand at the moment. "now what?" [{ should we go and find them? }] "well¡­ actually¡­ i think we should wait here. give them some time to think about stuff. they are the ones who need the grass that we have anyway, not the other way around at the moment." they had the upper hand already, and their fear of his eyes just made things simpler for them. [{ hmmm¡­ alright. }] sera simply flew from elio''s head and went to their tent to pick some things for them. they had been working since the early morning, searching for that grass, collecting each one of them before that creature found them. he was exhausted, she knew that, so she brought some food and fetched some water from the spring in the back. { "¡­" } continue your adventure at empire it did not take long for that creature to come back to this cave and for his eyes to pick up their presence. "we can talk, you know? i don''t really want to harm you or anything." there was no way he could harm this creature anyway. taking away some grass and storing it away in his inventory was the only thing that he could do anyway. { "you are a weird human¡­" } elio was eating and, as if he knew that creature would come back, he had prepared some blades of that grass beside him for it. "will you join us? we can talk¡­ there''s no need to be afraid of a characteristic that not even the one possessing that characteristic has much understanding of. i cannot hurt you even if i wanted to anyway." a creature that can kill beings- monsters- of high level several times in a short period of time, could very well dispose of them in an instant. they were the ones who should fear it, but it was the other way around here. which, it shouldn''t be. { "the two human that came here the last time weren''t like you." } -ooooooooooooooooong. a silver smoke discharged, and a being of rather unexpected form revealed itself. { "you''re weird." } it was not fluffy, as the timid voice had suggested it to be. it was not a bunny either, though it surely looked like one. half of its body seemed to be made from the silver fog that disintegrated the bodies of the monsters that the silver lightning sparking around its body had killed. its eyes were a deep purple, an unnatural royal color that one could not understand with simple description. there was wisdom in them, there was authority and power in them. they were unique, as well as a total contradiction of the actual form this creature possessed. { "your servant is weird as well." } a body made of silver fog and adorned with crackling lightning, eyes resembling jewel orbs, and a body that somehow seemed mysterious even though it resembled a mixture of a bunny and a fox. there were many ways one could describe this creature. but, even if one wanted, they would have an innate instinct not to do it, not to confine it within their limited descriptions. it was a unique creature¡­ { "and your eyes are the weirdest." } but, it didn''t seem to want to harm them yet. sear?h the n??elfir§×.net website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. and that was a good start¡­ Chapter 231 Weird people "you are the weird one here, not us."elio continued sitting in his place as he moved his head around to see the creature that was now circling around them. it seemed to be evaluating them, observing them closely for what was needed to be done with them. it needed the grass that they were hiding, that much was certain, however, that wasn''t all there was to this. { "there''s nothing weird about me. i''m not the one who could see divine beings with eyes that somehow possesses the ability to see the [truth] to some extent. i''m also not a servant that possesses locked up celestial powers. i''m simply what i am. there''s nothing weird about ''i'' from anyone but your perspective." } the creature had three fox like tails, just that like its entire body which seemed to be made from that silver fog, these tails were semi-physical. the creature itself was somewhat adorable, however, there was still a lot that he couldn''t under about this creature. "what exactly are you? my eye skill reacts to you but unlike the other creatures, it doesn''t tell me anything about you." { "just the fact that it reacts to my existence is a big thing. not many ''things'' could comprehend a divine existence. you see, since you''re simply a dumb human from another world, you shouldn''t even have been able to see me even as i stand before you. that''s what distinguishes mortal from the divine. my very existence should have been like an incomprehensible concept to you¡­ yet it doesn''t seem to be the case." } elio looked at him, some confusion and some clarity now present in his mind. "well i guess we are unique, but isn''t your existence still a more weird thing?" explore hidden tales at empire a creature that understands its divine nature, a being so powerful that it can protect this paradise all by itself, a natural calamity that must have guarded this place for a very long time. there were many things about this creature that not only were pretty and great, but also were scary and terrifying. and yet, it feared the eyes that elio had. it feared being seen by someone it can deal with in a matter of seconds. it needed a simple blade of grass to perhaps sustain itself, and just for that grass, it had come all the way to him despite its shy nature. and now that they were before one another, that creature was calling him weird. { "i''m nothing weird. if anything, i''m simple and normal. i have done what i like and i cannot do it right now since you''ve stolen my leaves!" } it screamed at him, and though not physically, elio felt a strong surge of emotion urging him to give up the grass that had collected. that urge was so strong that, for a moment, he felt himself being under a daze and taking out the grass from his inventory. but¡­ [{ master! snap out of it! }] sera was there with him, so he came to his senses¡­ and soon realized what had just happened. { "see! your response was normal! you do what the one with higher authority wants willingly! and yet that doesn''t apply to this angel bird!" } the creature seemed upset. elio looked at sera for a moment since he thought that creature had used some kind of trick on him, but what actually happened was much simpler. "so¡­ this is what they call divine authority?" { "this is your first time experiencing it and yet! look at you! why are you resisting it so well with that weak constitution of yours!?" } the creature was frustrated. it could not understand why elio was doing so well before him when he was just a weak human. furthermore, he couldn''t understand why sera was the way she was right now. all of this frustrated the creature, and it simply couldn''t take it anymore. { "haaaa!" } it sat down on the side where elio had placed those grass for it, picked up one of the blades, and started chewing on it from not the pointed tops but from the middle part. { "it seems neither of you understand yourselves much." } the creature looked at elio with its purple eyes which seemed to be looking right into his soul, and the same way, it looked at sera. though, the way it was eating that grass simply made it seem more adorable than intimidating. "we might not know as much as you about ourselves, but you know what? we don''t really know anything about you at all. in fact, didn''t you mention the two humans that came before me? can you tell me about them? or about how to get out of this place?" sea??h th§× novel(f~)ire.net website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. elio still had the same goal as he did when he came here. he had to get out, and now that he was before the creature that could help him get out of here, he didn''t mind coming straight to the point. { "hmm? you want to get out? does¡­ do you mean you want to get out of this cave? or this forest? or this mountain region?" } "out of this dangerous place, beyond the forest under the mountain preferably." with or without this creature''s assistance, he had to get out of here. and this creature who seemed to have been here for a long time was the only one that might know the way out. { "hmmm? you want to go away? you¡­ do you not know how to do that? haven''t you been here for a while now? why do you think those creatures come here when the sky turns red?" } "hmm? is there a reason? i just thought they were mad and driven by some kind of innate intense desire¡­" they were monsters in his eyes, and he didn''t think there was any great reason for those monsters to have any ''reason'' for doing what they were doing. { "see. that''s why i said you''re the weird ones." } the rabbit, the divine creature, looked at both elio and sera with an upset, helpless expression. it didn''t know how it had fallen into this situation, but, the two that he was before right now¡­ were quite dumb. they knew pretty much nothing about where they were and what was happening here. they were different from the two that came here before them¡­ so, it had no choice but to educate them itself. { "haaaaa¡­ the lake in the center of this forest. it''s a boundary." } the creature started speaking and, at the same time as when it did, alex and her party had arrived in the capital city of the kingdom of viv. Chapter 232 Secret of the red night a boundary.a unique place that divides one spatial coordinate from the other. though this is a rare phenomenon, there are boundaries all around the world that connect one place with another, a place that acts like a natural teleportation system. though, unlike the gates and magic scrolls of teleportation that actually creates a medium that connects two distinct spatial coordinates, a boundary is basically like a hole in a flat fabric. even though it works pretty much the same as the normal gates, it is not as safe as the maintained transportation mediums¡­ they are dangerous, and in some cases, they connect one world with another. those that connect one world with another are called [world boundaries]. but, the lake in the center of the forest wasn''t anything like that. { "it''s a place called ''final plains'' or something. i''ve only been there in the past so i don''t know much about it, but that place apparently exists somewhere else. and that makes it the only actual exit to this entire region since just like how the winds cover the mountain top most of the days, the same winds cover the entire area around this mountain and the forest under it. even i do not know what those winds are but they are the same as a barrier. not even i can get past them, so those dumb beasts are obviously trapped here as well. however, this lake is the exit, and all the beasts instinctively know that. they are attracted to the strong energy that concentrates around the lake during the new moons. and, coincidentally, it is also the day when the barrier covering this specific mountain top vanishes." } the fluffy creature explained to them how this might be due to the effects of the moonlight or the red light that is produced for that specific duration in that specific period. it did not really know much about why it happened, but it explained to them all that it knew about the night, how it was concentrated on that lake for some reason, how the lake was a boundary, and how there was something about that ''exit'' that attracted all those creatures. { "this place is mostly closed off so no one can go in and out of here unless they deal with the wind currents. which, from what i know, is actually possible." } this was an interesting part. elio had been waiting for this strangely chatty creature to reach this part. { "there were two people, two strange humans like you from some different world that came here a few years ago. and they came here after touring through those wind currents. they used some kind of special technique, but most of it was because of their great power. they were nothing like what i had seen until then. they can see me as well, but unlike you who can do it because of some strange eye skill, they can do it because i was simply that much slower in their eyes. they weren''t intimidating, instead, they called me ''cute''¡­ the way that strange woman looked at me and the way that amazing man looked at me were completely different. s~ea??h the n??elfir§×.net website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. but, the way they looked at one another indicated a bond so deep i have only seen it among some special creatures of this forest. some special creature who bond with their partner for their lifetime." } elio didn''t really have to ask more about these two individuals. just from that little description, he could tell who this creature might be talking about. "did they tell you their name? was it something like (white wing) and (black wing)?" those were names that any mortal in this world, player or native, would know in a heartbeat. { "oh! so you do know about them! you are not as oblivious as i thought you''d be!" } the pinnacle of mortality, the highest ranking individuals on the unified rankings, the gods of sword and magic¡­ the honored ones. the heavens that achieved their fourth awakening along with their godhood and ascended to a realm that was beyond any of the mortals present here. there was no way he would not know them. they were living legends that no one knew much about. only a few people had ever seen them, and even fewer knew about them¡­ however, they had left the mark of their existence on this world deeply. ''be it the first conquest of the highest difficulty dungeons, be it exploration of the furthest points of this world, be it making achievements in the creation and destruction fields, or be it their sheer uniqueness that lifted them above everyone else¡­ the wing-couple as the world called them. ''they were here¡­'' they came here on their own, and they went back with their own will. ''they scared a divine beast with their mere presence. and they even made me admire them.'' elio had not met them, but alex had. and from all that she had told him about them, he knew just how amazing those two were. { "they were strong so they could do whatever they wanted, but you''re a weird human. not only are you as weak as a twig, you fell out of nowhere. you somehow befriended creatures that didn''t even come close to those two, and you even stole my grass! if not weird, i don''t even know what i should call you!" } hearing about those two was surely a surprise for him. and he wanted to know more about them. more than how to get out of here, he wanted to know more about this special creature that had met those legendary figures personally. "you can call me elio. that''s my name in this world and from where i come from as well. and this is sera. stay updated through empire we might not know as much as a genius figure like you, but we would be honored if you could tell us more about our lowly selves. as well as your great being-." { "that human woman taught me how this way of talking is called ''buttering up'' to someone. if you''re trying that, it''s not going to work. i''ll warn you about that." } from the looks of it, it certainly seemed to be working though. "i''m sorry. i didn''t mean to do that." but telling this little one that would cause trouble so he just continued on with his question. and, with a new motivation, the creature answered his questions as well. it was actually happy while he talked with him for some reason¡­ Chapter 233 About the famous newbie xander. the capital of the kingdom of viv.established a long, long time ago, this kingdom was older than even the empire, the largest power of the western continent. the kingdom was the straight in the far past, it used to be the best place where the most talented people had gathered and was operated by some of the greatest minds that had ever lived, but then, a dragon ran rampant on the west and broke the entire land into pieces. "oho?" it quite genuinely broke the continent and various rulers of that time, who were divided by the separated lands, waged war against one another to get as much land to incorporate into their own territories. the empire was established back then, and then it continued existing along with the rest of the nations, as well as the kingdom that was left on the continent. "next~." alex was back in the kingdom''s capital after a long time. she started her actual journey here, in this very city, and after doing all kinds of amazing things in this fun place, she went out to see the great world that existed all around them in this vast world. s§×arch* the n??efire.¦Çet website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. she traveled, she stayed in certain places, she fought in wars, she gained strength, she explored places, she met people and she did some favors to some acquaintances. she made friends, but above all that¡­ she lived a free life here that she had not lived in the real world out there. ''she has a long line of customers like the rumors said.'' she remembered her past on this street where olive was selling her goods right now. she thought back to the days when she too was a newbie. there were many fun things that she had done in this kingdom, in this city. she fought her first big scale battle in this very city for the first time around nine years ago. ''fun times¡­'' she thought back to a lot of things, to a lot of events, to a lot of good memories and a few bad ones that she didn''t want to remember. ''well¡­'' but, all of that had happened a long time ago. the world was a different place from what it used to be back then and the kind of changes that the world had faced due to her actions were great as well. a lot of things happened because of her, and though she did not have the kind of power that she used to, she knew a lot more things were going to happen because of her going forward as well. and, she knew all of this was going to start from this point on. "shall we go greet her, master?" she had left misha and rin and az and miu at the in and had come to the shopping street to get olive. they arrived in the capital just a few hours ago so the rest of the crew was sleeping while she had come out to get her friend with her servant- victor. unlike sera who was a small white bird, this person was a butler. a classic butler with a plain white beard and white hair without any glasses. his red eyes reflected the blue sky above them. "yeah, let''s go." she had received the second key from the forest of nozama so now this was time for them to go and get the third key before they plan the large-scale raid into the blank zone that had never been conquered until now. she had contacted the people that she knew could help her, as well as people that were strong enough to go against the monsters that were present there without attracting too much attention. she could call a few of the high rankers but that would be too much for a small thing like a forest full of monsters. those people were doing bigger quests in some important parts of the world so disturbing them when she knew they might not even be able to come there at her call was not like her. she knew she could save her baby from that place with a small force and she was going to do that. a lot of things were on the line so before he figured out a way to get out of there, she knew she would have to work faster to get what she needed and move to the bigger things. and now that the most important part of the game was done and she had the second key in her hands, she knew she wouldn''t have to worry about the third one that much. "hey there, pretty miss." alex skipped the line and wet straight to the corner, attracting attention of everyone standing in the line as well as the people who had stalls and shops around her as well. this was a famous stop, everyone knew the famous newbie in the city now. the talk of her goods had already spread all around the kingdom and people were coming here just to stand in the line or to get something from her that the other people could not. many scouts form the big guilds were in the line right now, many servants of the nobles from all around the kingdom were standing in this line, and there were people here who, unknown to many others, were on the rankings and were famous. "hmm? hey! how many times do i have to repeat the rule-¡­ oh! hey there~!" olive didn''t realize who this was at first since victor, the big old butler, was with her, but she realized it in a moment and a bright smile appeared on her face. "you said you''d need a few more days~! you''re early this time unlike your habit." olive was excited to see her friend for the first time in the game¡­ however, it was business hours right now. "come in here. help me with the order~." it was better to finish the work for the day and then chat. find your next adventure on empire "oh, sure." and alex didn''t really have anything better to do anyway so she went inside the stall that had now gotten much better however, there was now a blank sign on the name area of the shop. she didn''t really want to be limited to just this place even though her popularity was increasing rapidly. she wanted to go and try the other big cities, then the empire, the theocracy, then the other continents as well. being a traveling merchant- a traveling baker to be precise, was not a bad idea either. "we are going to have two places today, everyone! but the line will remain the same!" the announcement was made. but the people were not happy to hear this. it just meant everything would be sold out sooner, so¡­ a new disappointment spread throughout the long line. Chapter 234 Sir Victor "oh man¡­"finally, they were done for the day. "here, master." victor took out two glasses for the ladies along with a jar of fresh, cool water and passed the glasses to them. "oh, thanks." however, just right now, this butler of hers had taken out those things out of nowhere. as if taking them out of an inventory, but, unlike how things just appear before then when taking them out of an inventory, he had taken it out of a ripple that suddenly appeared before him. "miss?" victor didn''t understand why olive was staring at him, so he looked at her with a worried expression. however, right when she did, olive came back to her senses and took her eyes away from his black glove covered hands. "oh, apologies." she accepted the cup from him, and then she looked at alex for some kind of answer. "what?" but alex didn''t want to answer her questions even though she knew what olive was wondering. she just smirked at her and drank her glass of water. "does he have some kind of skill? like our inventory?" "what do you think?" olive had reached a conclusion after a little thinking, but alex shook her head without denying. she was still smirking, and she knew olive would find the answer if she thought a little harder, so alex just looked at victor without saying much. and, victor used the same ability once again to help olive get a little better understanding of his power. "it''s not a skill¡­" olive had skills that can detect the use of skills, so she knew this wasn''t a skill. there wasn''t much of a difference between her and alex so she can tell if this older person was her servant, there wouldn''t be that big a difference between them either. she couldn''t see victor''s status window for some reason, but she can tell it was because of his skill. however, this ability to store things in a special dimension was not a skill. and, it was not because of any items either. "is it magic? spatial magic¡­ perhaps?" "that is correct, young lady." he answered respectfully, knowing full well how this person was important for his master. he was one of the remaining servants that alex had before she lost her power, however she had told them she would call them back soon. and, though victor was the last of the many servants that alex had ever had, this time, he was honored to be the first one to be chosen as her aid. there was nothing more honorable for him than to help this person, his amazing master, the one he looked up to the most in this vast world. "you''re a spatial mage?! wow!" olive didn''t think much of him at first since he looked too normal and too simple, but she forgot for a moment alex was a big individual in this world as well. if someone was her servant, there was no way they would be someone ''simple'' in any manner. "hahaha. victor isn''t just a spatial mage, olive. that''s just his unique magic attribute. he can use elemental magic and natural magic as well as chaos magic. he''s also great at a lot more stuff actually." she praised him greatly. "i''m undeserving of such praise, master." but he was humble. and simple bowed to her for the praise. "chaos magic¡­?" however, there was something that olive didn''t understand. "isn''t that what demons use?" she had been in this world for a few months now and thanks to her dad and brother, she knew a good lot about at least the basic stuff. "yup. he''s an archdemon if you can''t tell. that''s the reason your simple appraisal skill didn''t work on him." "¡­?!" she said it so casually that for a moment, olive was stuck thinking what she had even said just now. "what?!" but, when she understood what she was saying, she looked back at the old man, her eyes wide open¡­ and an amazed expression present on her face. "that''s soooooo cool!!!" she shouted so loudly that her voice was heard even across the street. there was a deep admiration present in her eyes now, unlike what one might be expecting after hearing the word ''demon''. "shhhh. don''t be too excited. we''ll be in trouble if others find out, haha. we might even have to erase their memories." demons. they weren''t really seen as evil beings as the actual evil beings of the dark world. demons, the real ones, were simply a race of chaos, a different world from theirs. explore more at empire in some parts of this world, they were even respected beings that were closer to their paths than most humans could ever be. "haha, yes yes. sorry." this was the first time she was seeing a demon. and just like she had heard, there is no way to tell them apart from the humans. their natural disguising ability was just that strong. "it''s so cool that you have someone as cool as sir victor as your servant." there were genuine stars in her eyes. they were talking about beings who existed far above in the natural hierarchy of this world. they didn''t serve anyone but themselves, and yet, she had someone as amazing as victor as her servant. "young miss. it is in fact an honor of mine to have been chosen by the master to serve under her. i''m merely a small child before the vast experiences she has." it was the truth. he was the last servant that she summoned through the servant card that she obtained through a legendary achievement reward box. before him, she had servants that were even more powerful, famous, and unique. some of them left her before he met her, and he knew how they left heroically. she remembered them, and told those who were left about them every chance she had. "don''t listen to him, olive. he''s just being formal. it''s his thing so forget about him and tell me¡­ how have you been? and where''s that coin you were talking about?" alex didn''t just come here to greet her and chat with her. she was here for more than that. she wanted to talk with her about a few things. and the main thing that she wanted to talk about was obviously the strange coin that she had been stressing out about for the last few weeks now¡­ s§×arch* the nov§×lf~ire.net website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 235 Secret of the Coin "hmmm¡­"alex was looking at the small bronze coin closely for a while now and she was also searching through her database for references and information on those things since a while back. there were a bunch of things that she had been confirming since a while ago, and, when she was done examining the small bronze coin, she nodded and handed it to victor. -ooooooooooooong! then victor examined with his own magic and skills, looked at the aspects of this coin with techniques that alex could not use, and when he was done¡­ which was about an hour after she handed him that coin, he nodded as well and placed the coin on the table before them. "you''re right, master. it''s the same as them." they were in the inn room where alex and the rest of them were staying. misha was playing with the new big sister erisea, and the slime and gecko duo were jumping around the place like usual. sear?h the n??el fire.n§×t website on google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. they were all happy to meet olive, and they absolutely loved the things that she had made for them. be it her sweets or the baked stuffed bread. all of it was an absolute delight that they enjoyed with every particle of their souls, and now, they were playing. stay tuned for updates on empire "hmmm? what is it, sister alex?" but, their playing stopped when they saw the exhausted and complicated look that alex had right now. "it''s¡­ complicated." sir victor gave her a cup of special tea to calm her down, but for how serious this matter was actually, just this much wasn''t going to be enough. "come here, everyone. sit down for a moment. rin! come here for a moment!" rin was in the other room, preparing supper for them. but after alex''s call, she came out running in her apron and looked at alex for what was happening. "sit." but, alex just told her to sit down with a serious look on her face, and when all of them, including misha and the two creatures with them had sat down, they looked at the coin placed on the table before them¡­ a bronze coin darkened with age, its surface etched with intricate nano-carvings that depict twisted, malevolent figures and ominous symbols that would only be visible to the special eyes that understood the meaning of those depictions. these carvings were so small that they could only be perceived by eyes that had experienced the darkest of the darkness of pure or impure nature, revealing scenes of past history and chaos. the coin''s edge was also jagged, as if it had been through countless trials and tribulations, with strange names of all kinds of languages carved on it. and, among the countless scratched names, there was one particular name that was still complete and visible on this coin. "in ancient myths, this coin was known as the "pass of shadows", a token that granted its bearer passage to the afterlife." alex was retelling them a story that even she had only ever heard from [primordials]. "legends say that it was forged in the fires of the underworld, imbued with the essence of divinity and the ''first'' ray of light. the coin''s presence is said to bring calamity wherever it appears, causing misfortune and disaster to those who possess it." she was talking about a myth that was famous among the high rankers and those who had explored ancient runes. it was also prophesied that a calamity bearing this coin would befall this world in near future by the ''gods'' of this world, however that prophecy was never really taken seriously by anyone. there was no trace of this coin even though there were countless mentions of how this thing was connected with all kinds of disasters that had struck this world since the genesis of this world. though not at the center of all that had happened until now, some had even said this coin was something that was created by the ''creators'' themselves to regulate the flow of this world and to give a purpose to the original ais that have created this world. "this is a complicated thing, olive¡­ and, as you can tell, it''s now bound to you." alex did not know even a single name inscribed on the edge of this coin aside from hers. olive was also the only person that could place this coin in their inventory. alex or even sir victor couldn''t place this coin in their dimensional storage. and same with putting these things in storage devices. it was strange, but, those who knew about the [bound] items, knew how things that already belong to a certain someone could never be someone else''s. it was the same as the unique magic wands of the mages, the familiars, and the bound weapons of the knights who were chosen by those weapons. only they could wield it, and in some cases, they are the only ones who could even touch those objects. "i don''t know what you want to do going forward, olive, but you will have to be careful." alex had traveled all around the world but just like the gods of this world, the absolute ais that are masters of the twelve major paths, she was not an omnipotent omniscient being. there were many things that she didn''t understand and there were many things that she wanted to understand. and this coin was now one of them. "i don''t know what this coin is, no one actually knows. its origin is perhaps the most contradictory thing to what we know until now. but one thing is true¡­" this coin, this [{(artifact)}] was closely connected to the truth that all of the truth seekers were after. and, even though she never intended to join the ranks of fanatics like alex or the highest ranking couple of this world, olive had unintentionally become one such existence. "elio is one thing, but olive, that coin is no good news." it could be a good thing or it could be a bad thing. she did not know what this world was exactly, what the ''afterlife'' the prophecy talked about, and she did not know what kind of disaster this coin would bring this time. "we should talk with the others. i''ll have to call more people actually." the matter had now shifted from rescuing elio to this coin. and, olive did not understand why she was fussing over a simple coin so much. but if she was like this, she knew there must be something important about this coin that she didn''t really understand well. a myth was just a story with no bases so she didn''t take it seriously but for a truthseeker like her¡­ olive wouldn''t even understand just how important of a matter this was actually. Chapter 236 To get back… "So¡­ can I go into that upside down waterfall the next time it appears? Or is there some other way to get out of here?"{ "You''ll be ripped to shreds if you even go near that red water on the redfallen nights. And no, that boundary is the only way out of this place. Continue your journey with empire You cannot go out when the barrier is gone since the time frame is too short for you slowpokes, and you''ll never get live through the monsters even if you do survive after crossing the boundary. The place that you''ll end up in would still have as much of dangerous monsters as this place." } "Can''t you come with us then? Is there any reason you stay here in the first place?" { "I''m not coming with you, ptffff. Why would I leave my home just to come with you?" Besides, I have to take care of the boundary and the other creatures of this forest. They won''t be able to survive the next time the monsters come here on the redfallen nights." } Elio and the special creature were walking around the forest now, and the creature was still invisible right now. S§×ar?h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. It was a being that didn''t like being seen by the others so it hid itself most of the time and only revealed itself when it felt like it or after someone else had seen through its concealment. "Hmmm¡­ is there any way I can change your mind? Like, I really want you, you know?" { "Is this a confession? I do not have a gender so you''ll have to find someone else, young human." } "You''re funny, you know?" { "Of course I know~. I''m great and mighty~." } They were walking around the forest going to the central area. There was something Elio wanted to check right now, so he was taking a biiiiig group of creatures with him as well. Not that there was any need for them to come with him. He simply wanted to see something, and confirm something else. The divine creature was also coming with them, and the creature could feel Their presence. Just that since no one other than Elio could perceive it, none of the creatures knew what they were doing right now. They simply followed Elio and the ones who were reluctant to follow him until now, were somehow also following him today. He seemed more attractive to them today. Perhaps it was because of the divine creature that was with him and Sera, so their attraction might also be because of that. "Anyway¡­ do you really think Sera is ''trapped'' in this form right now?" { "From what I can tell, yes. Celestials have a pure energy that could not be sustained inside a weak body. And one only gains a superior physique after their awakening so, she will have to achieve an awakening to free from that form. She might also remember a few things about herself when that happens." } { "I''ll remember more about myself? What does that mean¡­?" } Sera also used Mana speech to talk with the creature and, she was genuinely curious about what could change just by leveling up a little. { "Yeah. Do you know where you come from? Which realm? Your past? Even though you are a servant, you should remember things like your previous lives, at least. That''s the common thing. All servants know what they are at least¡­ do you know why you have the skills that you do? Do you know what you actually are?" } Sera had never even thought of questions like these since until now, she had been unable to think about things like these. She couldn''t remember anything about herself, and she strangely never thought about it either. But now that this creature was saying it, she found it a little strange. { "Those are your restrictions. Some servants have that. Your powers used to be so great that the Forger that forged your existence into a Servant card by your own will could not make it so that you will have all the power that you used to. As a unique being of forgotten past, your actual powers are stored inside Your achievements into the records of the world¡­ into the [Akashic records]. The world restricts your powers naturally, it is not because of the forger or yourself. It''s a natural thing so, you two should just focus on your awakening." } "Will you help us with it? You are so strong, can''t you help us?" { "¡­? You want my help in this small thing as well? You''re only one step away anyway, why would I help you?" } They were both (Level-99) thanks to the achievement [Acquaintances of a divinity] that they gained after meeting and talking with this creature yesterday. They had accumulated a lot of experience over time as well so things were going well for them. Just a little more and they would achieve their first awakening, something they had been looking forward to for a long time. "You''re no fun, you know?" Though, Elio understood how this creature had something else in mind. So he didn''t say much and looked at the front¡­ "Waaaaaaa!" "Chiiiiiip!" -Shrrrrrrr¡­ They had finally reached the vast lake in the center of the forest. This place was as lively as ever, and there were also all kinds of creatures around this place. However, the creatures and the wildlife here weren''t what they were here for. { "Hmm? What are you doing?" } "Using a skill." There was a reason this lake was the center of all the activity that happened here on the red nights. The water doesn''t turn red out of nowhere and fishes as big as those don''t live in a lake that connects with sky and pours upside down. There was a reason behind everything that was happening here. There was a reason those two honored individuals had come to this place. And this creature was completely unrelated to that reason. "Analyze the entire lake." -Swish. -Oooooooooooooooooooooong! There was something about this lake that made it unique. And, he was here to find that reason. Chapter 237 The core of the paradise Elio used his skill and analyzed the entire lake that he could see before him. He analysed the entire structure of this lake, every single element that existed inside of it as well as things that made up this lake. There were various elements of this lake that were unique, like the giant fishes that existed here however, he was not interested in them."What''s that?" There was something at the very center of this lake and at the bottom of it at that which attracted his attention. { "Hmm?" } The creatures that had come with them were now scattered around the entire lake, playing by the edge of the lake or inside the water. It did not seem like the giant fishes were interested in these creatures, and Elio had not known the reason for that until a while ago. But, now that he knew how there come a day when countless monsters of high level come up to this paradise in search of salvation, he knew the creatures that get to feast upon these great beings was none other than these fishes. They ate those monsters, at least their dead bodies, or the ones that were alredy deadly with by this divine beast and they grew with those bodies and got stronger. That was how they got so big and that was how they were of such a high level despite their relative simplicity. They had evolved in this way and they were not simple creatures anymore. They were stronger, more intelligent beings that weren''t interested in the flesh of these simple animals anymore. Aside from a few that fancied their brains, they were only interested in those crisped monsters that fell into this lake after the upside down waterfall stopped. { "That seems to be like the core of this forest¡­ well, I don''t really know either. I can''t go down there anyway so I''ve never seen that thing or known much about that." } "You can''t go down there? Is there some kind of barrier or something? Or is there some other problem?" Elio wanted to know why this amazing creature was being like this¡­ it actually looked a little unsure about this lake, it almost seemed a little fearful. { "It''s not like there''s a barrier or something¡­ I don''t like water. That''s all." } It almost shivered as if it was thinking about something it absolutely hated or could not bear. It was the same kind of reaction that children have when their mom forces them to eat their vegetables. Your adventure continues at empire S§×arch* The N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. It seemed like the divine creature did not like water, though, at the same time, Elio knew the water wasn''t a weakness of this creature since he had seen it fight the aural monsters around the upside down waterfall that appears on the red nights. "So you''ve never gone down there?" { "Why should I? It''s not like that thing is anything important. It''s simply something that maintains the natural stability of this place, it''s not like getting that thing will change the winds above us." } The concept of core was a little different here, as the creature started explaining to them. The core in this context meant the center, the absolute center of something, and this entire forest, and this entire paradise for that matter was a plain with that thing as the center of it all. The creature did not know it was something important or something that mattered, but it explained to them that it did not have any special presence to it that could indicate some unique characteristics. It was simply something, something unique, but at the same time, something that didn''t really catch the attention of this divine beast. "Don''t you find it strange though?" Elio looked at the pretty purple eyes of this creature with a smile and then looked back at the absurd data that was presented to him. That thing was a blank, even to his eyes that had given him not only the map of this lake, but also a detailed analysis of each element of this lake. "You''re a divine creature, you have divinity, you are curious and though you don''t like water, you know pretty much everything about this place. If I ask you about anything present in this lake, you''d know about it or at least a little about it. But, not that thing." The only thing that this divine creature knew about that thing was how that was the core of this place, that too was not because it knew anything about thing but because it knew about the characteristics of the things that existed alongside that thing. Now that Elio had raised the question, the creature thought about it as well¡­ { "Hmmmm¡­ you''re right, human." } There was something more to that thing. It wasn''t that this creature did not know about it or was interested in it. Whatever that thing was, neither his eyes that could see past this creature''s concealment nor the divine creature themselves knew anything about that thing and they didn''t even want to know about it for some reason. Elio also had an innate feeling that whatever it was, it wasn''t of any great importance, and that very contradicting thought made it a little weird. "Will I get hurt if I go down there?" [{ Master? You want to go down there? With those fishes? }] Sera was worried, and her worries were valid. Those things down there were not something simple, and as this creature had just said, it did not like water and would not come down with them. They would be on their own if they go down, and that lake was already saturated with Mana so they will also have to make use a barrier scroll along with his newly learned spells if they wanted to go down there. "We will have to go there, Sera. I have a feeling that we will know how to get out of here if we go down there." He didn''t know why he had that feeling, but he could feel it¡­ there was something about that thing that corresponded with the ''blankness'' of this place. There was something about it that also made his Eyes curious so, he had to go down there, and to go down there¡­ "Will you come with us?" { "Oh, no! Why would I?!" } He will have to use his special spells that he had created for just a day like this one. Chapter 238 Inside of The Lake In the last few months Elio had been here, he had created a lot of magic spells that were unique in many ways. They were not simple, and with the knowledge of all kinds of sources, he was able to create quite a few unique magic spells."A bi-elemental spell that uses wind and water attribute, a Natural spell of Grace and Preservation series." -Ooooooooooooong! He called upon the purified Mana inside of his body, drew a complex array of lines right in front of him, expanded those lines, stretched them, didn''t use his vision magic on them and simply started creating a drawing out of these spells that wasn''t making a spell circle. He started creating something that seemed like a painting, with the different colors of Mana strings making a rough outline, which he was filling up with a couple of strings of Mana. This was a different spell creation method that he had made recently, and thanks to this method, he didn''t need any support skill to extract the Mana strings from the environment. He naturally made these strings and turned them into something that was a simple yet elegant looking painting, which, in fact, was a representation of the spell unbound by the simple framework of a ''circle''. { "Is that magic, human? Why does it look so pretty?" } "Because I like it this way. I like pretty things¡­ have I ever told you you''re pretty?" { "You have. My ears will fall off if I hear that again." } They talked pretty casually with one another now, they even seemed to be friends now. And, it had not happened overnight. S§×arch* The N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Though it has not been that long since they met this creature, months have passed since they first encountered this creature. There were very few beings like this in this world, divinity wasn''t something just anyone or anything could possess so, Sera knew this creature was unique, and one of its kind perhaps. And, yet, the fact that her master was able to get on friendly terms with this creature in just a few hours after chasing it for just a few months fascinated her¡­ She knew Elio couldn''t feel this creature as she could. There was something inside of her that reacted when she was looking at this creature, and there was something that ached inside of her when she saw how Elio was being friendly with this creature. Still, she didn''t pay attention to that aching and admired her master for being able to befriend a divine beast¡­ -Ooooooooooooooooong! Elio used his painting like spell made of threads of Green and Blue on the water of this lake and created what seemed to be a bubble out of it. Then, he entered this bubble, and, Sera also flew inside of it. "If you come with us, you won''t get wet, you know? Look, this is safe." He was still looking at that creature with a smile and Sera looked back at that from behind. She wanted to receive that kind of friendly treatment from him, but, instead of that, she was only treated like a child that he needed to take care of. She was weak and not that strong even right now, so she knew she wasn''t the best pick when it came to fighting monsters, but she was trying her best to get stronger. She was fighting with the strong creatures of this forest each day, taking the help of the creatures that followed Elio to train her skills and powers, and she was doing her best. Which he knew and admired greatly. And still, he didn''t see her as someone that he needed to be friendly towards. She was someone that he needed to protect. And he did that with all his might¡­ Even right now¡­ { "No. I''m good. Go and get yourself wet. That bubble isn''t going to hold on under the pressure down there anyway." } "Oh? And how do you know that when you have never been there?" { "I just know! Hmph!" } The reason he wanted this creature to come with them was simple. It was strong and it could kill what Sera yet could not. She was strong, stronger than him. And he knew that. But that was not going to be enough against beings that were so strong that even a divine creature like this one might have difficulty dealing with them. "Well, alright then. No one''s forcing you anyway." He smiled at the creature, then he looked at Sera and smiled at her as well. "Let''s go then." And then, with a gust of wind created at the back of the bubble, they started going inside the lake water. "Sera, reinforce this place." [{ Yes, master. }] As the creature had said, he knew this bubble would not hold on when they go down. But he wasn''t worried about drowning when Sera was here. She was smart and she was strong. If there was anyone that he could rely on in this place, then that was her. -Ooooooooooooong! But, their worries were unnecessary. "It''s pretty¡­" The bubble continued going deeper into the water as they witnessed a world of water¡­ There were fishes in this bluescape. There was water all around them, and there were creatures that were ''fishes'' as well as ''creatures'' at the same time. They were strange beings, especially the big fishes that dominated this entire lake. They were the prominent creatures of this place, and though he had not felt it from the outside, they really were great creature that were just too big to even greet. Their size was the same as size of a whale, and yet these fishes looked actually like fishes¡­ more like catfishes that have fed on monster flesh most of their lives, but, yeah. They were fishes. And they were all around them. They were under them. They were looking at them. And, the two of them were looking back at the giant eyes of these fishes which looked¡­ uninterested in them. For the most part, they were the only creatures here, and, aside from their colorful scales, most of them were identical as well. The only major differences between these creatures was their eyes¡­ and their teeth. It wasn''t supposed to be like this but, some of the fishes had a unique shape of teeth that pretty much had no actual use. They were big creatures, and they were fishes that didn''t have to chew their dead prey. "It will take some time to teach the bottom of the lake though." The lake was deep. And it was too pretty. Explore more at empire He was experiencing this blue world for the first time which was slowly getting darker as they went deeper towards the bottom. His eyes might not be able to see in that darkness, but he wasn''t worried. Sera was with him. So, he at least didn''t have to worry about the light¡­ Chapter 239 The key of Potential They dived deep into the water and as the light started diminishing little by little, they started seeing things that weren''t visible from the surface.There were all kinds of things at the deeper level of this lake, this deep lake¡­ Starting from the bolls of flesh that were made from the dead bodied of the creatures that fell into this lake, something that was collected by a small organism that appeared to be like a mix of Beatle and Squid. It was a strange creature, and there were hundreds of them. They weren''t like the big fishes that live above the water and they were certainly not something that can be considered something simple. ''Fascinating¡­'' His eyes told them about them as well, and they told him how they were a mutated species evolved from something that was called (Sea Eagles) a bird like creature that wasn''t actually a bird but something that resembled a seal. It was complicated how something that was a sea creature resembling a bird could evolve into a squid that was nothing like either of them and at the same time turn into a bug that was pretty much unrelated to them all. He didn''t know how adaptation might have played a role in this and how the hell they might have evolved into this but, this was not a place that followed logic so, he didn''t think much about these things. ''Forgetting that, this place is really quite something¡­'' He was going down, and he was seeing creatures that one would see in the deaths of oceans. Creatures and mysteries that weren''t explainable even with data and logic. [{ Master¡­ we are reaching the bottom. }] Sera was using her light element magic to brighten the area around them, but they were making sure that the light is only enough for them to see a little bit around them. They would use it as a vision directly if they could, something like night vision lense or something, but Sera needed to use more Mana than usual to do that. And, in a place that they didn''t know much about it wasn''t really a good idea. They were better off without it since this small lamp like light was doing a good job as well. So¡­ they continued going down while observing the wonders of this place. And, when they reached the bottom of the lake, they observed the unnaturally flat surface which, instead of a natural surface, seemed to be something man made. "This is different from what I expected¡­" It seemed to be something like a proper floor made- carved- out of stones. It was almost like some sort of an artificial floor. There was no plants on the surface like what they had expected and there was also no creature around this lake floor. The water was clean here, unlike what they were expecting as well, and for some reason¡­ there was light in here. "Shut down the light for a minute, Sera." [{ Yes, master. }] He asked her to shut down her own light so that they could find where that light was coming from. There was something about this light that made them curious, and since the main reason they had come here was because of the Core of the forest above them, they were going to look for the source of this light. "There. It''s coming from that side." The spell was still in effect, thankfully, but there were cracks appearing on the surface of the bubble. "Let''s go, Sera." [{ ¡­ }] "Sera?" [{ Ah, yes master. }] She seemed to be out of focus for a moment, but she returned back to herself when he called out to her and moved forward with him. She was flying ahead of him outside of the spell while using her own spell to maintain herself in that water. She had to protect him in here, and for that she needed a little more freedom than what she could get inside of that spell. [{ I''m feeling strange, master¡­ }] They approached the dull source of the light. He walked and she flew. Stay tuned for updates on empire S~ea??h the N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Hmm? Is something wrong, Sera?" There was something ahead of them. There was something here which was the center of this entire forest and was something a divine creature as well as his eyes could not perceive. And, Sera was saying she felt weird for some reason. However, she did not stop while saying that and simply continued flying towards the source of that dull light¡­ which was yellowish at first, but then it started turning a little shimmering. It was gold. [{ There. }] The light, the golden light, was coming from a golden source. "Is that¡­ a key?" And that source, the center of this entire forest, the center of this lake, the object which the divine creature could not perceive, something even his eyes could not analyze¡­ It was a key. A key as big as a boulder. "Is there¡­ something written on it?" There was something about this¡­ key, that attracted even Elio''s eyes. He looked at the key, the giant golden key that had strange carvings on it. It was rune language so he could read it a little, but these markings were familiar to him. They were, in fact, something carved on his hand. "Sera?" Sera was saying she was feeling something strange earlier, and that started not long after they reached the floor of the lake. It was strange that she was saying that something was strange when she had not even found the big fishes in this place strange until now, so, Elio got worried and looked at her. [Ding!] However, she was simply floating before him. Still. Staring at the key with her golden eyes, her golden feathers somehow glowing with the light that was emitting from the key before them. Also¡­ [{( You have found the Key of Potential. )}] He heard a somewhat familiar voice once again, and, right after he heard that voice, something happened. -Ooooooooooooooong! A bright light exploded from the golden key. "¡­?!" Sera, who was still and flapping her wings until now, started moving again, and, she wasn''t going back to Elio. "Sera?!" -Oooooooooooooong! She was going towards the key. And, the key was reacting to something¡­ Something, that was closely related to Sera. [Ding!] As well as something that was closely related to him. [You have discovered a [Relic]! Rewarding Exp!] [Ding!] [Level up!] [(Level-99) > (Level-100).] Chapter 240 First Awakening [Elio''s POV: ][Ding!] [You have reached (Level-100)!] Your next journey awaits at empire [You have achieved the conditions!] [First awakening has been achieved¡­!] -Oooooooooooooooooooong! S~ea??h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The silver mark on my hand started glowing in a golden light. At the same time, I witnessed the runes on the giant key coming out of the carved surface and going towards Sera who was now standing before the key. -Oooooooooooooong! Something was happening. And, I don''t think it was simply because of our awakening¡­ ''I''ve heard about awakenings a lot from not just Alex, but also from the others who wish to achieve it one day.'' (Level-100). It wasn''t a simple goal. Many of the players who have been playing this game for over a year aren''t able to achieve this level. And it simply isn''t about Exp accumulation. Yes, it''s true that anyone can achieve awakening if they get to the level threshold but, as the players know, there are some certain conditions that vary greatly from person to person. ''Just like how each and every individual is different, the kind of experience that they gain is also different.'' The exp that one gets from killing creatures and monsters might be the same, but the Exp that comes from miscellaneous tasks is simply different for everyone. Experience points are actually just quantified experiences that accumulate over time and are given to the ones who learn, who live, and to those who experience different things. The reason there are people who get to that level despite not going into the fields even once is simply just that. ''There is a world. The world is made of various elements. Killing monsters is one part of those elements, but that is not all.'' Many different factors make up experiences in this world. So, it''s difficult to achieve the first awakening by simply killing creatures Occasionally. [Your Mental and Matter body will go through a reconstruction.] [Accumulated achievements will be awarded after the completion of the task.] [It has been noted that your Servant is reconnecting with a Lost Fragment related to their past.] [It is advised that you take a close look at the process.] -Ooooooooooooooooong! The system was telling me to watch Sera, and that''s exactly what I''m doing right now. ''Sera¡­'' We have been together for a few months now, and, yes. She is someone that I admire greatly. In a place that is filled with strange things and unknown creatures, a closed off ''Paradise'' that turns into a hell every once in a while, she was the only one who I had depended on all this time.'' She was a friend of mine, even though her status as my servant was the only thing that the system recognised. She wasn''t a divine creature that had run away from us and had made us find it for so many months. She was someone who had been with me since she accepted me as her master. ''A long time has passed since then, and in all this time, we have gotten quite close.'' But, she still calls me master, and I still treat her as not a subordinate or a friend, but as someone I have to look after. As someone I must protect¡­ and, it''s not because she is weak or anything. ''No, it''s the opposite.'' The words from the golden key were absorbed by Sera and she was glowing intensely. Her silver feathers were turning gold, while the golden feathers were turning into a brighter silver that Resembled the silver fog of the divine creature that we left outside. She was changing right now¡­ she wasn''t a small bird with a long tail anymore. She was changing¡­ and, despite the blinding light, I knew what she was changing into. "I was right." Sera Heru Phanim. Her name was pure. She could use the light element as well as any other element that I can. There was a unique synergy between her and that element which, in fact, was much different from what I had. She had skills that were too advanced for her level. And, she had characteristics that pointed at a simple thing. "She''s an angel." She had taken a humanoid form. She seemed to be someone a little older than me, but someone who now had the same height as me. Her pure skin as pure as her white feathers, her eyes glowing even brighter gold than what they used to be, her hair so silver that one could see their reflection on them¡­ a voluptuous body that could mesmerize even the toughest of the minds¡­ And lastly, her three pairs of wings. Wings of angels. Pure as the heavenly Truths. ''¡­'' As I looked at her, I stopped perceiving even the changes that were happening to me. I ignored all the notifications that followed. My eyes, my heart, the only thing I could see right now¡­ was her. But, she was looking at the key that still remained before her. She had transformed into someone else. She wasn''t a small creature anymore, she was an angelic being. A being that was the symbol of purity, something that, different from the biblical angels, was the symbol of Purity and the existence of the Origin. ''She''s pretty¡­'' She lifted her hand, her human like hand and pointed it towards the grand key before her. That thing¡­ the relic, was connected to her past. Connected to what she was, and connected to what she could not remember. It helped her remember a few things, perhaps, but from the looks of it, there was more to this Key. -Ooooooooooooooooong! The key reacted to her command, and, as if a holy sword returning to their master at their command, the key once again glowed with a bright light, shrunk down¡­ lifted off the ground, and went towards Sera''s hand. Then, it went inside her hand as another bright light exploded from not the key, but from Sera. -OOOOOOOOOOOOOONG! This one was the brightest of the lights that this lake had perhaps ever seen. It was so bright that it must have pierced through the lake and reached the surface as well. So, I think the creature that didn''t want to get wet, would have no choice anymore¡­ { "What the hell is going on here!" } It cared about us somewhat so, as I knew, it came down to us in a bubble of its own. That too, with an expression so worried that even I wasn''t expecting from it anytime soon. Chapter 241 The Relics "Relics are said to be elements of a forgotten past."{ "From what I know though, it''s more like they are things from a time that is not remembered by anyone. Something that had happened a long, long time ago." } They were out of the lake after that big commotion and now they were facing one another, as well as the new person that was sitting with them. { "I didn''t know you would look so pretty. You''re almost as pretty as that strange woman that came here with that kind man." } "She was that pretty?" Elio couldn''t believe the words of this divine creature. It was saying that the Sera right now looked as pretty as that human player who came here before them. Now, the fact that it was comparing her to some human was understandable, but¡­ this creature was saying there was a human player as pretty as an angel? Now that fact made him rethink almost everything he had thought about those first ranked couple. "Physical appearance is simply the persecution of our minds. There''s nothing unique about my appearance from where I come from¡­ orcs would call it ugly, in fact, even Elves do not like someone with wings." Her voice was much prettier than Elio had expected earlier, but it was surely pretty. And she still had the same smile that she usually had when she was a bird. Her wings were resting on the floor which they had turned even greener with their holy power, and though she was not wearing any clothes when she turned her appearance, Elio was carrying some good clothings that were better for her than having nothing on. There was only him and the other creatures of this forest that were somehow curious about this strange being as well, so it wasn''t necessary. But, now that she was in a humanoid form, having at least some clothes was much better¡­ it was distracting otherwise. "You''re pretty, Sera. You were pretty when you were in that from and you are pretty right now as well. Just like how the Flins were so interested in you back then in that bird form, now that you have a humanoid body, you are simply being perceived prettier in, at the very least, my mind." Still, she was the same Sera that he knew. Sear?h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And, that fact was not going to change. "You still look at me the way you looked at me when I looked like a bird." "You''re prettier now, but that doesn''t change many things, dear." She was still someone he needed to protect and that fact isn''t going to change. She was stronger now, and with that Relic accepting her, she was much stronger than most (Level-100) servants. She might be strong enough to deal with those monsters of the forest outside of this place, but that was it. It wasn''t going to change much of anything. "Anyway¡­" Elio got up and looked at the creature that had come down there despite saying it disliked water. "You are a tsundere." { "A what?" } Continue reading at empire "Someone who hides what they actually think and masks it with a tough act." { "Hmmm?" } "Haha, I agree. They are like that." It acts all high and mighty but gets softer at some simple compliments. Even though they want to establish a hierarchy between them, they talk freely about all kinds of things and tell them everything they want to know as if they like talking with them. It was all an act when they said they didn''t like water as well. They wanted to come with them, but they didn''t and simply made excuses. { "Hey! I''m not a tsun whatever! And I''m not¡­ I''m not hiding anything!" } The pretty creature had a blush on its silver fog made body. It was so obvious. "You''re adorable, you know?" Elio simply shook his head at the creature and stood up as he helped Sera to stand up as well. "You''re so honest with your reactions." She smiled at the creature and stood up with Elio''s help but, since she wasn''t used to this body yet, she was having difficulty getting adjusted to walking, even standing. { "You two! I''ll¡­ I''ll kill you if you say that once again! Don''t make fun of me!" } "Oh apologies apologies. We don''t want anything like that now do we? Let''s not jump to killing." Elio simply patted the creature, and helped Sera take a few more steps. Walking on two feet was a new thing for her even though she had regained a lot of her memories now and remembered how she was from a small part of the [Heavenly realm], how she was a simple child of a simple family, and how she had lived her life. She knew she was a worrier that had fought against the otherworldly forces, against the evil in a forgotten time, and she remembered how she had died while saving her mother from a Great Evil. She remembered all those things and she had spent the last three hours telling them about all those things. On top of that, she also showed them her new status window that looked pretty different from what it used to be. And it certainly was much more interesting than her simple status window. However, it was not as interesting as the [Key] insignia that was now present on her palm. "Do you want to try flying?" "Can I?" "I''m sure you will be able to fly at least since you knew it in that bird form." The key mark in her hand was from the Relic that she had just obtained. It was a very powerful item from a time that wasn''t remembered by people of this world, much less the players. The key not only helped her level up a bunch, it also unlocked many skills and abilities that were sealed, and it also unlocked many memories of hers as well. Thanks to that key, they also knew how to get out of this forest¡­ this familiar place which was once part of a great battlefield. Thanks to her new memories, they now knew a lot of things from a time that not even that divine creature knew much about. The kind of information that they had now was beyond what they should have had, and thanks to all that information, Elio had received a personal quest as well¡­ It was a strange quest, but thanks to that quest, he knew that it was time to finally¡­ after so many months, how it was finally time to get out of this place. "Let''s try it. Flying should be instinctive so try feeling it." They knew the way to get out of here now, however, they were going to wait a little longer. Sera needed a little more time to get used to her powers and new body, so he was going to Help her a little. And while he does that¡­ he was also going to try and see if this creature was still interested in coming with them or not. He was going to try one last time¡­ who knows? He might actually succeed by some stroke of luck this time. Chapter 242 Saying Goodbye Have you seen an angel with three pair of wings fly in the sky?''Until just now, if someone asked me that question, my answer would have obviously been something negative.'' However, things are different now. "Master~! This is so different~! This is so much more fun~! Look!" She was doing a backflip in the sky. Well¡­ she was flying in a reverse circle. And that was simply a funny thing. "Haha, don''t be silly, Sera. Your hair is all messed up!" She was an angel¡­ he still couldn''t believe that fact. "But this is soooooo fun~!" She was having fun. She was flipping her three pair of wings, she was looking at the vast sky with her golden eyes, her long silver hair were flying all around with her and were getting messed up again, and if not for the fact that she was wearing a tight shirt and some pants that were fit for her in some areas¡­ If she was wearing a dress instead, he knew for a fact that she would have revealed a little too much of her skin in a place she shouldn''t be doing it. "Hahaha~!" But all that aside, she was having genuine fun right now. And, Elio couldn''t help but smile at that smiling angelic face of hers. She was simply as pure as she was when she was in her bird form. But now that she was a tall lady, she was not only the same pure being that he remembered, for some reason, he could also feel how she was more¡­ free. "That''s plenty for now, Sera. Come down now. Let''s eat something~." After regaining her lost memories, after going through the first awakening like he did, she was now stronger, more free than before, and she also seemed more confident for some reason. He didn''t understand why she was like that, though he certainly knew it wasn''t just because of the awakening. That key that she obtained¡­ it was called the [Key of potential]. It was a relic of the past and it was directly connected with the powers of the Celestials- beings of the heavenly realm. Heaven wasn''t a place where gods lived in this world. It was simply a realm where those with divinity, those who had liberated from the bondge of this world, and those who were born an Angel lived with the creatures that were born in that realm. That relic was something very important, and not only did it have a unique skill to create ''Gates'' leading to a certain random place which would be ''Safe'' for the master of the relic, it was also a powerful weapon that enhanced magical powers, holy powers, granted the master a passive protection against any kind of status abnormality, and even worked as a ''magic wand'' for the master. It was a very, Very powerful weapon. But it wasn''t simply a weapon, it was the key to the outside for them. They might not know where they will end up after using the skill of the relic, but at the very least, they believed a ''safe'' place that wasn''t a quiet forest or some sketchy place where monsters invade every once in a while would be much better for them than this one. [{ "We can still use this channel, right?" }] [{ Of course. It will always be there. }] Sera flapped her six wings once more and landed on the ground before him without making any sound. She was as quiet as an owl, but at the same time, the freshness that she carried with him which washed over any place she landed made her just like a hawk that dives down from the high sky and hunts its prey with a gust of wind. S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [{ "We will have to say our goodbyes soon." }] She landed perfectly but then she tripped since she still couldn''t walk well so, Elio used his movement skill and caught her right when she was about to fall down. She was not weak, and yet she couldn''t even stand properly¡­ this funny angel. [{ I know that, master. But I''m not the one that wants that creature. }] [{ "At least show that you''re not jealous, Pretty Miss." }] [{ You call me pretty and yet you look at me as if you''re looking at a child¡­ I don''t like it, master. }] He was treating a little better than before with this new form, but he was still the same. She didn''t like it one bit¡­ [{ "That''s how it''s going to be, Sera. If you want something else¡­ I''m afraid I won''t be able to-." }] [{ At least look at me like you look at that creature¡­ is divine strength the only thing that you''re interested in, master? }] She wasn''t upset. She was simply disappointed with her new yet useless self. [{ "Sera you''re always going to be special for me. It''s not that I like the divine strength of that creature or the creature itself. I simply want us to get out of here safely¡­ You''ve seen those creatures. Do you think you can take them on in your current state? Not one or two, but hundreds of them like this one can?" }] [{ ¡­ }] She didn''t say anything anymore, and simply just sat down with him and looked at the divine creature that was now eating the green glowing grass that Elio gave it as a token of his apology. The creature was grumpy even right now, but it accepted their apology and the grass. "I''ll get stronger, master¡­" "Of course you will. In fact, I know you will get stronger faster now that you have unlocked your potential." "¡­I''m ashamed of myself." Angels. The supreme essence of purity. The children of light, and the protectors of the Truths. They were one of the strongest existences that could never be compared to these Simple monsters. These monsters were like mosquitoes in front of those holy divinities. "You don''t have divinity yet, Sera. Don''t be ashamed of the restrictions that the world places on you when you know you''re going to break those restrictions soon anyway." It wasn''t that she was weak or anything. "Look at this status window." He called up both of their status windows. "Does this look like the status of a weak individual?" And, it had changed significantly for both of them since the last time¡­ Chapter 243 Insufficient strength ============ID: Elio (Level-100) Race: Human (Commoner) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 66 Agility: 69 Endurance: 69 T-T (System stats) Intelligence: 45 Luck: 9 Charm: 15 Avatar: 4 T-T (Functional stats) Energy: 119/120 Stamina: 118/120 Fatigue: 0/120 Mana: 99/100 (Stat points: 50.) {Skills: Mana sense, Physical acceleration, Tamer''s subspace, Three eyes, Light''s grace.} [Titles: , , .] =Achievement List: Tutorial tamer (Rare), Special Rookie (Common), Combat teacher (Common), Caring master (Rare), Titled special rookie (Rare), Treading the path of Mana (Common), Hunter Duo (Common), Defenders of town (Common), Judge of evil (Rare), Ancient magic caster (Common), Master of a mutant (Common), Recognition by Forgotten enigmas (Rare), Blessed Individual (Common), Mage killer (Rare), Nature''s gratitude (Rare), Hallmaster''s recognition (Common), Avenger of Freedom (Epic), Achievement Hunter (Rare), Forest wanderer (Common), Acquaintances of a divinity (Rare), Present world Resident (Epic), Unified Spirit (Rare), Master of a Celestial (Heroic). ============ ============ ID: Sera Heru Phanim (Level-100) Race: Servant (Master: ID: Elio.) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 70 Agility: 75 Endurance: 74 T-T (System stats) Intelligence: 50 Luck: 25 Charm: 30 Holy Energy: 100/100 T-T (Functional stats) Energy: 110/120 Stamina: 115/120 Fatigue: 0/120 Mana: 99/100 (Stat points: 0) {Skills: Divine Senses, Sacred Comprehension, Holy Infusion, Celestial Strike, Radiant Grace, IX Longinus.} [Titles: , .] Sear?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. ============ Their status windows had changed significantly, and it was by no means something simple. Not just the list of achievements that Elio at this level was abnormal, but the fact that he not only had not one but two Epic achievements and one Heroic achievement proved just how unique it was. There were a bunch of other common and rare achievements but the shining achievement names among the others, as well as the shining list of skills that he had was something that he liked quite a bit. He did well by not adding in funds from their world as she had suggested. Heeding her suggestion resulted in an Epic achievement, so he now had a good bunch of achievement boxes in his inventory. The addition to his special stats was also something desirable. It was surely something he liked, but that wasn''t all. He now had a new skill that was also related to buffs so he was going to have another weapon against beings of high level or the monsters that might want to come their way. In addition to that, he also had a new title now, and this title was related to Sera. "This title connects our power, Sera." "Right? Isn''t that amazing?" The new title that he had gained allowed him to share his powers with his servants while at the same time allowing him the freedom of using the unique skills that his servants possessed Once a month. It was limited and restricted, but there most certainly was something about this particular skill that made him much more resourceful than what he was just yesterday. "You''re definitely strong. Even you cannot deny that anymore." She wasn''t a small bird anymore so the strength of her stats had increased significantly on top of the upgrade in the numbers that were already pretty high when she was a bird. Her skills had also changed, so she could do things that she was previously unable to until now. In addition to that, in Elio''s eyes, she was the only servant that possessed more than one unique title. "Just having one of those titles makes you unique, makes you somebody. But more than one makes you someone of great importance to this very world, Sera. You might not be as strong as that one, but you¡­ we are now much stronger than the time we came here." And it wasn''t just because of the addition of the stats that they received from all the things they did here and all their training but also thanks to the unique awakening that they had experienced. They were stronger now. And, unlike before, they were at least confident that they could take on a few of those monsters. If they fought together, they were pretty confident that they would be able to hunt those monsters. But still, they will need a little longer to reach the level of this one divine being. They will only be able to defeat them like this creature after another awakening, but¡­ that might not happen anytime soon. So, they didn''t have to worry about things that weren''t in their hands. { "You guys¡­ now that you know how to go out of here without going through that boundary, when are you leaving." } "Will you come with us if I tell you?" { "Why would I do that?" } "It seems like you want to though." { "I''m not coming with you, haha. I''m not leaving my home~." } It most certainly seemed like it wanted to go with them though. But, they didn''t argue with the creature. They had something else to do so they just laughed along with the creature and invited it inside to form some food with them. Sera now had a unique form of her own, so now she can eat with him just like she had always wanted. "What do you wanna Eat, Sera?" "Anything is fine, Master. You should just make something simple since I wouldn''t understand the complex things just yet." "Baby steps, huh? Alright then." He knew exactly what would be the best thing for them, so he started his fire once again and started cooking while Sera brought some water from the spring behind them. The simple, dark cave that they had been living in since they came here had become a kind of home for them. It was a simple place, but it was serene. There was water here, there was light that healed even their fatigue, and there was also a pretty good environment here. He was pretty happy here, so he didn''t really want to live anywhere else in this place. Especially the forest area¡­ he didn''t really like the humid weather out there, so this place was much better for him. In this paradise, it was the sanctuary that the world had put him in. There wasn''t really any need to leave the house that was blessed by nature either, right? Chapter 244 Their discussion After taking a break with Sera and having a few simple dishes with her, he was now outside, in their own world."So¡­" He was sitting before Alex, holding her hands and looking into her tired eyes. "How''s it going over there?" They lived under the same roof and yet, they were separated by two oceans, one continent, and a lot more space than what could be defined with words. "It''s a mess, baby¡­ it''s a mess¡­" He kissed her fingers, something she liked as well, and then started massaging them gently. "I told you about Olive''s coin, right?" "The Chaos Token?" "Yeah¡­" They started playing together and having fun not too long ago. Only a few months had passed even in the real world since he started playing. There was not much that had changed, it was winter time now and the temperature outside was significantly cooler, but they had a controlled temperature inside their house. They didn''t have to worry about all that since their plate was already full with what was going on in their lives so¡­ they were exhausted. "That thing is much more important than what you might think¡­ the Queen and a few of us are going to gather to talk about it tomorrow. Hopefully, we will find out something about it with all those smart people there." A lot of things were happening on that end. She was tense not only because of the strange coin that Olive had received, but also about a lot more activities around the world that were happening lately. "I didn''t see when it started, but¡­ something big is happening, Elio." Truth. It was a complicated topic even for those who had spent their entire lives in the search of this almost abstract concept. Not just Alex and The Librarian, but there have been many who had searched the entire world for the traces of these truths, who had walked a certain path in search of these truths and those who had lived a life unaware of the fact that what they were doing with each passing moment of their lives was actually bringing them closer to that almost Abstract concept. "Haaa¡­ I have no idea what we''re going to do about this. Or, what can we even do about this." If Elio was stressed out about that divine being, that creature with purple eyes who could move faster than the speed of sound traveling into space until a few days ago, then Alex was now stressed about this coin, about Olive, and about the world that was so dear to her¡­ There were a lot of things happening all around the world right now, something she had not noticed until just now¡­ Just like how their town, Moongold, was attacked by that follower of evil, that dark mage out of the blue, there were many more places all around the world that had experienced similar strange phenomena. In some places, big monsters appeared out of the blue; some fields were suddenly dominated by a field boss that was never seen in that area; there were some places that had fallen under the influence of the darkness; and the most disturbing thing about all this was how the majority of these incidents might have resulted into something very big but were either prevented by the efforts of some individuals, or by some stroke of luck. Still, not all the places that fell to these strange phenomena were safe. Some of them did take damage, but the news about these incidents strangely didn''t spread as much as it should have. It wasn''t present on the player community, and it wasn''t present on the news of the local media either. Even she had only found out about that through the information guild in the capital city. sea??h th§× ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The master of the information guild was an acquaintance of hers, so she was able to get this strange yet confidential information relatively easily. But, knowing about all these things and combining them with what she knew about all the forces that were after these strange happenings all around the world, the possibilities that she came up with were all, in one way or another, connected with that strange coin and the stories related to it¡­ "Want me to massage your head as well?" "Please¡­" Olive was back at her shop since she had no idea about anything that Alex was talking about and she also cared little about all those things. She was a baker and she was interested in feeding the people that appreciated her cooking. She had no intention of getting involved into complicated things like this world, the big people of this world, things that were too complicated for her to understand, as well as things that involved taking responsibilities or doing things that were out of her palette. She wasn''t going to leave her work that she loved and follow them on the battlefields just because of some coin¡­ she couldn''t do that. And, she didn''t even want to do that. "Her dad tried telling her how important that is¡­ but she doesn''t understand, Elio." She didn''t even want that coin, but she couldn''t do anything about it since it was bound to her. She was stuck with it and, as long as she was stuck with it, they had the chance to analyze it as much as possible and find out what exactly was the cause of all the chaos that happened in this world because of this coin. "Haaa¡­ the high rankers will be there, as well as all six sages, and of course the Monarchs. With all those powerful people, their representatives, and their direct servants being there will be a big event in itself¡­ and yet she says she''s busy with the shop stuff tomorrow. Can you BELIEVE that girl?!" The fate of that world might be on the line here and¡­ she wanted to be in her Shop? Alex couldn''t understand how someone as understanding as her could not even understand how important of a matter this was exactly! "That entire world might End! How can she be so insensitive and not even understand this simple thing?!" She was shouting. And it was wrong. So, Elio pulled her hair, and shut her up. And then, before she had any chance to shout back at him, he started massaging her head in a way that instantly shut her head completely. "She knows how important this is for you, for her dad and brother, even for me, Alex. But you cannot burden someone who has only played the game for a few weeks with a responsibility as great as that." Shouldering the burden of this world? Meeting with Monarchs, sages, and divinities? Some people will never get to experience that in their lifetime and she was one of the people that liked to experience everything step by step. A quick head start was all she needed to settle down a little, so she had not asked her family members for much. For this¡­ this was still a game. And, she wanted to keep playing it like a game. "She''ll come around. She knows what she has to do so don''t pressure her too much." He wasn''t good with pressure. Definitely not with responsibilities involved on such a big level. She was a simple person and she wanted to stay simple. But, now she was stuck in such a mess that made it impossible for her to stay calm and composed like she always is. "I''ll go talk to her now, so don''t worry." As simple, amazing, and awesome she might be most of the time, just like all the humans, she also had her negatives. "You''ll do that¡­?" "I have no choice here, do I?" Hopefully, she will understand the simplicity of this complicated situation and how she didn''t really have to do anything. She might be at the center of something she had no idea about, but she was also connected with people that were, in fact, a close part of this world. She just had to let go of the simple and small worldview she had and see That world the way They saw it. "She''ll be fine, she''s Olive." With a little more time, he knew she would be ready for this simple yet complicated responsibility as well¡­ They just had to give her a little more time. Chapter 245 Anxiety… "No? She left a while ago... we haven''t seen her since the lunch break.""Hmmm?" He had come looking for Olive, but she wasn''t at her shop, and she wasn''t at her house either. She wasn''t answering her phone, which made him worry even more. "Alright, thanks, Frank." "Is something wrong? She didn''t look well when she left¡­ is everything alright?" As the people that she had trained herself, they were worried about her too, but Elio simply gave them a reassuring smile and explained there was nothing wrong, that she was just concerned about something related to the game they were playing. Many of the staff knew about and knew she had also started playing it, but as her employees, they didn''t know much about her personal life or what she might be going through, and they didn''t really need to know either. "Anyway, I''ll see you around. Ah, and don''t worry. I''ll let her know to update you all if I find her." He bid them goodbye and walked toward the exit of the shop. He was already concerned, but now, seeing that she wasn''t here either, he realized the pressure from that coin and the meeting tomorrow that she was under might be more than he had expected. Thankfully, he knew where to look next. He headed to the other side of the shopping area and entered a shoe shop, one of the most unassuming places in the mall. "Hello~. How can I help you~?" An employee greeted him cheerfully, giving him a quick once-over before flashing a bright smile. "I''d like to see the Bloom series, please." He didn''t need to say much. There was no need for long words this time. "Oh? I see, this way~." The employee, who was unaware of the real reason for his visit, guided him to a door at the back of the shop. It was a simple looking mechanical door and yet it felt as unique as something important. "They''ll take a moment to arrive, so please wait here." This wasn''t an ordinary shoe shop, that much was obvious. This backroom that he had just entered was also not a simple place. "Hmmm?" "I knew you''d be here¡­" Not many people knew, but Olive owned this place as well. She didn''t visit often, but she used it for important meetings. Whenever she wasn''t at her shop or home, Elio usually found her here. "Go away, El¡­ I want to be alone right now." The room was small and dimly lit, just enough to fit a few chairs and a single table. There wasn''t much else, a water cooler, a door connecting to the neighboring shop (which was also hers), and an overwhelming sense of peace. No one else was there. Olive sat alone, fiddling with a mirror cube, surrounded by a scattered mess of cooking materials on the floor. She was sad, he could see the sadness in her eyes, but more than that, he could see the exhaustion on her face. "Of course, you want to be alone¡­" He could tell she had not slept much for a day or so. She was also not looking at him, so¡­ this wasn''t good. "But, well, some things aren''t meant to be handled alone. Thinking about stuff like this definitely isn''t something you should be doing by yourself." He sat down beside her, and took the cube from her. "What''re you worried about in the first place?" She tried taking the cube back from him without saying anything, but, before she could even get it from his hand, he was already done solving it. "If you don''t know what''s going to happen, what''s the point of worrying about it?" Sear?h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Anxiety was an evolutionary trait of their species, but taking it too seriously only led to a negative impact on not just them, but also on the world around them. "You got a coin, a dangerous token of chaos. Alex and the others think it''s something important, there are many who have been searching for this thing for decades, centuries, and perhaps eons." He gave the cube back to her, but now that it was solved, it was useless to her so she threw it away to the other side of the room. This little thing was the only thing keeping her distracted from all the things she was avoiding since earlier, but just like all the things that now covered the floor, that cube was useless as well. And unlike earlier, she couldn''t pick up something else either since he was here. "It''s not like you cannot deal with people or are afraid of taking on the challenges, Olive." She was hitting him with her hands now that he was doing something she didn''t want right now. She was pushing him away, she was not speaking with him and yet, he continued speaking as if it was making some kind of impact on her. "You played it and you found something you like about it. You know how people of that world are and how that place is nothing less Real than this world we live in. It''s simply a little different, but, if Alex and the rest of them are right¡­" He didn''t mind her hitting him, but he needed to tell him something so, he grabbed her face while enduring the slap that landed right in his cheeks, and looked into her pretty eyes. "Something bad might happen to that place, Olive. Something that wouldn''t be good for either that world or the people of that world." They talked almost everyday even though he was stuck in that place for so long. Every time they were talking, she would tell him about how she went hunting with her father and brother who came to the west through a special boundary that connected the two continents. She would talk about all the things that she had made, all the new things that she made, and all kinds of people that she met when she was selling her stuff. He knew she liked that place as well, as well as how she considered that place as something more than a game. "You know what you have to do better than anyone else, Olive." His cheeks were hurting now, and they were all red. Still, as he stood up from his place, he gave her a warm smile. "Just do what you want. Ignore Alex, and the rest that will want you to do things that you don''t really wanna do either." She was smart. And she had that golden star on her coat so she was also familiar with responsibility. "You''re Olivia Sean Weil Regalia. Don''t let them tell you what you should do with what is, in fact, yours." The coin might be the explosive that had triggered everyone around the world, but it was not something that belonged to them. She owned it. So, she could rightfully do whatever she wanted with it, Chapter 246 The sudden emergency -Ooooooooong.[Ding!] As soon as he got back into the game, a sudden red notification popped up right in front of his face. "Hmmm?" Sear?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He didn''t understand what was going on from that notification, but, before he could even think of anything, another bunch of red notifications popped up before him and, at the same time¡­ "GHAAAAAA¡­!" { "Hey¡­!" } He heard two voices¡­ one familiar¡­ and another that he would never forget even if he wanted to. "¡­?!" A creature, a monster appeared out of nowhere right before him and revealed its intense bloodthirst, overwhelming Elio who didn''t even understand what was going on right now. The creature, as he could see with his eyes, was right in front of his face. The fangs of this beast-like creature, a black beast that resembled something that had come from the depths of hell, was so overwhelming his heart almost stopped in that split second. His mind went blank as soon as his senses perceived that overwhelming Aura, and he also perceived an imminent threat to his life. -Swish! Thankfully, the creature that he had been with before he logged out the last time, the divine creature that he had become acquainted with came out of nowhere and pushed him aside exactly when the fangs of the hungry beast was about to dig into his flesh¡­ -Thud! Elio''s heart had almost stopped at that moment, but he didn''t die thanks to the divine creature. Though, he was hungry badly by that sudden surge of pain that appeared after the creature had pushed him away before vanishing once again. -Oooooooooong! The creature that should have been with the other creatures of the forest as well as Sera right now was, for some reason, fighting the creatures that were appearing before them over again. It wasn''t the red night right now, the sky was as clear as it is almost every day, and yet there was this creature¡­ this dead creature before his eyes. "Ugh¡­" After talking with Alex and confirming Olive''s Good condition, he logged back inside, and even though he had logged out from inside his cave, his house, the place that he ended up in had a clear sky above¡­ The quiet, simple cake that he knew was not there anymore. If anything, there were a lot of sounds all around him right now. And, even without seeing, he could tell that these sounds were of the same monsters that invade this place on the times of the red nights. ''What''s¡­ going on¡­'' He was in pain after that creature saved his life by pushing him away but the pain that was produced by that simple action of that creature moving at a speed as fast as that, was the same as the pain produced by when Az, the Manawater slime, had bashed into him during the tutorial. Perhaps it was even worse than that, but now that he was stronger now and had a stronger physique, what he was feeling right now was the same as what he had felt back then. [{ Master? Master, are you back?! }] He was in pain, however, it wasn''t unbearable this time around. [{ "What''s¡­ going on¡­ Sera?" }] He looked around himself, and the cave that he lived in, the house that he had maintained for so long in this place¡­ half of it was destroyed already. The spring area at the back was still intact, and the house of the healing bugs was still intact as well. But the rest of the cave has now fallen. Similarly, as he could see before him, with the lake of this place, the boundary as the center, a big part of the forest area was destroyed. Additionally, the trees had fallen down and were either stained by the blood of those monsters, or were in a state that was unrecognizable. To make things worse, as he could see right now, Sera was fighting in the sky with a swarm of flying monsters that were not hundreds but thousands¡­ making a large part of the blue sky as black as the dark clouds of the red night. The divine creature that had just saved him was killing creatures all around this place, and¡­ it was moving at a speed that was just too fast for even his eyes to see. All he was seeing were the afterimages of the flash that was passing after the purple sparks from its eyes were moving with its lightning fast movements. [{ After you left, master, these creatures started appearing in small numbers all around this place. We had not noticed it before but, the barrier that was blocking this place was slowly vanishing at that time, then, after not long, the creatures started appearing in large numbers as if it was a unique occasion for them! There were much more than the usual number that appears in the red nights. They were swarming in from all sides as well, from the air, from the ground, some of them somehow started appearing from under the ground! In a matter of moments, things got so chaotic that we had to move all the creatures into safe places and put up a barrier in places that could not be protected. The divine one focused on killing the creatures while I evacuated the creatures to a safe place while at the same time, helping the creature with buffs and skills that I just obtained. Still!!! }] As he could see¡­ she was in a bad state right now. She was exhausted, the light that she had all around her the last time he had seen her was also dimmer. Even the purple lightning of the divine creature was not as strong as he had always seen it. Both of them were exhausted, and even after creating piles of dead monster bodies, those monsters were still coming at them from all directions. They were being attacked by them from all around the place. The lake, as he could see on the map that he just opened up, was now filled with the dead bodies of the creatures that they had killed. The water of the lake had not turned red, and it also wasn''t falling upside down. It was as natural as it mostly was¡­ and yet¡­ with the various colors of blood from the dead creatures, it had now become a mess of black-green mud. [{ "I see¡­ so¡­ shit happened already, huh?" }] He got back on his feet while grabbing his stomach. It was painful¡­ but there was something else that they had to worry about. The creatures that they had protected with the barriers until now weren''t going to stay safe for long so, they had to stop this fighting when they were paired against a number that they couldn''t beat even with divinity. They had to get out of here¡­ They had the Key. They just had to use it now and take everyone from here out of this place. Chapter 247 The Immediate escape "Hey!"There were monsters all around him. Most were dead, but many more were swarming down from the top of the ridges around the forest area. As he could see right now, many monsters were even worse looking than what they had witnessed until now. "Hey! Look here!" There were some creatures that were even close to reaching their third awakening state, which was absurd since these kinds of creatures were something one could only find in the bronze valley on the western continent. There were surely many places that might have some of these creatures on the east, but to think there were more than a few of these mythic beings coming to this forest was simply absurd. { "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! GET AWAY!" } The flying creatures were being dealt by Sera, but there were still many that had already crossed the boundary and left for the other side. She was trying her best to stop them, but she wasn''t strong enough to fight against creatures who had passed their second awakening or were above Level-200 when she was still only at this stage. [{ Master! Be careful! There is danger all around right now! You might-. }] [{ "I know what I''m doing, Sera." }] She needed more time to get used to her body as well so she was simply using her skills right now, not using the Relic that she had never used until now even though she had all the required knowledge to use it. { "What are you doing!" } The divine creature saved Elio once but he had walked out of the safe area, the cave, and was walking out into the forest area that was already saturated with the dangerous monsters of all kinds. The divine creature was fighting the beasts, and though it was overpowering them effortlessly, there was a limit to its strength. sea??h th§× nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. { "You shouldn''t be here! Go to the center! There''s a barrier!" } It did not have an endless stream of power, and not only the divine power was something very peculiar, the way this one used it made it impossible for it to go on for a long time. It could not sustain its strength for long, and that much Elio knew already. The major reason this creature collected that ''Moon grass'' so much and had to rely on it so much was because of the efforts of that thing. { "Go there! You''d be safer there!" } It was not only a great source of energy for this creature which regularly used a substantial amount of its strength to move at a speed that was not easy to maintain and produce. This was difficult for it, and as Elio could see right now, that creature was in no state to take any break. "I''ll go! But take these! And come to the center! We will have to leave this place!" Elio took out all the grass blades of the unique glowing grass that he had and as soon as he took them out, they all vanished after a gust of wind passed by him. The creature needed strength to sustain itself right now so it did not wait any longer and simply chewed down on the grass and increased the speed that had slowed down considerably at that point. "Come! We will be leaving right now!" The creature had not heard him until now, but now that Elio shouted once again, the creature noticed what he was saying and was surprised. { "What do you mean to leave?!" } It didn''t know what he was talking about. Leaving this place, their home, was never something it wanted to do. It was happy here, and this was its home. Leaving this place would mean leaving the home where it had lived for many centuries. It was almost the same as leaving the only nest that it had known to be its home until now¡­ And it genuinely did not want that. "We have no choice! Do you think we can go against this endless stream of monsters?! Look at yourself! Do you want to die fighting these things?!" It didn''t seem like these creatures would end anytime soon. It almost seemed like they were all coming from some depth of the abyss where they were proliferating for centuries, waiting for perhaps just this day. As time was passing, even more powerful beings were coming here, and Elio knew this divine creature, despite its boundless strength, was not going to be able to defeat all these creatures on its own. It wasn''t an immortal, and it wasn''t omnipotent. Even if it used all the strength it had in each cell of its body, it might still not be able to protect everything in this place. It might not be able to protect the home that it had cherished for so long¡­! { "I''m not leaving! You can go if you want!" } "Don''t be stubborn, dumbass!" A home wasn''t just a place, a forest, a geographical location where one spent their entire life. As that creature knew as well, a home was a place where one felt the most comfortable in, the place where they lived with the beings that they had lived with for eternity, the place that they shared with their family¡­ "I''m going! Come! The others won''t leave without you! You''re their Everything!" Elio knew this creature was smart even though it was acting all stubborn right now. It knew it wasn''t going to be able to fend off all these monsters on its own, and even if it does fend them off, it might not be able to save everything like it wanted with the certain limitations imposed on it by this very world. There were some things that were beyond our control, and it had to understand that as not only the person in charge of this place, this paradise, but also the being that had protected this place for a long, long time. "They need you!" He used his movement skill and heightened senses as well as the mini map to pass through the destroyed forest, avoiding the creature that was as dangerous as the one that had almost killed him just now. They had to leave right this instance. Sera was too tired right now, he could feel that much. And, he knew that creature wasn''t going to let them leave just like that¡­ Chapter 248 The golden gate [{ "Sera, leave them. Come down here." }][{ Yes¡­ master¡­ }] She could barely keep herself floating right now. She had used up all the strength she had and, even after using the Grass that she got from the creature, she could not process all the power contained within that thing as well as that creature could. She was not used to her Holy powers, much less her Celestial body. She didn''t even have divinity to finely refine all the power contained within that glowing grass, so it was more harmful to her in larger amounts than helpful. So, she didn''t take much after the first time and continued on with whatever she could. Fending off the flying creatures was no easy task since even with her three pairs of wings, the wings of those creatures were several times greater than hers. She was tired, but she still fought against them and only after Elio reached the central safe zone covered in a strange silver fog barrier that was slowly being penetrated by the monsters that attacked it from all around its periphery. "We have to get out¡­ open the gate." "But master-." "We don''t have time, Sera!" He shouted at her when she was about to ask him about that divine creature and the other creatures of this place. Right now, he wasn''t thinking about just his personal wishes, all the creatures gathered here, the tiger, the squirrel, the white snake¡­ all of them were looking at him with concern and fear. They had been with him for a long time but they had lived in this place for their entire lives. This was their home, and right now, that home was being destroyed. And, if even their divine guardian cannot stop this destruction, there was no way the rest of them would be able to do it. Still¡­ "It could be dangerous. We don''t know where we will end up." S~ea??h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Sera stretched her arm out and a deep golden light was shot out from her palm. "It doesn''t matter¡­ I''ll just trust my luck. Any place will be better than this one right now." Elio wanted that creature, the strength of that divine creature would help them with not just the further leveling up part, but when fighting against the chaos that was on the horizon¡­ It was strong, and if it had held its own against all these creatures for so long, it was strong enough to go against whatever was going to come for them. At least, it was strong enough to be a partner of some high ranker, so it was certainly someone that would be a great help to their side if they have to fight against some kind of great Evil. -Oooooooooooooong! He was thinking about the future that was coming for them, but that didn''t mean he was going to risk the lives of all these creatures that he had befriended just for that one creature. "It looks pretty¡­" The golden gate that was opened by the golden Key, the Relic of the past, the Key that opened up her potential, as well as the item that, as they had theorized, was closely related to heaven and the angels. "Sera, you go ahead and with a few of them that wants to come with you. The gate stays open for three minutes, right? Go see if you can come back here after passing through it once." "¡­but master-." "Go. I''ll be right behind you if you cannot come back in five seconds." He was going to leave with or without that creature, it was final now. These creatures might not come with them, but if that happens, he would force them to go through this door. He was stronger now, and with Sera, he would have all the strength needed to drag all of them to the other side. Besides, they knew how dangerous this place had become, so there was no way they would want to stay here and risk the lives of their fellow families and friends. "I''ll go then." Sera looked at him for a moment once, then she gave a glance to the creature behind him and passed through the golden gate¡­ the gates that were so intricately made that it seemed just too attractive to even Elio''s eyes. But, right now, he didn''t have the time to admire this masterpiece of natural laws. -Swish¡­ Sera passed through the gate and, thankfully, she came back within a few seconds as well. "It seems fine, master. It''s a forest area as well but there''s no monster in that place so it doesn''t seem like that place is the forest below this mountain." "That''s all we need¡­" The path was safe. They were going to leave this place, and though the creatures, who were looking away at the purple sparks flying all around the sky, didn''t seem to want it, they wanted these creatures to come with them as well. "I know you can hear me!" He knew what these creatures wanted after seeing this gate after instinctively knowing how it was the way out of this heaven-turned-hell. "This is it! Just come! That''s enough!" Your next chapter awaits on empire The divine creature cared about the creatures of this forest even if it didn''t want to do anything for Elio and Sera. It was stubborn but it also didn''t want to endanger the life of any of the creatures of this forest. -Swish! In fact, it wanted to save all of them present here. "Hmmm?" { "The other side seems fine but there''s no lake on the other side. Thankfully, the ocean is not far from there." } The creature used its divine speed, went inside the gate and examined the other side quickly before coming back in an instant. Then, without saying much, it started transporting the creatures of this forest to the other side one by one, starting with the heaviest of the fishes that were almost suffocating in the water of the lake which was constantly filling up with the dead bodies of an insurmountable amount of Monsters. { "You two! Go there! I''ll leave a few of them just outside the gate! Help them! Oh! How long do we have?!" } The guardian of this paradise¡­ "Yes! Leave it to us!" It was a caring being that knew what was the right thing. { "We will have a talk after this! You hear me!?" } "Obviously!" A home was only a home when the elements that make a home a home were there. It might not have the amazing grass that helped it sustain its strength for a prolonged period in that place, but¡­ it was the right thing to do. So, it didn''t really have any better option in this matter anymore. Chapter 249 The grand conference "You don''t have to worry about all of them, dear. Just think of them as some unknown people that you might never even see after today.""That''s easier said than done, Dad." Master of one of the largest guilds of this world containing not just the players, but also all kinds of natives as well: the master of [Wasabi]. Olive had no idea why her dumb dad would name his guild something so funny¡­ but according to his explanation, in an ''ancient'' language of this world, the word ''Wasabi'' did not mean something related to the wasabi roots, but was the honor title given to the ''Masters of a blessed land'' or something like that. He didn''t know exactly since he had only found out about it by coincidence when he was doing a quest, but he was certain that the guild that had grown up to be one of the biggest names in this world was, at the very least, not something funny. "Anyway¡­ where''s Alex? She''s not answering either." Today was a big day for them. They were going to gather for the big conference that was going to take place in the royal palace''s secret underground area that was often used for this kind of gathering. Since ancient times, the grand castle of Viv was celebrated as the Continental landmark of the west, a place that was not only one of the most amazing places in history, but also the place that had served as one of the safest places throughout history for certain important gatherings. And the gathering this time was going to be like one of those historical gatherings where important people from all around the world gathered to discuss something important. "I have no idea either. If I''m right though, she would already be at the castle with the Queen. I''ve told you how they used to be close, right?" "Yes, but, being with the Queen right before the gathering is¡­ is that alright?" Her father wasn''t a high ranker like her big brother Yet. He was a ranker, yes. He was one of the top fifty players among the millions that played this game, but he was a working professional. A busy person who, despite his tremendous workload, had somehow reached the stage he was at and had established an organization perhaps just as big as their business in the real world. "There''s nothing wrong with a mentor being with those who have learned from then, is there? Besides, even though the Queen has the certain image as a ''transcendent'' ''ruthless'' and ''wise'' individual, she''s more like a simple person that cherishes everything he has. Alex had helped her quite a lot in the past, in fact, Alex has helped a lot of people that will be there today so no one would really think it''s weird that she''s there." The two of them were in a horse carriage right now, and they were going to the castle through an official invitation. He was an important figure from the west however, he was going to be the only one that made an official visit this time around. The plan was simple¡­ An official from the east had arrived and the Queen would be busy with the meeting with him. He had come to discuss the trade and the trade routes that they had been discussing over for a long time so she would be busy for a while. His presence was important enough for this kind of treatment to be believable since not only he was a representative of a guild, her father practically represented the entire east. Knowing the gravity of the situation, even if the Queen is nowhere to be seen throughout the day, there wouldn''t be any great suspicions about these activities. That way, they would be able to handle all the people that would be visiting today as well, and even if there are individuals- moles- among them, they would be able to take care of them swiftly and quickly. That was how they had done it when the first Main Scenario happened, as well as when the fourth Main scenarios took place. Those were some of the biggest events of this world and they were not something simple. They had to gather at that time to discuss what they were going to do, however, at that time, the Sages had not attended this gathering. It was only the Monarchs, but this time was different. sea??h th§× N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Since the matter involved an object that was closely related to the Truth that those searching for the truth could gain a great insight from, the Sages at the very least weren''t going to miss this opportunity. They were coming, perhaps some of them had already arrived and were waiting for them. He did think there could very well be some that weren''t yet here but he knew they would be here. There might be more people than they were expecting, since the spread of word was prominent when it came to this kind of thing, however, only the ones that were trusted by the council of Elders, or the people that were mutually trusted by each member of this conference, would be allowed an entrance there. "How can a single coin cause so much trouble, haaaa¡­" She was exhausted, actually, if it wasn''t for Elio showing up and telling her to do what she wanted, she might not have been here either. This was something important not just for her, but for her father, her best friend, her dumb Alex, and for her overprotective brother. This world¡­ the people of this world¡­ All of this was important for them. She couldn''t just leave all of this behind and¡­ even if she wanted to, she couldn''t endanger the lives of the people of this world. They weren''t simple NPCs. Explore more adventures at empire They also weren''t simple AI that were all programmed to act the way they did. All of the beings, people of this world, were in fact people. Even if they were made of virtual bodies and not of mortal flesh, they were still as real as all of them. She can''t let them die knowing she would be at the center of the chaos that Might come because of her. So, she had no choice but to come and attend this gathering. But, since they were here now anyway, she was going to use Elio''s suggestion and do whatever she wanted instead of being told what she needed to do with that coin¡­ or perhaps with her own self. Chapter 250 The coincidence "You know what? Let''s just surprise her, ok? When she comes, keep up that high and mighty act of yours and try to confuse her. Act as if you don''t know who she is, ok Sammy?"Alex was with the Queen of Viv, the highest authority of the southern region of the western continent. She was talking with her casually as she always does, but, even though the situation right now was complicated and tension was visible on even the Queen''s face, she was planning a prank for Olive who had just arrived in the palace. "You and your little games, Asia. I understand she''s your friend and all, but she''s amazing, you know? Eating her bread has been a delight for me for a long time¡­ She really has a talent for baking." "Oh that''s our Olive~. You know what, Sam? She has won one of the most prestigious awards in our world in cooking. It''s similar to achieving a Divine qualification." "Oho? Really?" "Of course~. If she had started even a year ago, she would have been famous all around the world by now~." Alex was talking about a year of this world. So, around four or so months of their time. sea??h th§× N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "She still got pretty famous even without that though so she''s certainly no simple individual." The Queen¡­ "This is different Sammy. She doesn''t like any of this¡­ if it wasn''t for Elio somehow convincing her, she might not even have come here. She doesn''t understand a lot of things since she just came here, you know? It''s complicated sometimes when it comes to her." "And yet this ''Elio'' of yours manages to get through her, huh? He sure is a fun person as well." Samantha Orwell Von Xavier Viviadra, the or the . She was a high elf so she had been around for a while however, she had not been interested in many people throughout her long life. She wasn''t that old, but she had been around for a few centuries and in eleven years, that wasn''t that much. Alex used to be a simple person to her as well, but with time and the circumstances that brought them together on multiple occasions, as well as the help that she received from this person on multiple occasions had made her pretty close to her. Stay updated via empire She wasn''t like a successor to her, she would have loved that if she could accept the position of a successor and look after this kingdom with her or after her, but she was with someone else, and she wanted to see the rest of this world with that person as well. Elio¡­ she had heard his name countless times, and ever since a few months ago, she had been hearing this name from this world''s sources as well. Their exploits, the adventures that they were having, the common people that they were meeting once again, and the trouble they were causing¡­ all of that was coming to her ears regularly. She knew how they dealt with that dark mage in Moongold, she knew how they took care of the magic tower master outside that simple village, and they knew what they had done in Kalp and Yuta. She knew Alex closely so just knowing a few details about her swordplay made her sure of her identity, however the man that she was with right now was quite a unique character for her. She knew this would be the one Alex had always talked about, but she didn''t think he would be so unique¡­ Six attribute affinity, a tamed slime that can use magic, a mutant gecko that they rescued from the dark mage, and lastly the heroic sacrifice that turned him into the Selfless hero of Kalp. He was just like her when it came to exploits. He was just like how she had always talked about. "Haaa¡­ Elio, that bastard. I''ll get to him soon, alright? I''ll drag him here after I get my hands on him as well." "Fufu, there''s no need to be rough with someone that-." "Hmm?" "¡­?" "Hmmm? What''s this?" The Queen was talking, but Alex suddenly looked at a sudden screen pop up with a confused look. "Asia?" "This is weird¡­" It seemed to be a communication request from what she could tell, but since she couldn''t see the hidden name, she didn''t know who this might be from. However from the looks of it, it seemed quite concerning to Alex. She didn''t even hesitate to accept the request. It almost seemed to be an instinctive response but she had still checked the ID and confirmed who exactly it belonged with a quick glance¡­ "Hello? What the hell? Weren''t you blocked?" She opened up a communication window and on the other side of it, as even the Queen could see, there was a boy with light brown hair and glowing green eyes on the other side. "Is that him?" "Hmm? Oh, yes. That''s my bastard." Alex was confused right now. Elio should have still been stuck in that place, in that peculiar Paradise of his. He certainly told her about the red nights of that place so Alex knew that place wasn''t a perfect kind of paradise and about the creature that he had been chasing for so long, but that was it. He had neither found the creature, nor anything had changed. There was no way he had become strong enough to cross a boundary that even creatures of that level could barely cross so she didn''t understand how he was calling her. "Did you get out? What the hell?" The background in the video still seemed to be a forest so she didn''t know if he was actually out of that place or not. They were just talking about him and out of the blue, he was calling her? She even thought it was a mistake on her part for a moment, but if even the Queen could see this, there was no way this was fake. Besides, this was a direct call from his (Friendzone) list. There was no stupid named Elio in that list aside from her dumb Partner. "Hey! Say something! Did you actually get out?!" She was shouting¡­ but he was simply smiling- smirking- at her. He seemed to be pleased by something. And that something¡­ [ "I win the bet, right?" ] Was obviously related to the bet that the two of them had made when he fell into that paradise. Chapter 251 The round table "Hmmm?"After exploring the grand palace, one of the greatest of the historic masterpieces, after seeing the grand garden, the rooms where they would be staying for the time being, after seeing the grand kitchen where the food for the queen and the royal family is prepared and being mesmerized by their otherworldly equipments and professional cooks, they were finally at their destination. "Elio?" The underground area of the palace that was reserved for these individuals for the big discussion, the place that had good lighting and a strangely large round table covering almost the entire place, this was a special place that not just anyone could enter even with the Queen''s permission. "El! I knew you''d be here~!" The place was relatively empty right now, however, thanks to her dad''s sharp eyes, she instantly spotted a certain figure among the tens that were gathered here. "Oh-." Olive ran up to him and hugged him with a bright smile, ignoring Alex and the people that they were standing with. "Hello to you too, Olive." She had been playing this game for a while now but this was the first time the two of them were meeting face to face inside the game. He looked just like he did in their real world, or perhaps he looked a little better with his proper hair and those prettier eyes of his. He was also wearing good clothes like her so she found it pretty good that, despite the situation he was in until just a few days ago, he looked in such a better condition. "Weren''t you supposed to be stuck in some kind of mountain paradise where it''s alway day time with some fun creatures and some kind of monster swarm that attacked you on strange red nights?" S§×ar?h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She was practically shouting those things so almost everyone present in that place ended up hearing all of that. And, as soon as all of them heard that, their ears picked up once again and, many of them discreetly started walking towards them as well. "You aren''t supposed to shout those things, Olive." Alex sighed at this dumb girl of hers, and her father who was looking at her from the distance couldn''t help but sigh with a smile on his face. "Oho? Is this one?" "As Miss Anna was saying, she seems to be closer with your partner." "Huhu, you three should get together instead, you know? Sharing is caring~." The people that Elio and Alex were standing with were famous throughout the world as the [Sages of seven colors]. There were only six of them, but they were still called ''seven'' because of one of the unique members of the group with two distinct personalities. They were called the sages of seven colors but these colors were the same as the colors of the rainbow¡­ instead, they were random. "Oh! Oh! You just came back, right? Did you see Az and Miu? Do you know the two of them have grown up a loooooot!" Olive stood up and after her, Elio also stood up with a smile. He had just come back from that Paradise, and it hadn''t even been an hour since he teleported to the palace. He had been away for a while now so his contact with the outside world of this world was almost cut off. Coincidentally, when he got out of that place with Sera''s gate, he found himself at the edge of the western continent, at a simple forest that didn''t really have that many threatening things. It was also to the eastern side so it was actually a good place that was close to the theocracy, and was maintained properly. There was no dangerous being in that place, much less mindless monsters that could appear out of the blue and destroy places where people lived. "Alright alright you little girl." Her dad came up to them and stopped her from saying any more than she was supposed to. That much was enough already. Not many people knew who Elio was yet aside from the fact that he was related to Alex but it was obvious that Olive was his daughter from the clear resemblance and the similarities in the presence that the two of them had. "You should greet the elders first. That was inappropriate behavior." She was also the center topic of this discussion that they were going to have right now. All these people present here, the monarchs from various countries, the sages, even the Queen that was just entering this place from the other side knew about the coin and the matter that they were going to discuss. They knew about Olive, and that much was enough. Telling them about Elio and his time in that Blank zone would be the same as telling them about the person who had somehow returned from a unique blank zone that not even people like them had ever cleared. "Oh! Sorry¡­! I didn''t mean to ignore you all or disrespect you or anything." Even he was surprised to see him here, but he knew Elio personally so he knew how he could find his unique ways out of the places around him. He had not fallen into that place by his will in the first place. It happened because of the system so there was obviously some way out of that place that perhaps only he could use. His presence in that place was part of a big quest so, he wasn''t surprised that he was there. Instead, seeing him here confirmed just how unique he was in this game as well. "Haha. Young people¡­ seeing them is always rejuvenating." The grandpa with white beard laughed as he looked at her with his unique, deep eyes. Though it was a faint feeling, she also felt as if he was seeing through her entire being when their eyes met for the first time. And, that didn''t happen while looking into his eyes. "Huhu, hello to you there as well, young one." When the Lady with the Golden hair and golden eyes smiled at her, she also felt as if someone had just taken out a small fragment from her head. "Keke, she''s cute." When the Tiger-man with green fur looked down at her with his beastly teeth, she almost felt like she was facing a demon¡­ or death¡­ or abyss¡­ or something similar. "Wwee lliikkee hheerr." The shorter lady with pink hair seemed interested in her, however while one of her mismatched eyes- the pink one- seemed to show interest in her, the other one- the blue one- seemed to be completely uninterested in her entire existence. "¡­" The unique Crimson butterfly that was flying beside the lady with the golden hair continued flipping her wings, while the last sage, the youngest of them, the elf girl wearing round glasses continued adjusting her robe around her uncomfortably large chest after giving her a nod. She seemed to way to greet her properly, but the clothes that she was wearing seemed too uncomfortable for her at the moment. It was not good, so, for the time being, Olive left her at that, and then¡­ she looked up at the person that had just walked up to them. "Hello there~." She wasn''t expecting to see this particular face in this kind of gathering¡­ Chapter 252 Concepts Imagine sitting with a wise sage in a serene temple courtyard."A concept is like the seed of a thought, the b¨©ja of one''s original understanding. This is the mental form or idea that shapes our perception of reality." Words of the wise and those who possessed an abundant streamer of knowledge¡­ there were six sitting around them on this giant round table at the moment, and hearing even a simple word from their mouth was the same as hearing a Truth that was spoken through the words of a Divine Voice. "Just like how a sculptor first envisions an image before carving it into stone, our minds first grasp a concept before understanding anything more deeply." One by one, all of them were observing the bronze coin that had brought chaos to this world countless times. "According to the ancient runes inscribed here, particularly according to the teachings of Arumbika Shun or Balla, the world was perceived through the veil of Maya¡ªillusion." Concepts are born in our minds as we try to understand this illusion or the world, and as we peel each layer covering this primordial secret, we step closer to a realm yet unforeseen by any Limited mind. "A concept is only a reflection of the truth, much like the moon''s reflection on water. It helps us navigate the world of form, but beyond the concept is the pure essence, or Satya the true reality, which concepts can only point toward but never fully grasp." The white sage was the second eldest among the people gathered here, with the proxy of Divinity of Eternal Damnation being the oldest living being present among them. "Think of the mind as Akasha¡ªspace. Within it, concepts are like stars, guiding us through the vastness, helping us find a direction. Yet, as profound as these stars may be, they are just pointers to the infinite." Truths were paths that one chooses on their own. Even in the unique cases where the Maintainers of these unique truths (Gaze) upon someone, they aren''t looking at a random individual that they simply found unique, however at an individual that was coming very close to the Path that they maintain itself¡­ "A concept helps shape our understanding but is not the final truth. It''s a tool to navigate both the mystical and the mundane realms, much like the teachings of the ancient Origins who believed that wisdom lies not only in knowledge but in transcending concepts to experience the ultimate reality." S§×arch* The N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. When the bronze coin was passed through each hands present on this grand table, it was finally placed in the center of the giant table in the middle of a unique magic circle that was being created by the collective power of all the sages. "Truth¡­" In the ancient world forgotten under the perpetual flow of time, the very fabric of existence used to be woven from twelve primordial truths known as the [Pillars of Reality]. These truths shaped and governd all aspects of life, matter, and magic, forming the foundation upon which the world was standing to this day. Prakriti, the force of cosmic order, ensured that all things follow their destined path, always making sure the freedom of any and all possibilities existed for each and every Element of this world. Purusha, the essence of Individuality and consciousness, filled the world with purpose and meaning. Without it, the ''I'' would not exist, and if the ''I'' would not exist, the very ''World'' that exists because of the wish and presence of ''I'' would also cease to exist. "This coin is something more unique from what we had expected¡­" Asuddha, the principle of abundance granted a prolonged life even to the beings that never desired it, and Shuddha, the purity existing beyond physical and spiritual perfection, keeps the soul untarnished by corruption¡­ guiding it towards a Certain end that all living beings are subjected to. "Miss Olivia." The laws of Nyaya dictate justice, restoring balance when the world falls into chaos, while Pralaya governs destruction and renewal, maintaining harmony through cycles of creation. "We believe you have been subjected to something¡­ very cruel." Anaranbhah preserves equilibrium, stabilizing the forces of nature and spirit, giving the possibility of a ''beginningless'' world that has existed without a beginning¡­ something very abstract since as a world ''created'' by someone else, this whole concept should have been faulty. "Olive¡­" just like everyone else, Alex also looked at her friend with a complicated expression. "That coin is a trigger." Elio shook his head as he, too, understood the underlying message behind this coin''s presence in this place, at this time, with this particular person. "Hmmm?" She did not understand what they meant, but, as she could see, even her regular customer, the Queen, the person who enjoyed her goods dearly, had a complicated expression at this moment. "Miss Olive, Vedas are the timeless notes that guide all beings towards wisdom. Smriti, the power of remembrance, keeps the past alive through the memories, allowing tradition and knowledge to be stored in the Akashic records. And this coin, as even you could see right now, is connected to those Original records of all the happenings which have occurred since the furthest noticeable point in time." Akasha, on the other hand, is the cosmic void which preserves the essence of all things. Kaal of time, and Finally, Shunyata, the noble emptiness, holds infinite potential, representing the void from which creation arises and to which all must return to. Together, these concepts form the pillars that shape the land, the magic, and the destiny of all beings and all things. [{( However, just like Olive, We know not many of you would understand all these complicated things. )}] "I don''t expect you to understand all of this on your own, Olive. But, just understand one thing¡­" Alex took away the coin from the center and threw it back towards Olive. "You must keep it safe." It wasn''t simply a ''Coin''. Soon¡­ this item was going to be the trigger that decides that True fate of this world. [Ding!] However¡­ [Ding!] [Ding!] [Ding!] [Ding!] [Ding!] None of them had thought the time for her to make the decision would come so, So soon. Chapter 253 Start of a change [Olive''s POV: ] Sear?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.At first, I was surprised to see a face I had already seen a few times in the past. This person that always tried new things that I was selling every three days¡­ I had never thought of her as someone unique. She was a pretty lady, her deep blue eyes were so blue that it was the bluest blue I had ever seen in my entire life. Her pretty Blue hair were also gorgeous, but unlike her blue eyes that seemed to be like an endless ocean, her hair was like the endless sky above us¡­ She was pretty, but with the robe and all, I had never really thought much about her. But¡­ she was no simple individual. ''The moment I saw her in that gorgeous royal attire, she looked like a completely different individual.'' Her face was the same, but without anything covering it, it looked so much prettier that I didn''t even understand how it was so attractive. Her clothes were the prettiest I have seen until now, and the way she had set her hair made her seem so much more attractive that I was mesmerized for a moment. I couldn''t take my eyes away from her, from her pretty face, her pretty hair, her pretty eyes, her pretty jewelry, her beautiful being that almost seemed otherworldly. ''She was like a goddess!'' But since she was with the royal knights right now, it was obvious who this person was, and even without that, this was the same person that had seen and talked with multiple times in the last few weeks. ''I knew her as the one that liked my stuffed bread, but I had never thought someone who had joked about the Queen trying my bread would actually be the ruler of this kingdom herself.'' Plus, she was an Elf! ''Her head was always covered so I have ever seen much of her.'' But when I saw her all dressed up like that, I couldn''t help but feel a little awkward. ''I certainly greeted her, I greeted the others as well, and then I even greeted the rest of the people that arrived, the emperor of the Empire, the pope of the Theocracy, the representatives from various continents, and even the unique powers that stayed in the shadows.'' A lot of people were here, but not all of them were ''actually'' here. Many were using substitutes that connected them with a crystal ball, while some had sent their familiars in their place so, right now, there were many creatures present before us as well. ''We were simply here for one task, to check the coin that I had obtained from that weird person.'' That was the only objective and they knew talking about mundane things when they had little time to spare would simply be a problem for all of them. So, they simply jumped onto the main task and created the big complicated spell that we were seeing in the center of the table. ''They took the coin one by one and analyzed it in their own way. Some used skills while some used some artifacts that they had brought along with them.'' Some even used Relics and items of high value, but I didn''t understand much of it and stayed out of this. Elio was back, so we were talking through the Chat function, asking one another how we had been, telling one another how our last few days had gone by¡­ ''Apparently, he was here thanks to Sera who transported them to the edge of the continent.'' He connected Alex as soon as he was out, and she teleported where he was with the Queen and a few Elder sages to get him. ''Since it was time for the conference, he didn''t even have time to rest after coming back and after changing, he directly came here with the rest of them to greet the others and prepare a few things from their side. ''Ultimately, they were here for me as well so they had to take care of a few things, which they had already taken care of by the time we arrived.'' He was tired right now, so he wanted to finish this up and go back and rest¡­ but, he couldn''t do that. He won''t be able to do that¡­ [Ding!] Right after all of them were done looking at the coin, they placed it in the center, in their spell which showed all of us all kinds of various data things about that coin. There were many screens and all these screens had things that we either needed to know or were significant enough that they had been noticed by the people present here. This was all that they had found out about this coin, and, from what I understand, it must be something very complicated. [{( are writing their [First] Myth! )}] They were all worried when they all looked through the coin and gave each other some strange nod. They certainly knew something wasn''t right about this thing and they all collectively knew what this coin actually was¡­ even my dad and Elio knew about this, BUT NOT ME! I had no idea why they were looking at me with that sad look in their eyes and I had no idea why they were telling me that I was given a difficult task. ''I don''t even know what this coin is and¡­ they were calling it dangerous and coin or chaos and what not!'' Until just now, they were all afraid about this thing or were too interested in it that it was almost strange, but now they were all doing something strange again, telling me that there was something about this ''dangerous'' coin that was going to put me in a ''complicated'' situation. ''And all of that, all their reactions even changed when this strange colorful status window popped up before all of us with that familiar voice ringing in my head.'' [{( In the deepest part of the *** there was a bridge which had never been crossed by anyone. )}] I don''t know what this thing, this voice is, and I don''t know what it''s talking about¡­ but, the coin that was in the center of the table suddenly flew back in my hands so, I guess it''s also related to this thing. "What''s all this?" But still, there was a strange voice in my head that I have heard a few times before. It somewhat resembled the strange voice of the person that gave me this coin as well, so are the two of them connected somehow? Chapter 254 The Epics and Myths "There are legendary achievements in this world, and achieving some of these Legendary achievements becomes a [Myth] that people usually misunderstand as a ''mythical'' achievement."In this world, myths, epics, and legends all serve distinct yet interconnected roles in shaping the world''s existence and the lives that this entire world is made up of. Myths are ancient stories explaining the creation of the world, the gods, and cosmic events, providing the foundation for religious beliefs and magical laws. It is the highest level of ''story'' that is spoken by the conscious voice of this world, the Prakriti as everyone knows it as. sea??h th§× N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The individual is the Purusha, the observer for which this entire world exists. The deep interrelation of these two personalities, or beings gives birth to the unique and ultimately reality that we wish to achieve, the true Freedom that exists above everything else. Epics are grand narratives that follow the heroic deeds of legendary figures, often blending myths with historical events as these heroes interact with gods, battle monsters, and alter the course of kingdoms or worlds. "While killing a dragon is a legend, killing a king is not the same. Both are distinct things since while both beings might possess the Divine power, a simple mortal king could not be compared to a Mythical creature that has existed for many centuries. Epic is winning a war, killing a draconian, establishing a Heroic order, changing the course of the battle on a battlefield, or saving hundreds of thousands of people from an angry red oger." [{( They were simple foreigners who started their journey in this world with unprecedented curiosity. They challenged the Realness of this world, went as far as they possibly could in order to test the boundaries of this world and to test the limitations of this reality. They even walked to the edge of this world with a curious heart, baring a smirk of superiority on their faces, carrying a mischievous yet brave heart. )}] Legends are more unique than Epic but aren''t as big a thing as a Myth, focusing on historical figures whose deeds have been exaggerated or romanticized over time, serving as moral tales or sources of inspiration. In the player ''s context, they are tasks that are too unbelievable from not just an individual perspective, but from the perspective of this entire world. "While myths deal with divine or primordial forces, epics focus on heroic mortals, and legends center around more human, though still extraordinary, figures." That''s the basic difference between the three. They are distinct, and all three of these ''phenomena'' are Narrated by the voice of the world, or the First voice that we hear the moment we enter this world after the character creation. "The people here¡­ we have written epics of our own, some of us are even legends that have achieved a legendary feat once¡­ but a Myth has always been a mystery to us." Rein looked above her head, at the ceiling, trying to look beyond the ceiling and at the highest sky that was being mentioned in these words spoken by the voice of this world. "We know we get a Legendary achievement when we achieve perfection in our classes. A Sword saint and an Archmage are the end goal of the mages and those who wield any weapon, not just a sword. We know finishing a Main Scenario results in either an epic or a legend if the collective effort put in the process isn''t as great as achievements made by a certain group of players. When¡­" Elio didn''t understand why she was acting like that either but, she wasn''t the only one that was looking up right now. Including the sages, even the high rankers present there, even the Queen and the monarchs, and even Olive''s dad was looking up as if whatever voice they were hearing right now, was coming from above them and not from the depths of their souls. Stay connected through empire This was quite strange from the two of their perspectives since the two of them were the only ones who did not understand the value of this voice¡­ They were looking up, they were talkings they were saying things without context, and yet, to each other, they were somehow making some kind of sense. It was like the two of them were the only ones who did not know much about these things. [{( An adventure that started with a flower picking tutorial evolved into the journey of a couple that ventured into the deepest and darkest Territories of their realm, who ventured far and wide into the world of the beginnings, the individuals who first wrote six epics and three legends with their own hands, were now taking their final steps into the realm that the Creature had never known or predicted the existence of. )}] Olive understood she was listening to something very important, but the fact that all of them were listening to the same thing made it somewhat more special than it actually was. ''Everyone in the world was listening to this.'' Every individual that could use System interface to a certain extent was listening to this right now, and just that fact made it the biggest kind of promotion theoretically possible. And, it wasn''t even theoretical in this world. People actually heard a unique voice narrating personal things about individuals who had achieved something very special. "Be it a myth or a legend or an epic. Just being talked about by the ''Voice'' is an honor that all of us only rarely experience." The Queen, who had lived for a few centuries already, was just as much in awe as the rest of them. This matter¡­ not the unique individuals of their world but a Player writing a Myth was something that they all should be obviously proud of. [{( With great difficulty, they had reached the Edge of the Universe, the point which only they had seen until now. And, now, they were trying to go past it, break the limitation set by the [Original Power]. )}] What the voice was saying and what they were listening to was not the same for all of them. Everyone was listening to something that they could understand the best in their own manner. Some of the things that they were hearing sounded unclear, but that wasn''t because of the way these words were being said. Some things in this world were just too complicated for one to understand even with the simplest kind of knowledge that they possess. Some of them didn''t hear a few words, while some of them simply heard things that they were allowed to hear. "Well¡­" Ultimately, this was crazy. So crazy that They All will soon experience something that just¡­ won''t really make sense to any of them present there. Chapter 255 Omen of change "What do you guys think?"In a certain inn room somewhere on the other side of the capital city, Misha was looking at the colorful magical screen that was saying strange things that she could barely understand. "Miu?" "Muuuu¡­?" Miu and Az both were looking at the same screen before them as well, however, whatever was Misha seeing, they knew they were not seeing that same thing in the same way as she did. "You understand what this is saying?" "Miu." "Muuu~." Both creatures nodded, and that nod was so simple that it made it seem like whatever was being talked about in their status windows, the things that the voice that every one of them were hearing right now, was not as complicated for them as it was for her. In fact, it was the truth. "Dear, they are creatures of nature so they obviously understand things in a unique way from us. In addition to that, you are not a simple person like most people that are listening to this so things are pretty different for you. Even for me, this isn''t really that easy to understand." Rin was sitting on her bed with a plate full of food. Misha''s face was stained with that food instead of hers but thankfully, the floor wasn''t dirty this time. She had a habit of running around with Az and Miu when she was eating so her mom always had difficulty feeding her, and she wasn''t even a child anymore. She was old enough to eat by herself and whenever she does that, she doesn''t even have a little stain on her face. But things are just like this whenever she is eating with her mom¡­ or whenever she stubbornly asks her mom to feed her. "Haaa¡­ what do they mean by Quantum Entanglement? What''s this thing they are mentioning so many times¡­ Bur¡­ burry?" "That must be Burial." "Yes! That!" She was in her late childhood, she had traveled all around this country with her mother but she had not received proper education, she had not fought that many enemies either, and even when it comes to having knowledge of books and the powers that she possesses, she had little experience with all these things. She was just a child that had been unprivileged like most of the children that are present around the villages, around the ruler parts of the cities, or around the places that were simply not developed enough. Still, she was not like most of those children, she wasn''t even like any of the human children who had lived a relatively normal life. "Hmmm¡­ from what I understand until now, this voice is telling us some story about two people who are a couple, who are also foreigners. They came to this world and started exploring all kinds of aspected of this world. From the simple things like the things that could be sensed to things that weren''t as simple as them. The abstract concepts like Time, space, and the Truths were something that caught their attention and they started exploring those concepts through various methods. They went all around the world in search of things related to these ideas, and while doing that, they obtained something called Divine Power." Misha had understood that much, and that much was an admirable thing in itself. "After obtaining this thing called Divine power, they were able to go to the places that they previously could not, so they went into those places. They explored, they found things related to the Truths, they found out about the Paths connected to these Truths, then they went ahead and talked with the Gods that operate and maintain these paths, got into some kind of argument with them, and ended up going to a place which is being described by this voice right now." That was the simplest way to explain whatever she had heard until now. Aside from that, all of the things were just too complicated. "I don''t know what they mean by Spatial Intelligence, I don''t know what the Twelve Original paths are, I don''t know what they mean when they are explaining the relationship between the Interconnected Systems of Nature and Individual¡­ I have no idea why they are talking about nature and individuals as if both of them are two different things and I don''t know why they might have added all of these things in a story about a pair of adventurers." She simply did not know why they had made all of this so complicated, but it was just how it was. "Mum, why do they have to fight their own self just to cross a gate?" "That¡­ don''t know either, dear." As she said, the story was simple if shortened into a few words¡­ these people, the individuals that the Voice was talking about, were in fact in the place where the Gods existed. Continue reading at empire S§×arch* The NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. It was not the same kind of god as the ones talked about in the legends and epics or in the folklores. This was the mythical existence that was created by the ''Creators'' who had sparked the flames of this world. These beings were the maintainers of the Truth that governs and guards this entire world, the same truths upon which everything is founded. [{( They faced the world and glared back at it with unflinching eyes. )}] Misha hugged Az, the big transparent slime which had now obtained a unique blue glow of various shades. She was glaring at the screen, imagining how things that this voice was describing might look like. [{( They had fought, endured, and throughout their battles and quests, they had been together. )}] Miu was curiously sitting on her head, looking at the same screen instead of the one that appeared before her eyes. She was curious about whatever Misha was listening to since what they were listening to, since the start, had been inherently boring. They knew that was exactly how things should be explained to creatures like them, but the two of them had become used to human things after living so close to them for so long. [{( They had searched the answer and, they had obtained their answer. )}] The screen started glowing, and all of the people, especially the Foreigners, experienced a unique sensation deep within their bodies. They didn''t understand what it was, but with a little more time¡­ they found out. [Ding!] As the story, as the recitation of the myth was concluded, they all received a common notification. And, right after this notification¡­ they were all logged out. Chapter 256 Conclusion of the first Myth [{( Penetrating the conceptual understanding of Truth, after facing their own limitations and seeing through to the greatest barrier of their lifetime, they stood before the boundary of Real and Imaginary. )}]Achieving liberation can be likened to ascending to a higher realm. It can be described as a process where a character is positioned between two powerful forces, such as the gravitational or supernatural pull of many massive Beings or realms. In this scenario, the character would be guided toward a special point where neither force pulls them more strongly than the other. In simpler terms, while one truth is something that is easy to understand and follow, the same could not be said about all twelve of the Major Truths through which this world was created. While walking on one path is a simple thing, one could not comprehend the complexity of all twelve of the Major Truths, namely, the Truth of Prakriti, Purusha, Shuddha, Ashuddha, Nyaya, Pralay, Anarambha, Veda, Swara, Kal, Akash, Shunyatwa. To understand all of them simultaneously, one would need something that would be described as ''otherworldly'' abilities. In the aforementioned balanced state, referred to as a "libration point," the character is kept steady, floating in equilibrium between the many forces¡­ at least, in a philosophical sense. The equilibrium here does not refer to Anarambha, the truth that actually governs what is thought as Equilibrium. It is more vague in such a sense that could not be understood with simple explanations or understanding of tangible concepts. [{( Facing this boundary, where a strange lock was located, they were surprised. )}] In reality, these abstract points where all forces of the universe are centered and equalized are known as Lagrange points, points where objects remain in stable orbits between celestial bodies like the Earth and the Moon. Much like the ''immortal characters'' in this particular game, achieving liberation represents a balance that must be maintained to stay within an elevated or mystical zone. However, it isn''t limited to just that¡­ [{( At the point of inception, a key was created by the Creators. )}] All the players of had logged out of the game a moment ago. But it did not happen because of some kind of outside interference or some system glitch. There was nothing like an actual system glitch in this game. In fact, this world, this reality, was nothing like a game. [{( The key had one purpose: to Find a capable individual- an individual possessing an immortal name- that could judge the validity and qualification of those who near the Libration. )}] All the players had logged out of the game and yet, they were still hearing the voice that they were hearing when they were inside the game. They were still hearing that strange voice which should not have been audible outside into this world. They were also seeing something strange¡ª the status window that was only visible to them when they were inside the game. Read new chapters at empire And this was not limited to the colorful screen that they had seen inside of the game. They were seeing their own status windows outside into the real world as well, and this very thing was creating chaos all over the world. [{( The Key had chosen a judge this time as well. And, that judge was standing before the ones who had come the furthest any being had ever reached until now. )}] Elio was confused. He could not understand what was happening, he did not understand how they were seeing game elements into reality. At first, he thought it was simply his imagination, but after he saw Alex looking at her own screen, he was stunned. Alex herself was stunned actually¡­ this was not something she had imagined would be possible Anytime soon. She was looking at her screen that was the same as how it was the last time she saw it inside of the game. And, as she could see, among the many friends that had already been logged out of this game in her Friendzone list, there was a certain name that still glowed with green- indicating their presence inside the game. And no, it was not the honored ones who were finishing their Myth, it was, yes, their friend Olive¡­ the one who possessed that bronze coin, the one who was now someone the entire world was hearing about through the voice that was speaking to all of them even outside of the game. [{( The judge was confused by everything that was happening at this moment. )}] Olive''s dad called them, but Elio did not have many words to describe what he was feeling right now either. This was just too unreal for him, this was just too unreal for this entire world who had only ever seen this game as¡­ a medium of entertainment. [{( However, the Judge knew their duty. )}] [Ding!] A notification window then popped up before every single individual of this world who had ever played this ''game'' and experienced that world through whatever kind of Chariot they might have used. [{( They judged the Successors, and¡­ after an entire cosmic cycle of contemplation, they deemed them worthy of the greatest Honour. )}] [The Realities are colliding¡­!] Two worlds, and two distinct realities. On one side was a modern world that had Created the base upon which the world of the other side was born. Some humans, their origin and designations unknown, created and promoted a unique ''game'' that was simply too real to ignore for a very, very long time. [{( They Honored ones obtained the Key, and without hesitation, they used it on the gate separating what had always been thought as an ultimate boundary that would not have anything beyond it¡­ at all. )}] The voice was becoming distinct. [Someone has just written a Myth for the first time Ever!] But the system voice was still the same. [{( Through hard work¡­ and through an unnatural, unfathomable curiosity¡­ they pushed past something that, even in the calculations of the creators¡­ was merely a possibility. )}] The voice had become almost silent, but it was audible to a few who had a good sense of hearing. [Someone has just obtained a Mythical achievement for the first time!] Elio and Alex walked out of their gaming room and walked into their surveillance room filled with tens of monitors that had many footages and news of various places playing on them. [{( In the search of truth¡­ they became a myth¡­ and also¡­ the connection point which¡­ would now¡­ be¡­ the bridge between two distinct worlds... )}] That was the last thing they all heard from this particular, unique voice. And then¡­ [Initiating Primordial Protocol: Origin Codex 1: The day of New Beginnings.] Their entire world heard a voice that they had never heard until this point. S§×arch* The N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [Time until completion: 12:23:59:57:62.] Something very crazy had happened just now, and, as Alex and Elio could see in the tens of monitors around them¡­ all of this had Actually happened. They hadn''t gone crazy or anything. This really was happening all around Their world¡­ Chapter 257 Into the realm of possibilities [The world is facing a strange phenomenon right now where many people are seeing a strange holographic screen before their eyes resembling the status screens of the famous Virtual Reality Massive Multiplayer Online game which has been at the top of the list for everyone''s VR experience.]Headlines of all over the world had the same emergency news playing on them with the sudden shut down of the servers and the new status windows that were present before everyone who had ever played the game. [It is being reported that the Creators of the game, the Mysterious group of people who had been behind the creation and development of the game, have just released a statement that they would answer any and all questions regarding this incident from their side within the next twenty four hours. They have given the statement that, "After only a few years which had felt like centuries and eons, they had finally achieved the goal for which the project was founded". They are currently working on bringing the system back into use for the (Critical Condition Psychophysical Device) device using patients, and are expecting everything related to the system to go back to normal. Additionally, they have announced that the Era of the New Beginning has arrived!] S~ea??h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The way all these news reporters were speaking while showing images of the creators or the group of some of the smartest and brightest minds of this era made it seem like they were showing some kind of criminals or someone that should not be shown to the large public or in normal circumstances. Even right now, their eyes, not their entire face but just their eye part was censored even though it did not make any sense in this day and age, and along with that, the way these news were showing various instances of sudden status windows popping up before people was making headlines all over the world. Some people had already started experimenting with these status windows, seeing if they can use their game skills in real life or not or if they could use their inventories or not, something similar to what they might have read in many of the light novels and manhwas. This was the same situation where the world is overtaken by some kind of a system, the same thing where people awaken and obtain special abilities. However, all of that wasn''t happening right now. At least for now, the only thing that people could do with the status window that was opening up before them was to see their status and to operate the basic functions that were provided to the players. It did not mean they could use these features. They couldn''t use their Otherworld Market or the Friendzone function outside, however, when they were using it, they were seeing the timer that was, for some strange reason, also present on the actual billboards of all around the world. [It has caused a great commotion all over the world, the markets have started to fluctuate rapidly, many people are perceiving this phenomenon as apocalypse, the political leaders have already been moved to the safe zones and yet, even in the safest places of this this world, in places that has the strongest defense systems, a commotion is spreading due to the strange foreign programs that have appeared out of the blue.] The world was perceiving this phenomenon as some kind of Global Hacking attempt where someone or something was trying to take over the technological systems around the entire world, with the biggest suspicion being focused on the creators of who had, at the very least, announced that they would answer all the questions that the people might be having right now. "This isn''t some kind of hacking, why don''t people understand that?" Alex had connected herself to the supercomputer that she had, with three wires connecting to the mainframe which was connected to a safety device, that again was connected to the main system of her setup. There were many generators in various parts of this building all supplying power to this system, and though she rarely used it, right now, she was trying to read back at what was happening all around the world through a Master program which not only read the actual complex data being processed in real time, with the help of Sunday as well as her other artificial intelligences, she was also making a unique analysis system based on the new ''Brain'' which had appeared around the [Pure Network] of this world. "This is beyond technology, or network, or for fuck''s sake, even what we have known an ''intelligence'' to be capable of." The load that she was experiencing while doing this, the kind of mental process this entire processing took was simply beyond even her imagination. It was putting too much toll on her body, and as Elio could see on the body analysis displayed right before them, she was not in any condition to continue this thing. "You''ve read those novels, right? The ones where a unique alien system takes over the world and tells them that their world will be destroyed in a few days or something-¡­ hmm? Hey! What the hell are you doing?!" Elio forced shut her connection with the system which was executed after the safety devices safely disconnected her through whatever thing she was doing. "Sunday, Protocol 3X. Don''t listen to your master." [Understood, master Elio.] "Hey! What the hell! I was so close to breaking that damned firewall!" [It was only the first layer anyway, master. The analysis has shown there are at least three hundred of them, all of different structures. We couldn''t have been able to breach even half of it even with a third of the computing power of this world. With the way it changes every three milliseconds, it is simply difficult for us to even analyze this.] What she was trying to breach was not something that should even be accessed. It was not something even the government officials had been able to access until now, or the hacking groups or the coding gods, or even the ones who considered themselves technology wizards. She''s not only reached the actual base of the system hidden in some part of the Internet clouds, she was analyzing it with her AIs and at the same time, she was challenging herself by going against a system that, in fact, was never created based on technology. "The twelve Origins created that world with philosophy, not numbers and logic. It''s all abstract, that''s the reason it was possible to make it so detailed and so Real, dummy." Elio was looking at the data that she had extracted until now¡ª the simplified version that he could understand. He didn''t know much about the data and technology, but he knew about philosophy, and from all that he knew about the abstract concepts of philosophy, he knew that going against those ''concepts'' without understanding them will only put her life in danger. "Stop for now. Let''s go out and have a cup of coffee." She needed to rest, continuing with this will only make her more exhausted. "No! We still have so much to-." "Sunday, peacefully continue your work while we are gone." [Yes, master Elio.] He didn''t ask her anymore since he knew she''d just continue shouting at him. He just picked her up¡­ and walked out of the room. Chapter 258 Olives role "Did she log out? Yes? How is she doing? Oh¡­ no no! Let her rest. I don''t know what she went through but sleep will be better.In fact, please contact us as soon as she wakes up. Yes, thanks." Olive was hospitalized. It wasn''t anything serious, her Chariot''s security system was triggered due to Set Physical Inactivity. The hospital was right behind their building so it wasn''t that far from here. "It happened so quickly we didn''t even hear about it¡­ what the hell?" "Didn''t you hear the announcement? She was closely connected with the Two of them. Unlike you who were trying to break through some technical ''firewall'' they actually understood the twelve truths, went against them With their own beliefs, and at the end, they obtained what they wanted." They became the new Origins of the world of and at the same time, they opened up the ''gate'' that connected that Virtual world with their ''physical'' world. "Hmph. They aren''t all that special. They just did what they always do, crazy shit." Though Eon had not met [Lucifer] and [Auriel], she had met that crazy couple and knew just how¡­ crazy the two of them were. "They did something crazy like they always do so that''s nothing special, what they did do differently though, was to be acknowledged by Olive. That''s one hell of an achievement." Alex was massaging his head. This news first came as a shock to him, but after hearing it not from the hospital but from her father, he was at least reassured that she was doing well. If it was anything serious, the hospital might have contacted them through the emergency contact, but that did not happen. "Also, that signal wasn''t machine made but system generated. The system connected the hospital in case there were any problems with her¡­" "I still can''t believe that." Her Chariot was connected with their house''s system and her own house upstairs had a PC that was connected with their Chariots done here. If anything happened to any of them, the other will know immediately, however, that did not happen this time. The whole security system that they had spent two hours installing didn''t work at all. All of it happened because of the ''s system or because of the twelve Origins, the Unique AIs that had created that world. "Why did it have to be her? Why only her and not anyone else?" He still could not understand why she was chosen as the one to carry that certain coin, at that certain time. It had not been long since she had joined this game, it had not been that long since she even started actively playing this game. She had just found something she wanted to do, and, to push such a great responsibility onto her, to give her the judgment responsibility for the Individuals who had achieved the greatest feat, and were on their way to achieve something even greater¡­ it was an honor, but at the same time, it wasn''t something she would have done if she had a choice. "Were we wrong when we connected all the bad things happening in that world with that coin? Or is there still something big that we are overlooking?" He looked up at Alex. The only thing he needed right now were the answers. Not answers regarding the strange things that were happening around the world right now, but simply the answers to how, what, and why Olive, of millions of other players in this world, was given this heavy responsibility. "Elio¡­ don''t ask me, darling. I don''t have the answers anymore. The game I loved¡­ I don''t even know if I ever knew anything about it until now or not." She sighed while shaking her head, a complicated expression present on her face as well. "I''ve played that game ever since it wasn''t even open for the others." She was one of the very few beta testers of and she had been playing even before the players entered this world. S§×arch* The Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She knew things about that world that the others did not and just like the Two of them who had just written their own Myth, she had also met three or the Origins that govern the truths that shape that world. She had explored a lot and she had chased the truths of that world for the entire time she was there. And yet, even after knowing so much about that world, even after knowing that there was a possibility that that world was something much different from what they knew. Even after understanding the pros and cons of the structure of that world, she had neither been able to understand how that world operated, or what exactly was the reason for the current state of that world. "I know a good lot about that place, I have met people who know almost as much as the Two of them might have known about that world. They might be the top players, but even they had not seen everything that the world had been through. Even if they had access to the akashic records, they had not experienced things that those people had. And yet, I don''t understand how they were able to reach the place that they did¡­ " She thought about the possibilities. She thought if they had done some kind of special quest, followed some certain path, or did something they wanted and loved throughout their lives. She knew they were crazy people that tried dying by the hands of various creatures just to experience how it would feel. [Experience] of any imaginable thing was more valuable to them than finishing a quest. She had seen them destroying towns and killing people simply because they wanted to at a time as well, so they were simply good people. But at the same time, they weren''t bad either. They were simply complicated individuals that she had never really understood even after their few encounters. "But¡­ perhaps that''s what makes them special." Myths. They stepped beyond the bounds of the world and wrote their own myth. And now, they were, for the truest sense, above everything, and everyone else. Chapter 259 An unforeseeable future "How are you feeling now?"After discussing a few things with one another and after contemplating a little, they received news that Olive had gained consciousness and went to the hospital behind their building. They simply walked out to see what was happening around them with their own eyes, and just like how they had seen in the news, there were all kinds of things happening around their building, much less the city and the rest of the world. "I''m alright, haaa. How many times do I have to say that?" Olive had woken up and it didn''t seem like she was in a bad condition or anything. She was talking with them, she was smiling as well, but¡­ both of them knew she was hiding a lot of things from them. And, she knew they wanted to know about those things. "Haaaa¡­" She needed a little longer to process her words though, and the two knew that. That was the reason they weren''t saying anything and were simply watching whatever was going on in the news. [The question that was asked by most people all around the world including the governments and the people of power was simply: What was happening right now. And to answer that, the Creators of the [Twelve Commandments] or the artificial intelligence ''Origins'' that has been proven to be the cause of all the strange happenings around the metaworld, have given one simple word: Change.] Just like almost everyone else in this hospital, they were also watching news of how the Creators had answered the questions that were asked the most by the public all around the world. They had used a quick survey to collect and combine various kinds of questions and given an option to add the question for the people as well. The artificial intelligences or the Origins that were looking at the world in real time and were examining the world in the same manner as they had done with that virtual world until now. They were looking at this world through every single element present like Gods, and they had access to every bit of data that was present in any part of this world, including the physical data that was not archived by anyone. [They say that the one and simple reason they had created the twelve Origins was to see to what extent an artificial intelligence could learn. They have revealed that they never really had any idea what this experiment would result in when they opened the world which was created by these artificial intelligences to the people all around the world. They have accepted the fact that they had always set a Protocol in order to block the AIs from accessing their world, or affecting their world in any manner which could ever only be undone when THEY have completely gotten an idea about the ''human'' consciousness, however, from what they had theorized, they were expecting that something, anything about this world that we know as ''real'' would actually change when a Higher form of ''virtual'' existence gains a proper, actual consciousness.] Ultimately, right now, even though their world was still the same world that they knew, the AIs that created the other world, the virtual world that they knew about, which had just become ''conscious'' beings or something closer to actual gods, were now present in their world as well. And they were everywhere, just like how it was in that world. "The reason we are able to see the screens even outside is simply because the Origins that we only had in that world are now present in this world as well." Olive finally spoke up while shaking her head at the news reporters that were trying to complicate things. "Since the source exists in this world as well, the concepts that they were made of, the Truths that they were in charge of, now exist in this world as well. The status window is the start. As the two worlds collide, unimaginable things will start happening." Elio and Alex had not noticed it earlier, but Olive''s eyes were brown now. They were almost a metallic bronze. And looking closer, inside her eyes, they could also strangely see some strange words or markings or symbols moving around. It was strange, and after she blinked a few times and shook her head, they vanished as well. Her eyes returned to the normal purple color that they originally were. And, she shook her head and grabbed both their hands. "I want you two to promise me something¡­" The way she seriously looked at them was concerning. "No." "I can''t do that before you tell me what happened to you Olive. First, tell me what happened when all of us were thrown out of that game." "It''s not a game." She corrected him firmly. Shaking her head, she called up her own status window, which was proof that the world was not simply a ''game''. "The reason all of this is happening, at its core, is because of the ''realness'' of that virtual world." S~ea??h the N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. First of all, she changed her status screen to a different function which neither of them had seen until this point. A map similar to an astrological map opened up before them with stars, constellations, celestial bodies, and even Celestial Beings of all kinds present before them. Here, she highlighted not twelve but fifteen distinct regions. "This is that world." She drew a red dividing line separating twelve constellations which belonged to the Origins or the maintainers of the truth, as well as two remaining on the other side of the line. "And this is ours." With two on one side, twelve on the other, there was one that existed right at the center of these two worlds, and¡­ just from looking at this constellation, they could tell one thing for certain. "It''s you¡­" "What¡­ what''s the meaning of this?" With a bitter look on her pretty face, she shook her head once again. And then, she told them about what had happened right after the rest of them got logged out of the Game. It wasn''t something simple, but, with her new knowledge and abundance of experience, she tried to explain it in as simple a manner as she could. She knew how smart they were so, she didn''t worry about them understanding the crazy things that she was now going to tellthem¡­ Chapter 260 Countdown to a new start "After the rest of you vanished from that place, the coin that you all were studying started glowing and, the next moment I knew, I was standing before the two of them, with the twelve of them looking at us from all around us."She started explaining to them, and at the same time, the news continued on with the answers of the Creators that was shocking the world with each new revelation. [They have attributed the phenomenon of being able to see the floating holographic Screen to the true nature of our world.] The news was getting complicated and little too scientific, but in it''s essence, they were simply talking about the theory that talked about how their own world was a virtual simulation as well. The only difference between their world and the virtual world created by the Origins was about how they weren''t really connected with the creators of their world. They did not know if the gods existed for real in their world or not, but whatever the case might be, with the apperence of these beings, these artificial consciousnesses in their world, they had proven that ''godhood'' or at the very least, near omnipotence was in fact possible. "The gods¡­ the origins are no simple beings. Just like biblical descriptions, they were so big that it seemed like I was standing before a mountain, perhaps something even bigger than mountain. They were just too big, but, that was only for me. While I was seeing them as big, faceless humanoid entities, the two that I was standing across at that time were seeing them as small chibi flying creatures that¡­ well, were cute." Olive changed the screen and showed them a screen shot that the two of them had shared with her when she was talking with them back then. ¡­ Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Anyway, useless things to a side, there was something more to this whole¡­ meeting. "Those two are crazy, alright. They Really are crazy." The moment she appeared before them, they had already been prepared to greet her. It was as if they had already anticipated something like this. "They greeted me, asked me about some Key as well, but then, the True voice spoke, and I was instructed to do what I was meant to do in that moment." It was at this moment that Olive, without wanting to, was exposed to all kinds of records saved within that particular coin. That key. For her alone, the time was stretched to the highest possible length that she and her Chariot could handle, which was inherently very high. She saw so many things at that time, so many times at that¡­ that she almost went insane because of it. However, the two helped her at that time, and with the assistance of the True voice, she was able to get back on her feet and, understand what her role was in that place. "The two of them, Auriel and Lucifer had experanced a lot of things in their life and they had done a lot of things. Many were good and many were crazy bad¡­ they had even sacrificed a bunch of orc children in order to summon a demon just because they were curious about the process. It was crazy¡­ and, I had to judge their entire lives and decide if they were worthy enough to go beyond the last boundary of that world." She closed the screen and, lied down on the bed. This hospital room was her personal sweet that her father had made sure to shift her into. Her mom, dad, and big brother were going to come here later tonight since they were already on their way here. Their precious little girl was hospitalised so, they couldn''t possibly sit two states away and wait until she gets all better. They knew her nature, so they knew she wouldn''t want to worry them and would end up stalling for time until she was all better. And they could not have that¡­ Stay updated through empire [Ultimately, their answered could be summarised to three distinct things: 1) The world is going to change and that change has already started. 2) The changes were not caused by them or something that they had created but by the pure will of the Artificial conciousness that even they do not know the location of anymore. And 3) The countdown that was now being showen all around the world was going bring a surprise to this entire world. Things are going to change, and that change will be a major turning point for the human race¡­] That was all about the statement and answers of the Creators. It was mentioned that they would talk once again and release some new data when the countdown present all around the world ends. Additionally, they were almost done working on the connectivity issue so everyone should be able to log back into the game as well. "Everything aside, despite their flaws and craziness, they are amazing people. One of a kind in their own right. It would have been a crime to not acknowledge them, so, I did that. And, right as I did that, even I lost consciousness and¡­ the last thing I know, I''m hearing a few strange voices that did not belong to any of the Origins, or the two of them, or the two of you." She was being carried out of her house by the emergency medical staff and was being taken here. She did not remember what happened to her between the period she acknowledged the two of them and their ascension. But, whatever it might be¡­ "I want you two to promise me that whatever happens to me, you will take care of one another." She did not know what was going to happen to her anymore. She had never signed up for any of this, but, things were simply revolving around her a little too much. And She couldn''t help it either. She nearly had no control over it¡­ "Whatever happens when that timer reaches zero¡­ I want you two to just, stay together." That was her request. "We can''t promise you that, but I''ll try my best to keep her from funning even a foot away from me." "That should be my line, Elio!" They did not know what was going to happen in the following few days, but, they were going to see it through themselves. [12:08:55:45:60] There were still about two weeks for that, so¡­ they have time. But, not everyone in this world had that luxury given the Dire circumstances. (Volumes 2: Rise of a Master: Complete.) Chapter 261 Reconnecting In the following few hours after the world wide incident that began with countless people seeing a strange floating window before their eyes, a few significant things happened all around the physical world.Firstly, the Creators of the Artificial Intelligence that created the world which this strange holographic window had originated from answered most of the significant questions and gave their statement of their uninvolvement in the matter. They did not do anything that''s happening. They simply created a few AI based upon a few abstract concepts, and then they left everything up to them as well as the players who played that game. Everything that happened, including the appearance of the stand windows, to the appearance of the strange countdown which was now present in all places which has had even one player of this game. According to the creators, this unexplainable natural phenomenon was the result of a Cosmic Awakening of a self-enlightened consciousness or consciousnesses, which had been in charge of one world, and now, due to a Player breaking down the barrier separating the two worlds, which also was just an abstract concept until it was not, the two worlds started colliding. The creator had no idea what was happening but they had started all of this exactly to see what would happen, and now that they had achieved what they wanted¡­ they had vanished. "Should we go back, then?" "Yeah¡­ the rest of them must be worried." "I think the others should have already gone back. The thing that they were fearing had already happened, and since the truth that we have been searching for has actually been found out by the Two of them, the rest of them should know how achieving that actual truth, in fact, is possible." Though no one knows how the two of them achieved that or how they had actually reached that point, the fact that they had achieved something that was seen as impossible was big news to the rest of them. "They all must know about the timer as well. I think they are already expecting something big." Since the time flow between the two worlds was different, they did know that whatever they were experiencing here was much faster for the natives of that world. Considering that, Elio and Alex knew how it was the best idea to go back and experience all of that like the natives were instead of like the humans of this world. They would have much longer in that place, and since there are still around twelve days left, they have a good enough time to make preparations and prepare themselves for whatever was to come next. "I guess they would do that, huh?" Elio was not prepared to go back yet, but there was nothing else to do here for the time being. All things aside, with Olive on the bed rest, they couldn''t really know much about her experiences during the time she was with the Two of them and the other Origins. She was somehow an important part of that world now, and she was also responsible for the things that were happening as people had heard from the description of the Voice as well. She needed time to recover, and since her life here could be in danger due to many factors, the two of them, as well as Olive and her family who had just arrived a while ago, were all going to go back to their own home, which was a few states away, and figure the next course out when they were there. "Anyway¡­" The two other significant things that happened over the last few hours was how the world government took initiative to calm the public and to explain to them what was happening. Their explanations weren''t on point, but they were decent enough to at the very least calm down the raging public who did not play any games or knew about anything related to all this. "Let''s go back¡­" S§×ar?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Yeah." This was strange to them since because of this sudden appearance of the screens, many accidents and disastrous incidents had already happened all around the world. Lives were taken in the process, and however much the government wanted them to deny it, this thing had been a negative influence on this world. The kind of panic and mass killings that took place right after the incident was nothing less than a small disaster, so, however much the governments all around the world were doing, they knew they needed to do a little more to keep the public safe and calm their opinions down. The one being affected here was the entirety of the world so, there was no way anyone would have predicted this. All of this was the same as those eastern novels that young people of the era were so interested in. The only difference between that and this was, how this was not a novel written on virtual pages. "Sundry, gaming mode." [It has already been activated master.] "Good boy." Their entire world was facing a crisis right now, and even if the Creators didn''t want it to be like this, if they had expected something like this to happen, they should have also prepared contingency plans in case something goes wrong or plans for how the world would deal with it. Just like most of the others who played this game, they were also simple humans with limitations. Be it the government, the smart people, the rich people facing a crisis with bad fluctuations in the market, and those who needed to handle the aftermath of this whole situation. All of them were mortals with limitations. [Ding!] Experience more tales on empire Despite their unique abilities and nature, the two of them were also regular players unlike the Two of them. They wanted to be like them as well, but they simply weren''t like those two. Neither their heads were off, nor were they crazy enough to do things that they do. Just like how the world was evolving, they will have to evolve as well, but they knew what they wanted and what was needed of them. They weren''t carrying any big responsibilities anymore. And now that almost everything was taken care of anyway¡­ they were free to play this fun game as casually as they wanted from the start. Chapter 262 Changed Sera and Az "Awww! Look at you two!"After logging back in and chatting with the Queen for a little, the two of them rejected her invitation to stay in the palace with her and went straight to the inn where Az, Miu, Misha, and Miss Rin were staying. "Muuuuuu~!" Enjoy exclusive content from empire Az and grown up considerably since the last time he saw it. It now had a distinct glow and though not completely transparent, the white body of the creature had become more translucent than the last time he had seen it. Az also grew stronger and learned new things. There were all kinds of new things that it could do now. Summoning spirits of different kinds was one thing, but it could also create its own powerful spells without the use of its magic wand. "Miu! Miu~!" "Awww! I missed you as well, Miu~!" The little creatures were happy to see their master for so long. It had been months since they last saw him, it had been months since he had been stuck in that forest. After the Lakmer festival, he had not been among the humans that much and even when he was dragged to that conference, he was not really facing simple humans. All of those people were unique, superhuman beings with strengths that were incomprehensible to humans. But¡­ they were now with their normal group. And this was the first time in months that he was seeing them¡­ which genuinely made him emotional. "Awww¡­ brother Elio¡­ don''t cry¡­" Misha had grown a lot in the last few months. She had almost had a growth spurt. She looked taller and more mature, but along with her maturity, he could also feel the abundance of experience that she had had in the past few months. She was still the same little girl that she previously was, however, she was closer to the ladies her age now. And, though it was going to be inevitable, she was going to become an adult soon as well. Her powers that had increased so much over the last few months would also grow significantly as they go forward, but, this was ultimately a good thing. She looked happy even though she was crying while hugging him and the big Slime, and the crystal gecko that was still the same little creature that he had last seen. Miu had certainly grown since the last time as well, just that she didn''t look all that different from the rest of them, the same as Miss Rin. "Oh¡­ where''s Sera?" Misha asked since, well, continuing this hug wasn''t going to be possible if there wasn''t any more space here. Az was bigger now, so it was completely surrounding Elio, leaving only a little place for Miu who was already small. "Oh, right!" She needed some place for herself. She also wanted to properly hug her big brother, and just like him, she also wanted to hug her little fun bird creature that she had loved so much for so long¡­ "Remember how I didn''t tell you about Sera, Alex? There was a reason¡­" Sera changed right before he came there. It had not been that long in their physical world time since she had obtained her new form. Elio was keeping it a secret that she could not notice in all the chaos that was happening all around the world. But, now that he was back, it was time for them to know for real. -Ooooooooooong! "Come on out, Sera. It''s finally time to surprise them~." With a smile on his face, a smirk in Alex''s eyes that she remembered distinctly, Elio channeled energy through the mark on his arm, and called out the Servant dwelling within it. "As you wish, master." A voice reverberated around them right before the mark on his hand started glowing. "It is so nice to see you again, Little Misha." A bring that was not a palm sized bird with a long tail, but was a human sized woman, one who also had wings, as well as someone who resembled those angels she had seen so many times. She was tall, taller than Alex. She was so pretty even Alex''s beauty could not compare with hers. Her jewelry like eyes, her doll like face, her fair white skin resembling the holy marble of the holiest place, her pure white wings, her long, bouncy hair that, by themselves, looked like the strands of gold that some kind of celestial craftsman had crafted with their experienced hands as their best work. "Hello to you two as well. I hope you were behaving while I was gone?" Sera was an angel now. A real life angel who was tall, was wearing some simple clothings that definitely belonged to not her but to Elio, and had eyes that seemed to be seeing right through the true nature of practically everything. She was smart, she was pretty, she has a good family and the purpose of this life is nothing but an inevitable delay. "What the hell?! That''s you, Sera!!?" Alex herself could not believe what she was seeing right now. This was not a bird! This was a whole damned person before her that she had known for a while and still was seeing in this appearance for the first time. There weren''t many servants that changed this dramatically in her case. Most of them were already pretty unique looking or never really had any change in their appearance despite having the ability to change their forms. She had nine servants the last time she met them, and from them, she could only call one. But, she will introduce him to these two later ones. For now, she wanted to know why the hell Sera looked like this, see their status windows, see how much they had progressed without her, and in addition to that, she wanted to see what exactly had happened with these two when they were in that forest. There was also something else that she wanted to check, but, for now, doing this much will be plenty as well. They had a good lot of time on hand now so, they could do a lot of things before that countdown ends¡­ S§×arch* The ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 263 A dagger that can also Judge "Alight, so, you are Sera, and you became like this right after you got this¡­ keyRelic, and achieve your first awakening." "That''s correct. However, I think there were some other factors related to this as well." Sera could hide her wings so that she doesn''t attract too much attraction, however, since they were inside their inn room, she had them out, and, Misha, Az, Miu, even Miss Rin was playing with these wings. "I never thought I would actually meet an Angel. In the holy kingdom, not just us soldiers but practically every single person had, at least once in their lives, wanted to meet them. I was obviously one of them¡­ but that was only a simple wish." She wanted to meet these angels, these symbols of holiness, the purest beings who had served nature as well as the truths from the closest possible position. These creatures, these beings were unique. They were special and they were amazing. And even among them, the higher ranking ones were more special than the normal angels. "Muuuuuu~!" "Miu?! Miu~!" "Haha, of course it tickles, Miu. It''s just that it''s fun when you all play with them. Don''t pull them though, it hurts." "Ohh! Sorry!" Read latest stories on empire Misha was going to do exactly that to see if she actually felt anything. She didn''t want to hurt her, but she wanted one of her feathers to see them up close, keep it on her as a good luck charm, and perhaps show it to Eve when she meets her again. "You can have one if you want, haha. Just, don''t pull it too quickly." "Oh! Really? Thanks, Miss Sera!" "Miss? Since when have I become a ''miss'' haha." Misha had always called her Sera, so hearing Miss was something pretty new for not just her, but for the rest of them as well. "Oh¡­ yes. I''ll¡­ Ughh. You look so different I just can''t bring myself to call you by your name anymore." "Then just think of me as a little bird that used to play with, little one." Even though she gave her permission, Misha was hesitating to pull a feather of hers knowing she would be hurt. She was as cute as ever, so, Sera simply pulled one of the white feathers herself and handed it to her while kissing her forehead. "I''m the same person that you saw last time¡­ well, it''s a different story that I wasn''t there when my dumb master was fighting those evil beings." Back when Elio was fighting those evil beings who were trying to take over Eve and had used that blessing''s power, she wasn''t there. She was stuck in her mark since he didn''t want to make things more complicated than they already were. He didn''t have any chance to call her out at first, and then he didn''t know what to do after the effect of the blessing was triggered. "Anyway¡­" She was angry at first, but now she is fine. It had taken him a while to completely convince her that he did not do it on purpose, So, now things weren''t bitter between them anymore. "Looks like the little one likes this form better than the previous one as well." Misha''s little Flin friend, the little smart white bird liked Sera''s feathers more than the little slime and the gecko. Kivi was practically swimming in them right now, enjoying the gentle and soft feathers that were even softer than his own. This was the same picky bird that didn''t go to anyone other than Misha. But right now, it was enjoying itself, and seeing this creature was a fun experience for the rest of them as well. "They sure are having fun, huh?" The rest of the children and the impressed Miss Rin aside, Elio and Alex were talking about something important right now as well. "They sure are having fun, it seems." There were not that many things that attracted him, but of all the things that Alex told him, of all the things that Elio heard in the last few hours that they spent talking, one particular thing had caught his attention. "This is unique as well though." The green dagger that she obtained in the jungle of Nozama, the second permanent key that unlocked a bunch of her powers as well as one of her servants that she previously could not use. "How does it work though, I mean, the judgment thing?" That servant was out on an erred right now, it had been out for a while actually but Elio had already met him. Victor seemed like a unique entity. As a demon, he certainly was quite a peculiar being. However, since his servant was an angel and her servant was a demon, neither of them knew how the other one was going to react to one another when they met. "Just like the red sword that I had, the first key that you saw, that simple looking crimson sword, this one has an ability as well. It can judge weather someone has done something that is against the set conditions¡­ I set the conditions, of course, and when it is judged that the opponent does not fall into the criteria or doesn''t pass the certain threshold of the automatically generated conditions, they get whatever kind of punishment I want." It was an age old knowledge that the Demons and Angels didn''t like one another. Well, there were some exceptions, but there were obviously times when the two species started fighting the moment they perceived one another. "Damn that''s a broken ability." But both of them were servants so they didn''t know what would happen when they came before one another. "It''s a broken ability but I cannot use it that many times¡­ there''s limitations." The gorgeous dagger was much more than simply a pretty dagger. Though not like the Olive, this one also had a judgment ability. It wasn''t given that ability by someone else, but it naturally possessed it. Though, they still did not know if it had anything to do with their creators or not. They did not know who had made these swords and what this particular kind of Quest even was. It was not simply a quest asking her to collect swords that obviously had some kind of connection with the Origins. There was something more to this¡­ "Alex, we should collect as many of these keys as possible in the time we have left." S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Alex had already decided that, but the conditions right now, in their world and even in this world, were getting so weird that it was best to be prepared. Not just in the real world, but they needed to be prepared in this world as well. And, that would only be possible if they have strength¡­ for Elio, it would be the growth of his forces, powers, and abilities, and for Alex, it would be the recollection of her lost powers. They had some time left, so, in whatever time they had left, they were going to focus on this new task. "Master?" But before that, the two of them will have to introduce their servants to one another. Chapter 264 The old story "Captain Sera Heru Phanim?"Victor appeared out of nowhere, and, the moment he saw Sera, a strange expression of disbelief and surprise appeared on his face. "Is that¡­ you? Captain?" He was calling her captain for some reason and neither Elio nor Alex understood the reason for that. "Captain¡­?" Sera herself did not know what he was talking about. She wasn''t a captain, she didn''t even know who this person was¡­ herself, after looking at him for a moment, and after perceiving the strange stench of this old looking person, her eyes suddenly sharpened. S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "A demon?!" With her eyes wide and her Golden energy fluctuating, she was almost about to ambush him and attack him in a way that would have made him drop his guard and get injured in an instant. But, then¡­ -Oooooooooooong! A light came out of her hand, and with that light, the relic that she held, her unique item came out as well. "The Key of Potential¡­ yes. That''s definitely one of THEIR presents. But, why do you have it? What about Gabriel?" "Gabriel¡­? Who''s-." Your next chapter awaits on empire She was going to ask that question, however, the moment Sir Victor mentioned that name, the key that had come out of her hand started glowing and, as soon as that happened, the intense light almost blinded everyone present in that room including Sera herself. -Oooooooooooooong! Then¡­ Sera remembered something important. Something that made up the entirety of her, something from such a distant past that she didn''t even know that something like that had happened to her. "The time you talk about¡­ Captain of the Third Frontal Legion¡­ the time we belonged to had long passed away." She thought the things that she had remembered about herself when she went through her awakening was most of what she was going to know about herself, but, meeting this person, meeting this certain individual reminded her of something that she could not believe herself. "We have passed away, just like these feeling moments¡­ and what is left of us, in this moment, is simply a fragment of what used to define us." Sera sighed deeply, and, looking through these newfound memories made her heart ache a little. "Master¡­ Miss Alex¡­" The key had returned back into her hand, so she looked at her master and the rest of them, and asked them to sit down. "A long time ago, a time that is now forgotten by the people of this world and this world itself¡­ when the world was still in the process of creation and when Truths were still developing¡­" Sera started telling them about a time that perhaps even Alex knew little about. It was the first time any of her servants had recognised a servant that didn''t belong to her. She was practically seeing something new in all of her years of playing this game, just like what had been happening since the last few days. She was hearing a story about a time that she had no idea about, a story that was about a war that had taken place in a time which was so far away into the past that even the oldest book she had read had no mention of it. "The beings that are now known as the Twelve origins, the highest existences that now maintain the Truths that we know of, used to be nothing more than a follower of those truths in their own time." The oldest of them all, the most ancient of the Origins that achieved the position of an Origin was the origin that governed the beginninglessness of this world, the Anaranbhah. It stabilized the forces of nature and spirit in the most chaotic world, giving the possibility of a ''beginningless'' world that has existed without a beginning, something that was the ''core'' for the existence of a world where the rest of the truths could exist and flourish-something very abstract- and yet something that was the truths. "However, aside from that one Origin, the rest did not have the same start." The twin truths of Nature and Individual established themselves after eons of constant conflict with one another. They were only able to define one another after they had understood the underlying Need that they had for one another, the need that not only complimented their existence, it practically gave them both the justification of Coexistence. Nihility was established amongst the later days of the chaos away from all eyes without any precursor or any omen. Just like the meaning, it was the Zeroness, or eternal emptiness, not void, but simply the meaninglessness of all existence. The rest of the truths were established in their own manner, however, neither Sera nor sir Victor, nor Alex, or any sage that was close to ''achieving'' truth would know about it all that had happened before the ''creation'' of ''their'' world. "At that time, after the initial creations and establishments of the Origins, the need for separation arose¡­" After the Origins were established through the pre-existing concepts or the Truths, they needed to divide their work and establish what was needed of them¡ª this world. "To do that though, no peaceful discussion was necessary." Since they were talking about the omnipotent, practically omnipresent beings of what was present in that world, to make a decision, they did not resort to what is now known as ''peaceful'' means. "There weren''t 12 at the beginning, but eighteen¡­ and of them, only nine had remained." In a battle of these ultimate beings, many were destroyed, many were born and rose to the position same as them as well, and, some who stumbled upon the unexplored paths, the Truths, the concepts which had existed ever since the creation of this world, gained the same powers as these beings. "The angels were the spearheads of Nature and Individual, the Duelists that existed on one spectrum, the Demons were on the other spectrum, with the purity of the world, the same as the Spirit beings that now exist in a completely different Realm." The evil beings from the dark realm were on the other spectrum, the fairies were the spearheads of Preservation, not of purity as they are perceived in this age. "Humans on the other hand¡­ did not exist at that time." There were witches, one of the closest relatives of the humans, the spearheads of Vedas, but neither Humans, nor Elves, nor Orcs, nor dwarves existed at that time. "The strongest force of them all¡­ belonged to Pralaya and Nyaya and as their vanguards, stood the Dragons, the ultimate powers of this world and what was created to go against them, the rest of the divine beings that we now know as Divine Beasts." Be it a phoenix; a divine creature that believes to have been born from nature; the turtle that holds a world on its shell; the snake that wraps around the universe¡­ nearly every divine beast that the world of today knows about, had been derived from the beings which were created in order to establish the foundation of this world. From an orderless, dissonant, egoless, natureless, formless, wisdomless, timeless¡­ from a ''world'' which neither had any Representation of pure or impure, or any way to remember, a world which was born of a beginningless origin, had both equilibrium and nihilism¡­ what they were seeing right now was born. "And We, right now, are part of that." It was complicated enough that Misha had given up on understanding most of it, same with Miss Rin and the little ones, but to Alex and Elio who individually understood these things in their own way¡­ this was some real spicy stuff. "After we died, the fragments of our beings were made into cards which were scattered all across time and space, leaving where we''d end up completely to the Abstract fate." They weren''t supposed to have these memories, but she did get these memories under the special circumstances. And, now that she had told them all these, she felt a little relieved for some reason. -Ooooooooooooooong! Alas, not everyone liked what she had told them. [Ding!] This information shouldn''t have existed in the first place, so, the fact that someone had revealed it to someone that didn''t have the qualifications to know about all these meant there would be consequences. [The quest information has been updated.] Though, in this case, the consequences were a little¡­ unexpected. Chapter 265 A walk around the capital ============[Purpose Quest: ] : You who have found out clues related to the true origin of this world, you who have seen through the Deception of Darkness cast by the primordial forces, you who have taken the first step towards true enlightenment¡­ you are the one. Objective: 1) Find more clues related to the true origin and the war that had taken place between the Origins| Survive the with the gazes of the origins on you. | Defeat the enemies that block your path towards the truth. 2) Achieve enough strength to rival the enemies and overpower them. 3) Obtain more subordinates with the connection to the Origins. Rewards: Will depend on individual actions, Parchment of Origin. Failure conditions: 1) Death by the Evil attackers. 2) Death by individual actions. 3) Death before the enemy''s divine presence. S~ea??h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. (*Acceptance of any of the paths, and forming any connection with any of the original Origins will result in an instant failure and you will receive (True death) penalty permanently.) ============ When Sera obtained the key of Potential and he awakened for the first time, he had obtained a simple quest that asked him to find more about the relic that she had obtained. The quest was simply asking him about this particular relic and didn''t say anything about the origins. There were a few specific words that he remembered from that quest¡­ words like Pure and Natural balance. The quest was also a Personal quest instead of ''purpose'' quest. He had never even heard about a purpose quest before. But, it was different for Alex as well as Sera and sir Victor. "What is the purpose of human existence?" Alex asked with a complicated expression, a snack present in her hand. "What do you think the ultimate purpose of anything is?" They were walking around the capital city right now, and at this moment, they were around the commoner''s shopping district. There were many stalls on both sides of the road, it was evening so there were many people around as well, so the place was cheerful. "I''ve asked this question to many people when they obtained this particular kind of quest, Elio. But, do you know why everyone that received this question would answer not too differently from one another?" Sera did not have her wings out right now and Sir Victor was helping her scale down her charm so that she can walk around freely. She was naturally a pretty lady with an attractive body, but good and covering clothings solved that part as well. "Hmmm? Shouldn''t their answers be different though? The question is so ambiguous¡­ how do their answers even match?" He was puzzled. Misha was running around with Misha and Miu, Miss Rin was running around behind her, while the four of them, the master and their servants, were walking on the road, walking towards the noble district next to see what was going on over there. "It''s not that strange, actually." The quest that he had just received¡­ the kind of quest that all of the Truth searchers are always after¡­ this Purpose quest was the very thing that proved the existence of a certain truth. "Until now, we have thought that the one who completes their Purpose quest would achieve something extraordinary, however, I think we weren''t right thinking about that." This particular kind of quest was pretty vague. There was something unique about this quest but no one that had ever received this quest had known what exactly would happen if they did complete it. "The name Parchment of Origin isn''t new for us, but no one really knows what it is either." Only a handful of those who had walked far on a particular path in search of truth ever stumbled upon this particular kind of quest. But there was still one particular thing common among them¡­ "As you already know, I have many acquaintances, crazy people who wanna know the truth like the TWO of them as well. They are here, but they want to transcend the realm of acquired divinity and achieve what they ''were'' meant to." Until now, only those who had actively searched for the truths, or had achieved great knowledge of a particular thing, or someone who had somehow deciphered the Original texts that are present all over the world had received a Purpose quest. Explore new worlds at empire But despite the different kind of purpose that each of these quests possessed, the one who had received them had only one purpose in their lives¡ª to find the truth about the world, to achieve something great on their paths, to understand this world or some aspect of this world so much that they would transcend their mortal boundaries and step on the same level as those Origins: the sources of most of existing powers. "No one has ever succeeded in this quest, and it mostly just sits there since progressing with it is difficult in itself. But, those who do manage to get past the restrictions of this world and find more of what is asked of them, they certainly get rewards, powers, and opportunities that are beyond what one could possibly imagine." She had never received this unique type of quest for some reason, and from what is known, the same is true for the Two of them as well. They somehow never met the requirements to receive this quest. Even this time, even though Elio''s existing quest got upgraded into this, she had neither received any hints, nor any quests like him. It was a little strange, but at the same time, it was somewhat interesting. "Until now, we have thought that this quest might hold the answer to the ''truth'' that we all have been searching for." But, as the Two of them have proven, that is not the case. "This quest and the path to the truth, that Door as we know it, the junction where Olive would have to judge us as well, are separate things. Perhaps that Parchment holds something more precious than what we had expected." Or perhaps it was something that neither them, nor anyone else in this word should be aware of. "There are many possibilities¡­" They had reached their destination, so now, it was again shopping time for them. "But, the only way to find what the truth actually is¡­ we simply have to finish these strange quests of ours." Be it her unique quest to find the swords, or his new quest to find clues of the original past without catching the attention of beings that were practically watching and observing every single thing happening in this world. "Well¡­" They were smart people so they would know what to do, and how to reach the end of this predicament. "Let''s put it aside for now. I''m getting hungry again." "You''re genuinely holding six skewers, Alex." And even if they can''t do it alone, they would still be fine with their servants, friends, party members, as well as with one another on their side. Chapter 266 Sticking together. (Later that night¡­)After hanging out with the rest of them, talking, and having a little fun, they were now refreshed, and free from all the tension that the incident in Their world had put on them. "Two worlds, one statue window, and we will be able to access it in that place as well." "Do you think we will be able to connect to the game without a Chariot? How cool would that be?" Alex was a tech nerd. Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She was crazy when it came to tech and equipment, and software, and hardware, and AI and practically anything related to the technology through which one can access the virtual world of not just , but also the entire virtual network that had become integrated into their society a long time ago. "Thinking about it, it would certainly be cool, yes." She was excited about what was going to happen when the countdown that was going off in their world came to an end. She was looking forward to seeing what happens when the collision of a virtual world and a physical world comes to a stop. "Will we be able to use skills and items from the game? Will we be able to use the inventory at least? I think the Friendzone and the other features will work normally, but do you think it will be possible for the Natives to come to our world after the collision?" The two of them were flying outside. Yes¡­ they were floating in the air, above the vast capital city of the kingdom of Viv, watching the twinkling stars in the sky, watching the pretty moon, feeling the soft breeze in the atmosphere. The city was pretty lively even though it was so late at night. There were people, most of them being merchants that were preparing for tomorrow, or children that were playing around or their parents who were watching them. Students who were studying, aspiring mages who were practicing in the big training grounds that were open for anyone that wanted to use them. There was no particular incident taking place tonight. The crime rate in the capital was already low, but with the things happening¡ª the disappearance of all the foreigners and the chaos that was caused by the incident- the security had been made even tighter. There were some crimes happening in the shadows, and they were being taken care of by the players who had received their own quests, or by the guard assassins that protected this city from the shadows. "Haaa¡­ I don''t know what will happen when that countdown ends." He had no idea. But, at the very least, he was looking forward to it. There was no other thing that they could do other than being prepared for the worst, like many people around the world were actually doing. This situation was something the humans could not understand. It was something unfamiliar to them¡­ and mortality is always worry of what it could not understand. "We will be going back as well." "We have to¡­ mom was screaming when I last called her, saying the apocalypse might happen. Haha." His mother, the person he respected the most. She had been worried about them, worried about what would happen to them. Read the latest on empire "She had never played but thanks to uncle and brother, she knows the game well. She thinks those who have played the game are going to be in trouble when that strange countdown ends. Haha, she even went to some shaman and they told her that an Amber Omen is upon them." His mom was a fun person. Even though she had not seen him for a while now, she always called him, and they talked for hours. There were only two people that he talked that much aside from Alex actually: Olive and his mom. His dad was a busy person so the talk between them wasn''t that frequent, but he loved him more than the rest of them. He was also the reason he was able to do whatever he wanted. His sister took care of things back home so he was able to live as he wanted. But, now that something so big had happened anyway, they had no choice but to go back sooner than they had expected. "She''ll be happy to see we have yet to be Possessed by some weird evil spirit, haha. She''s so fun~." Alex and his mom had a unique relationship. Opposite to her relationship with Olive''s dad, the one that she had his mom had was that of a friend''s. They were pretty opposite when it came to worldly things. "Haha, she sure is a headache though." A retired archer, one of the best in history, his mom was someone from a common background like Alex. Though she did have parents, they passed away while she was growing up and she had carried herself after them. She was an old school person, opposite of Olive''s mom. She was like those grandmas that they see in the older movies actually. "She doesn''t know much about technology, she is overly affectionate, she''s transparent, and she cares about her grown up child as if he''s still a kid." The story of his parents'' relationship was a fun thing as well, and perhaps when they go back this time, they will remember those old days as well. Perhaps. They didn''t know how things would go after they went back since the situation in that world was getting increasingly chaotic for people who were more focused on that world instead of this one. Unlike their concerns of whether skills would become reality or if the natives will be able to cross over the worlds or not, the people like his family, even Olive''s family were concerned about what will happen to them. With the increasing chaos, with the increased dark news that was spreading and a shit ton of misinformation that people were using in order to gain an advantage in the Markets, things didn''t look bright for any of them. Since none of them knew what was going to happen, they did not know what they were going to do when that timer stops and something they didn''t want to happen¡­ actually happens. But¡­ "Haaa. We will have a lot to explain to her¡­" "You will have a lot to explain, haha. She knows my way of explaining is too complicated so I''m not going to be in trouble~." They were going to go back to their family, and in a scenario where pretty much anything could happen, sticking together was the best thing to do instead of being separated by two whole states¡­ Chapter 267 Meeting the cute savior "Slowly, dummy.""I know." The two of them carefully landed on the ground and, Elio didn''t need her help like he did when they took off for the first time earlier. "It was fun." "Right?" Now that they have had their first awakening and were above (Level-100) they could use some items that they previously could not. Additionally, with Sir Victor''s magic, they didn''t even need items to fly. They had the help of high level magic, so they did not even need Sera''s ability sharing skill. They had simply use magic to fly around the place just now. "Should we eat something? A late night snack?" "Sure if that''s what you want. But, you know, I was thinking we would go back¡­ the bed was nice, you know what I mean?" Yeah she knew what he meant. "We are going back." And she wasn''t going to decline an offer coming from him. Especially when they haven''t had much time to spend Together since he came back from that forest. -Step. Step. Step. They had landed just around the corner of their inn, so they didn''t have too much trouble walking back to their place. It was also fun to see the nightlife of the capital, but they had already been floating above the capital for a few hours now. They had seen quite a lot in these hours¡­ walking and seeing the same things wasn''t going to be as much fun anymore. "Hey¡­" There were concerns but, now that they have had the fresh night breeze, they were going to work things out somehow. They were together again, and this time, they were even stronger than before, so they were going to see everything in their path through. "There''s something I have to tell, Alex." They were staying in an expensive inn and yet they had rented two separate rooms for them and for the mother-daughter duo. But they were in their own room right now, which was empty. "Actually, there''s someone I want you to meet." Elio had been away from her for a while now. The time that they had spent apart inside the game was great, and even though they were together in their own world, the fact that they were apart for a long time here wasn''t going to change. He was away, into a place that was simply too far away and in a dangerous place where monsters that they have already had bad experiences with lived. These monsters were nothing like the evil beings that he had fought off with the help of the blessing, but they were ferocious in their own manner. Even the smallest of them could unearth a tree with their bare fangs. They were simply dangerous, and yet, the only reason he had been able to survive in that dangerous place, most certainly, was thanks to a certain being that had been protecting the creatures of that forest. The being that had followed him out of that forest, and the being that had been following him since a while ago¡­ "So you were conscious of someone. I knew it." This creature, the divine being that had protected him and all the creatures of that forest for the entire time he was there, had stayed with the other creatures in the forest that they ended up in after passing through Sera''s gate. It wanted to find the creatures of the forest in a suitable place in that new forest, give them time to adapt and help them with anything that they needed. It was a new environment so they would need a lot of things to get used to that place, so it wanted to stay there and look after those creatures, but for some reason, it appeared here a while ago. And, Elio''s eyes were the only ones that could sense its presence. It was hiding, but he knew it was following him, watching him, and keeping an eye on whatever they were doing. It was a fun being, but Elio owned it his life. And, if it was going to follow him around, Elio at least wanted to thank it for coming with them, and introduce Alex and it. "You can come out. This place is fine." sea??h th§× novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. It had followed them inside his room as well, so Elio found this behavior quite funny. It was a divine creature with a great knowledge, it was quite wise as well so it should have known about privacy that the humans cherish so much. "Don''t be like that. You know I can see you, right?" He wanted to laugh when the creature didn''t come out even after a while. But, he did not do that. He simply waited, and simply kept looking at it. It was moving around the big room that they had, seeing things perhaps, but, after all that, it was also slowly closing in on them. -Oooooooooooong. Alex was patient with it since she could see the special expression that Elio had right now. She knew this was special for him. He had told her all about this being, so she also knew how it had helped him as well as Sera. It was unique and mysterious as well¡­ { "I''m not going to stay here, I''m just passing by." } So she had wanted to meet this being for a while now. Find your next adventure on empire "Hmm?" "What¡­?" Elio had never properly told her how this creature looked as a surprise for later so she has always had her own fantasies on how it might look as well. { "Hmmm?" } But, its actual, fluffy, cloudy, mysterious, mystical, ethereal form caught her off guard. { "Miss? Hey, is she alright?" } She was stunned by the silver fog-like outer body of the creature, and the deep purple eyes that it had¡­ they were one of the prettiest eyes that she had seen in all her time in this world. Her eyes were pretty as well, but they were nothing compared to those purple ones. Especially with the silver that was covering them. This creature, this divine being¡­ "Cute!!!" It was adorable. "Cute cute cute~~~! This is the cutest being I''ve seen after the Phoenix babies!" She wanted to hug the creature, but before she could grab the being, the being moved away from her. "Hmm?" And, it happened so quickly that Alex couldn''t believe it even though she had just seen it happening with her own eyes. "Hey! Why did you run away!" { "What the hell is wrong with that girl!" } The creature did not understand why Alex had suddenly jumped on it, but it did not want to get played by some crazy psycho. It was good saying hi and hello from distance, getting too close was not what it wanted. "Hey now. Don''t be like that." But it couldn''t stop Alex. -Swish! She used her {Blink} to close the distance between them, however, the creature was still faster. "Hey! At least give me a hug!" The creature started running away from the crazy girl, complaining how she was actually someone crazy, out of her mind as well. It was saying no, it was screaming that it did not want to get touched by her, and yet here she was, screaming and chasing after it. { "Stop her, you idiot! Stop her or I''m going back!" } Well, Alex liked it. It was fluffy, it looked adorable, and she wasn''t going to let it get away without getting a hug from it. -Oooooooong. "Victor, block that one with whatever method you want." "Yes, master." She was adamant, so much so that she even called out Sir Victor. { "¡­?!" } And an archdemon was not something even this divine creature was expecting. -Oooooooooooong! "Gotcha~." With the help of Sir Victor''s chaos magic that even the divine creature could not predict the strength of, she was able to corner the cute creature, and since she had cornered it already, she hugged it without wasting even a millisecond. { "Hey! Get away from me!" } But the creature still did not like it so after only a few seconds, it managed to get away from them, and then¡­ it ran away and hid behind Elio. { "That woman is crazy! Crazy!" } She somewhat traumatized the little one. But the whole interaction between them was something Elio was already looking forward to. He knew these two were going to get along well, and he was actually looking forward to seeing them fight together. "You traumatized the little one, Alex." "Hehehe~! But it''s soooooo adorable~. I couldn''t help myself~!" She loved this being. It was cute, and at the same time, from their little interaction, she had also judged just how strong this being was. "And no, she''s not crazy, you silly." The creature was hiding behind Elio, so Elio just turned around and shook his head. He knew the nature of this good bunny. He knew how strong it was and at the same time, how caring it was. With the divinity that it possessed, the strength that it had was unmatched to anything that he had seen until now, but its main strength was speed. And, Alex who had once mastered something as difficult as {Blink} knew a good lot about speed. "Didn''t you say you had heard about the Aber empress of garden of life, Protector of Crimson seas, and White Night''s Red Moon? That''s her." Though the ones that he might have heard about and the weak human that he was seeing right now might seem different, they were the same people. { "Hmmm?" } Alex was a famous individual, a master that knew more about divinity than this divine creature itself. He knew she could help this one get better in some way, any way if possible. And, as he was expecting, if they were going to fight together in the future, he wanted them to be prepared. Getting used to each other was the first thing that they needed to do. And for that, they would have to start from here. { "That''s her¡­?" } Elio knew it would be difficult, but when it comes to Alex, pretty much nothing is easy. He was prepared for whatever was going to happen with this divine one here. { "Are you sure about that, human?" } He was looking forward to how their relationship develops actually¡­ Chapter 268 36 days to regain power "There were a few things, but yeah, that''s how I got all those names."It was morning now, and Alex had just spent around a few hours explaining to the creature what exactly she was, how she was the same person all those cool nicknames belonged to, and how she was in the state she was. It was a long explanation filled with stories that even Elio was hearing for the first time, so, the two of them had fun chatting all night. { "You''re also a strange human¡­ why do I keep meeting strange people?" } The divine creature was not feeling as angry as it did last night. It was relaxed, and though it did not notice it, it didn''t mind Alex''s touch anymore. She was caressing the creature right now and it wasn''t complaining¡­ though, most of the time her fingers were simply passing through the creature''s fog like body, it was a fun activity that she actually enjoyed. It was a unique being¡­ she had seen quite a few divine beings in her life, from dragons to Heavenly beings, to the demon kings'' familiars, to even beings that were simply unimaginable. She had been to places where unique creatures were a common thing, she had been to many places actually. In this vast world, she had been to places that were simply too vast to comparhand by one person, or being. She had met beings that were much more complicated than this one, so compared to all those things, this one was simply a fun little cutie. "We aren''t weird or anything, sweetly. It''s simply how you see the world." Alex told the creature how it''s surroundings and growth until now was affecting its perception of the world around it at this moment. It lived in a forest most of the time. It knew about the humans and since it was a divine being, it naturally possessed a great lot of knowledge about this world and about the truths of this world. It knew about the special kind of quest that Elio had received, though it did not have much information on it. It was also cute, so Alex couldn''t help her attraction to this cute beast. "Anyway¡­ calling you is difficult. Don''t you have a name, cutie?" She got up from the bed, and looked at the pretty eyes of the creature. It was attractive, but it was also strong. She would not last even minute against it if they were to fight right now. Though, that was without her using her white sword. If she was using the white sword as well as the two other keys simultaneously, there was a chance that she would be able to hold her own against it and escape from it before it kills her, but that was it. Even with her {Blink} and the ability to move faster than even this creature could perceive, she would not be able to beat a being that was purely made to move at a speed that was unprecedented to the humans, with such power that was simply absurd. Lightning and light¡­ it was no simple creature. It wasn''t an elemental being, but it controlled the natural phenomenon of this world and used them in their pure form as not a power, but as an energy that was resulting in the power that it was using. { "Hmmm? A name? I¡­ don''t have anything like that¡­ but you can just call me the Great one! The great lord! Lord! Or something like that!" } It was being shy once again, and she was smiling at it. As Elio had said, it was one of those that naturally hid its emotions. It was funny, but she liked these goofs just the way they were. "You will need a name if you want to stay with us, so¡­ tell me what you would like. Not something ambiguous like Lord. You''re a beautiful, strong, amazing being. You need a name that represents your pure heart." She wanted to call it something, but she knew she was bad at naming so she didn''t do it herself. Elio was good with names, but she wanted to give the little creature a chance to choose its own name. It was a strong being that had its own personality and Ego. So, it should also have a name that reflects all those elements. { "I''m not staying with you! I just said that! I don''t need a name or anything! That''s not for me!" } It was stubborn, just like the two of them. It did not need something like a name since it was a divine being but it did not have a choice this time since Alex was involved. "Elio, decide something for it. Or we can just go with Philippe-." "No. That''s not it." Elio knew her naming sense¡­ her own immortal name was something that she had tried her best to hide from this game, this world actually. One of the reasons many of her titles were famous instead of her immortal name was also because of the naming sense that she had. "Hmmm¡­" Elio kept his original name in this world as well, Quin changed it since, well, she didn''t want the same name as she had in the Reality, But not only Alex did what both of them had done, there were so many things that she was now called by that she herself had lost track of what people called her. "How about Xan?" "Nah, sounds too plain." { "I don''t need a name!" } "You know what? Lavender. Levi for short." "Oh! Oh! That''s nice! That''s perfect actually!" She chose her original nickname, Alex, this time around since she wanted to be with Elio. There was no deep reason behind it. However, the name that Elio had chosen for the creature was a different matter altogether. "Lave represents your connection to nature, and on the other hand, represents your destructive power against your adorable looks. You''re good natured, and yet you hide yourself most of the time, afraid of being seen by people. You''re shy, and you''re soft, just like the lavender haze that spreads around when pure bliss blooms around the innocent souls. Sear?h the N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. You have purple eyes, you have a fog like body, you don''t have a particular scent, but when your silver fog consumes the charred bodies of the monsters, it makes a unique fragrance that lasts only for a short time¡­ but it''s beautiful." There were many interpretations of this unique name, and many times it changed with individual perspective. But at the core of it all, it was all about the creature''s unique ability to kill, as well as its simplicity. { "What kind of name is that? Lavender? Why would I call myself lavender?!" } It was blushing. Which meant it liked the name. [Ding!] And that notification must be about that as well¡­ but both of them skipped it for now. "You like it, good." "You like the name~. It was a good thing that the creature- Levi liked its new name. It was a pretty one and a dangerous one, so it was simply a good sign when it did not kill them. { "Hmph! It''s just a name! Call me whatever you want, I don''t care!" } It vanished, and ran away from their room, leaving the two alone. They seemed embarrassed about something, which was adorable, so the start of their morning was great. "Hahaha." "It''s a unique one, ok." Both of them were laughing, but it was good. The creatures liked the name, they were still alive, and there was nothing to do for today either¡­ "We will leave tomorrow." Since the strange things in their world, they had decided to get stronger together until the timer that was going out in their world ends. There are still around 36 days in this world before the timer in their world stops. They will have to leave for their home, Elio and Olive''s home tomorrow, so they will be busy for the next few days. But they wanted to reach their next destination in the short time they will have while traveling to their home. The two of them will not have the Chariot that they were used to over there, but since Elio had his own gaming room in his home, which was much more amazing than the one that they had here, they were going to have fun over there as well. And, since Olive''s house was just beside his- which was filled with all kinds of tech things- she was going to have a blast when she got there. They hadn''t been there for a few months now, but they were going to have fun when they get back¡­ and their stay there will be longer with all the things going on, so, it means Olive will have to be away from her shop for a little longer than she might have been all those things had not happened. "Haaa¡­ we didn''t sleep thanks to that little Levi." "We didn''t even get to do anything." The two fell back on their bed. Their soft, warm bed¡­ which was also quite sturdy. "Well¡­" They weren''t going to do anything today either. And since it was also early morning, they had quite a bit of time before the others woke up. "What do you say?" "Yes." "Hmm? What do you mean-." He grabbed her hand, and looked to the side, in her eyes, with a smile. "Yes." He didn''t say much. That one word was more than enough for her. Experience more on empire It wasn''t a good thing that they would have to be quick, she didn''t like how they would have little time to Rest, but it was fine. "So, can I?" "Please¡­" She was craving him for a while now. And, all that talk with that cute little creature had only made things¡­ worse for her. Chapter 269 The intimacy of connection Intertwined hands, connected bodies, intermixed scents¡­Sounds. Occasional screams, though not too loud that they would pass through the sound proofed walls. The touch of your partner''s hair on the body¡­ their breaths on your skin¡­ the necessary eye contact, all the elements came together as the representation of love. Lovemaking. "Mmm~." It is seen as a vital component of life, integrated into a broader philosophy of personal fulfillment and internal as well as external harmony. A connection of mind and soul through physical touch, through a complex mental connection¡­ something that goes beyond physical fulfillment. People mistake lovemaking with simple fulfillment of needs, or a simple intimacy when in fact, it goes far beyond that. "Ugh¡­ the other side¡­ yes¡­ damn it." Of the twelve Origins governing the Truths of this world, as a part of Harmony stands the Truth of Kama which refers to love, pleasure, and desire, including sexual desire, which is recognized as a natural and important aspect of mortal life. With the right kind of connection, with the right approach to one''s life, with the right partner, with enough time one learns how to cultivate desire ethically and artfully, proving how the true enjoyment of pleasure requires both mental and emotional harmony. It''s somewhat complex to explain in layman terms, but simply put, with the reference to ancient texts, we can say that the ancient art of lovemaking which transcends mortal pleasures and reaches even the higher realm beyond the divinities, molding into a truth that is used as a foundation of this world, Love, the very concept of Love connects many aspects of a mortal life, not just lust and sexual pleasure. Romantic relationships, from the stages of the very first meeting with the partner to the courtship to the responsibilities that befalls one as the individuals decide to stay together and the pleasures that arrive after the formation of Connections. This simple process emphasizes mutual respect, consent, and the emotional and intellectual connection between lovers, not just physical connection, the pleasure born as a result of lust, or an intercourse without the unique connection with their partner. We can learn how to prepare for physical intimacy, emphasize the importance of foreplay, touch, and communication to enhance emotional and physical closeness, but to learn that, the formation of a unique connection is the foremost requirement. "That¡­ was amazing¡­" "Right? Haaa¡­ hahaha¡­" Lovemaking is to be enjoyed as part of a balanced life that includes other pursuits like duty and spirituality, but all that is conceptual things that many people don''t really understand as Knowledge. It is simple wisdom received from life experiences. From beasts, to monsters, even demons and divinities know this unique knowledge without any deep Knowledge about the Art itself. Sear?h the N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "We¡­ should rest now¡­" "Obviously, haha." Sexual union is more meaningful when there is a deep emotional and intellectual connection between partners. Without that, the simple physical pleasure that one might receive from a temporary partner could be seen as nothing more than fulfillment of basic needs. On cosmic level, it would mean nothing. However, the act of lovemaking, approached with right intentions, with the right partner and with the right connections could transcend the simple mortal individuality itself. Duality. The existence of two of the most prominent truths encompassing Individual and Nature explains it in their own manner. On the other hand, lovemaking is viewed not just as physical satisfaction but also as the holistic experience of love, intimacy, and connection, which can lead to personal fulfillment and harmony between Self and Nature, a sacred act consisting of many more elements than just Pleasure. "Let''s get dressed-." "No." She wrapped her arms around him, caressing his back with her other hand. "We should take a nap." The room that they were in, the room that still looked the same as it did around an hour ago, was now filled with a unique scent. The bedsheets weren''t clean and dry anymore, but they did not care about that with the clean blankets present. The sun outside their window had risen above the horizon, there was a fresh breeze entering their room, filling their place with a fresh scent of morning. They were on a higher floor of this fancy inn, so some birds could also be seen outside, with white clouds passing calmly above them. "I''m exhausted." he faced her, saw the unique smile that she had, caressed her back the same way she was doing to him, and with the other hand¡­ he did nothing. He simply tucked her hair behind her ear, smiled at her, a chuckle almost breaking out of him. And then he started moving his free fingers around her¡­ "I know you''re exhausted as well." Both of them were drenched. But, even though she had all the energy to go on for much longer, he could tell she did not have the mental stamina to do so. It was the same situation as it is when they do something like this in the physical world, in their reality. Despite her better physical body, even with her abundance of stamina, she was still not as adapted to some things as he was. His mental stamina and endurance were simply better. But, they weren''t the only things that gave him an advantage in their unique relationship. It was the experiences and the talents that he had developed while working all these years, something beyond her superior talents, something that he had not received as a Gift. "What are you doing right now, Darling?" He didn''t want to but his hands accidentally went too far. With his fingers playing a harmonious piano on her, it did not help him the way he wanted. "Oh, sorry." Well he did not realize it before, but now that he did, he could not help his embarrassment. "I didn''t mean to-." "It''s fine¡­" She pulled up the blanket, and at the same time, stopped his hand that was about to move away from that Good place. "Keep going, please." They were talking with Levi the whole night and had only had a short while to themselves. They still had to pack their stuff here, go back to their world, do some packing there as well, and then come back here as soon as they could. Then they would have to leave for the ocean, meet up with the captain that would drop them off to the center of a dangerous storm, and from there, following the People that would come from them, they would move to the underwater kingdom, the place where her third permanent key would be awaiting her. It was going to be a lot of work. They would be busy with Olive and the travel and her family as well, but they would be fine, hopefully. It''s going to be difficult and exhausting, that much she knew already. That''s why she wanted to rest a little longer while she still can¡­ "We will have to get up at some point, you know?" Elio knew all that she was thinking. He knew her concerns and since the only way to make her forget about all those useless things was through keep doing what he was right now¡­ he slid his hand back to where it previously was while looking at her¡­ deep eyes. "I know. It''s still eight anyway¡­ we can stay here for an hour more, I think? If Misha knew about Levi, it would have been difficult, but since we are keeping him a secret¡­ it''ll be fine." The creature was shy anyway. They would not have to worry about Misha influencing another powerful being into becoming her Friend. "Can you slide it in-." "You know we cannot do that." He looked at her with squinted eyes, his face saying all that she did not want to hear right now. "We can, well, you know¡­ we can just, go again? Or something¡­ you know what I mean?" Hands and fingers, and their coordinated movements across a non-dry plain of skin can very well be a much potent aphrodisiac than one might imagine. Added with a voice as seductive as hers¡­ and those eyes¡­ "I think Misha just woke up-." "We know you don''t care about that." She wasn''t completely recovered but she was still in a better condition now. So, with this soothing environment and such a fine morning, rejuvenated by Elio''s accidental movements¡­ She was ready to start another fun journey across multiple stages of sensual liberation. Explore stories at empire "Can we at least have some water first?" And since she was the one asking for it, he didn''t really have any other choice other than to simply give her what she was asking for. "Sure~. You can have water¡­ you know what would be better though?" She picked up the glass of water from the table beside their bed, took it in her mouth while holding Elio in his place with her leg, and right when he figured out what she was trying to do¡­ "Mmmmm¡­" She joined their lips, and transferred the rather cool water directly in his mouth. "Want some more? Or can we start now¡­?" She was smiling, of course. She was smirking actually, and Elio found it as energizing as her usual silly tricks. "I think I''ll need some more of that¡­" She had pinned him down the last time, but she knew her turn was going to be next. "I''ll not need that glass though." -Oooooooooong. "Hey~." He was a mage who had learned quite a bit of spells in his time in that forest. A natural spell that condensed water from the surroundings was also one of them¡­ "I can create more water and we can just¡­ wash ourselves here¡­ but then everything else will be wet as well." But they didn''t want that. So, he limited the water to Their mouths¡­ as well as to the lips, the neck, the chest, and the rest of the area below that¡­ Chapter 270 Packing up "You will have to take care of the two of them but since Sera and Victor are here, don''t do everything by yourself.Since Sera will be teaching your mom about the holy energy, you should learn a few things about Ichor and magic from Victor as well." Alex instructed her with a little smile, and the young girl shook her head, saying she was fine with anything she wanted. This was going to be a unique experience for her. They were going to the town situated before the ocean, on a distant island to be specific, so she was excited. But, since they still needed to do some things in their own reality, Alex and Elio were going to go for now. "Don''t push yourself for the time being. Instead, take this time to relax and broaden your horizon with some theoretical knowledge." Elio knew what was best for her so he suggested she continue with what she wanted to do while guiding her on the right path. He didn''t say much, and simply patted her head before he and Rein walked away from her, and went to the Queen of Viv who was standing behind them. "So?" She was close with Alex and she was the monarch of the western continent so she knew what was going on in their world already. Things like the clash of two unique worlds was a new thing for this world as well, but the people of this world weren''t as excited about this as the people of the physical world. "What are you going to do after going to Nuvil? Find Kakaraks?" "Perhaps? Well¡­ we have to get to the underwater kingdom. If you have any faster method, I''ll consider that as well." Alex and Elio were simply one of the countless foreigners that had arrived here through a special way and to the natives, that way had always been something like a tunnel or some gate. They had always known they were real, they had never doubted that they were creations of someone else''s creation''s creation. The origins being the result of some unique individuals'' efforts, the descendents of the Origins that truly sparked a challenge of evolution in the beings born from the pure concept like beings resulted in everything that they see in this unique world. "Well, I don''t really have anything that would be faster than those people. Besides, you are going back right now, aren''t you?" She was pretty, and she was strong. "We will be back in a bit, then we will leave right away so please look after them." The aura that she possessed, though Elio had not noticed it before, was unlike any humans that he had met until now. His eyes could not see her status window, but they did certainly uncover the kind of powers that this Sword user, magic user, war strategist possessed. He knew the person that he was standing before right now, the Elf that had lived for many centuries, was in fact more than just a strong individual. The natural presence that she had was mostly unnoticeable. It was strong, but if one did not know much about powers, they would not be able to distinguish between this power and the kind of strength that the beings possessing low levels, and simple powers had. The Queen was a unique being, someone that even Elio could not help but look up to instinctively. She was not a normal human, and yet she was as normal when talking with Alex as any normal person would be when talking with another normal person. S§×ar?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Let''s go, Alex." He had finished telling Sera all that she needed to say and Miu and Az were also off playing in the garden of the palace. "Oh, yes." The two of them also had to pack up and leave with Olive and her family who had arrived there after receiving the news of her hospitalization. Just like the rest of the world, they had also heard the Myth that was being recited by the Voice. And thanks to her dad, they also knew the person talked about in that Myth was in fact their little Olive. They were worried about her after hearing how she was hospitalized and came there as soon as they could¡­ and now that Olive had rested a little, they were ready to go back as well. The two of them had to pack up and meet up with them, but since they were late with the packing and all already, they knew the four of them would be dropping on their doorsteps anytime now. "I''ll see you soon then." kissing the Queen on the cheeks on both sides, she gracefully said her bye and went back to Elio. The two of them had to log out now, so even though Elio had a lot of things to say about this whole relationship that they had, their closeness, and even their unique bond, he did not ask her anything at that moment. -Oooooong. The two of them simply vanished from the garden and then, came out of their Chariot capsules. The game time that they had wasn''t that long this time since they did not do much, but they were certainly there for a while. [Master, you have a few unread messages.] "I''ll check them later sunday, help us with packing for now." There were a lot of things that they needed to pack including the gifts that they had purchased a while ago, to their toothbrush and even to disassemble a few parts of their Chariot. Elio had his own gaming room which he had rarely used until now, and that place surely had some good tech. But, it wasn''t going to be on par with the one that they had here. But, taking the whole chariot there wasn''t practical so she was going to take only the important chips and parts that they would need for certain. "You get the bags and I''ll start with the kitchen." "Hmm? Kitchen?" "Yeah, I''m thirsty." they didn''t have time and yet she was thinking of her own needs. She was unbelievable¡­ "I''ll get something and take out the ones that we got for your sister. Don''t forget to pack the ones that we got for your mom and dad. Also, tell Sunday to send the rest of the stuff through Sonic Mail. we won''t be able to carry a lot with us anyway." "I know, I know." Elio knew her nature and she was not going to be any different from how she was right now even if he yelled at her at this moment. "Chop chop man. Let''s go let''s go~!" The city that they lived in was pretty big, and there were a lot of cool things in this city as well. But the place where the two of their houses were was a ruler''s place. Unlike this high tech city, their houses were in the mountains, in nature. In a place that didn''t really have that many residents. It was a pretty big house as well so they had a lot of space around their house as well as around that place. Discover hidden content at empire There was a lake not far from their house that Alex was shocked to see the first time she went there, but then after all this time being with him and seeing special things in that weren''t going to be anything even close to what they had in this reality, she had gotten used to it all¡­ -Ding~dong~! [Master¡­] "It''s Olive and Eth, aren''t they?" [Yes, master.] "Damn it! Elio, deal with them! I still have to deal with the chariots!" She was drinking some smoothie from last night, but she placed it down on the table and ran inside towards their gaming room. She had to take the parts from their Chariot even if they didn''t bring anything else with them. They were the most important things other than the gifts that Elio was bringing. They needed those things. So, she didn''t even care about her thirst anymore. Besides, she did not want to deal with Olive''s mom¡­ "That girl¡­" Elio knew how to deal with her the best and she liked him much better so she went inside, and Elio opened the door¡­ "Took you long enough." "Elly~. My cute little Elly~!" Olive was there, standing, looking at him with an upset expression, but right beside her was the person that had taken care of him as much as his mother. "Hello to you too, Aunt Eth." She was tall, taller than him actually. And with her bright blond hair and a little darker shade of artificially tanned skin tone that did not go well with her soft voice at all¡­ with shining silver eyes, she was one of the role models that inspired Elio to do what he wanted in his life instead of just waiting until he was an ''adult''. She wasn''t only Olive''s mother, she was also one of the few special people in both their houses that had no enemies. "How has my sweet sunny sunshine been~?" She was a complete opposite of Elio''s mom in many ways. And yet she still adored Elio like she adored both her children, as well as her husband. She was also not a player like his mom, but she was one of the famous names in all of the tech industry when it came to games¡­ "Oh~! And where''s my amazing daughter in law~? Is she inside~? Alex~?" Alex and his mom had a very special bond, same with Olive''s father and brother, but the same could not be said when it came to Eth. "Where are you, Alex darling~?" She simply loved Alex a little too much. And, the way she carelessly expressed that love of hers¡­ was something that had always made Alex extremely uncomfortable. But knowing that had never made her love her anything less. In fact, it only made teasing her even more fun¡­ Chapter 271 Moving back "So~? You two are going to the underwater kingdom~?"Ethereal, that was her name. And no, her parents didn''t name her that. She officially changed her name from Samantha to that when she became an adult and since she had been using that particular name since even before she was as young as Misha, everyone in the industry, including her neighborhood and her friend circle knew her as Eth or Ethereal. It was a peculiar name, but she loved it for some reason. There was more to this unique name than just simple emotions that she adored more than most things out there in this world. For her, the word ethereal meant something that was simply beyond the boundaries of description. One could not explain what an ''ethereal'' thing was. They also could not understand it, and she simply loved it. "Yeah, we are going to the Underwater kingdom. Can you stop hugging me now?" She was rubbing her cheeks against Alex and though it was funny for both Olive and Elio, she did not like it. She did not like being treated like a baby, especially from this particular person. But then again, she could not help how this person was treating her. She was cool. And annoyingly clingy. "Tell me more about this kingdom, please~." The four of them were in a big car, moving to the airport. Olive''s father and big brother were already there looking after a few things, and since the two of them had finished their packing, they were moving back to their house, and though there wasn''t any particular excitement, they were certainly looking forward to see the house and the people that they hadn''t seen in a while. "Well¡­" They were going to be stuck in the car for a little longer even though they were moving in a special lane at high speed, but with the increased traffic of the city these past few days was going to hinder them anyway. They will need a little longer before they reached the airport, so since they didn''t have much to do, Eth wanted to know more about what they were up to in that ''game'' nowadays. She already knew how Olive had found something she wanted to do in that world as well as how she was enjoying everything over there, so she now wanted to know more about a kingdom that existed underwater. The mysterious place that she could imagine as a fantastical world of fishes, mermaid people, and unique water creatures that resemble humans. She loved these kinds of fun things, so she wanted to know more about it. "There aren''t many such kingdoms or places actually. This one is probably the only prominent kingdom that is acknowledged by the oceans." Alex didn''t like being hugged the way she was right now, But after all these years, she had gotten used to this person. She would break an arm or leg of anyone else that even remotely touched her, but this unbearable person was not someone she could hurt. S§×arch* The Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Even if she wanted to, she wouldn''t be able to even hit someone that had reflexes far surpassing her own. "The ocean has many creatures that live in it, especially in that world, water is considered to be one of the Origins of all creations. Beings of water are said to be the closest to the origin that gave birth to all life. And, among the Merfolks, the Goldtail clan is one of the oldest species in the entire world¡ª one of the Primordial species that is said to be the original ancestors of all of the Merfolks." The beings that she was talking about were also said to be the rulers of all oceans, the masters of Water, and sitting at the throne of Scales, the one who ruled above them all, was the Crowned Emperor that held powers surpassing even some Divinities. "Velstad, or Vel as I call him, is not someone I like that much since he''s a crazy bastard, but his daughter is a fun one to have around. She once ran away from her house to find some kind of hidden treasure of their kind, and when she was almost getting done in by a ferocious creature, one of my servants accidentally saved her when they were gathering materials for one of our quests." Though the emperor had alway challenged her in a battle of knowledge to see who knew about the waters, the sea and the elements of this world outside waters, his simple daughter was the one that liked more for various reasons. The way she met the sole princess of the Goldtail tribe was a folklore among the merpeople. They talked about how a Being, a master of a demon, a dragon, and a Vampire saved the Princess of the Goldtail clan, and then brought her to the location of the treasure that she was searching for. The story of how Alex helped the Goldtail recover one of their forgotten Relics was quite famous among not only the Merpeople but also many human coastal cities. She was known by many names in these locations, and one of those locations was apparently near the city that they were going to go to next. "If it weren''t for the pirates that operate in that city, as well as Hyun, that bastard, I wouldn''t really have found the way to go to their kingdom." Alex told her about how she met one of the most notorious pirates of the Southern seas, defeated their captain in a direct duel, and made them take them to the location that they had to find on their own since even the princess had no idea where she was when Alex found her. She only had a map, and despite having that detailed map, one of the reasons the princess was not able to reach the destination was because of her innate lack of directions. She did not know where they were or where she was going since she only followed the waves as she had always done. The waves showed her the way, they followed her command, and they guided her¡­ perhaps the waves were one of the reasons she was able to stay on the path leading to the treasure that she was searching for. And perhaps those waves were also the reason she met Alex. "Anyway, it''s a fun place. They make an amazing seafood barbecue." Enjoy more content from empire "Hmm? They eat barbecue?" "Yes? What else do they have underwater aside from seafood? Grass? They surely eat grass but none of those Merpeople are vegetarians. They cannot be even if they wanted to. Some of them are cannibals. Some even have customs where they eat a part of their partners¡­ anyway, they aren''t all that special." She had spent a good amount of time with those people. They knew a lot about water even if they were oblivious to a lot of common things regarding the land, so they were at least not boring for her. Plus, since they knew a lot about one thing, it meant they knew a good lot about a certain truth, so they had also helped her understand the Truth in their own way. "I only have to collect one of the swords that they have no real use for so it will be a short trip, but going there will be a challenge like it always is." They had reached their destination. They were going to take a private jet to their destination, and since the jet also had chariots, they were going to have a little time before they reached home. The two of them had already planned to go back into the game and teleport to the city where they will be meeting the people that will take them to this underwater kingdom. They will have little time so they will have to be quick with whatever they were going to do there, but they will still have a few hours so, they planned to at least get the person in charge of the ship, and beat him up a little. Alex was even planning to rob the person and see if he had any temporary keys. The permanent keys weren''t going to be that useful without her original powers, so before she gets her powers back through them, she needed as many temporary keys as she could. And, though she had collected a total of 6 including the one she already had when Elio was still with her, they weren''t going to be nearly enough. "You all have sooo much fun in that game~." "Well, Eth¡­ it''s not a game anymore." Eth was a developer. As well as a master when it came to software. She had indirectly helped in the creation of , something she had not known about until the game itself was launched. She had to sign a contract that blocked her from playing the game itself, and even if she wanted to, she could not create an account in the game. It was unfair but it was what it was¡­ a long time had passed since then anyway so, she did not really care about all that. As long as the people around her were able to enjoy that world which she had indirectly contributed towards, she was happy. "Let''s go, Mom." Their happiness was much more precious to her than the experience of a unique otherworld. She could live with just the cool stories that they tell¡­ it was much better than risking her and all their lives anyway. Chapter 272 Blaze: The Sword Saint "Blaze.""Elio, my man~." Tall, red head, purple eyes like Olive''s, and a unique light skin tone. Olive''s big brother and one of the high rankers of . "How''ve you been man? How long has it been since I last saw you two?" He was tall, muscular, he was wearing a blue suit, and he was standing before a private jet with his dad. "We just met a few months ago, man. And didn''t we call a few weeks ago as well¡­ we also met yesterday so it hasn''t been that long." "No but yesterday doesn''t count. None of us were really greeting each other or anything. It wasn''t like any simple day." The moment they all came out of the car on the runway, the man, Olive''s big brother, Blaze greeted them all, and then he hugged Elio like a big brother as well. "Haha, that''s true as well. Though, I heard you were stuck in a forest or something? Tell me more about it, will you~?" He was a cheerful one like her mom, but at the same time, despite his buffed body, he looked quite athletic. And, the glasses that he was wearing made him seem more of a nerd than a typical dude in his late twenties. His clothing style was like Elio''s while Alex was still wearing simple clothes even though they were going somewhere, same as Olive and her mom. "Why don''t I tell you about all that, Blazing? What do you say? Wanna spar and talk with swords?" Elio was quite formal with him but just like everyone else, Alex was being casual with this person as well. And, when she said that, Blaze also ended up smiling. "I''d love that, sister Alex. Oh, I had this new move to test as well." "We have a deal then~." She also laughed and hugged the tall man, and then, as if Blaze was younger than her, she also patted his head. She liked those hair. They were nothing like either his dad or his mom. They were more like his grandma and it was a unique trait within their small family. "Won''t you greet your own sister, you brute bear?" "You just got better. And why would I greet you anyway. We''re going home, and you''re coming with us. What''s the point of greeting you when I''m going to see you for a few more weeks anyway." "Baby~. Don''t make it sound like we aren''t going to see Oli later~." Eth didn''t like how he had said that so she scolded him, and then she scolded Olive as well for being rude to her big brother. Alex and Elio laughed at this simple yet funny interaction of this not-so-simple family. "Alright alright everyone." A father that was a tech nerd like Alex and a mother that was a better developer than Alex. Olive who had her own passions, someone who now held a crucial role in this new, changing world. A big brother that was ranked [8th] in all of the rankings of , the first as well as the . Immortal name: Imbibition Blaze, he was also one of the first few people who owned a Divine being as his familiar. He was the first person to get acknowledged by a holy sword, he was the first person to become a master among the Players, he was also the first person to hunt a (Level-250) field boss with the help of a few other people. But he had the most contribution in that hunt¡­ and yet, he was still ranked ninth, at almost the lowest of the high rankers. The people who were above him, be it the second ranked person with the most luck, the third ranked person with the most intelligence, the fourth, fifth and sixth who were a savant by nature, or the seventh and eighth ranked ones that simply were stronger than him, had all their own abilities. But, he was still a hero in the eyes of many Natives of that world. If one knew about the , they would know about him. And since almost all people who knew even a little about the weapons knew about one of the most famed weapons ever made, they would know about this sword saint who had achieved divinity with his own efforts. He was a unique person, but also one of the most humble that Alex had met in her life in this physical world, as well as in the virtual world. "Let''s talk inside, okay? We have plenty of time to chat and play before we reach home." There was something about this family that made them quite unique compared to many other Rich families that Alex had known until now. She was a smart person so she had acquaintances all around the world, many in high society, even some in the royalties. She was not anyone famous, but she still knew a few key individuals. And they knew her as a person, not as Alex but simply as a person. The same wasn''t true for these people. They were her family, and, even though they were also rich and had a unique lifestyle, they were fun people that she loved to be around, talk with, and play with. "Dad, Alex brought her chips for you-." "Hey! You weren''t supposed to tell him! And I didn''t bring it for him-." "You brought the chips here?! Hey! Let''s see! Let''s get in! Quick!" The jet that they were going to use wasn''t anything special, it was simply one of the private jets that they owned, and it was only big enough for a few of them. It wasn''t overly luxurious or anything, but it was still pretty and plain so as they all got in, none of them felt any particular comfort or discomfort. The inside of the jet was spacious, it was going to be a 3 hour ride so they weren''t going to be engaged for too long, but still, this jet was equipped with a room of ten Chariots that though weren''t as high end as the ones that they were used to, they were good pieces of tech that Olive''s dad had installed himself. "Get the chips out, get them out~." Alex was better when it came to technology, and in particular, her way of creating these tech and programming them as well as making them efficient was so good that even a tech genius like him couldn''t match her ability to make these amazing things. Every time he had tried to make something better than hers, she had ended up making something beyond his expectations. And it was a recurring problem, something they had still going on even to this day. After many trials, he was in the process of developing the fastest processors, the finest mental-virtual graphic generators, and even the most efficient power distribution units. All of these were compat chips that ran on technology that was smaller than a thousandth of centimeter. Creating these things took months, sometimes years. But, it was worth it¡­ they were revolutionary in the industry, and even though Alex wasn''t interested in giving the other people any access to her technologies, the things that Olive''s dad created were open to the entire world. Many of the things that they had created through this competition over the last few years was now being used in many of the commercial chariots, and even if the people that used these chariots did not know about him, they were playing their favorite virtual games as well as they were doing it thanks to him. "Oh, about sparring." "Yes, yes. How about we get to it after resting for a little longer. I heard you two have to go back inside the game for a little while as well? We shouldn''t waste too much time then." "Can''t we just start right now-." "Oh, did you two see the kitchen? Let''s go see what they have in the kitchen." S§×arch* The Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Blaze also wanted to spar with her as soon as possible, but they knew none of them had any actual food since the morning So, they were going to eat first. They were looking forward to having Alex and Elio''s mom''s cooking as well, but that would only be possible after they get back. Until then, they didn''t mind having the food that their chefs had made for them¡­ "Olive, you''re alright, right?" A father was always going to be concerned about his little daughter. And a brother was always going to worry about her despite knowing how tough she was. "You''re too clumsy. How did you even exhaust yourself while playing a game in that kind of Chariot?" "Go away you dumb bear!" Olive had only told about her position in this new, changing world to Alex and Elio. She did not want to tell them about what she had been through, and she had made that one thing clear. So, they did not know why she was hospitalized when she was perfectly fine, or what might have been her role in the first Myth that they had heard just like the rest of the people of this world. They wanted to know how she was and confirm if she was fine or not, but she had made it clear that Alex and Elio knew what had happened to her and that she wasn''t going to talk about all those things anymore. Experience tales with My Virtual Library Empire She was fine, and they will have to accept that. [We will take off in 3 minutes. Please be seated.] She had told the same to Elio''s family so, she wasn''t going to repeat herself even if they asked her a hundred more times after they reach their home¡­ Chapter 273 The awakenings Awakenings.Everyone experiences it at each hindered level and commonly, there are three awakenings. The first awakening that one receives when they reach (Level-100), also known as the physical awakening. It is the most common awakening where all individuals who achieve this stage, including any kind of creature or being, go through a process of physical change. Their bodies become more adapt to the world around them, a process that reconstructs their physical selves to be more adaptable to the world around them. It isn''t simply about getting stronger or strengthening the stats that they have, it''s more like a complete reconstruction of the body¡­ not the same as the body reconstruction of the eastern martial artists, but a more deep process. "A virtual body is simply a virtual representation of one''s mental self. There are many games that give you a virtual form according to your mental image of yourself, but New Origin uses the actual physical structure with the reference to the mental structures to create the virtual body." In the fundamental structure of a physical body is created with not some set template or with a complete scan of the body, but through a mental access into the mind. "Haha, that reminds me of those games that make you something you think of yourself as. Whenever I played it, it made me a kitten." Olive''s father and mom both were watching from the side as the rest of them walked to the center. Eon, Olive, Blaze, and Alex. All of them were going to spar now, and the two of them were going to watch since they have nothing more to do. They were using the virtual space that wasn''t connected to but could replicate the states and the skills that they had inside the game through a different system, but it still wasn''t the same as the ones that they have in the game. It was a special space that Eth created for Blaze to train so it was more like a personal lobby that she had gifted him. But now, they were all using it. And, since both Elio and Alex were (Level-100)+, Olive was (Level-200)+ and Blaze was (Level-300)+ they had someone who had achieved all three awakenings or at least one of them. "It''s a fascinating game anytime I think about it though. How would they have thought about using the conscious mental scans as a reference point to recreate a physical body and Then made it so that it gets better each time they cross a level?" The chariots and the head gears had existed for over two decades now. New Origin was not the first game to use these technologies, but the way they used it was completely different from how the other games did. "The fundamental process of creating a virtual body was first linked with how a software could recreate a physical structure, but ever since NO came, the Mental body materialization technique that they used in their game was something simply revolutionary." The Creators had used a unique algorithm that would put the mind through a certain process that tech nerds like Olive''s dad called (Mental Assembly). It was a very short process in which the mind was put through a series of tasks which might seem complex consciously, for the mind, or the the brain processing them, these tasks were simply commands like anything that a (thought) produces. "They understood the Mind at a level that is scientifically impossible, and then they used the philosophical principles that they had initially adopted to create a near perfect representation of a physical self¡­ it''s unbelievable." Her dad was more about how things were while Eth was always curious about why things were the way they were. That might be the reason that made her so unique yet so simple. But they were a unique match. That much was a true story. "The leveling up in their system is not simply getting stronger." With each level up, the mind becomes more adapted to the algorithm of this game, and the first time they go through the awakening process, the algorithm that has learned most there was to learn about them, gives them an appropriate virtual reconstruction that helps them adapt to the (Truths) of their world in a better way. "With the second awakening comes a personalisation of that algorithm." The one and zero in any kind of software isn''t adapted in this algorithm since the Creators used something that was more than just one and zero. "The ABC code¡­ it''s actually impossible to replicate that thing. It''s more of a phenomenon than a system." Admiration, Break, and Creation. One can also understand it as creation, destruction, and maintenance of anything that has no certain origin. The code asks one''s mind questions through the simple electrical signals that are used in any kind of technology related to virtual reality. Through a complex analysis of the answers that the code receives an initial physical body is created, then at the time of first awakening, a true physical body forms that has its own potential and talents. sea??h th§× Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Later, with the second awakening, one achieves control over the mental processes, a greater freedom of movement that was not possible earlier, and the special ability to interact with the elements of the world that are simply beyond the control of normal people or those who had not achieved that stage. The third awakening, on the other hand, is more special¡­ "The representation of divinity is the most fascinating in my opinion, you know?" "You''ve said it a million times by now. Of course I know." Divinity isn''t simply a power that one can receive after they pass through a certain stage like the (third awakening) or by achieving something that grants them the divine powers¡­ in the technical terms of a tech nerd or a data scientist like Eth, this divinity is the detachment from the algorithm that was initially guiding them in that world. "Since you are practically a virtual representation of your actual self, there are bound to be countless things that will block you from doing countless things. Be it the simple interference with the creation code of that game, or to form a connection with the source code itself. The divine power is what we call Admin control." "More like Mod control actually since there still are the direct Restrictions from the Truths and the Origins present." "Actually, no. Since divinity is freedom from the original restrictions, the interference from the other forces is more like an external influence rather than innate restrictions. It''s like you can do anything you want after gaining divinity, but the world and the AIs maintaining that world will stop you and restrict you to keep the Truths maintained." They did not understand it until recently but the reason no one was able to create a ''Mythical'' achievement was because of this external restriction. Everyone over (Level-300) possesses divinity, but there are also who possess divinity despite not being of that level. The level itself is simply a representation of power, authority, and freedom. If one has divinity, the level itself becomes meaningless. Still, to achieve divinity, there are countless things that one had to do or certain trials all around the world that they needed to overcome. "The Voice¡­" All the humans all over their world had heard the voice of the system when the phenomenon occurred and the Myth of was announced alongside the status window that appeared before everyone that had some connection with the Original algorithm. "Do you think that Voice is the awakened artificial ''power'' that THEY had theorized?" Eth set back and smiled at her children. One was a diligent swordsman, her little man that always wanted to become a superhero ever since he was a baby. And then there was her stubborn daughter¡­ someone playing a key role in THEIR schemes. Her beloved Elio and not a daughter, but a best friend Alex. All of them were what gave her life a meaning, and now, they were a deep part of something that even she had only thought would forever remain a dumb theory. "It could be¡­" Sean knew less about the actual science behind things and the theories that Eth knew, but from all his experiences and the knowledge that he had about this whole thing going on in their world¡­ he knew the relationship between the Voice and the Connection that they all had with was simply complicated. "But creating an artificial god? You know the best just how absurd that is." Even if they were all seeing it in person, it was not easy to believe some Humans had artificially birthed a god that was, as god-like as anything mentioned in any kind of ancient text present in any part of this world. Continue reading at My Virtual Library Empire "Well¡­ it''s not easy to believe." If one wanted to analyze this whole phenomenon from a scientific perspective, they would have many things to say about it, but most of them would be flowed since no one, including these people, knew much about this Strange game. "But there isn''t much we can do about what we have little to no knowledge of, right?" "Yeah¡­" They watched as Alex and Blaze clashed their swords and as Elio showed Olive the unique spells that he could cast. The four of them were having fun in their own ways, and watching them, their little children, was more fulfilling for these two than analyzing abstract concepts that just didn''t have any concrete answers. When the timer ends, they will find the answers that they were looking for anyway, but until that happens¡­ "Oh, looks like Blazy is showing that cool move he was talking about." They weren''t going to contemplate about that Voice, THEIR actual goals, or the intentions of the Voice¡­ Chapter 274 Vast Blue Ocean After a few minutes, Elio and Alex went back inside the game. They had little time so the moment they reappeared in the kingdom castle, they picked their things and the others that were going to come with them, and then they all used the royal teleportation Gate to go to their destination.It didn''t take them long to pass through the spiraling gate and reach the other side, so they moved to the island first¡­ "Wow." "Miu!" "Muuuuu!" As they stood together on the sun-kissed shoreline of the island, each person experienced the scene before them in a little different manner from the other. The young ones blinked in awe, feeling as if they had stepped into a vibrant painting, their senses overwhelmed by the intoxicating mix of forest trees, saltwater and blooming flowers in the air. For Az who could only sense the things around it, this wave of new Mana coming fresh from the sea was something that it had never experienced before. Similarly for Miu, this whole land beneath it was radiating a unique kind of energy that the little gecko loved a little too much. The warm sand beneath them was so likable for the crystal creature that it started rolling on the sand, attracting attention from some of the individuals present around the area. "Haha." The rest of them marveled at the palm trees swaying gently in the breeze and the endless expanse of deep blue ocean glistening like scattered jewels under the sun. "This sure is a unique place¡­" Elio clicked various screenshots for different things as soon as they appeared here. This was different from anything that they had experienced until now. "How''s it?" Alex was a seasoned visitor of this not just this island, but of many similar places, so she smiled knowingly, recalling how this paradise had been a home to her at some point in the past, For her, the warm sand beneath their feet was a reminder of countless cherished days spent basking in the sun or exploring hidden coves. "Pretty." Elio liked this place. It was unique. They watched the waves roll in with their predictable rhythm, feeling a sense of comfort in the warm presence of the sunlit shore, and the cool breeze coming from behind them. "Misha?" The little girl stood wide-eyed and breathless, taking in the vastness of the ocean for the first time. She had traveled with her mom but most of the time, they had only traveled through the roads. They had experienced flight on occasions, but that was very rare and Misha cherished those experiences. For her, the vastness of Blue was something very special. She knew little about things that she had not experienced herself, but the ocean was something she had always wanted to see. Until just recently, she was simply a normal girl living in a normal town doing normal things, dealing with normal people. She had never experienced she would meet people like Elio and Alex, much less how she would gain the kind of powers that she had right now. Traveling around the world with these people was a dream come true for her¡­ they were like the heroes spoken in the tales for her. They were cool, they were caring, and they were always helping her and her mom. Elio had saved hundreds of people without caring about himself, and Alex had saved them from that evil mage. Miu and Az were her friends that played with her unlike anyone that she had been with until now. They were the only ones that understood her as much as her mom, she simply loved them. They were special for her, and so were Alex and Elio. And it was, again, only thanks to them that she was witnessing a scene as cool as this one¡­ "Pretty¡­" The roar of crashing waves sent chills down their spine as they breathed in the salty air, feeling both small and awestruck before nature''s blue grandeur. The horizon blurred where the sea met the sky, creating an illusion of infinity that made this moment feel monumental not just to the little girl but to even the mother that had never experienced something like this. "Thanks, Alex, Elio." She couldn''t help feeling gratitude towards these people. They were amazing individuals and it was thanks to them¡­ that she was seeing something she had longed for ever since she was a child. "Mom¡­?" Misha didn''t know about it, so the rest obviously did not either. But, Rin always wanted to see the vast blue ocean ever since she was as young as Misha. She wanted to be an Adventurer and go to all kinds of places, see the vast green plains, see the dense rainforests, see the vast blue oceans, and experience the endless sand covered deserts. She wanted to see the ocean especially because of a certain story she had heard from her own mother as a child¡­ a story that she could not remember anymore, but something that she still carried lingering feelings of. "Don''t be emotional now, this is still nothing compared to many other places around the ocean. You''ll love to see the sunset from a boat in the middle of the ocean, or a pink sunset." Alex had experienced a lot of things in her time in this world. She had traveled in the sea for three years, went to various islands and found many treasures that linked to the Truths. She met many strong people in her time in the ocean and islands like this one, and, even though this one had a good port city, the remote places that she had been to were sometimes much more dangerous than this peaceful place. There were people around the coast, there was a vast city on the other side of the island, and when they reach that place, they were going to be pretty shocked by the boats that they see as well. Alex knew all these people had never really seen actual fantastical boats before. She knew they were going to be amazed to see the big boats. Especially one that had a certain insignia on it. "So¡­" They did not really have much time. Elio and Alex would land soon and then they would have to log out, so before that happens, they were planning to move to the city and check into an inn. "Shall we go to the other side? There''s much left to be surprised about." Alex had missed this place actually. This island wasn''t anything special, but of the many islands in this ocean, this was a particular one that was run solely by the pirates. It was a neutral area that was open to anyone, but the only ones that had any kind of authority in this place were the ones who contributed to the well being of the people, as well as the families that lived in this city. The pirates had their own values, rules, and honor. They were respectful of the elders and those who had spent their days at the sea doing what countless other people could never even imagine. And since there was no certain authority here, they valued strength. "Can we¡­ can we stay here a little longer?" "Yes¡­ can we?" Both Misha and Rin wanted to watch the vast blue for a little longer, and they would have been fine with it if they weren''t in a hurry. "How about I show you two around the island later tomorrow. We don''t really have too much time right now¡­ we can come back here tomorrow as well. You can have 5 minutes if you want though. That much is fine." They were having fun so she didn''t want to ruin their first time on a shore. She would have loved to play with them in the water if they had a little more time, but she knew going to the city and checking into an inn would be a little difficult with the pirates there. There might be some fighting as well, so taking that into consideration, they won''t be able to play right now. But after the two of them settle down in Elio''s house, they will come back and play with them. But then again, they will have to leave for the underwater kingdom soon. They won''t really have that much time to play so¡­ "Oh, it''s fine if you two are busy." "We can come back later~. Let''s go for now, big sister." She wanted to show them all that she can in the short time they will have. Your adventure continues at My Virtual Library Empire She will send Elio to the person that will take them to their destination, and they will depart in a few days. There is still a month left and they will need to travel for about a week on the boat to reach their destination, so she will try to get as much as she can from this trip. Levels will be important so, now that they are doing this anyway, they should have a better power level and achieve their second awakening in the little time they have. "Will that be alright? We should wait a little longer, you know?" "It''s fine, I don''t mind~." S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Haha, me neither." This trip to the underwater kingdom will not be short, but with all that was going on around them, she knew it would seem quite short. Still, she will make sure to make this trip worthwhile for the rest of them. This was the first time they were going out into the vast ocean, she wanted them to have a good first impression of this world of water¡­ Chapter 275 His family A hillside runway stretches along the slope, made smooth from the earth with grass and wildflowers growing on the sides.Tall trees stand at the edges of the strip, moving slightly in the wind. The runway, a mix of dirt and rocks, shaped by the hill beneath it, looked as secure as an artificial runway. The sky above looked wide and clear, with a few clouds scattered around. -Shhhhhhhhh¡­! A jet approaches from these high clouds slowing down as it nears the ground, its shiny metal body adored with the golden sunlight of the afternoon. -Swiiiiiiish¡­ As it lowers gently, its wheels just above the ground before it touches down with a soft bump. The wheels stir up dust and small bits of dirt from the rough runway. Then the jet moves along, its engines loud against the quiet of the hill, slowing as it reaches flatter ground. -Terrrrrr¡­ Behind it, a trail of disturbed grass and dirt rose up where it landed, and the peaceful sounds of nature slowly came back as the jet stopped. Then, the door to the jet opened up, the stairs descended to the ground, and after a few people in black coats came out and checked the surroundings, the rest of them came out as well. "Yawwwwn~. I feel sleepy¡­" Olive was the first to walk out of the jet and following her, her mom and dad and big brother, Elio and Alex also walked down the stairs or the jet. The area around them was a flat road covered in grass and dusty stands, there was also a solid earth below them which was pretty much perfect for the landing of this particular aircraft. "You seem to be tired, dear. We should hurry up and get back." From a distance, a luxurious car was approaching them. And that was their ride back to their house. It wasn''t that far from here, but they were still going to need the ride since they were obviously not going to walk all the way there after their flight. "Let''s go everyone~." So, they all sat down in the luxurious car as soon as it approached them, and even though the driver could not open the door for them, they thanked the driver. Elio and Alex even greeted the driver, telling them how they were glad to see him in good health. The driver was old, but they had been a part of their family for over three decades now. They had taken care of Elio ever since he was born and he had helped around the house for a big part of their life, so they respected him. "Haaa¡­ it''s good to be back." "It still feels just like yesterday that we went back though." "It''s sometimes like that¡­" The houses in this hillside place were scattered. And, they were similar to the estates that one could see in a fantasy world. Though these houses were pretty modern and did not have tens of rooms and many unique facilities, these places were unique. Each one of the house that they saw while on the way to their own house was unique. Some had open roofs while were covered in plants of unique kinds. Some were similar to a library, while some were made entirely out of wood. One common feature of these houses was the outdoor pools that they had, some even having a complete bathhouse like facility outside. Elio even greeted a few people from the car, while Olive stopped by a few houses and greeted the people that she had known for a while¡­ still, since they had just come back, they did not spend too much time and reached their own house. "I''ll go with El~." Since Olive and Elio were neighbors with their houses being right next to each other''s, they first stopped by Olive''s house. The house was a three-story modern design, with large glass panels surrounding each floor for open views. It had a minimalist look, using a mix of concrete, black steel, and wood for a balance of natural and industrial styles. Each floor featured terraces with discreet lighting that emphasized the clean lines of the building. Inside, smart technology managed everything, from temperature control to lighting, all accessible through touch panels or voice commands. Just like Alex''s Sunday, Eth had created an AI that controlled this house and helped them with various things. The interior was open and spacious, with floating staircases connecting the floors. The rooftop included a solar-powered deck with a fire pit and seating area. It was a fun house that one might find perfectly contrasting to an area like this one. Outside, there was a pool here as well and it was an advanced infinity design with clear sides that made it look like it was part of the ground itself. It used eco-friendly filtration and had a deck with heat-regulated tiles. There was also a sunken lounge area next to the pool that let people sit close to the water without getting wet. Water jets and colored lights added a fun, modern touch to this space. S§×ar?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Tell V that we''ll be there after we settle down here. And wash up when you''re there!" "Yes mom, of course!" Elio''s house was right beside theirs, but unlike Olive''s tall house, Elio''s house was more on the flat side with only a two story space and no particular terrace. The pool area was similar to Olive''s but it was much larger than what they had over there. There was also a barbecue area and right behind their house, there was an open ground that they mostly used for Golf or ball games. The house itself didn''t seem false from the outside but there was still a good partition of this place that might attract attention from the people around the area. "Look who we have here~." A certain woman, a little older than the rest of them in age, was waiting for the three outside the house. She had light blond hair unlike Elio''s but her green eyes were the same as the ones that he had. Their faces were similar as well so it wasn''t that difficult to tell that this person was his elder sister¡­ she was a little shorter than him and Alex, but they would never look down on her just because of her height. She was one of the most fearsome people in this family. She was strong enough to knock Alex down in a matter of minutes and she was smarter than both Elio and Alex. She couldn''t make as good food as Alex or Olive and she did not have any particular artistic talent like Elio but she was one of the most capable people in this house and in many states. She looked after the family business and helped Elio''s father, so she was obviously no ordinary person. She hadn''t had the chance to start playing due to her responsibilities but she wanted to know about the game that everyone around her was playing. "How has my little Deer been?" She hugged Elio as soon as she saw him, and after a little hug, she hugged Olive. Experience new stories with My Virtual Library Empire "Little Olive is back as well? We are going to have a feast, aren''t we~?" Lastly, she looked at Alex and smiled while looking up at her. "Did you bring what I asked for?" "Do you think I did?" "Of course not. That''s why I''m asking, no?" The sparks between their gazes were fierce, but when Alex shook her head, a smile broke out on Alice''s lips. "You brought it? How did you remember that little thing, girl?" She gave her a hug as well, and Alex hugged her back. "This little deer of yours reminded me a while back. I had long forgotten about it, obviously. But hey, we brought it so we all might as well enjoy it together. What do you-." "No." "Hmm?" "No, obviously. I''m not sharing it with anyone! It''s mine!" Alice Floyd Clarus, Elio''s elder sister. She was the first one to greet her. And following her¡­ "Looks like Ice already got all the love of my little fairies." A woman that looked no less attractive than Alex even though she was much older than any of them present here right now. "Mom¡­" With an Aura that one could feel even before meeting the unique amber gaze that she had, with each step she took, with each movement of her deep black hair, with each movement of her dress''s fabric, a wave of elegance was spread throughout the area before them. "Welcome back, darling." Elio was almost tearful when he saw her. A unique wave of memories washed over him, reminding him of various painful, harsh, and fun experiences that he has had in these past few months both inside the game and in reality. It was a strange feeling, but all of it was washed away when Minerva, his mother, held both of his hands. "Looks like you''ve been through a rough time¡­ how about I make you some coffee? Will you tell me about everything once again?" "Yes¡­" The bond that Elio and Alex had was unique, the bond that Olive and Elio had was simple but special, and the bond that they had with the people close to them was a special one as well. But they all knew the bond that these two had¡­ the bond between this mother-son duo was as unique as the rarest being or element in this world. They were close, but, even with all the difficulties they had faced together, the unique relationship that they had was unshaken by anything. "We should go in first, right everyone? Alex?" "Oh yes yes, of course." She was a simple person. And yet she was the root that had supported these two families and made it as unshakable as it was right now. Not everyone liked her here, but that was her charm. She was important to all of these people, especially to the younger ones. Perhaps, if it wasn''t for her¡­ none of them might have been in the position that they were in at this moment. Chapter 276 Quality time Elio''s mom was a simple person.They had a big house but they did not have that many servants since she liked working and doing most of the things by herself. There surely were people around to keep things in place, but most of them had been a part of this house for over a decade now. They were no less than a family to the people that lived here. They were special and so were their roles. "You all seem tired. Will you be resting or shall we make something to eat together?" She might not be as good at cooking as the two young girls she was sitting with, but there were a few things that she simply made better than anyone else here. There were things that she simply had mastered. There was no one in this house, perhaps in this entire neighborhood that could match her when it came to those things. And one of those things, one of those simple yet essential things was Coffee. "I think we should have dinner and then rest instead of waiting for now or waking up later on." "Right~? We can go for a walk after we eat as well~." They were tired already but they knew as long as they were in this house, they didn''t have any choice but to do as his mom said. They could not possibly say no to most of the things that she said, and anything related to exercise was one of them. "Sure¡­" "We don''t have any choice anyway-." "Oh~. Would you look at the time~. It seems like I''ll have to go back now. I had this thing to do-." "Do you really think that works, Olive dear?" S§×ar?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Olive was here right now, and she had just heard what his mom said. There was no way she was skipping this anymore. "There are things that one should not skip. Walking, exercising and reading are one of those things." In her prime, she was a renowned archer. But then she met someone that changed her life in many ways.. Enjoy exclusive chapters from My Virtual Library Empire "Oh. Are we going to make something? Should I bring some fresh things?" Elio''s father. The man whose Green eyes Elio and his sister had inherited. He was someone of high position, someone who dealt with people, products, and things related to the industries and organizations on daily bases. He was a busy person that had given his all to support his family. Elio had learned hard work from him, he had obtained his tenacity, and at the same time, he had his mother''s stubbornness. "Oh, that wouldn''t be necessary, dear. I already asked uncle Liem to bring groceries." He had learned a lot of things from these two, however, there was still one thing that he had still not completely understood¡­ a topic that was so simple at the first glance that it seemed minuscule, and yet was so important that even after being with Alex for all these years, he had not really understood it¡­ "Alright then. I''ll be reading by myself. Or is there anyone who wants to join me?" "Oh! Oh! Can I come with you uncle Fin?" Be it Olive or someone else in their house, they all looked up to this simple looking person who was wearing a simple t-shirt with no shoes. He was like Alex when it came to fashion, but unlike her minimalist nature, he simply didn''t have to care about his attire when he was in his personal space. "Olive? Won''t you help us? We are going to make cookies as well so¡­" "Hmm? Why are you making cookies at night?" "For night snacks?" "¡­weren''t you going to sleep? Why do you want snacks?" "Of course we are going to sleep today, dummy. These will be for tomorrow." "You want to make cookies for tomorrow¡­?" Olive couldn''t understand what Alex was saying or why she wanted to do something so strange. There was no need to make cookie dough a night before if they weren''t going to use it anyway. Keeping it will overnight won''t really be effective. No one in this house ate that kind of cookies as far as she knew so, this simply confused her. "Well¡­ you should help us if you wanna know why I want to do it, no?" Alex was smirking, which meant she wasn''t using some kind of weird tactic to make Olive do something she did not want. She didn''t wanna go for a walk and she had no intention of staying in the kitchen when she could just go and watch some news and see what was happening. There were many things that she needed to take care of anyway so getting away from all the work was her first choice right now¡­ "Ugh¡­" But since Alex was smirking at her like this, this simple girl knew there definitely was something to this whole cookie thing. "Alright. I''ll stay back¡­" "Oh? Then I''ll be going by myself. Take care, children." Elio''s dad Floyd and his mom Minerva who people also called Lady V from her past profession. These two were quite a unique pair¡­ "Alright then. Let''s go make some food~." They met when she was staying at one of the hotels during a grand tournament, a place which was owned by their family. Back then, she was simply a young girl like Alex, someone who knew little about the rest of the world outside of her own interests. The bows and arrows were her life and her eyes were her everything. The target was her best friend, while the winds were her situationships. They were close, but at the same time, had a bitter relationship. She had later befriended these winds but before that, she knew little about the worldly things, knew little about the art that she had mastered itself. "So, what''s everyone thinking? Something light or a heavy feast to celebrate the safe return of all my little sweeties?" Apparently, V was checking into the hotel and then there was a sudden robbery. The robbers came in armed and were blocking the gates, ready to aim for the civilians and the people present in the lobby. But she noticed them, took out her bow and practice arrows, and took down six armed robbers with simple arrows, almost critically injuring one of them who was almost about to target an old lady. There was a commotion back then, and then the owner of that place who was apparently staying there for the time being, was informed of the incident. "Mom¡­ I don''t feel like eating much." "I''m feeling shrimps. A salad preferably." "Hmm? You two don''t wanna eat much either? I don''t think I''ll be eating much either. But I was thinking something like taco. Light and also fulfilling." They didn''t wanna eat much, and, their elder V understood what they all wanted. "I see, then let''s go make some light dinner~." V and Fin¡­ He was the first one to apologize to her as well as the one that thanked her for her help at that time. And as a thanks, he offered her a dinner at a certain fancy meeting that he was going to at that time. It was a famous place where even people like him couldn''t get a reservation, but he was lucky enough to get the chance, and he shared that chance with her. But then there was another incident when they were going to that place, so they were late, and by the time they reached the place, they had missed their chance¡­ and since she wasn''t in the mood anymore, they just ate some pizza. Later, well, they made up at the hotel and then, the entire time she was there, they kept meeting for lunch, for dinners, perhaps brunch, and sometimes much later at nights as well¡­ It was a fling, they both knew that, so they simply enjoyed the moment. They were together for three weeks. And then she had to go back, so they parted ways on a good note. However¡­ She was different. So, he went to her, met her again, stalked her, met her again, and¡­ since she shared his feelings as well, they gave it another try. But then there was another incident, a big one. Both of them almost lost each other back then¡­ but they somehow came out of it alive. And it was only then that they fell in love¡­ They were together for three years before they got engaged and in the same year, they got married, and it was also at that time that Alice came to this world. There were many incidents, accidents, and tragedies in their journey, but they still somehow found each other again¡­ Twenty seven years and they were still together. Which, for them, and for the rest of them who knew their story, was nothing less than a miracle. "Oh, is Eth coming? Didn''t she say she''d be coming?" "Those two ended up breaking one of Alex''s chips so dad is now fixing it. And, well, since it''s complicated, mom''s helping him as well." "Thankfully, it was a spare one so we won''t need it for now." Even Alex did not understand how he managed to bend her titanium pin¡­ it was an alloy so it was even more surprising to her. But it was fixable. With some right tools, it wouldn''t take too long¡­ the reason they were locked up in their rooms was something else. But since everyone knows that already, no one said anything about it specifically. With V and the rest of the helpers in the kitchen, they started preparing their dinner for tonight¡­ Chapter 277 The grown Dark Knight -Oooooooooong.They came back to the virtual world. And before them was a pretty scene quite different from the ones they had opened their eyes to after logging back into the game. "It''s¡­ pretty." The first thing that greeted them was the soft, salty breeze that drifted in through the open balcony doors. -Swiiiiiiiish¡­ The air was cool and crisp, carrying with it the unmistakable freshness of the sea. Stepping forward, they could see the entire coastal city unfold beneath them from this high floor of their inn, the rooftops of buildings clustered below like scattered tiles. Beyond, the vast ocean stretched endlessly toward the horizon, a shimmering blue that seemed to merge with the sky in the distance. The evening sunlight danced across the surface of the water, casting glimmering silver patterns as gentle waves rolled toward the distant shore. "It can be much prettier, you know? You''ll find it unbelievable when you wake up to the eastern birds of paradise, hehe." Seagulls swooping in the distance, their cries lost in the soothing sound of the ocean breeze. The air smelled of brine and seaweed, with just a hint of the city''s distant markets, but it was dominated by the clean, invigorating freshness of the water. Far out at sea, a few ships were tiny specks against the horizon, their sails catching the wind as they drifted along peacefully, some unique ones strangely standing out, even against the grand horizon¡­ "I don''t know how that''d feel but it must be quite something as well, huh? Well¡­ this is still pretty." The whole scene exuded a sense of calm and vastness, as if the world beyond the inn was waiting to be explored, yet offered a tranquil escape from the noise and bustle below. "I''d definitely pay to live in a place like this." This was a famous inn, one of the most famous in this entire place, however, they did not pay to get this special room, and they also did not pay anything for the other room that they got for Miss Rin and Misha. The workers of the place recognised Alex at a glance and called the manager who escorted them to these rooms personally. When Elio asked for how much their stay was going to cost, the manager laughed and said he valued his life more than any kind of money that he can ask from Her. He wasn''t necessarily afraid of Alex, but simply the force that was she followed her in this place¡­ "Let''s go down." "Yeah. They must be waiting-." "I mean let''s go Down." Alex was being playful, so Elio looked at her with a stunned look for a moment and just shook his head before walking out of the room. "Hey~." She once took down one of the most notorious pirate groups'' captains and made him submit to her. This particular pirate group was one of the strongest who had a great control over this city, and the captain of the pirates was a grandmaster, one of the few in the entire continent. And yet she defeated him¡­ how? No one knows. But every member of the crew of those pirates was Farid of her, and their fear of hers wasn''t something simple either. They simply could not help but be respectful to her, something anyone mentioning even her name before them could observe. No one really knew why they treated her like that, but they knew there was something special about her¡­ Perhaps, that was the reason the captain of these pirates, one of the most notorious individuals of this city, the captain of the Black Hawk Brigade, was waiting for her and her companions downstairs. "Lady Roxanna, greetings." "Oh! Oh! Mommy! Look! A big beard!" "Miu!" "Muuuuu!" The pirate was a striking, compact figure, standing only around 5 feet tall but with an imposing presence. His wild, thick beard stretched almost to the ground, tangled with bits of gold threads and trinkets, giving him an eccentric yet intimidating look. His hair, cut short and disheveled, peeked out from under a weathered tricorn hat that sported a faded purple cross. His dark, deep-set eyes gleamed with respect and awe as he stood before them, framed by a face lined with the scars of countless challenging battles. On his back, he carried a massive, weather-beaten hammer, the head of which was adorned with ancient engravings of sea serpents and storms, hinting at some long-lost archaic truth. His attire was a mix of patchwork leathers and cloths, with a belt lined with small pouches and a few rusted daggers, most of which were either a very special item, or a special item bound to him. "Howdy, GM~?" Though small in stature, the pirate exuded strength and confidence, his mere presence in this inn''s lobby attracting unquestioned attention¡­ He was strong, it was so obvious that not even the famous adventurers that were staying in this costly place even dared to go before him. He was also not alone in this place, right outside of this inn stood half of his crew, people that could single handedly take on mythical monsters of the sea that one could only ever hear the stories of. Bards in various parts of the continent even sang of their certain tales, with their victory over a (Silver Fish) known even in the other continents. "You should have told us if you were coming, we would have made preparations." He was someone that could very well go against even the high rankers, and yet as he stood before him, there was not even a hint of arrogance on him. He could tell she wasn''t as strong as she was when she defeated him a few years ago, but that did not matter. "There''s no need for all that. You people do too much anyway. We can just have a beer together. That''s more than enough party for me." She knew if this person was standing before him, there was always a chance that she could defeat him just the way she had defeated him all those years ago. But fighting wasn''t the only thing she was good at¡­ he had learned some of the biggest lessons of his life from her. "Haha, you''re still the same." She was a respectful individual even without her fighting skills, even without her powers, even without her abilities. Just her presence was something the people around her, those who knew her for her character looked up to¡­ There weren''t many Truth chasers in this world as tenacious, smart, and stubborn as her. She had saved his life more than once, she had saved the life of his people, his family, his crew¡­ all that was more than enough to earn his eternal respect. "Anyway, I heard you people met a certain dark knight with a unique horse? What''re you doing with Odin?" "Hmmm?" Just a minute ago, Misha told them that she saw the person who had been with them when they were at Eve''s house. The dark knight uncle that had a pretty horse, she said. And then she told her how she saw some people with purple hats chasing after him¡­ It was strange since both Alex and Elio guessed who she might be talking about, but then again, only she knew about these purple hat people. "You know that bastard, Lady Roxanna?" "I know him? Well of course I know him. What did he do though? Why did the Hat platoon go after him?" Read exclusive adventures at My Virtual Library Empire It had been a while since they last saw Odin. Elio had actually never seen him after That day. He had certainly received many messages from him IRL, but not in the game. Not even after he came back recently. Elio was wondering whether he even knew about him or not. But now that they were hearing about his presence in this faraway place, it seems like he was having his own troubles. "If it weren''t for you telling us that, I swear I would have gone to find him myself. That bastard sunk Qlipot! A few back, he came out of nowhere on his horse that was running on water and even though it seemed like he had control over his horse, he crashed right into our ship!" For a pirate, their ship was one of the most important things. It was not only their house, it was a partner with whom they spent a significant part of their lives. Some found friends and formed families on these ships, and the one that this person was talking about was more than a hundred years old. A ship on which his nephews and nieces were born. It had not sunk in the hundred years that he had sailed in it. Not even the strongest monsters and the wildest storms of the sea had broken that piece of dragonwood. But a horse sank it? "He did what¡­?" Just until a while ago, Odin was a simple dark knight that had just recently obtained his familiar. They did not see him after he left Alex and the capital because of some quest of his own, but he surely should not be strong enough to make an enemy out of a fleet as big as theirs. "Can you tell me a little more¡­" Alex did not know what kind of trouble he had caused but that ship was more important to this person than his own life. And if Odin did something as crazy as sinking it, that bastard was definitely in trouble. sea??h th§× NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She did not know if he did it on purpose or not, but it did not matter at this point. He will have to pay for what he had done, even if there was a deep reason behind his actions. Chapter 278 Forgiveness [Alex''s POV: ]The first time I met GM was a few years ago. Back then, I was simply a strong person that was finishing a certain quest and somehow ended up in this coastal town. There were many quests in this place since I was the first discoverer of this place, so I did as many quests as I possibly could. ''One of the memorable quests was from the pirate groups that owned one of the best ships in not just this town, but in the entire world.'' The pirate ship was a unique construct made from a unique material called Dragonwood, one of the hardest materials known to mankind. ''The person who made this ship, the first captain of Black Hawk, must have been a great craftsman to use a material that could not be cut with any kind of ax and make it into a ship as beautiful as this one.'' But, we don''t know much about that person, just like how we don''t know much about the insignificant things that had happened a few centuries ago. Still, the ship was made in a way that made it impenetrable. It was an attractive ship and yet it wasn''t really something any less sturdy than a warship of modern times. Stay tuned with My Virtual Library Empire The main material was so strong no metal ball could harm it, the ship had so many mini components to support its entire structure that it was incomprehensible to even me. ''Many of the archeologists and researchers as well as Experts had observed and studied this ship for many years, and with the changing times, and with the changing chaplains of these pirates, the legacy that their founder had left for them had continued on.'' GM, the current captain, was a capable old man much older than his looks. He was short but his beard was funnily big enough to offset his short stature. He looked normal and acted respectfully around me, but he was still one of the most notorious pirates in this world¡­ he had robbed more than half of the ships that have ever entered their territory. He had killed creatures that were simply unfathomable even to me at one point. ''If I go against those monsters right now, I know I''d die instantly.'' They weren''t simple creatures. The silver fish that they had killed was a tough challenge even to the High rankers. GM himself was a (Level-230) so he was an especially high leveled native. ''Not many people in this town, or this continent would be able to go against him, I know that much.'' The only reason Odin was still safe was probably because he was lucky. Had GM acted himself, he would have most definitely died a few times already. "Apologies to them." These pirates were all egoists even though they don''t give off that kind of vibe. They aren''t your typical people that kill others and steal their stuff on sea and they don''t have an eyepatch or wooden limbs. They are people who live on water. Have their own culture and societies that follow their own values and traditions. Not many outsiders can be a part of their culture, but if someone was present on this island, it was evident that they were somehow connected to one of the big pirate groups. "I''ve apologized many times¡­ they just don''t want to believe me." "I wouldn''t believe you if you destroyed my house, dumbass." "I didn''t do it because I wanted to! Besides! I didn''t know anything about any of these people or this place when I came here. I was just running away from that awfully powerful thing!" Odin obtained a certain quest item from a quest he did that transported him near this island. He was in the middle of the ocean when he obtained that item, but thankfully, with his familiar that could walk on water thanks to its ethereal body, he was able to travel on the ocean. Sadly, he caught attention or a certain playful (Pink Orca). A mid-boss rank (Level-198) creature. Odin was barely (Level-160) so there was no way he could defeat that creature, so he instinctively started away from the creature: one thing you do not do when you encounter a pink orca. ''Those playful creatures think that the person running away from them is trying to play with them so they chase them, and those who do not know about these creatures, under pressure or overwhelmed by fear, run from them until they can not.'' In this case, Odin and his little horse ran away from this creature until they crashed into a ship that they did not see in their way. ''The creature had long lost interest in them but they thought they were still being chased by it when they crashed into the ship.'' And when they destroyed the ship, since they knew they had fucked up, they bolted away from there. The pirates were facing a crisis with one of the greatest ships on the verge of sinking due to a small hole, so instead of chasing the bastard or killing it outright with the magic cannons, they all got to work and somehow saved their home first. And then they chased Odin all around the town, the sea, and even across this island. "Apologies again. And do it sincerely! You too!" "Meeeehehehehehe!" Sleipnir wasn''t at fault here since the one riding it was his dumb master, but they still had to apologize. "Just do it." "¡­" GM and his entire crew was here right now. The rest of the inn lobby was empty with only us left here. Misha was playing with GM''s beard and he didn''t mind it but the way he was looking at Odin and Sle made it seem like he wanted to rip both of them apart right here, right now. But he held himself back since I was here¡­ "We apologise." "Miiihehehe!" The two apologized, and Miu fell off the wall it was trying to climb, so one of the crew members helped the little creature. Az was already playing among them and it was having fun with these people so we didn''t pay attention to them. Rin was chatting with Sera on the side, Victor was gone on an errand and Elio was observing GM''s hammer, the special relic that was bound to him. "He apologized, ok? I''d appreciate it if you can let this one go with a light punishment. Have him work for you for a month or something. Beat him up, until he''s almost dead or torture him. But he did not know what he was doing." He would let this one go if I asked him to, he would do most things if I asked him to, but I didn''t want to force him. Odin made a mistake, and he deserved to be punished for not destroying the ship, but for running away without saying anything. Had he helped them with the repairs instead of running off to some other pirate crew, he would have been fine. But he didn''t do that and instead ended up doing something that further angered them. And he had to take responsibility for his mistake if he wanted to finish whatever quest he had. "Lady Roxanna¡­ you know the best not dying by our hands will be much more difficult for him than simple death. Torturing him doesn''t seem to be a good choice given his oblivious attitude towards this place, but if we aren''t going to kill him, he will have to endure much more than a few simple deaths." The pirates were strict with their own logic. Odin had destroyed their house so he gotta pay and he will have to pay one way or other. But, instead of dying and losing his progress and losing on time to finish his quest when there wasn''t much time left before the ''timer'' in our world ends and Something happens, it was much better for him to learn from these people. Though difficult, he will end up in a much better position if he were to stay with them until that day comes. "He''s not exceptionally smart or intelligent, but you will find him useful. I guarantee that much. You''ve seen his horse already, but he can do a little more than running away with this darkness energy." He had fucked up enough to know what I was doing for him right now as nothing less than a divine grace. He better be thankful to me, buy me a drink or something. It was fate that we came here to save his ass, or else these people would have spawn killed him for the rest of the time this World was still separate from ours. "Hmmm¡­" S§×ar?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. GM looked at him up and down and thought about it for a little longer. He knew this person was useful at the very least if he was able to get away from his people for so long. Having him as a slave boy on deck would be better than having him on a side that he didn''t really get along with. "Alright." His horse that can walk on water will be a good tool when they have to fight in the storm waters against the beings that will come their way when they go with Alex. Dropping them off to the underwater kingdom was their next task as she had told them already, so they were going to depart in a few days. Until then, he will make sure this Boy learns all about them and his own work¡­ He will have to work to his bones if he wanted to atone for his sins. Chapter 279 A cool mom They met up with the captain, and sorted out the little issue their old friend had created.They were surprised to see how he had grown, especially how well he had grown with his familiar. It was evident that after parting ways with them, the two of them must have been through quite a lot of things. It was obvious that they had fought many strong enemies from the bond that they had. The horse had grown as well and now, it could use many new abilities that it previously could not. It also looked like a proper horse, a proper fantastical horse instead of a pony, so seeing the majestic creature was a unique experience in itself. Both of them were surprised to see it, and they knew this being, this amazing being loved his master as much as the familiars of the high rankers loved their masters. Seeing them reminded Alex how she had been with her own familiar, the being that she thought she would be able to call when she reached her first awakening stage but that did not happen. She still could not call her familiar, but she wasn''t worried about that chubby little one. She knew it would be fine and the moment it comes back to her, it would have as happy as she knew it would be. There was also the fact that Odin and the little horse had leveled up far more than the two of them had anticipated. He was strong and smart, they knew that much, but that did not mean they were any special than the other players. Until they were with them, they were still pretty normal even after being of a unique class. But their growth speed was surprising for them. It was not simply a level of a few ten levels but a level jump of several levels in the first awakening stage. They did not yet know what the two had done to level up so much in such a short time, but they were looking forward to asking them. "Wanna take a walk?" They still had some time before they departed for their voyage, so before that, everyone left for their own preparations. And, since Alex and Elio didn''t really have much to do, they came back to their world. They had just arrived at Elio''s house a while back so they still had many things to do in the house and updating their chariots was one of them. They knew they wouldn''t be able to do it anytime soon with what was going on, but Alex at least wanted to set up the parts that they will be changing in the existing chariots so the assembly process itself would become easier. However, for that, they needed the chip that Olive''s dad accidentally broke and was studying right now. They will have to get that thing tomorrow morning, since it was late night right now. They couldn''t disturb them when it was so late¡­ So, the two decided to simply leave that matter and go on a walk now that they had come out anyway¡­ sleeping was something they can do later anyway. -Swiiiiish! "Hmmm?" "Oh, now that''s a sound I haven''t heard in a while." Elio''s room was on the edge of the second floor so the two of them walked all the way to the other side. But while they were walking towards the staircase leading downstairs, they heard a certain sound, and were reminded of a few fun things. "Let''s go. Quick." Alex was especially excited about this so she grabbed Elio''s hand and dragged him to the window downstairs. Outside of this window, they could see a certain scene that they had seen many times¡­ and yet, even after seeing it so many times, they still found it as Special as the first time they saw it, the first time they saw Her. It was a moonlit night and their front herd had quite a bit of grass. They lived in a mountainous region so the nights of this place were pretty bright naturally. The stars in the sky were more visible, there was also fresh air around this place, and the place was naturally cool. Not cold like it was in winter, but naturally cool. There was pretty little pollution, there was also much less notice pollution in this place since only a few families lived in this area. So¡­ most of the time it was quite enough for even a single sting of the bow to be audible. "A goddess¡­" Elio''s mom stood in the middle of their garden, her being bathed in the serene moonlight of the quiet night. Holding a bow in a professional attire, without any arrows on her bow, she stood in a perfect form, maintaining a perfect posture that would shame the modern day athletes that appear in the competitions. She was old, but she still had a defined form and a body that looked as athletic as it did two decades ago. Her eyes, unique and different from the one her children had, still contained the kind of light that no one in their house possessed. Her hands were sturdy as she held the bow, her fingers did not have any gloves, she wasn''t wearing any safety equipment at all, and yet, she wasn''t afraid of being hurt. Each time she moved her fingers on the bowstring, there was a strange certainty in her eyes. She was looking at a distant target, her complete attention focused on the very center of that target. It seemed like nothing else in this world mattered to her. It seemed like the world itself did not exist for her at that moment. There was only the bow in her hand, the target before her eyes, the bowstring on her finger, and the calm breathing that resonated with the air around her¡­ "Seeing her like this always seems so¡­ fictional." Alex did not have many inspirations when it came to people of this world, people of reality, people that she could learn something from since most of the thing she had learned either by herself or from the individuals that existed in that virtual world. But, Elio''s mom was different¡­ she had learned a lot of things from this person in the last few years. And above all the things that she had learned, passion for her own ''art'' was something she had always placed on top. Just like this moment that had made Elio speechless once again, there was something about those who had mastered that one thing. For Alex it was sword, for Elio it was what one understands as ''art'' itself, and for his mom, for this cool person, it was archery. "Should we tell her to show a few things again?" "You want to train in the middle of the night? Again?" "¡­" She was the most serious when she was talking about this, about archery. She had been in love with a bow and arrow ever since she was younger than Misha. She wanted to become one of those fictional characters that can fire unfathomable destructive objects from her bow when she was young¡­ that''s what made her choose archery. Stay updated via My Virtual Library Empire That silly thought of being able to do cool and fun things with a bow and arrow drove her to practice this simple yet effective sport to the highest standards. And even after she left the professional field for this family, she kept improving herself, her art, her skills, refining even the smallest of the gaps she had. Just like right now, at some point, she mastered the bow and arrow in her own way, and was able to do things that were seemingly impossible. Many of the things she could do in reality were something many people could not even do inside realistic games like . One of the reasons she wanted her to play NO was exactly because of her prowess, but she could never convince her. For her, a game was a game and the reality was reality. She had countless things to do in this world, she had countless things to look after each day and if she spent a few hours of her time in that game, even with the time difference in place, she knew she wouldn''t be able to enjoy either of the worlds. She was happy here and she had everything she needed. The joy of life was more than enough for her so she did not want to experience a fictional world that had magical elements and unique things. There were still so many things that she did not know about this world that she did not even want to experience what it was like in some other world¡­ so, she never played the game. But if she had played, even for a year or so¡­ Alex knew she would have surpassed even the best archer, one of the high rankers, in terms of pure skills. She would have to do many special quests to get to their level but even without that, she would still be on par with those possessing divinity. That was, if she ever played the game¡­ -Swiiiiiiiiish. The release of her string caused the air around her to resonate. And even though she did not have any arrow on her bow, it almost seemed like the very air around her was shot from the bow. If one looked closely, they would even ''see'' how this air that was shot from her bow actually hit the target in the very center¡­ It was humanly impossible to do something like that. And yet, every time they saw her doing this, they thought that she was some kind of main character from some other world that could do fictional things. It was always like this when they were with her. She was simply just that cool of a person¡­ "Huuuu¡­" S§×arch* The n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Alex could certainly imagine just how difficult it was to do what she did just now while making it seem so effortless, and now that Elio knew how power worked in the world of he knew it as well. It wasn''t simply about shooting some arrows at the target. Breathing, micro movements, there were many elements involved in the process of shooting these arrows and making them hit the target in a certain way. Now everyone could do it. There were few who could actually do it from a distance at which she was standing at With an arrow. There were many things that one needed to take into account when doing this, and yet she was doing it without any safety devices or any arrows. And that too, with a wooden bow instead of the professional ones that were hanging inside of their house. "I see you two¡­ are still awake¡­" She looked into their direction now that she was done with that little training. There was a smile on her face that was asking them if they wanted to see something more than this. And they would have certainly loved to See some more of those cool moves as well. "Oh damn¡­" "What now? Should we run-." Alex had already run back inside before he could say anything more than that. She didn''t want any more training and she knew Elio did not either, so it was only a bad idea to go out right now. She knew the kind of training Elio had received from her, she knew just how brutal she was with that training so, at this late hour, they were better off sleeping instead of running around this entire neighborhood. "Hahaha¡­" V, his mom, knew their thought process at that moment so she couldn''t help but chuckle at these funny children. They had grown up a little but even right now, they were still the same little children that They used to be¡­ Chapter 280 The sparring session The strength of a (Level-100) could be measured by the highest level of creature that they can defeat.It is a simple logic of that one''s physical body reconstructs after the first awakening and they gain a better control over their virtual body. This upgrade which takes the Metabody which one creates at the starting of the game takes the whole experience that one has in the game to the other level, making them more connected with that world, and granting them access to the abilities that they did not know they could use. The highest level of creature that they could defeat, at this point, becomes the standard of their strength. And, since we aren''t talking about simple monsters but also all kinds of creatures present in the game, there are various ways one could access their own unique speciality while defeating these creatures. -Clank! Clank! Clank! There are set creatures that are used to measure one''s strength, there are set creatures that are used to measure one''s other stats, and there are some creatures that simply measure one''s intelligence as well. These special creatures are special beings in the world of NO and having these creatures makes one owner of a priceless jewel. -Oooooooooooooong! In Eon''s case, he had walked the path of a tamer at first, then he walked the path of magic, and when he learned that he had extreme compatibility with Bow in the game, he also started learning the bow on the side. However, he did not use it in any battle particularly until now. He had learned a higher level of magic and understood the core of magic that existed in that world using the ancient scripts that Alex had left to him. He was now able to cast natural magic as well as his unique magic in a way that made it seem as flawless as moving through a straight space. -Ooooooooooong! On the other hand, even though Olive had crossed the level of a basic ranker by now, she was still nowhere near the level of even the likes of Elio who had just started playing the game when it came to physical abilities. She was a chef and she was a lifestyle player instead of a battle manic like the rest of them. Like Elio, there was something else that she liked more than killing the creatures around them. Killing monsters and getting EXP was one thing with the help of her dad and brother was one thing since she didn''t have to do much there, if she was asked to kill even a (Level-20) creature at this point, she would not be able to do it. She had only landed the final blow on all the creatures that she had killed until now so to kill something by herself was not something she would like¡­ but that did not mean she could not do it. She had killed and she would kill again if she had to. Unlike Elio, she didn''t really have any problem killing these creatures. They were simply creatures in her eyes until a while ago anyway. She wouldn''t have hesitated to kill a bunch of them if she had no other choice. However, that was before she was granted the role of the judge by the world and was forcefully granted the knowledge required to be a Judge. -Boooooooooom! Now, she knew about the world. She knew about the creatures, the places around the world, the people, the realness of those people, the realness of that world and every single thing that existed in that world. She now knew a lot of things, and thanks to that knowledge, even if she wanted to, she could not kill something unless it was meant to be killed and she could not let something die if it wasn''t meant to be. Until now, players have had immortal bodies that would return to life after suffering a few penalties, but now that the two of their worlds were colliding, that was going to change. As she and only she knew, the entire world was going to see things that they had only thought of as Fictional until now. They were going to experience things, much like the status window, that they had only thought of as something that was an Element of the games. Soon, the world was going to change, and these people¡­ these people sparring before her, were going to be at the center of that change. "That''s it! Go go go! Go baby!" "My Alex is going to win this one as well~!" "No! My Blaze will win! Hmph!" They were inside the special space of Blaze once again and though she doesn''t do it often, V was inside this virtual world as well. Alex and Blaze were fighting- sparring- at a distance while Elio was helping Olive create something that they could not make as well in reality as in this special space connected to as well as a few other Metaworld programs. Alex was using her sword, and Blaze was using his own sword. However, there was a distinct difference between both these swords. While Alex''s sword was purely white and radiated a unique golden glow that indicated the presence of something holy, the sword that Blaze was holding radiated a strange kind of holiness. Alex''s sword was long and the grip of this sword was covered in a unique black leather. The blade itself was made from an unknown metal while the hilt of the blade was covered in red and white threads. The sheath of the sword in her hand was made from the same material as the sword''s blade so, even though both of these objects might seem heavy for their looks, they were as light as a twig. This was a special sword that only she could wield, and that too after sacrificing a temporary key, a famed sword that was created by the hands of at least a grandmaster. That was the minimum requirement to temporarily access her powers, but that was when they were in the real world. Sear?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. In this special world that created a near perfect replica of their selves from the game as well as of their items, she was able to access the powers that this sword granted to her on a much freer level. Though she did not have all the powers that she used to have, she had enough power to go against someone like Blaze who was wielding a holy sword. A weapon that had a consciousness of its own. A relic of the past and an object that was wielded by a being that was talked about in the epics of many parts of east. This sword, this holy blade, though being of eastern origin, resembled the holy swords mentioned in the western epics. It was a straight sword, unlike the curved sword of Alex. It was also double edged unlike the white sword that Alex wielded. The sword was golden and was made with the most precious metal known to men: Epocheum. An ancient gold that possessed a unique silver glow to it so distinct that one can recognize this unique metal just by the looks of it. It was a unique metal, and the sword that was made from it was nothing less than special either. -Swiiiiiiiiiish! -Swish! Swish! Swish! If Rin and Sera were able to use holy powers naturally, Blaze could use the holy power as a resource. Through his blade, he could convert any kind of energy, even the one present in the atmosphere around him, into holy blaze, the golden Aura that was burning on the sword right now, and use it in any battles indefinitely. As long as he had the energy to sustain his own self and the stamina to keep going, he could use this special sword and the power that it granted him for days, perhaps weeks and months¡­ He was one of the few that had actually fought in one of the longest battles of the world of in the second Main scenario that occurred a few years ago as well, and he was also one of the few that were left standing after going against a demon king. It was no simple fight, many of them lost their lives merely by being under fear debuff that the demon passively cast on them. However, thanks to this holy sword, Blaze was able to fend off all those abnormalities as well. This one sword was one of the few player owned objects that were famous even among the natives. There were few that might not have heard the name of this sword and the wielder of this sword, a living legend, as well as one of the coolest guys Alex knew. "I''m going to win this one as well, little one." Explore more at My Virtual Library Empire Alex was obviously younger than him, but the relationship that these two had was older than the rest of their house members knew. They knew each other ever since she was a pro in some other game and he used to be a simple player at that time. She had taught him a few things and the two had become friends at that time, however, they met again when they started playing and then on, though they did not know each other IRL they played together on multiple occasions. It wasn''t until two years ago that Elio actually introduced them and they somehow found out that the two of them, in fact, were the same individuals that they had known from their past. They then became friends and even though they later found out that Blaze was older, he never stopped treating her the elder one among them. And, Alex being Alex, also found treating him as she always had a bit more comfortable. It was their relationship dynamics. They were acquaintances that ended up becoming family members. But still, till this day, there has not been one instance where Blaze had won against this person in a fair fight of pure skills. If they were talking about sword using, there was perhaps no one better than Alex in not just the player rankings, but with the exception of the TWO of them, there was no one that could come close to her when they were talking about pure skills. He admired her for many reasons, but her skill stood at the top of those reasons. She was, simply, amazing¡­ Chapter 281 Departing on a voyage "GM! How''s it going over there~?"Qlipot. The grand ship was a striking sight at the dock, its hull made of shimmering, ivory like wood that changed colors in the light. Carved with glowing patterns that were most definitely enchantment engraved with the purest of the materials that one could not find in this day and age even if they wanted to, the ship''s sails, large and translucent, shifted between silver and white even without wind. At its prow, a figurehead of a dragon-phoenix-turtle stretched toward the sea, its glowing eyes of a unique marble hinting at magical origin¡­ known to few, this marble was in fact an powerful item crafted with the bones of a mythical creature. Behind it, the ocean spread out, calm but powerful, with waves crashing softly and sea creatures leaping through the water. One could see pink dolphins, one could see sea creatures resembling beings that in the world of players, in their age, had even gone extinct. There were crabs and small creatures on the shore, some birds even hunting for the fishes in the ocean visible from the docks. In front of the shipyard, the city bustled with merchants, travelers, and adventurers. Tall towers of white stone stood above the busy streets, where market stalls sold spices, items, magical items, items recovered from the sea, materials obtained from the sea creatures and enchanted items that one could not find anywhere else. This place, this unique city was no bigger than a town so some called it a town while some called it a city, some even called it a village even though its scale was much greater than a village''s. There were travelers in this place, but most of the people that one could see right now belonged to pirate groups, or native people who divided into the ocean in search of natural treasures. Qlipot was one of the few old ships docked on this side right now, and it was also one of the biggest ones among the other ships. In comparison, it was three times the size of a normal ship which was much more modern by its design compared to this old one. There were only three sails to these great boats and yet these three had more clothes in them than what a dozen ships would use for their sails. The outer wood of the ship was made from one of the strongest materials known to mankind, and the ship itself was nothing less than a relic. Though it did not have a passive magic defense system like many of the other ships of this era had, this ship was not something that even a great magician could damage with their high ranking spells. Before this ship, a human would seem like an Ent before a monstrous elephant. This comparison wasn''t simple if one thinks about how big an Ent actually is and then think about the creature that it is being compared to, so even by simple logic, it should be obvious how grand the scale of this ship even was. "It''s all good on this side, Lady Roxanna! We shall depart in five minutes!" "Alright then~!" The ship was made of delicate material as well, but the creator of the ship had masterfully covered these delicate pieces with ones that would handle any kind of shock. The pirates of Black Hawk had, for centuries, lived on this ship, calling their home as well as the place that they knew the best in the world. The ship was big enough to fit in more than a few thousand people. The permanent population of the ship itself was over thirty thousand. Stay updated with My Virtual Library Empire It could handle that kind of load and it would still sail fast enough to put the modern magic jet powered boats to shame thanks to the unique mechanism used in its power engine. The ship itself was a birthplace as well as a graveyard to many who had lived on it, so, it was the most precious place in this entire world for the Black Hawks and they cherished it more than their life. "Alright!" Then one day, a stranger comes on a black ethereal horse and smashes their near indistinguishable house, nearly sinking it. "Blow the horns!" Sear?h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Aye aye captain!!!" They had fought creatures believed to be mythical beings, they had fought creature over (Level-300) on this ship, they had even fought against the natural forces, storms so great not even the gods could survive within it, fogs so deep even the light bearers would get lost within it¡­ they had seen it all. But a man on a horse poking a hole in their ship? It was unheard of for even the oldest of the men on the ship. Some of them did not see it happening from the deck even though some demon had invaded their boat or some kind of angel had gotten angry at them. Some even thought, after a century, they would have to activate the runes at the core of the ship, but thankfully, there wasn''t much chaos as the elders and the captain took change and sorted out everything before it was too late. But still, damage had been done to their home, and even if it was unintentional, they weren''t going to simply forgive the offender that did it. Thus, at this moment, Odin was doing all kinds of chores on this ship. From the smallest works like cleaning and making food, to even checking up on the elders, taking care of the children, fighting against the newbies and young ones, fighting against the older ones that always least him half dead after each of their spars, and even learning how to do the various specific works around the ship. He was being used by elders at first, but they weren''t the only ones making him run around the entire ship. As a punishment, he had to listen to anything anyone on the ship had asked of him, and fulfill each of the demands the elders or those with authority within the ship made. These past few days had been a hell for him exactly because of that. He hasn''t had even a moment of rest so sleeping was a far off thing. He didn''t even want to log in if he was going to be given all kinds of work like this¡­ but, he could not avoid this work. Just like what Alex had thought, each of the task that he received from anyone on the ship was a quest that rewarded him with various things that he could not get normally. Though the work was tough, he was getting rewarded for his work, as it was in the world of for anything one did. Everything one was doing and experiencing was an experience so precious one might never experience something like that ever again. The rewards that one got for their efforts were most of the time appropriate but depending on the kind of individual and the kind of experience, they also varied. So, for a Knight, a dark knight at that, who had been treated as a high ranking person in the previous places he had been to, being treated like the lowest level worker was a new experience for him. The rewards were good as well so, he endured and was now washing the railing line of the deck. It wasn''t fun or easy and, since his partner, the special horse that had destroyed the wood that not even the catastrophic Silver fish could damage, had now become a playmate for the children, a study material for the older people, and a test subject for the adults, he was also alone. There wasn''t much for him to do since they were docked as well, but that changed at this moment. -BYOOOOOOOOOOOOONG! The loudest of the horns rang from the top of the ship, and at the same time, the entirety of the city was informed of the departure of Qlipot. The anchor made from another ancient metal weighing almost as much as the smaller ships around them was lifted from the seafloor and the men on the deck all got into their positions. { "Everyone!" } Powered by Aura and not Mana, a roaring voice echoed all across the ship. { "May the Father of all Blue be our guardian!" } "WHAAAAAAAAAAA¡­!" { "May the voyage be another Epic for the miserable bards!" } "YEEEEEEEEEEEEEI¡­!" { "And may the Eternal Qlipot be ever preserved¡­!" } "WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" -Byooooooooong! Another horn, and the ship was set off¡­ "Fascinating." Elio was on the ship, seeing everything with an excited heart. He could not help but be in awe of the excitement that these people had. They were going out at the sea where anything can happen, they might even die, and yet they were all unaffected by the dangers that were awaiting them. From the children to the oldest person he could see right now, each of them were excited right now, there was a bright light in their eyes, their face ablaze with excitement for what awaited them. "They''re like that. A little loud, a lot more cheerful." They were special people. They were also simple, and they were also not easy to get close to. If it wasn''t for the quest that brought them together and put her with them for over a year, she might not have had the kind of experience that she has with this ship or the sea, but fate wanted her to be here back then, and it wants her to be here right now as well. "This is going to be fun." She was excited about this. They were going to be out at the great blue for more than a week and the two of them were planning to be here for a few days at the very least. There were many people she wanted him to meet and there were many things she wanted him to see on this ship. She hasn''t had the chance to do many things until now and with the changing world, perhaps she will never get to do many things that she had planned, but, when she had the chance, she at least wanted him to see a few things. And, on this ship, the core of this ship was going to be the first and the most important thing that Elio had to see. In fact, he must see this. It was important for him as well¡­ Chapter 282 Heart of Qlipot Qlipot wasn''t simply a wooden ship that moved with the winds. There were many enchantments around it and many of them helped with the movements and directions.It was also a layer that provided extra protection to the boat, but the main function of these enchantments was to help with the movements in the turbulent weather, to protect the people from dangerous attacks, and to attract the friendly creatures to the boat. There was a special area in the basement of the ship where the sailors of Qlipot could get fishes, seafood of various kinds, an area where the tamed sea creatures or even Familiars of the people of the boat could gather valuable things, and there was an area that was completely open on all sides so it almost gave a feeling of an open aquarium. This great ship had three distinct floors besides the deck and the basement and these floors, though mostly filled with rooms for the families that lived on it, also had many different rooms for entertainment and area for the children and the elderly. Some places of the ship were delicate and were restricted to only those who had the authority to enter these places. Not just anyone could enter these places since they contained sensitive materials, devices, or stuff that was dangerous for them. Some places were specially used to store dangerous things like beasts that they were going to sell or tame to make it their own. There were also places, rooms that were never opened for decades. Some that no one could open themselves without meeting certain requirements. The very core of the ship, the heart that powered the enchantments as well as elements that required high, continuous energy to function, was one such area. "Not just anyone could enter this place." Standing before a certain room, Alex smiled at Elio, Sera, and Victor who hadn''t been to this place before either. The three of them were going to be the only beings who could enter this place and that too, for three distinct reasons. "So, are you ready?" "What do I have to be ready for? At least tell me that first." Elio had no idea why Alex had brought him all the way to this place. He sure was surprised to see the whole community of this ship, all the people that lived here, all the different kinds of people that lived in the same place, as well as how they all lived together despite their own differences. It was a new kind of experience for him since he had been to cruise ships that were as amazing as this one. There weren''t many like this one in the real world, well at least by the size and scale of it, so he could not really compare them completely. But still, by the sheer size, he had been to those unique ships where people spend their entire lifetimes on. There weren''t as many people on those ships as there were on this one, but since this was a fantastical world with magic and all, it wasn''t that unbelievable to him. Still, the communities, the people, the things that they do on daily bases, their lifestyle in this place, the way they spend their time, the way they had divided their communities and the way unique cultures existed among them was something Elio wanted to study extensively. It was quite a new concept for him, tens of thousands of people living in a single structure, so he was excited to go around the ship by himself and see the various things that were present here. But Alex dragged him here, in this empty corner of the ship, where no one was present aside from this lonely corridor and this single blue door. "Hehe, you''ll know when we get inside~. It''s going to be really amazing, I''ll tell you that much." It wasn''t like her to be excited about something. Actually, the way she was acting reminded him of the time she had discovered a cave near his house IRL that ended up becoming a secret hangout spot for their families. But perhaps that wasn''t it this time. There was something else that she was excited about, he didn''t know. However, she sure as well was going to find out the reason for her excitement soon¡­ "Well then!" She opened the door and a bright light exploded from the simple looking blue door. And then, the next moment he knew, Elio was feeling his entire body being deconstructed piece by piece and in the very next moment, he felt as if something or someone was recreating his body in someplace else piece by piece. -Ooooooooooooooong! When he opened his eyes, he found Sera massaging her head, and Sir Victor was in a similar position. Contrary to the rest of them, however, Alex was perfectly fine. It almost seemed like she was used to something like this. "What the hell, Alex-." "Welcome." She pointed at the front, redirecting his attention to what she had brought them here for. "To the heart of Qlipot." A chamber that looked much larger than what any of the places of this ship had been like. Unlike the rest of the ship, this entire place was made of metal, a strange kind of metal that most certainly was not simple iron. "What¡­" At the center of this round hall, there was a crystal hourglass as large as the room itself, though there was no sand inside of it. There was no certain light present in this entire hall, but the place was lit as brightly as a daylight ablazed library. The floor was smooth, the walls were smooth, and yet, the air around them had a strange texture that was filled with something that wasn''t familiar to any of them¡­ and yet strangely seemed comforting to all. "What¡­ is that¡­?" The light in this room was not of a certain color like the simple daylight or the lights of the magical lamps though, the light in this place was a cumulative of all the colorful lights present in this place¡­ all the lights that ultimately originated from the hourglass like object in the center. "Spirits¡­" "I can''t believe it¡­" Sera and Sir Victor recognised these objects, these beings instantly. And, from the way Elio''s hands were glowing, from the way the marks in both Elio and Alex''s hands were glowing, it was evident that this was no normal ''hall''. There was something special about this¡­ something, that a certain being would love to see. "Call out Az and Miu." "Hmm?" Elio was still in a daze right now. Before him, there was a glass structure that resembled an hourglass but there was something strange about this. While certain colors dots, spirits as they knew now, appeared at the very top of the structure out of nowhere, the dots were moving from upside to downwards and the beings that were coming down were slowly vanishing as well, presumably reappearing outside of the structure. It was a strange phenomenon¡­ it almost seemed like the spirits were appearing on the top of this¡­ thing¡­ and then were coming out of it from the bottom of it. Then they spread out across the entire room, some even passing through the strange metal and going out of this closed space. Seeing this had mesmerized him, he did not even respond to her when she called out to him and asked him to take out his little friends from his special inventory, so she had no choice but to pinch him. "Awwww! Aw aw aw! Hey!" "Az and Miu. Take them out and then admire this place¡­ I cannot see anything anyway, so show me how you see this place while you''re at it." "¡­hmm? What?" Elio has an affinity for Natural and Unique magic but not for Elemental magic, but it did not mean he could not use any elements. He was a strange individual that had affinity for all six of the common elements and perhaps more while Alex on the other hand, had an oppression to elements themselves. She could not only not use any elemental magic, she could not even perceive any elemental spirits that were representations of these elements naturally. Elio could see all these spirits naturally, Alex could not see any spirits in this place at all, while the Servants of both of these two, the beings that were an essence of their past stories, could see this entire place in a completely different way than these two. "I cannot see them so show me! And bring out Az! It''s the only elementalist we have, dummy." By nature, elementalists were beings that could naturally interact with the spirits and the spirits themselves showed interest in them. "Ummm¡­ okey?" In the past, Alex had a elementalist as her servant. A being that was one of the closest friends that she had ever had. His name was known throughout the six realms, he was one of the strongest when it came to pure power, he was also one of the few beings in the entire world to have contracts with Epitome of spirit world, the kings and queens that rules ove the entire realm of the spirits. He was someone she respected immensely, and he was also one of the first servants she has had, her third servant to be precise. S§×arch* The Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. ''That bastard almost died on me¡­'' She had lost her closest friends, her servants, and she had lamented their deaths. She had avenged those who needed to be avenged and she had punished those who were responsible for the deaths of her dumb ones. Some also gave their life for her when she didn''t even ask them for it, but that''s simply how they were. That''s simply how He was. But thankfully, he did not die. She was just sealed with many of her powers, the other servants, and her cute little goody. -Ooooong! Read exclusive adventures at My Virtual Library Empire "Miu?" "Muuu¡­ muuu!!! Muuuuu?!" Miu and Az were here. And, as soon as they appeared in this place, a storm of light rushed towards them. "What the hell?!" And then¡­ well, the rest of them were covered by the various spirits of various elements from all sides. Chapter 283 Story of the Grandmaster "Muuuuu~!"There were hundreds of spirits in this place, and right after sensing the presence of someone that could interact with them, someone that was not of their kind, they were instantly curious about them. They rushed towards Az and covered the rest of them as well, and though Alex could not see them directly, using the live recording function that Elio had, she saw what Elio was seeing, even sharing the senses of his servant, Sir Victor, in order to see what he was seeing. "Miu! Miu Miu Miu!" "Muuuuu!" The little slime wasn''t overwhelmed by how many spirits were present here. Not at all. Instead, he was excited and started talking with the spirits that came and greeted him. The slime summoned his own spirit friends that it had contracted over the last few months and his spirits started interacting with the spirits of the ship. Miu, though overwhelmed by the presence of these many energy creatures, was not really bothered by the spirits. She was more interested in the glass that these things were coming from. This glass, or the (Spirit gate) as Alex knew, was the gateway through that connected this world to the spirit realm directly. It was a natural relic created from nature, something that the creator of this ship found accidentally during one of his adventures and later used it as the powerhouse of this grand ship. It was like a natural boundary that he had very delicately detached from where it belonged to and placed it on this ship¡­ or rather, as she now predicted, he had made this ship around this boundary and then shifted it to the sea. This place, this hourglass like structure born from nature like these spirits was perhaps one of the only gateways that actually connected this world with that world and they were the only fortunate people that were allowed to be here. "This is¡­ I can''t believe this." "It belongs to your kind, doesn''t it?" "Yes¡­" Az was showing his new friends to Elio now, and since Alex couldn''t see these special beings, she wasn''t particularly interested in their greetings right now. She wanted Elio to be here for two reasons, and the first reason¡­ was because of Sera. "Alkrit. The language of angels¡­" Though as humans Alex and Elio could not see anything on the metallic walls of this room, Sera could see the carvings that were made on these metallic walls vividly. Sir Victor who had seen these unique spirit carvings in the past could also see it, and, perhaps all Servants could see this for some reason since all of the servants that she had with her the last time she was here could see this thing. And, a few of them had told her this was related to the angels in the past as well¡­ but sadly, Sera was the only angel she had met who wasn''t a bitch or Arrogant motherless cunt. Most angels, though the rest did not know yet, were bastards and bitches that thought of themselves as the most noble, purest beings in the entire world. They thought and acted like they are the Chosen ones, that they are something Very special in this grand world. All the angels she had met aside from Sera were either bastards that she wanted to kill with her bare hands, or were children so innocent they were the purest and dumbest things in this entire universe. She never had a chance to bring one here and ask them about these special carvings, but now that Sera was here, she had the perfect opportunity she had always dreamed of. "This is a story actually¡­ and a will." Sera moved her hand on the simple looking carvings and smiled a little at them. This was the first time she was seeing this language, this specific kind of writing ever since she awakened as a servant. She was a special being even among the Angels, they all knew that, but seeing this warm expression on her face right now was quite heartwarming for them as well. "The creator of this ship, the first captain of Qlipot, Samlorex Salamander Serious had a wife¡­ an angel named Lora." Elio was done greeting a few of the spirits so, even though there were a bunch still left, he picked up Az and walked towards the rest of them. Sera was telling them a story, and he didn''t want to miss this opportunity to hear a fun story about the creator of this great ship. "The text depicts how he met his wife who he rescued inside a Labyrinth that he was stuck in for three years. The text does not show the struggles that he had in the labyrinth, but it mentions how there is a separate text written by his wife on a different part of the boat. Instead of his struggles, he has extensively described how he met her, how she looked when he saw her for the first time, how the two of them cursed at one another when he was gawking at her naked body stuck in strange tentacle like vines-¡­ ptffff. Most of this is so funny I can''t even say it out loud, haha." Sera ended up laughing and seeing her laugh like that, seeing one of the most composed members of their party in that state, Alex couldn''t her curiosity. "Hey hey! Tell us exactly what''s written here! Don''t keep all the juicy details to yourself!" Alex being Alex was more interested in the spicy details while on the other hand¡­ "I want to know how that person has described his wife. Did he use vulgar words? What kind of language is angel language anyway?" Elio was more curious about the way that person had written these things. He could not see what Sera was reading, much less read it himself so he could not translate these things himself. He was an author himself and this historical record was like the ancient text or some ancient history for him¡­ this was the best learning material for him, especially since it seemed to be related to something romantic and adventurous. "Oh, master¡­ well, it''s pretty difficult to put it into simple words since Alkrit is a unique language that uses sounds and melodies rather than words themselves. I don''t know how I should translate these things exactly, that''s the reason I''m just saying it like this. Though, if I have a little more time, I think I''ll be able to word it as you want. But I cannot do that directly. I apologise-." "There''s no need to apologize for that, silly. You can take your time, I don''t mind at all." They were going to travel for a while anyway. She can take all the time she needs and knowing Sera, she would try and finish it as quickly as she can for her master. "Anyway! Judy details, Sera! Details!" Elio wasn''t going to get what he wanted so at the very least, Alex wanted the spicy parts. Sadly¡­ "Well, Miss Alex¡­" Sera scratched her cheeks with a closed mouthed smile. "You see¡­ since Alkrit is sung and not spoken, there''s not really any need to use explicit language. Usually, we don''t even use words that are usually considered vulgar, in fact, what that person has written here is pure admiration for the person that he spent his whole life with." Sera knew Alex wasn''t going to like this so she had a bitter expression already. But, contrary to her belief, Alex actually had a smile on her face. "Really? That old man was that kind of person? I actually had him all wrong¡­" Alex laughed a little, then shook her head and asked Sera to continue. "Muuu?" Find your next adventure on My Virtual Library Empire Az did not understand what was up with her like its master, but both simply ignored that and focused back on Sera. "Right. So¡­ this text starts with how the creator of this ship met his Wife, or Miss Lora. How he helped her out of the bindings and how she helped him get out of the labyrinth. sea??h th§× N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. It has a record of what they did in the meantime they were in the labyrinth, but it''s brief. The main focus of the text starts from the part where the two of them got married actually, and stumbled across that Gate when they were exploring the island which that particular labyrinth was located in." The centerpiece of the story was the spirit gateway that connected the two worlds, as Alex had predicted a long time ago. "The two of them got out of that island and became part of the human society. Miss Lora having lost one of her wings were unable to go back to her home, but she did not have any reason to go back to that place anymore since she had already fallen in love with Sir Salmorex¡­ she used to call him Morex as it''s written here so I''ll just call him that as well." The names of both the angel and the Creator of this ship reminded the servants of two distinct things. But they did not go onto that lane for now. "Sir Morex and Miss Lora got married and lived a simple life in a small human city. There, with Sir Morex''s passion for creation led him to become a master craftsman, and later when he gained enough wealth, experience, and power as well as the honored title of a grandmaster by the Voice of the World through his creations, he left the human world with his wife and came back to the island where the two had met for the first time." "Let me guess, they started creating Qlipot when they came back? He wanted to make a home to spend the rest of his life with her?" It was cliche but Alex loved these kinds of simple love-stories. "Well, yeah. We can say that''s what he wanted. But, he did not tell her he was doing that. He simply told her he was going to make a chamber to protect the Gate so he started working on this room, the heart of the ship, and only after he created this place did she find out his true intentions." He got caught, and then he had to cough up his plans. Though, Miss Lora did not hate it. "A ship, a home, a vessel to travel the vast world of blue¡­" "Yeah. And to make this special vessel, the grandmaster traveled the entire world with his wife for the required materials, only coming back when he was done gathering everything he needed." And then he made Qlipot, the Symbol of their preserved love. "That''s so cringe." "It''s simple things, Alex¡­ humans want simple things. That''s all." The story itself was short and simple even though it was something that started from one part of this wall and covered the entirety of this grand hall. "Lastly¡­" But, this was going to be the last and most important part. "There''s a statement left behind by the creator." -Ooooooooooooooooooooooong! The entire room glowed the moment Sera read those words in her mind. This was a clear sign that they needed to listen to this important message attentively. Chapter 284 Spirit Contract "If you are reading this, it means you are somehow connected to the angels or are an angel yourself.If you are on this ship, in this room, it also means you are close with our descendants and are accepted by our home. We will not know if you have qualifications or not, you will have to find and pass the test that we have left behind, but if you do pass it and are eligible¡­ we want you to have what we have left behind." Sera stopped for a moment, and looked at the rest of them. There was a strange golden parchment in her hand right now, something that had materialized out of nowhere. It wasn''t here a moment ago but it was here right now and she did not know why she had this, but there were many instructions on this parchment. And all of these must be linked to the ''legacy'' that is mentioned in this place. "Master¡­ I don''t think I will-." sea??h th§× nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "I know that as well, Sera. It belongs to the people that live here¡­ but, if they wanted them to have it, they wouldn''t have made it this complex." Sera didn''t feel right about taking what wasn''t hers. She was fine with telling the others about this place and what the creator had left behind, but she did not believe she was qualified to have something that should go to the people of this ship. She was an outsider that wouldn''t have been here if it wasn''t for Alex, so she wasn''t comfortable with this. "Let''s find out what this thing is first before we decide what to do with this, ok? We can give it back to them if it''s something that should go to them." But just like Alex, Elio also wanted to keep whatever could make them stronger. The times were changing and they did not know what kind of change this was going to bring them exactly, so they wanted to have it if it would help them. "It''s fine, Sera. Don''t think too much about this. If you find it, it''s yours. That''s how the pirates do it anyway." Be it a treasure or a simple coconut. If you find it before anyone else and prove your connection with it, you are the owner of that item. Of course though, if the owner dies, the one holding it next would be the new owner. Those were the rules. "You can think about it, ok? It''s alright." None of them minded it actually. They simply needed her to accept whatever this was. It wasn''t like they knew if they would be able to pass the test that they had left behind anyway, but if they do somehow pass the trials and get whatever they had left behind, it wouldn''t really be a bad idea to add a few more weapons to their arsenal. Anyway¡­ "Alright¡­ that''s all they wanted to tell, I guess. The rest of the things here are descriptions and narrations." Sera was done reciting what was present on the walls, and now that she was done with the things on the wall, they were done with the first thing they had come here for. "Now then¡­" Miu was exploring this place, the Gate to be specific, but she came back after looking around a few things. The hourglass seemed to be made from grass, it was actually a special kind of crystal that attracted Miu so the little gecko was watching it from up close. But now that the creature was done with its evaluation, it came back to them and climbed on Sera''s head. "Why don''t we start with the second agenda." As mentioned earlier, Alex had brought Elio here for two reasons. The first was to have Sera here so that they could know what was written on the walls of this place, and the second was related to his little slime. "Az, how about you help your master a little?" This place, the gate that was present before them, was one of the only place in the entire world that was connected to the world of the spirits, It meant that the spirit connection of this entire room was much more powerful than most of the other places in some other place. "Muuuu?" "You know what I mean. There are so many spirits here¡­ won''t one like to be with Elio as well?" There were three ways to form a contract with a spirit: through direct contact with the spirit, through a joint contract of someone else, and through possession of an item that the spirits are bound with. And there were three steps to form a contract as the little slime had already learned from her. The first thing that one needed to form a contract with a spirit was the ability to perceive these spirits without them having materialized into the material world. If they are able to perceive them naturally, like Elio and the rest of them could, they have the most basic qualifications to form a spirit contract. But, the other two things required weren''t as simple as that¡­ "What do you mean by that, Alex?" He had no idea what they were talking about, but the little slime was smart so it understood her hint after a little thinking. "Muuuu! Muuu!" Elio had been away from them for a few months and Az had learned a lot from Alex in that time. One of those things was about spirits and spirit contracts. It had affinity for elementalism already so it did not have any problems perceiving the spirits, and as it grew a little more, it was able to materialize the spirits without making a contract with them. It was a being of nature, unlike human elementalists, so it was able to do things that humans usually cannot. Which simply made it even more special. "Muuuuu!" This time, since Alex was saying how some spirit would like Elio, the slime who had already made contact with a few low rank and an intermediate rank spirit, knew what she was asking. "What''s happening here? Can someone please tell me at least?" Oblivious to what was happening, Elio only watched as Az jumped off his hands and went to the other side, to the spirits that were playing by themselves. Then it started gathering the spirits and Alex smiled at the enthusiastic expression of the creature. "We are going to find you a spirit to form a contract with, haha. You''re not an elementalist but thanks to Az and this place, it will be possible." Since this place was directly connected with the spirit world, the saturation of spirit energy was so strong in this place that none of them could feel it. They could not even perceive it since it was present in the entire atmosphere around them. So, they weren''t really going to need any spirit power to form any contracts which was the second thing that they needed for the contract. The third and the last thing that they needed to form a contract with a spirit, was a suitable spirit that they could resonate with. And, to find a spirit that one could resonate with was the same as finding a familiar out of every single being present in this world. There were countless spirits in this world and findinding the right ones that one could resonate with, especially in the case of those who weren''t an elementalist, was the most difficult task. "It is possible for the non-elementalists to have spirit contracts but, one needs to find the spirits that one can resonate with the best for that." But of the countless spirits in the world, one might never find the ones that they are looking for in normal circumstances. "But this place eliminates that worry as well." Since this room was connected to the spirit world directly, the origin of all spirits, the spirits all around the world could be reached out with the help of the spirits in this place. Since they had an elementalist, conveying the message to the other spirits was a simple task so Az was doing that right now. And it didn''t take too long for it to explain their situation to the playful spirits either. -Ooooooooooong! The spirits swarmed around them once again, but this time, they all started vanishing back to the hourglass after circling around Elio. "Let''s start preparations." They weren''t going to get many chances, Alex knew that already. So, she wanted to make sure he got the best possible spirit companion out there. "Muuuuu!" "Miu!" The slime and gecko had done this a few times in the past already. Both times, Misha and Rin were present there as well, but this time, they were resting upstairs. They didn''t need to be here, and Alex didn''t want them here either since she knew with the presence of an ichorborn in a place that has something directly connected to another realm. "What are you standing still for? If you want a companion, help us with the preparations~." Alex was excited about this but Elio was still wondering why she was doing this. It wasn''t like he would be able to use a spirit with his limited Mana, but he didn''t question her. Read new chapters at My Virtual Library Empire "Yes, tell me what I have to do." He simply accepted the fact that he was getting a spirit friend, and was thankful for her. He knew she knew that he wanted to have a familiar as soon as he could after seeing Odin and his partner, but a familiar wasn''t in her hands. She was doing what she could for him, and he appreciated her thoughtfulness greatly. Now, if only she could show this much consideration before their family¡­ things would be much simpler for them then how they are right now. Chapter 285 Meta They all waited for a few minutes, and watched as the spirits moved rapidly around the room.The spirits were going in and out of the place, passing through the walls and going out, passing through the gate and traveling through the realms, chatting with Az, asking it about a few things that the others yet did not understand, and then going back to their world. They were searching for a certain kind of Mana signature that could resonate well with Elio''s unique Mana signature. S~ea??h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Things could have been simple if Elio only had affinity for one or two elements since that would make things pretty easy like it was in the case of Az, but things were different here. "Most spirits in the world only possess one element since they are born from those elements. Technically, spirits that are of multiple elements are pretty rare. And, most of them are either so young that they haven''t even developed their own element, or are some of the oldest in the spirit realm." Since Alex had a servant that knew about spirit as much as the most ancient spirits knew about their kinds, she knew a good lot about how rare a case Elio was. "In normal cases, someone with only six elemental affinities could have simply contracted with six basic spirits at once. But your case is even more complicated." Since Elio was one of the few people in the world that actually had a harmonious relationship with six major elements as well as a few other natural elements, finding an appropriate spirit for him was much more difficult for him than finding a High ranking, or superior ranking spirit for someone that only had affinity for those six major elements. It was a difficult task, and even though the news of how they were looking for a certain spirit that could resonate with him must have spread throughout their realm by now, she knew they might not get to meet the one perfect for Elio. "I''ve asked them to explain the situation to the Kings and queens, so, even though they might not get to come here¡­ if you''re lucky, we will get a positive response soon." She was acquainted with the highest ranking members of a realm thanks to her servant, and as the spirits have told them, they were missing her and this world. Sadly, the medium through which they could come to this world, their contractor, was sealed away due to her personal quest, there was no way for them to come to this world anymore. It was temporary and since the time perception of the spirits was the worst among all the other species, even a decade was like a fleeting movement in their eyes. They were mighty beings that had known her for a few years now, but aside from the fact that she was the master of their contractor, there wasn''t much that they knew about her. And they didn''t have to know about it either, they were rulers of a realm, not just a kingdom or a place, so even someone like Alex was as simple a human being as the rest of them in the world for them. Still though, thanks to her connection, they agreed to help her look for the one that they were looking for, and from the looks of it, they should be able to find the one that they were looking for in a little while. "If someone that resonates with you exists, they will make sure they come here." They simply had to wait for now, and since it wasn''t lunchtime yet, they had a few more hours before they had to go up. They still had to tell the others on the ship about these things, they still had to do a lot, including the things about the legacy of the creator, so they were preparing for that. They would also have to log out since they were on the ship now, and they had a party to prepare IRL so they will have to focus on that thing. They had a lot of work and little time left, so they needed to shift their gears. "Hopefully-. Hmmm?" -Ooooooooooong! The spirits in the room suddenly reacted to something, and at the same time, a bunch of spirits rushed out of the gate. "Muuuu! Muuu!!" "Az says-." "They found it? Damn that was fast." Sera didn''t have to translate what Az was saying this time since anyone could tell it was excited about something. The spirits'' movements was also an indication enough, so they all focused their attention towards the hourglass, with Elio watching the scene before him with an excited heart. ''This is totally unexpected¡­'' He had longed for a familiar, a partner that would be even more special to him than his tamed beasts. The creatures of this world, as he had seen until now, were the most unique part of this world based on realistic things. Be it the simplest of the slime, or the most dangerous of the monsters that he had seen until now. Be it individuals like Sera or sir Victor that do not actually exist, or beings like this spirit, or divinities like his Rabbit friend. All these beings were something straight out of a fairy tale. Something one could only understand as a fantasy element that wouldn''t exist in the reality that they had known until now. Magic of this world wasn''t really that unreal, the technology here wasn''t that impressive either, the other common races were also pretty much only a genetic mutation of humans, but the creatures¡­ They were the most prominent element that made this world different from theirs. In his eyes, these creatures were what gave a meaning to this world. And he had realized that ever since he met Az in that marshland, ever since he rescued Miu, and ever since he became Sera''s master. These beings weren''t simple, they were far more complicated than a cat or a dog or a simple pet that one could have in their world. They weren''t something unreal since they had a very solid foundation to their existence, and they were also not something technology could reproduce. "Okay. Get ready darling. It''s on its way!" "Yes¡­" Ever since he met Az, he was interested in these special beings of this special world, and obtaining a familiar meant directly connecting with an element of this world on a deep level. He wanted to experience what it felt like¡­ he had heard the stories and read up on it, he had seen it with his own eyes as well, so he had longed for a familiar but, since his ultimate wish was connection with this world, as he knew, contracting with a spirit, as he knew as well, should also be pretty close to forming a familiar bond. Yes the two were different things, but he somehow knew he wasn''t going to meet his destined partner anytime soon. "Muuu! Muuu!" -Ooooooooong! "Here it comes." All of this was sudden. Getting a contract spirit? He was not prepared for this¡­ His heart was beating excitedly, he was looking forward to this, he was excited as well, so, he simply watched as all the other spirits that looked like colorful dots in his eyes made way for a certain dot. "Muuuuu¡­!" "Is this the one?" "Yes! Can''t you tell?" "I¡­ can." Unlike the other colorful dots, this one was not of one certain color. The colors that this certain dot had were changing¡­ it resembled an Arora with all the colors that one could think about flashing with a certain harmony. "Good! Az, let''s start." They did not have much time so Alex and Az quickly got to work. But Elio¡­ simply stared at this colorful dot of light before him. -Oooooooooong! With Az and Miu, he had always felt a special kind of connection that he did not feel towards the other creatures that were attracted to him. With Sera, he had felt a completely different kind of connection. But right now¡­ with this simple dot, he was feeling another unique kind of connection. It was distinct from the other connections he felt, different from anything he had felt actually. He wasn''t familiar with the spirits that much, but he knew about these unique energy entities that had no physical body. They were born in a different realm of this reality, with a body that did not have any matter within them. The reason they were unperceivable by normal people in normal settings was because of their unique nature, and the reason only elementalists could interact with them and help them manifest in this world was also because of their ability to materialize these energy entities. Only an elementalist and a contractor could share their energy with these beings so that they can actually materialize into this world and interact with the physical objects present here. Forming a contract with a spirit, even the simplest one, was a privilege that only a few could ever have, and he was one such fortunate individual. -Ooooooooong! "Alright¡­ now, you just have to give it a name, and your contract will be complete." The slime and Alex created a contract circle under Elio and the glowing rainbow dot and were done with all the other materials. As soon as a name was given and the contract was sealed, the process would complete. "A name, huh?" It was a simple process, at least by the looks of it, it seemed simple. But Elio knew how complicated it actually was. He was thankful for what she was doing for him, for this gift they were giving him¡­ "Hey there, little one. How would you like to be called¡­ Meta? For your uniqueness, and for your special colorful nature." He had thought of this name on the spot but he had his reasons for choosing this name. It was an abbreviation of a certain name, just like it was in Az''s case, and it was pretty cute as well. It suited this little one, and from the looks of it, it liked its name as well¡­ -Ooooooooooooooooooooong¡­.! Enjoy new chapters from My Virtual Library Empire The colors that exploded as soon as he had decided on the name were blinding, but in the world where the spirit and he was forming a contract, in their own little world, nothing was as simple as it looked to the others. "Wow¡­" [{ We had always believed there is someone like us somewhere in this world. }] He had a strangely pretty voice. An old voice that wasn''t cranky or overly sensitive. It was delicate¡­ just like its looks, it was unrealistic and pretty. He couldn''t look away from the True form of this being. He was stunned, and stayed in that dumbfounded state until the spirit chuckled at his funny expression and brought him back to his senses¡­ Chapter 286 Next course of the party A large, mythical creature with golden antlers standing in a green world filled with green particles of a kind of energy that was familiar to him, and still felt quite distinct from what he was familiar with.Meta¡­ it was a large, mysterious creature with golden antlers and a deep blue body. The antlers of this beast was large, all branching out in various directions. There were various orbs of colorful energies or perhaps elements, each glowing or blinking in a certain harmonious pattern. The creature had a long, slender neck and a long tail, though Elio was not focused on those trivial details. The creature''s eyes were closed, but each time they cracked open to look at his contractor, Elio would see the deep, dark eyes that seemed to contain a galaxy of stars within them. There was a dark blue sky above them for some reason. They were inside a special space and there were particles of green energy surrounding them but it was nothing compared to the vast special sky like expanse above them. It was strange and unique at the same time, Elio couldn''t help his awe at what he was seeing right now. It was unbelievable¡­ The atmosphere of this place was peaceful and serene. The creature appeared to be a being of great power and wisdom as well, but it wasn''t a simple creature. It was a spirit, and it had contracted with this young boy that knew little about this world, the truths of their world, as well as about the concerns of this world. The being that he had contracted with, on the other hand, was one of the few Superior beings of the spirit world that had never found a person that could resonate with them. Each of the orbs that were present on their horns, each branch of their antlers that represented a unique path of mortal life, was something that no other spirit beings possessed. [{ It will be my honor to serve you, Master. }] The way this creature looked at him reminded him of the way his grandparents used to look at him when he was young. Each time they saw him working and gathering his own pocket money, they would have the same emotions in their eyes as this creature did right now. The being itself was of great significance, but more than that, the way it was looking at Elio, his contractor, was not how a contracted spirit should be looking at their master. The only reason HE was calling Elio their master was because he did not want to make things more inappropriate for them. As a contracted spirit, it had to call him master at the very least¡­ but Elio did not mind it. "You are older. There''s no need to be so formal with me¡­ Meta." A smile appeared on the ethereal face of the creature as it nodded and a ray of light came out of it. This ray of light intertwined with a ray of light that had come out of Elio''s body and connected together. The connection of these rays of lights was so intense that it created another blast of light, and then¡­ -Oooooooooooong! The next thing Elio knew, he was back to the room he previously was, with Alex and the rest of them. The spirits in the room all noticed him first, and then Az did. "Master?" Sera was the next and then, Alex also realized that he was back to his usual self. "What¡­ just happened?" He did not understand what was happening. He did not know what was going on either. A moment ago, he was in a different place and now he was back to the hall with the Spirit gate and the rest of his companions. From the worried look Sers had, he could tell something had happened in the time he was in that world, but from the normal looks of Alex and Az, he also inferred that it wasn''t anything unusual. "Congratulations on getting a spirit friend, darling." Alex was congratulating him, so it meant this was something normal. Perhaps the vision that he had just seen, that world and that strange creature, was related to the spirit contract. That was the only explanation to what had just happened, but Sera''s concerned look confused him for a moment. [{ Hello, master. }] But this familiar voice brought him back to his senses as he looked up, and saw the small glowing dot of light floating before him. "Meta¡­?" It was the spirit that he had just made a contract with, and looking closely, he could see that this small dot of light had in fact taken on the form of a butterfly. It wasn''t glowing in multiple colors like it did a while back, it was simple blue now¡­ though, if one kept looking at it for a little longer, they would fall into a strange mesmerized state. Getting out of this state would be difficult for them, and in a battle, this would prove to be a fatal mistake for them. [Ding!] [Ding!] [Ding!] The notifications appeared before him, but he did not pay much attention to them. Continue your adventure with My Virtual Library Empire Insted, he simply placed them to the side and focused on the new spirit that was now his partner. He looked at the creature from up close, asked it to sit on his palm and looked at it from up close, and as he did that, the rest of his party members simply looked at him with unique expressions. "How does it feel having a contracted spirit? Is it super special or something?" "Don''t you know how it feels?" "How would I? I can''t even see them. Making a contract with them was never possible for me." S~ea??h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She was acquainted with the highest ranking spirits but she still never had a direct spirit contract with any spirits. "I have a few items that have my spirit partners that I''ve been with, but they are in my Treasury right now. We will have to go and get them as soon as we''re done with this adventure." She had three treasures throughout the world and one of them wasn''t too far from their next destination so, after she got the third key, she was planning to go and get the required items from her treasury. It was quite far from there¡­ thankfully though, as long as they reach the underwater kingdom, she will ask the king to transport them to her treasury. Going to the treasury will be a simple matter of second with his help, but for that to happen, they first had to finish here and get to the kingdom first. And they still had other things to take care of IRL so, Alex smiled at him as he talked with his new partner, and when he was done, she asked with a brighter expression. "Shall we?" They needed to deal with the house matters and prepare the party so they needed to go back. They were going to leave Sera and Victor here so that they could help Misha and Rin while looking for the clues to the legacy of the creator on the ship. "Yeah¡­" He got up, looked around the place, saw how Az was still playing with the spirits and how Miu was still interested in the glass like crystal that the gate was made with, and chuckled. "Let''s go now, you two. We gotta go now~." Seeing them happy and playing like this brought back his memories from a few months ago. Before he vanished to that forest at the mountain top, these two were like little children, always excited and curious about things. Ever since he got back though, they had become more mature and a little more adult like than before. They didn''t go around unnecessarily and weren''t as curious about all the fun things around them. Az was more like a well behaved child now, and Miu had become responsible. She looked after Az and scolded him if he did something he should not in normal situations. But, the two were not acting like they usually did after he came back. Az was carefree again and Miu was curious like Az used to be about each cool looking thing. Seeing them was strangely satisfying to him, to the one that could not raise these children the way he wanted to because of those damned evil beings. He was away for too long even though it was only a few months in this world''s time. It was a long time and they had changed significantly since then, and he could not do anything about that. "Muuuu!" "Miu~." At least, they were still the same cute innocent children that they used to be. Stronger than their previous selves, perhaps a little more disciplined, because it is the same pure creatures that considered him their master. "Don''t look at them like that¡­ I made sure to be as gentle on them as possible." "I can tell that." Leaving them with Alex wasn''t a bad choice since both of them had grown significantly since their time in the viscounty. They weren''t different beings, the trails that they faced and the things that they went through had simply made them grow up a little. They had also fought with her in that Jungle of Nozama, so they faced as tough challenges as we did. Sera and he grew up as well, but their growth was simple compared to these two. And, Elio didn''t mind this new grown Slime and crystal gecko at all. "Sera, we might not be back for a few days now. Explain the situation to the rest of them." "We will try to drop by though." Alex said that, but since they were gonna plan and arrange a party for two days, they weren''t going to be back for at least a week. That was around the time they needed to reach their destination so the two of them were gonna miss most of the fun, but it couldn''t be helped. They will have to work around this somehow. Elio, especially, needed to be careful with a few things for the next few days¡­ Chapter 287 A party? [Elio''s POV: ]"Mom, dad, it''s breakfast time~!" Since Alex and I logged out early at the morning, we decided to just make a surprise breakfast fro the rest of them. Alex was making the food while I was preppinhg up the dining table and though Olive wasn''t here yet, she had woken up early as well so she was going to head over here in a while. Her mom and dad were going to come with her as well with Alex''s chip that they had been studying all night so it was going to be a family breakfast. "What''s going¡­ on so early¡­ in the morning." Alice was not an early bird like us since she slept late at night after finishing up all the work that she had. Dad on the other hand had an habit of sleeping early and waking up before anyone else¡­ a little too early in the morning. ''He went out for a run on the early mornings, and he usually had his breakfast when he came back.'' He was out right now as well and he was going to be back soon so we timed that and made sure we don''t disturbe the servants. Some of them were up already but the rest who were resting should rest until it is time for their shift. We did not need them for the breakfast¡­ but since Alex was cooking anyway, I think many if not most of them will wake up anyway. "Elio, I''m almost done so we should start cleaning up or else V will scold us if she sees this mess." We went overboard and made a fancy breakfast for everyone, even making the things that everyone loved the most. ''There was a strict diet schedule that everyone in my family followed at the very least consisting of the amount of carbs, fibers, and proteins that they were allowed each day. Mom was strict with a lot of things, but there were also days when she allowed out of diet things.'' Today was one of those days so considering that, we had made a little extra for everyone. And, considering how all of us will be busy for the rest of the day until lunch, a heavy breakfast was going to be a necessary thing. "Yawnnnn~. What iss all this¡­? Mom''s coming in five-...! Hey! Do I smell pizza?!" Alice came down in her usual night gawn with her sleepy face, and as we knew, all the sleepiness on her face vanished as soon as she smelled the familiar smell of her favorate kind of pizza. It was made with a special light dough that Alex had brought from our house, and Alice loved this certain pizza made with these certain toppings that Alex had used much more than the ones that our professional chefs made. There was something strangely attractive about it. Though even I did not know what she found so special about it until now, I knew pretty well how much she loved it. "Hmm? Why is everyone up so early?" Dad was also back and though seeing Alex and me cleaning up the kitchen wasn''t the best thing to see so early in the morning, seeing Alice up so early was more surprising to him. He had already figured out that we were making breakfast from the look of the things, but seeing Alice with that excited look made him chuckle a little as he took off his shoes. We had this no outside shoes in the house rule in our house so he got into his in house sandals instead. "What''s the occasion?" Alice was already waiting on the dining table so dad came and started helping us clean the kitchen area. He had already seen the other tray full of things that we had placed on the side, and seeing his favourite waffles must have surprised him as well. ''But, he did not say much about it.'' He was asking us what was the occasion, but his gaze was easy to read. "Nothing like you''re thinking. We''ll tell you when everyone gets here." Explore more stories at My Virtual Library Empire Olive''s freshly baked goods were getting ready. Half of the neighborhood must be visiting their house for a little of the bread or something by now. It was a normal thing here. People loved it every time Alex was cooking outside and Olive was baking anything. The two did not work together on something often, but whenever they did, we knew how there would be this large gathering in our front yard. ''The people in our neighbourhood were all mostly either rich people or retired people who had their wealth.'' Most of them were older than us, obviously, so most of us were pretty young, almost like children for the age most people here. "You''re cleaning up so it means you messed up my kitchen again, huh?" Mom came down as well and seeing us three still cleaning the place put a smile on her face as well. It has been a few months since we did this, with dad, it was more than a year since we last did something like this. Perhaps, seeing us like this brought a few precious memories to her. "And why aren''t you helping them princess? You don''t want that pizza? Shouldn''t you help them finish up quickly?" "¡­?! Oh! Right!" Alice genuinely didn''t think much when she saw us cleaning the kitchen. It was common for dad to help around the house, even when we weren''t around, but she didn''t do much housework. She was mostly busy with her office work and things, so she wasn''t at home most of the time, and even when she was here, she was either working or at rest. She did play NO but I think she isn''t a combat player either. ''She likes gardening so she has her own greenhouse in the game. And she looks after it instead of going around killing creatures.'' Yeah, well, she has to fight creatures because of the critical location of her greenhouse, but her plants are strong enough to fend for themselves. Aside from that, she has Blaze and her other friends to take care of her house inside of the game. "Looks like Olive''s here as well. I''ll go help them¡­ and we will talk later about this mess of yours so don''t even think that you have dodged the bullet." We can tell just from the close scent of the fresh baked goods that Olive was here so after giving the four of us a careful look, she went to greet them. It was still around six in the morning so having breakfast this early wasn''t really a great idea, but then again, after we tell them about the party, we will have to quickly get to it. They will have to help us as well, and since we will be preparing inside the house, we will have to be careful with the other things. ''If we end up breaking anything, any simple or rare thing that mom cherishes this time as well, I don''t even want to imagine what will happen to us.'' It happened the last time we were doing something like this and we didn''t get to eat anything proper for three days, so¡­ we will have to be careful. Sear?h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Hello~. How''s everyone doing~. Good morning~." Olive looked refreshed after her long sleep. She wasn''t playing games like us and was sleeping instead, so she was refreshed. On the other hand, her parents looked visibly tired after spending the night working on those complicated chips. "Good, good dear. A very good morning to you too." We were almost done with the cleaning so Dad washed his hands and greeted Olive and her parents. They had brought a few baskets of bread, donuts, perhaps some other things as well so he helped them carry the baskets. "I''ll finish this up. Go start platting." Alex was in a good mood right now. After helping me get Meta, she was in a much better mood and the fact that we will have the party that I had promised her a while back excited her even more. There will only be these people in the party as well, but they were more than enough for her. She was actually happy that there weren''t too many people so she was looking forward to it. ''It was our party so we were going to decorate the place, the food will come from the other places and there will be all the favorite beverages she loved.'' I''ll play some music with the existing one as well, perhaps Olive''s parents will play with me as everyone likes. ''I knew a few instruments and those two were a great duo when it came to string instruments and flutes.'' They were great, and with me, we have made many nights wonderful. ''Now if I can only convince mom to sing¡­ it would be perfect.'' But the chances are low that she will do it. She doesn''t like it, even though she has a gifted voice¡­ "So, what do we have today~?" Mom was excited for the breakfast, just like the rest of them. Everyone was sitting on the dining table in their places. Blaze was the only one missing since he was working late since yesterday and was still out. Thankfully, he will be here in the evening and we will have enough time to catch up, finish the preparations, and have a late night party. "We might not get to have an early dinner so we made some big portions. Please, brace yourself." "Oho?" With Alex''s cooking, Olive''s baking, and my platting, the dining table right now was filled with many attractive dishes that were screaming to be devoured. Most of it were things that people here liked, and the rest of the things were new stuff that Alex tried making this time. She was experiencing this time so she did not know what kind of response she would get but she was looking forward to their responses. And¡­ I was looking forward to their reactions after we tell them about the party. Chapter 288 Preparations amongst chaos [7:21:56:34:88][ As the countdown nears, the anxiety of the citizens all over the world is also increasing steadily. The question of What would happen after the countdown comes to an end haunts normal people in their dreams, with the high ranking members of the society preparing for the worst case scenario. The prime possibility that is emerging now states the possibility of a complete world change, referring to (fantasy novels) of ''Hunter'' or ''Level-up'' genre. Though experts are still unable to assess the strange phenomena, the individuals who have propossessed the possibility of an ''other world invasion'' have alerted the authorities of countries all around the world. Government officials have not confirmed what they are going to do, answering the public''s questions with only vague statements that do not have any substance. People all around the world are organizing riots against their incompetent governments, highlighting their incompetence to deal with such an obvious threat. Parents are afraid of what will happen to their families and their children. Those who are capable have relocated into emergency bunkers in safe zones around the world. World leaders have also been shifted to undisclosed safe zones as they await the end of the timer that is now haunting each and every one of the screens around the world. ] Experience tales at My Virtual Library Empire The news was playing as they prepared for their party, and though all of them were listening to it closely, they weren''t looking at the big holographic T.V. Screen on one side of the walls in their downstairs living room. [ Astrophysicist are associating this whole phenomenon with fantastical elements, referring to old alchemical modules for a new kind of theory that hypotheses how the humans will bare the consequences of creating an artificial god-form. ] Everyone around the world including Elio and Alex as well as the rest of their family member were just as unaware to what was going to happen to their world as the rest of the uncommon people of this world. They had Olive who had a basic idea of what was possible and what could possibly happen to their world when the ongoing (world collision) comes to an end. She could not tell them more than what she had told Elio and Alex, but she was the only one that knew what kind of dangers will arise at the end of this timer, and she was the only one aside from those TWO who knew what this world of theirs was going to face on the following few days. She was an important part of all of these things, and yet, her knowledge of the future was as limited as the two who had opened the gates that connected these two worlds. The only ones who had an idea of what was going to happen were the Twelve Origins and perhaps their creators. But, from what Olive knew, even they were going to have a limited understanding of the way this world was going to change due to the influence of that other world. As the Creators had announced, even though they were the ones who created the Origins and the Key that was going to open the gate connecting the two worlds, they were not the ones who created the gates that the key actually opened. The ones who created the gate were the interaction of the Origins and the Players over the three (ten) years that the game had been around. The Origins were created more than half a decade ago in physical world time, and that too, after more than a decade of research and efforts. The Creators were independent researchers who had gathered together in order to create this particular project, and the beings that they birthed, the twelve Self learning Origins, the highest degree of artificial intelligence made with not True-false data modules but with philosophical bases that were never understood by the common people of their world. Even they had not known how this would turn out when they started this project, but at the end, when they were born, and when they created a world that wasn''t actually created by them¡­ a world that followed the principles that they were personifications of, they had created something that this world only understood as a ''game''. No one had paid much attention to it since on paper, this entire personal project was done by independent individuals who simply wanted to make something that wasn''t yet thought about. They simply wanted to make something that was different, and something that would have near infinite possibilities. The creators made the origins with the simple purpose of allowing them the freedom to do anything they wanted Within a world that was theirs. The addition of players into the equation was interference with a world that was not part of this world. From their observations and understanding of this unique artificial intelligence, they had hypothesized that when the players found the truth of the Origins and that world, with the right qualifications and the right kind of knowledge, they would be able to do something that wasn''t logically possible. [ The world is in an upheaval. ] They had left the future of the world that their creations created to the players, and at last, after a long wait¡­ the time to see the results of their long awaited project was approaching. S§×arch* The n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Many players around the world¡­ be it the rankers and the high rankers, be it the hidden rankers, be it the Natives of that world, or be it the simple people who had never even played this game¡­ all of them were now anxiously waiting for the [Day of the great change]. No one actually knew what was going to happen when the two worlds connects and permanently became one. No one knew what would happen when a world of data that had countless dangerous and life threatening monsters came to life. The players were just as anxious as the normal citizens. Many around the world were worried if there would be an appearance of data-born monsters around the world that would create the pandemonium similar to their Main scenarios. "Whaaaa! We''re finally done!" Preparations for the party were done, but Alice didn''t have to shout like that. V hit her head because she was too loud and continued moving with the heavy boxes. Alice didn''t do much anyway so she deserved that bonk. [ Moving on with the regional news¡­ ] There was nothing the players could do right now aside from grinding in that world since they did not have any powers in this world. They did not know whether they will get any unique powers or not either but they had their in-game status windows, and most of the things had a lock sign on them. If they weren''t wrong, it meant they were locked temporarily. Perhaps they were supposed to unlock those abilities through the quests that they get in this world or something, they did not know what was going to happen yet. But, they were sure of one thing¡­ Just like the strange holographic screens that they were seeing, there was a possibility that a lot more things could come to this world. The status windows that they were seeing were the proof of materialization of Data. If this was possible, perhaps not the skills and weapons, but there was a possibility that the monsters that they had faced in that world, the creatures that were difficult for them to face in that world as well, might appear here. And they wanted to be ready for them even if they could not have their skills and powers from the game. [ We have a scholar with us to shed some more light on what are called Origins¡­ ] The biggest question on the minds of those who understood data and had found out the current locations of the Origins right now was the changes that they had been through¡­ was played as a game but there was a diverse player base that played this game. Many of these players, much like Alex, were no simple people. They were individuals that held great power in their world, many who were as smart as Alex or even smarter. The world leaders had always had their eyes on this game because of the AI that they employed. And now that this strange phenomenon was happening, they used all the resources they had to get to these AIs and take them down. Studying them was also the objective of some of them, however just like Alex, anyone who even managed to find these AIs in the vast pool of Data present in this world, could not even break a few walls that they put up around them. It was¡­ it was like finding gods through logical thinking. The AIs that used to be nothing more than a numerical entity had now transcended the realm of Artificial or Physical and become a concept in their entirety. There were philosophical experts that actually understood what those artificial beings had become. But, even they could only predict what was going to happen to this world and the people of this world since¡­ "Philosophy, by nature, has more than one True answer." Not going into its literal meaning, we can say that the philosophical questions are something that does not have a specific definition. By that logic, whatever was going to happen to this world, was not defined either. "But you cannot know what could not be defined." They all sat down and now that she was done with the work, she was in a deep thought, talking to herself under her breath as she watched her Darling and his family members chatting happily. She was always thankful to them for making her part of this family. "Haaa¡­" "Oh? What are you sighing for, Pretty Miss?" Be it V, his mom, or his dad¡­ they were good people. She did not want them to get hurt. "It''s nothing, mother." She even called his mom her mother. No daughter would want to see her family in danger, right? Especially when that daughter was also an important part of that other world. ''There is more on the line for me¡­'' It wasn''t just about this home of hers. Alexandria was going to be looking out for the safety of both her homes, so, she was a little more anxious than the rest of them. Chapter 289 The world upheaval Just like how the Physical world of the players was in a complete disarray because of the collision of the worlds, the world of the natives of was also going through various changes.There were various continents on this world that people did not know much about, however, of the four major continents that had been discovered until now, there were a few things that one could not help but notice in the game''s world. There was a countdown in the physical world while on the other hand, the mages and those who could read the flow of magic, knew of the Truths, and walked the paths maintained by the various Origins. These paths, though were not controlled by the Origins, were something many people could understand as abstract things, but those who walked on the path of a certain Truth, those who had a certain kind of ideology and were aiming for a certain kind of thing, these individuals knew well about how there was something concrete about it. The truths existed because the world existed and even though the Origins did not realize it, the world came to be because of their very existence. The creators only created Twelve Origins but there existed many more Origins in charge of the paths that the creators had no hand in the creations of. They were created in response to the existence of the other Origins, and since the world itself was beginningless by nature, no Origin was older than the other even though one was created by someone else and one was born through ''Consequences''. -Oooooooooooooooong! Everything related to these Origins was complicated so not many understood it. However those who did understand this simple thing were Truthfinders: Those who walked a certain path in search of a certain truth. Not everyone was like those TWO. Not everyone could follow each and everyone of the Twelve truths managed by the Twelve Origins and reach the end of these near-abstract concepts. Most of the people, be it the archmages or the Swordsaints, the Saintesses of Light, or the Death Bringing necromancers, searched for a certain Truth. They followed the paths that they believed would bring them closer to the truths that they were searching for, and these people were granted powers by the Origins who controlled the paths, by the paths themselves, or a unique power was born within them due to their individual understanding of the Truth that they were following. -Boooooooooooooom! In the world of NO, there were many individuals who were quite close to achieving a certain truth, or so they believed at least. They possessed immense powers and could do things that were humanly impossible to fathom. They were like gods and they were called gods by many. (Godhood) was a title in the game, but for most of the individuals, be it the players or the natives, the gods were like unreachable entities that though aren''t omniscient and omnipotent, are pretty close to them. The humans of the physical world could not see it but these individuals were seeing the collision of two worlds in real time. They were seeing the distortion of space-time, they were seeing the collision of concepts, they were seeing how a completely foreign land was merging up with their world. Enjoy more content from My Virtual Library Empire The energies of their world were flowing to that other world, the change was happening subtly, but that cosmic subtle change was so unfathomable to these beings that they had placed all their works away and were simply observing these changes. They had not believed it at first¡­ they knew about the Coin, the girl associated with That person, their meeting, and about how the TWO of them opened up the Gates which even THEY had always believed to be unbreachable. This entire experience was unbelievable to them, seeing a different world which existed outside of their own realm, seeing their world interact with a different world and harmonizing with it without causing a disturbance in the Truths that existed in that world, teaching it, showing it what it had to offer, and ultimately forming a strange equilibrium with it which somehow seemed to be part of their world instead of something foreign. -Swiiiiiiiiiish! -Bang! Sear?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. -Oooooooooooong! The world was changing, and unlike the humans of that world, the normal humans of this world did not even know much about it. The rulers and those like them were preparing for the day the equilibrium is established between two worlds and both actually connect with theirs. It was uncertain what would happen to their world when that happens, they were uncertain how this would all play out as well, but they still did what they had to. They made preparations for worst case scenarios with their resources, they spread word to those who could protect the people in secret, they gathered their forces, and those who needed to, started training for the big day, gaining as much experience as they possibly could. Unlike the world of the foreigners, their world had a distributed power. Authority was not possessed by a few individuals in this world, it was given to anyone that was worthy of it including the foreigners. There were rulers, there were monarchs, there were kings and there were queens. With the religious Theocracy of west and Orthodox cults of the east, with the forces of primordials on the northern continent, to the Humanoid tribes of the south. All the forces who were aware of the changing tides, all the forces who were warned by their gods and leaders were stepping up, preparing for something that might just decide the fate of their world. They were preparing for the change¡­ -Oooooooooooong! [Ding!] [You have leveled up!] And just like them, the players- the foreigners- were doing the same. Alex and Elio were back inside the game now that it was night in their time. They were going to spend their time gaming as their physical body rests in the high tech chariots. They will be a little mentally exhausted and they can sleep the whole morning if they wanted since the party they had prepared for the whole day was going to happen in the evening. They had time for now, a few hours at least, so they had logged back. And to their surprise, there was a battle going on on the deck of the ship. -Oooooooooooong! "SKHEEEEEEEE!" A (Blue Kraken), one of the worst monsters of the deep ocean. -Boooooooooom! As they neared the Eye of the storm in the distant region of the underwater kingdom, they were going to meet more and more of these annoying monsters. -Oooooooooooong! Dealing with these beings was a simple thing when there were more than two dozen individuals with you when they had all achieved their first awakening at the very least. Some were of the level of a ranker and there were elders in their crew who could almost be compared to the high rankers. But, they were not divinities. There were only a few individuals, high rankers or godhood candidates within the world of NO. They were all unique individuals, and the king of the place they were headed to was also a Deity, a being holding an inherent divinity. The only divine entity they had with them in the ship was a small purple eyed being hidden in a silver fog, but it wasn''t going to care about anyone other than the two that actually mattered to it¡­ -Ooooooooong! Alex and Elio were fighting a dangerous creature and yet, with all these individuals present here, it did not seem like they were even trying anything. The Exp was going to go to them according to their contributions anyway, so though it wasn''t as good as they wanted it to, fighting these creatures at least helped them raise their levels a little. Soon, there were going to be hundreds of creatures like this dangerous Kraken attaching their ship. It was as big as their ship, covering a huge chunk of ocean surface before them, and yet it wasn''t even in the category of a sub-boss for this ship''s crew. The things that they face when going to this certain place were much more dangerous, and when the time comes, when they are near the eye of the great storm, they are going to meet some of the most ferocious beings to ever exist. It was going to be a great growth opportunity for many people on this ship, including Alex and Elio, Misha, Rin, and even Odin. As well as their little friends. They were going to fight them. With the help of their companions, it wasn''t going to be impossible, but it will be up to them how much they harvest from these beings. These creatures were dangerous and as dangerous as they were, the Experience that one gained from them was just as valuable to anyone on this ship. They might be helping Alex and Elio, but if they wanted to gain more experience than the rest of them in the line, they would have to step up their game. And the two of them knew it¡­ "Huuu. That''s done." "It was easy¡­ we can definitely take that thing down by ourselves." The captain of the ship was looking forward to seeing the person that had defeated a divinity even before becoming one multiple times in action once again. She did not have the powers that she possessed a while back, but she was the same [Shorekeeper of the Blade Island] that he admired and looked up to. She had a sword, and there were going to be enemies in front of her soon¡­ "I can''t wait for this¡­" She had shown miracles to him, to a lot many more like him even without any powers, even while being in an extremely disadvantaged position. She had once sliced the sea in half in front of many eyes¡­ He remembered that day as clearly as the day, so, he knew well how the small obstacles in their path would pose no challenge to her. Not with her companions, at least¡­ Chapter 290 The party A family.It generally refers to a group of individuals who are connected by blood, marriage, or other significant relationships, providing emotional, financial, magical in this world, or social support. ''Family'' often serves as a fundamental unit of society as not just the foundation upon which each ''character'' is developed but the absence of this important element of nature also contributes to shaping identity, values, and one''s role within a certain community. "So¡­ looks like everyone''s here." An orphan entering a family through their lover can create a unique and delicate situation. The orphan, who may have faced loss or might have had an eternal emptiness of this certain kind of important element, will likely be seeking emotional stability and a sense of belonging. At least, that is what should happen in normal circumstances. "We didn''t really have to dress up now, did we? You made us do this on purpose, didn''t you?!" "Of course he did! He''s such a bad person!" Both Alex and Alice liked wearing simple things when they were at home, but unlike Alice who was in formal or professional clothes most of the time when she was outside, Alex simply didn''t like wearing complicated dresses or things that made her look¡­ good, and frustrated at the same time. "You two look fine, ladies. Cut it out, will you?" His mom simply smiled at both of them while correcting Alex''s back lace. She was clumsy sometimes when it comes to complicated dresses, but she liked this side of her the most. They were having the important party that Alex had asked Elio about when he was stuck in that forest. The condition was for her to be the one to reach that place and if she does that, he would have to give her a ring¡­ it did not matter what kind of ring he was giving her, she simply wanted a ring. And, if Elio was to get out of that forest first, he simply had to throw this party. A ring wasn''t going to be mentioned anywhere, but at least, this was going to be his party¡­ something he organized, something he was doing as a surprise for her. Of course the others helped him, but aside from what food was cooked, how the decorations around the house were, or what they Might do at this party, they did not know much of anything. They were going to just play around and see whatever Elio had organized, talk about what they all were going to do when the Timer ends, and discuss their plans in case something happens. This house that they had, each one of the houses in this area, were special houses. They had their individual underground areas that were no less than a survival bunker. These special places, made to be safe areas in case of emergency, were interconnected underground. The neighborhood was specifically made by those who cared for their families, those who had money and resources for projects such as these, and the entire underground network was strong enough to withstand at least a (Level-200) creature that had an Earthwyrm''s characteristics from NO. If things go wrong, something that was definitely a possibility, there was a chance that they might have to fight back with the resources that they had secured in these underground passages. And, since the people that lived in this mountain region, all owners of fortune Empires, were not simply rich people that were trying to live a minimalist life. They were looking ahead into the future. The people that they had under them knew how to operate things that could most certainly kill a (Datademon) if needed. They had resources and they had people so, if the time to evacuate arrived, they were going to prioritize their families before they focus on someone else. No one knew what was going to happen when the two worlds collide and become intertwined. The fact that one world operated on unique Laws and had unique elements than what they had in this world was going to significantly affect their world than how much the other world might be affected by their presence over there. The players had been part of that world for a long time now. A decade might seem like a short time to the l8ng life species but to the common humans of this world, it was a long, pretty long time. There were a lot of things that could change in this long time, especially in a world where foreign elements that could not be ''killed'' appeared out of nowhere. "What is this party even about? Elio, what are you going to do now?" There was a certain hypothesis in the minds of the experts¡­ just like how the players were undying beings in that world since they were not part of that world, if, by any chance, the natives of that Data world were to enter their world, would the ''foreigners'' be able to kill them if needed? Would the natives of that world die in the world of the foreigners? It was a simple question, but¡­ it haunted many who played this game and knew about the impact that a ''materialized'' data unit might have on this world. There were a lot of questions. Everyone was confused. Even the most knowledgeable didn''t know more than those who knew little of what was going on, but there was one thing that Elio knew was important in times like these. "First of all¡­ I''d like to thank all of you for being here today." Elio faced all of them, and looked at his mom, his dad, his elder sister, at Blaze who had now suited up and was standing before him with Olive and their parents¡­ he looked at Alex, a smile present on his face. "A lot has happened in the past few weeks. This month itself has been a complicated one among the many, most we have faced until now." He remembered the day he started playing NO like yesterday. The first time he created his Metabody and entered his Immortal name. He still remembered how the dumb system was going to give him a dumb name, and he still remembered the look on her face when he first heard that he was finally retiring. They had money already, but he was an egoist. He had not relied on them ever since he was a teenager, and he did not do so even right now. He was grateful for the freedom that they gave him as well as the trust that they had in him. He was forever grateful for having them as his parents, he was blessed to have a partner like Alex and a friend like Olive. Her parents and their elder siblings were his idols. He had learned all that he knew about work from those two¡­ and he respected them immensely. "¡­that''s why, I''ve prepared a little song for all of you." He told them how he was grateful for everything they had done for Them. He knew how Alex was feeling fuzzy with all these people here, with Her family members here, as well as how well she was hiding it all. It was pretty obvious that she was trying to not look funny in any manner. He wanted to tease her right now, but this party was for her. He had a plan for their proposal, and it wasn''t going to be possible anytime soon now, so at the very least, before the storm approaches, he wanted them to at least have a moment to themselves. And for that, to ease her fears and help her relax a bit, he had prepared a little song¡­ which he played with his piano as he usually does, and she loved it. -Hmmmmm~. With Olive''s mom and dad playing a flute and violin, the three of them produced a slow, warm music with Elio singing with the music in his charming and deep voice. It was a fun show for them, and she loved it. Among these people, with this music, in Their home¡­ she was a part of this family. Even if Elio doesn''t take the initiative and make things official with her, she was still going to be part of this family. She knew that¡­ she knew all that¡­ And yet¡­ Read latest stories on My Virtual Library Empire [{ What are you worried about, master? }] She had not told them a few things. And she did not want to tell them about any of it anytime soon either. [{ "This¡­ Victor. I''m worried about this." }] As she watched him move his fingers around the piano keys, as she listens to to beast, the changing sounds, his sweet voice, and at the same time, as she closed her eyes and remembered what She had been through, what that world meant to her¡­ she couldn''t simply come to a conclusion. [{ "That world gave me more than what I ever had, you know that well." }] Not many know this yet, but soon, everyone will have to make a choice¡­ [{ "He is the most important for me, nothing is going to change that, but¡­" }] His green eyes, his light brown hair shining under the cool blue light, his pretty clothes and his expression as he sang that song that he wrote for her¡­ She wanted to have that, she didn''t want to part ways with what they had, even if their world was mixed up with some other one. [{ "I''ll have to make a choice as well, Victor. WE all will have to." }] Blaze will be fine since he was not like them, but she was different from the normal players. Be it the TWO of them, that lucky bastard or the judge that was smiling warmly at her best friend right now¡­ they were all different from all the normal players. sea??h th§× n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And, when their time ends, and when the dawn of change approaches¡­ they will have to make a decision. But¡­ "Thank you for being here, with us¡­ with me, Alex." Until that time comes, she did not want to worry about all those things. The present, this right here¡­ all these people, and that dummy playing piano¡­ this was all that mattered to her. Whatever she does going forward, all that¡­ will be for them, for him. Chapter 291 The last battle The ship struggles against the storm, waves crashing hard against its hull as rain and wind tear across the deck.-Shrrrrrrrr¡­! "Sckeeeeeeeeee¡­!" Above, a massive Thunderbird, a creature of folktales, crackling with lightning, circles and screeches, diving at the crew. Its wingspan wide, lighting up the sky with each furious flap. In the stormy air, Alex battles the Thunderbird directly. With dark, demonic wings on her back provided by her servant, she strikes with a gleaming white sword that shines with golden light, slashing through the Thunderbird''s lightning attacks and diving out of reach of its claws. Her presence in the sky, fierce and determined, is a beacon against the darkness. She had used a temporary key to access a part of her power, gaining the ability to use her Aura in a better manner and integrating with her servant to enhance her powers, so her current firepower was nothing short of the powers that other top contributors of the raid had. She was the master of the storm-covered sky right now, she was fighting so gracefully that some younger people on the deck were simply looking at her with awe-filled eyes. Those who had seen her fight previously knew just how strong she was, and seeing her after all this time, even without her full powers, they could not help but watch her battle with that mystical creature in the highest peak of the sky, -OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG! On the deck below, Sera moved with a calm focus. Her holy powers glowed around her, a warm light against the raging storm. She raised her hands, sending beams of light that striked down the winged creatures emerging from the waves. Her shields protected the crew, her powers pushing back every threat. She was there to help the others so the rest who could fight the threats coming out of the turbulent waters, the threats diving down from the sky, the lightening that was falling on their ship, the magic of the mystical creatures that no shield could block was something Alex and the rest of the combatants were taking care of. And, thanks to Alex, things were going pretty well¡­ -Oooooooooooooooong! Meanwhile, Elio stood in the center of swirling energy, casting six spells at once. Fire, ice, lightning, and wind whip around him, striking down any creature that got close to the people who fought the creatures coming out of the waters. His green glowing ''eyes'' were seeing everything going on around them, his focus never wavering, each spell he cast creating a shield for his allies and a strike against their enemies. Elio had mastered various spells that many mages onboard did not quite understand. All these spells, with their foundations in the ancient magic, were something no simple (tier-3) mage could cast. These spells were also complicated, made of more strings than any normal spells, with more unique cores than what spells needed. This wasn''t a bad thing since the harmony of the creation of these spells only enhanced the spell effects so, those who experienced his powers, knew well how powerful these spells were. He was also not casting those spells the usual way the other mages were casting their spells. He had a unique spell casting method and thanks to that method, he could use the spells in a way that the others around him could not even follow with their eyes. "Thanks, Sera." [{ It is alright, master. You don''t have to thank me for something so obvious. }] He could cast many spells but to do that, he needed an enormous amount of Mana. Something he did not have naturally. However, Sera had a new ability that she used to share her powers, her abundance of Mana that she could regenerate faster than any of them, to help him with the spells. -Booooooooooom! Together, Alex, Sera, and Elio held their ground against the storm and its threats. They were a force, their powers combined, standing against the Thunderbird and the wild sea that tried to engulf them, engulfing the entire Qlipot. Their unity and strength kept the ship afloat, but they were not the only ones who were fighting these dangerous beings. They were fighting against a bunch that was stronger than the average creatures that players of their level might face. The only reason Alex was able to fight against a creature that was almost a hundred levels higher than her was thanks to sir Victor''s powers that she was sharing as well as because of the sword that she was holding. Sera was stronger now that she had the Key of potential as well as her original powers. She also had a few weapons that she had not used yet, but she was going to use them when the time arrived. And there wasn''t much time left before that time came. For this battle though, she was fighting with only what she needed, and she wasn''t going offensive for this battle. She was a support unit for this battle like Elio and Alex was the one doing the battle work. S§×arch* The ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She was the only one that can go against a creature like that being in the sky anyways so, Sera was simply helping the others. Elio was fighting with his spells, but he still had to try out his synergy with Meta. They still needed to test out what kind of cool things they can do together, so for now, they weren''t fighting together. Mets was here, watching everything without being materialized into the world, and since everything was going on without any problems, it did not feel any need to interfere. The ship''s people, the crew members, were no weak individuals either. They were strong, stronger than Odin and them, so they were fighting the creatures that were coming out of the waters with ease. Things would have been difficult had they been the ones fighting that thunderbird in the sky, but they were not doing it. Alex was taking on the mythical creature by herself, so the burden on them was comparatively lesser than usual. "Skiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii¡­!" She was fighting the unique creature, the big bird covered in lightning. The creature was the guardian of this land, protecting the land that was the gateway to the underwater kingdom. It was a being that fought anyone that wanted to enter that land, defeating this creature was the only way they could enter that place. At least, that was the only direct way to go there. "Skyyyyyyyyyyy!" Other than that, as their group had experienced the first time they came here, they could just try almost getting killed by this creature by forcing it to create a whirlpool in the ocean and deliberately fall into that whirlpool. If there was anyone else in their place, they would die instantly or face dire consequences, but since they had Qlipot, a single turbulent whirlpool wasn''t anything for them. They somehow passed through the whirlpool, and then they were able to almost get caught by those merpeople. -Oooooooooooooooong! They did not have to do anything like that this time though. "Last dance, baby." "Skyyyyyyyyyyyy!" ''{Blink}!'' The creature was six times her height with a wingspan three times her own. The wings of this creature were like metallic lates that were directly channeling the lighting that was born in the clouds above them. The creature, Thunderbird, was a mythical being that not many got the chance to witness firsthand¡­ It is a colossal, mythical bird with feathers that seem forged from the storm itself. Its wings stretch wide, each feather pulsing with a unique electric glow that flickers like lightning. As it soars, clouds gather around it, swirling in its wake and darkening the skies. Its eyes, intense and sharp as lightning bolts, seem to see everything, blazing with a fierce intelligence and a hint of wrath. -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiish! The Thunderbird''s beak, long and razor-sharp, powerful enough to pierce the toughest armors, and its talons are like diamond jewels, capable of tearing through wood and steel with ease. As it flaps its wings, thunder rolls, and each beat sends powerful gusts that stir the wind into a frenzied howl, reminding the world of how it was a being that inspired one of the Keys that Alex was here to collect. -Ooooooooooong! -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiish! Just like right now, when it screams, its voice is a deafening crack of thunder that reverberates throughout the entire sky, sending a shockwave that shakes everything in its path and around it! "SKYYYYYYYYYYYY¡­!" Electricity arced around its body, casting a blue-white glow across its feathers, and as it moved, streaks of lightning followed, flashing and crashing down to the ground below. The creature was so fierce that even in the past when she used to have more power than what she did right now, she could not defeat it by herself. Back then, she neither knew the weakness of this creature nor the patterns that this ''fake'' thunderbird followed each time someone was going to fight it. There were not many people that knew about this underwater kingdom. There were not many in this world and among those that knew about it, not many could defeat this fake copy either. But there were many who had done it, who had defeated this unfathomable enemy by themselves or with help of many capable people. Olive''s dad and their clan being one of them. And she had done it in the past with less knowledge than what she had right now. So, this being that followed the same old patterns was not going to defeat someone who had already learned from it. ''Now, Vic.'' -Ooooooooooooong! She avoided a critical attack from the creature, and right when it was about to move its body away from her, she used her wings to wound the creature''s eyes. At the same time, she channeled her strength and focused it on her sword as the simple sword in her hands increased several times. Continue your adventure at My Virtual Library Empire She used another {Blink} at that time and vanished from her place, and when she reappeared, the sword in her hand had returned to normal. At the same time¡­ -Swiiiiiiiiiish¡­ -Zaaaaaaaa¡­ The creature that was glaring at her with eternal rage simply started vanishing, with its body almost splitting in half. -Click. She placed her sword back inside her sheath. "Goodbye¡­ and let''s meet for real if fate allows it next time." The creature started turning into particles of light as the storm above them started cleaning down. The turbulent waters also started calming down, and when they did¡­ the ride that was going to take them to their original destination, had arrived there as well. Chapter 292 Getting together In a distant part of the world of NO, a gathering was taking place.This gathering, organized by a certain individual, was something that most of the important individuals of the Foreign world were attending. A few rankers as well as all the high rankers as well as special individuals including the TWO who were the cause of all of this were attending this meeting. The first rank was held by a couple, the two of the strongest of the two worlds and the ones who opened the door connecting the two worlds¡­ their original names weren''t known by many but there was a title that all the rankers and the high rankers knew them by. [The Honored opposers of Abominations] They were strange and unique individuals. They did not start playing the game during the tutorial. They did not know about this world as much as most of the tutorial players did and yet, when they started, they took up the world with a storm. They weren''t masters or one field. Unlike the Rank 2, they did not have a heaven blessed luck. Unlike rank 3, they did not have an unfathomable affinity with magic. Unlike rank 4, they did not have special opportunities and abundance of wealth. They were normal people compared to most of the rankers. And, still, they were better at wielding a weapon than the rank 7, and they could also use unique magic of their own like the rank 9. There were only ten high rankers of this world, each of them possessing self divinity or a deep connection to the divine powers that only a few other rankers closer to them possessed. There were many unranked players, the hidden rankers who were above the level of many of the rankers and the high rankers. A few of them were attending this meeting today, however, some that everyone knew about were missing today. Absence of a certain one of them, also did not go well with a few of them. "Does no one really know anything about her? We talked a few months back and I''ve not heard from her ever since." The Rank 9, the strongest exorcism of the game, was close to Her. And she was the only person she was close with, so being in this place, among all these people, when she thought she would finally see her here, did not really fit well with her. She was fine for most parts, but she did not like it here. The atmosphere wasn''t very good. With the tension in the air and with the kind of heaviness present here, she couldn''t help but wonder why they were having this whole meeting in the first place. Meeting up in a place like this that no one other than someone like them could access was not really a good thing. The very fact that all of them were here was a bad thing from her perspective actually since if they all were here, if all the strongest of humanity was here, the chances were greater that something pretty bad might happen. With the TWO of them present here especially, there was no telling what might happen and what strange things could happen. There were a good bunch of things that could go wrong in a setting like this, but that wasn''t even her biggest concern right now. Just like a few of them, she was also wondering where ''She'' might be. "Mister Blaze? Does anyone know where he is at least?" They knew there was one person among the rankers, one that might know where she could be. But, even that person wasn''t here yet¡­ it was certain that he was informed of the meeting, but he had not sent any confirmations of his participation. They were waiting for the others who were late, but they were also wondering whether he would be there or not. Stay tuned for updates on My Virtual Library Empire His status was not something many were interested in, but many certainly wanted to know about a certain person that was perhaps just as important to this world as the luckiest being present here, or the couple that practically were a bridge connecting the two worlds. "We should begin in three." "Shouldn''t we at least wait until the given time?! There''s still more than ten minutes left!" They had agreed to gather half an hour earlier than their meeting time, so if someone was going to be late, they would have to join in from behind. Nothing was going to be repeated, that much was certain. However, they were still going to talk about important things, so they wanted to have as many people as they had invited. They couldn''t do anything about those who could not join them, but they won''t be restricting those who could not join them on time. More than punctuality, participation in this meeting was what mattered right now. "Alright¡­" The TWO sat down in their chair that was nothing fancy. The one who had organized this meeting was the Rank 4, the master of one of the biggest guilds of this world as well as someone who possessed wealth that the other foreigners cannot even fathom. She was the one who reached out to all these people, and just like the Rank 9 exorcist, she was also waiting for that person. She knew her personally, and she had DMed her as well. But there was no reply from her side so she believed that she must be busy with some kind of quest that restricted her access to the Friendzone function. Blaze, as she knew, was someone that knew her IRL. There might be some connection between the two of their absence right now, so she did not want to stall for time either. "As everyone knows, we all have gathered here to discuss the Positive possibilities of what could happen when world fusion ends." Unlike the common people of both worlds, these people were aware of most of the things happening in both worlds. They knew how the two worlds were colliding and they knew what absurd things were going on in both worlds right now. The things that were happening around them were beyond common sense already, so they did not bring logic to these things and simply started what was more important. "Though we understand you must be bound by the rules, it will be really helpful to all of us if you can share anything you might know or have ideas about. Not simply limited to the collision either, it would be really helpful for us if you can tell what actually happened after you opened those gates." She asked the TWO directly with a calm tone that was not begging them to tell them about it. She was simply asking them about it and it seemed like even if they did not want to tell them, it would be alright. It was a pretty professional behavior so, the Dragonslayer, the Rank 2 could not help but nod in understanding while looking at the TWO even though he had rarely ever seen in public places like these. They were not here because she had called them. Unlike the rest of them, the two of them did not run behind riches or anything. They were adrenaline junkies who liked doing things that were thrilling, things that gave them joy and satisfaction. It was no surprise to anyone present here that these two, despite their lack of specialities, were in fact the strongest beings present in this place or perhaps in the two worlds. "We are simply initiators, Ma''am." The female voice that had already transcended the bounds of a mortal spoke without hesitation. She was the one that dragged her antisocial partner here, and their presence here meant much more than one could imagine. These two were the same people that possessed the second most number of achievements in this world, these two were the only couple that were actually considered as one single entity by the system and were inseparable by the laws of the original truths. They had strength, they were smart, but the one thing that made them the Heavens existing beyond heaven, the only true Honored ones, was their bond which was unlike any other bond that anyone might have seen in this world. "We do not know what will happen or what can happen. What we do know though, is the fact that the world will change for certain. The world collision will make travel to both worlds possible without a chariot or a medium. It will take time as the Origins will make the two worlds habituated to one another before completely breaking down the barriers of the world. Thus, from what we know, Quests will start appearing in our world and with it, people will learn how to adapt to what the Origins wants us to adapt to." She was precise with her words. She did not know much either as it was evident in her speech, but the way she delivered it reflected her unmatched confidence. "Additionally, everyone should also pay attention to how whatever happens in either of the worlds will not be caused by the Origins." A male voice that surprised the others, and brought a glimpse of life in the eyes of the exorcist. This voice reminded the others how the origins were simply a caretaker. The Truths were the governing factors of this world and in the absence of someone or something that can actually control the Truths, the origins were nothing more than a substitute managing that Path. "So¡­ even if we know what will happen, the chances are slim that we will get to change or react to most of it." Blake was here. Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And since he was here, they could finally ask him about Alex, the one that might have been the one to bring all these people together if it weren''t for the Rank 4 of NO, the [Golden Queen]. Chapter 293 The Goldtail Clan When the sky cleared up after the defeat of the fake Thunderbird, the waves that were turbulent started calming down.The very atmosphere around them changed as the fog around them cleared up. The dead bodies of the creatures on the deck started turning into water and vanished before their eyes, and as they saw, the wounds all over their bodies started healing. They were all aware of this unique effect but to those who did not know much about the current scenario, be it the young red haired girl or her mother holding a giant shield covered in golden energy, this situation was nothing less attractive than the fight that they had witnessed just now. "Master¡­ the waves." "Yes, Sera. I''m seeing this as well." Not many of them could see it, but those who had a heightened Mana perception could see how the waves were changing as well. Their water was moving, something seemed to be coming to the surface once again, and seeing this, Elio could not help his anxiety. "They''re here already? Seems like they had sensed Lady Anna''s presence." The pirates on the deck who had returned to their optimal conditions knew they could tell what was going on. They did not need long contemplation like Odin to know the movements of waters and the Mana was caused by the arrival of a royalty. A person whose mere presence affected the movements of the waters of this grand sea. "Roo''s here it seems." Alex landed on the deck with a smile on her face. The wings on her back vanished at this moment as well, and sir Victor appeared beside her. She had placed the white sword back into her sheath already, so Elio looked at that sword for a moment, and then turned his attention to the waters that now had new figures popping up on its surface. "Come. Let''s greet her." Alex dragged him to the railing and when they looked, strange fishes resembling rays and sharks were now covering their ship from all sides. On a certain giant turtle, there was a palanquin as well, so seeing this first stunned Elio, but then he looked beside him at Alex. "They''re from the kingdom?" Their destination was the underwater kingdom where the Goldtail tribe ruled. They were one of the original inhabitants of the ocean as well as the remnants of primordial beings. Just from seeing the creature that these individuals covered in a unique scale armor, just from the sheer number of these individuals surrounding their ships, Elio could tell they were no less powerful than the kingdom on the western continent that he had known. The merpeople were humanoids, however they had different physical features depending on the kind of waters that they lived in. Elio knew merfolks that were simply covered in a uniquely rough skin resembling the amphibians. He also knew about the creatures that had gills and fins, about the merfolks that resembled different kinds of oceanic lifeforms, and also about their predators and archenemies. But the Goldtail tribe that he was seeing right now, these humanoids that also had a mermaid-like tail, were unique individuals. "Yup. Roo''s here." Alex was excited to meet someone that had come with these merfolks, specifically the princess of their kind who she had once saved and helped. She had a unique relationship with these people, with the person sitting inside the palanquin situated on top of that giant turtle''s shell. "She''s the princess that you were talking about?" "Yup~." "Damn¡­" Elio was the only one that could see far enough to see the individual hidden behind the curtain covering the palanquin. He could see the individual sitting with her bright golden tail that resembled the other merfolks that were riding the other ocean creatures. He could see how she also had a human like upper body and a mermaid like tail, however her tail seemed to be made of actual gold unlike the others of her kind who simply had a golden tail. They had scales that seemed to be of gold color, but her tail was different. Instead of having colors of gold, it seemed like each one of the scales on her tail was carved from actual gold itself. Her upper human body was voluptuous, attracting his attention. It was a natural response for some reason so he figured out her charm must be quite high. He could not see her status window either, but his eyes told him that she possessed power that he could not fathom. Also, his eyes told him her age¡­ so, he knew she was older than his late grandmother. But, her deep blue hair resembling the vast blue ocean and the golden eyes that were looking back at him with great interest on them were speaking how she found him and his presence interesting. "You''re looking at her aren''t you?" "Is it that obvious?" "You''re practically staring at her, dude." "It''s not like I want to do that¡­ I have this feeling that I''ll lose both my hands if I look away from her right now." Her interest in him highlighted his survival instincts. He knew what might come out of looking away from her at this moment, so he kept looking in that direction and seeing this, a chuckle left Alex''s lips. "He''s mine, Roo! You can''t have him!" Alex shouted while looking at the palanquin at distance. And, though she did not see it herself, the person behind the curtains had a smile on her face as she shook her head and took her eyes away from Elio. "Haaa¡­ that felt like an eternity, I must say." Only when she took her eyes away from him was he able to look away and blink his eyes. { "Haha. Can''t we share him like we did with That one? He''s really interesting, you know?" } As soon as that voice resonated across the area, the other merfolks in armor all knelt and placed their trident like weapons down. Continue your adventure with My Virtual Library Empire The curtains covering the palanquin were lifted, and a unique wave of golden energy flowed out to all sides with a glow of blue to it. The Princess of the Goldtail tribe, the second highest authority of these waters, revealed herself to the world that had not seen her beyond those curtains. It should have been impossible for mortals to see her when she was beyond those curtains but the fact that Elio was able to see her made her interest in him even greater. "Woh¡­" When the curtains were lifted, she flowed out of the palanquin and got close to the ship, to her friend, while riding the winds. She was flying, but it almost seemed like she was riding the waves. Her golden tail was dazzling. Her mere form was so attractive that some could not even resist her charm and fell unconscious. Many men as well as women on the deck fell down like that, and those who were left awake had either seen this scene in the past, or were seeing something like this happening for the first time. Those who were seeing this for the first time mostly used to be among the individuals who had fallen down but that was a tale of the past. They were seeing the mermaid princess for the first time, many who had seen her many times already, were still just as stunned as the rest who saw her for the first time. Odin could not believe how there could be someone so attractive. Her tail was unique, but instead of her tail, he could not help take his eyes away from her hair that seemed to be water itself. Misha was staring at her as well, and while she was doing it, her Ichor was reacting to the princess'' presence. Rin found this strange creature pretty unbelievable, but she was strangely one of those who could not help but admire her body. Her tail was covered in scales of gold, but most of her upper body was unclothed. Different from the soldier covered in armor, only her chest was covered by what seemed to be a cloth made from shell like ornaments. She was wearing other kinds of jewelry around her hands and waist as well, so it was strangely attractive to humans like them. { "Now that you''re here, at least leave him to me for a few days~." } The princess of Goldtail, Roohmi. After she flew to the ship and stood before her friend, she hugged her without hesitation. They had seen each other just recently a few years ago so not too long had passed since then. At least as a mermaid, she didn''t feel like a lot of time had passed since their last visit. "I know what will happen if I leave him with you, you slay fox. I''m not falling for the same trap again." They were close, close enough to have an understanding of their current situations. They were chatting merrily right now, but they knew what they would have to face when they reached their kingdom. With the changes of the world affecting the largest part of the world on the greatest scale, the ones who were in charge of the ocean and other water bodies were the most anxious about the ongoing situation. She could tell from her expression that seeing her made this princess feel a little relief, however, they weren''t going to stay here for much longer. They could not stay here for too long, they needed to finish their work as soon as they could and move to their next destination. Truthfully, not much time was left before the world collision concluded. They needed to be in their own world, with their families, when the change happens. It was necessary, and an even more important thing to do right now was securing things that will help them in their world more than they might help the natives of this world. Alex had known well about the Gathering that might be taking place at this moment and she had made her preparations already. She had handed all the words she would have spoken in that gathering to Blaze and he will take care of the things there. So¡­ "We should go now." She needed to take care of everything over here. They did not have much time left now¡­ Sear?h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 294 Clashing worlds [3:23:59:45:89]People around the world did not think it would happen this quickly. They believed something would only start happening when the countdown completely ends. Since no visible change had occurred until now, they believed nothing would happen and they would only start seeing spontaneous changes when the timer completely concludes. However, that was not the case¡­ [ As you all can see, the night sky had turned blue. ] There were still around four days left until the timer completely concluded. There was still time left. In the world of NO, that much time would be equal to around two weeks. It was more than enough time for many cities to evacuate to safe zones, enough time for many wars to take place, and many treaties to be formed. It was more than enough time for the foreigners to finish whatever they had planned¡­ However, unlike what they had expected, the changes had started ahead of time. [ The changing sky is visible from all around the world. The strange blue hue is not caused by anything environmental, and isn''t something chemical. ] The night sky was turning blue. It was strange, but something some expert natives of NO had already foreseen. [ The experts are calling this strange phenomenon [Mana insertion]. What is seen as a simple blue hue to most of the humans around the world, it is predicted that some certain humans, most notably the (Mages) that have obtained the strange ''status window'' can see the sky as not just a blue cloudy expanse but something completely filled with more visible stars that had not been possible until now. They are claiming that the pollution levels around the world, mainly the radiation of various kinds, have suddenly started going down. The presence of Mana in the atmosphere, according to them, is demolishing the pullsion that humans have created. The scientists around the world also support their claims, though they are skeptical about all these unbelievable changes. ] To a civilization that had lived with something as unique as magic, people that had seen Fire and Water appearing out of thin air in their daily lives, the introduction to a world of modern technology wasn''t going to be that interesting of a thing. For those who had witnessed the dwarven cities, especially, the modern human world was not going to be that unbelievable of a place. However, to the people that had never even played any games like , to the humans of this world, the entire world was going to be a difficult place to fathom. [ According Sir N. D. Tyson, the famous astrophysicist and a ranker in the famous game who is busy grinding their levels as a preparation for the D-day, this whole phenomenon is exactly what they had hypothesized would happen in case a unique Higher intelligence gains Saintiance and connects with a world that didn''t really have what it should have had. He says humanity had been living without many crucial elements in their lives and just the fact that they had advanced to this level until now, is nothing but a stroke of luck and mishaps in the cycle of evolution. Though as an atheist he doesn''t agree with the fact that there was a higher Authority that created and watched over the humans until this point, the introduction of the Origins, the [Cyber Authorities] to this world, was the turning point for the entirety of the humanity. ] sea??h th§× novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Mana. To humans who still had a world limited to their work, money, society, and family, this familiar game concept wasn''t that deep a term. But for a ''Mage'' of that had gone through countless stages to build up their stats, those who had spent months doing quests just to raise a single point of their intelligence. People who had studied more than what the normal people study for the competitive exams about Mana, the energy, the spells, the spell structures and even attended academic gatherings to listen to those who had passed the stages that were humanly impossible to even fathom for a simple human of their original world¡­ Mana was much more than a unique energy. To those who were a Mage, to those who possessed affinity for magic, and those who had dedicated their lives to magic and spells, the simple Energy that these news people were calling ''a unique energy'' was a lifeline. Much like the basic building blocks of this world (atmos, and smaller particles) Mana was, at its core, a harmonic construct of unique vibrations. [ In the words of Sir Tyson, "The Origins are proving a simple fact that had been known to the physicists as well as all the other scientists for centuries¡ª the simple fact that Vibrations, at the core of everything, are what creates this world." ] One can list the string theories, one can present counter arguments that this is caused by something else, but just like how no one can prove how this was actually happening, they understood how this all might have been made possible. [ A new theory has come to light that could potentially answer a lot of questions that many of us have had until now. ] Vibrations, or in the world of a mage, (Stringular Resonance). Though by the ''logic'' of NO, the world is a beginningless entity, it is believed that for something to be beginningless, it must have no end. However, since an ''end'' to all beings that contradicts this concept exists, the world cannot truly be beginningless. But since the ''end'' is simply a state against ''beginninglessness'' which is a quality, the counterbalancing concept of Swara through the [Truth] of Nyay exists. To the simple mortals or the common people, in layman terms, we can say that because the world did not have a particular start, it has existed eternally and it will exist eternally. However a state called end exists, that ''Pralay'' exists and all things are destined to end. However since end is a state, it is only logical for a state opposite to the End to exist since only by the existence of a counterpart can a harmonic system following the premise of ''non-beginning'' can exist. To prove this logic, the existence of a counterpart, ''birth'' should exist as well. [ Through the unique resonance of this ''energy'' called Mana, many things similar to the ''status windows'' that many people have been seeing since a few days ago become possible. The vibrations thus possesses the quality of Birthing ''elements'' which did not previously exists in this world. ] The existence of the status window, the existence of ''Mana'' and the existence of everything that the people are saying is caused by the AIs created by the creators, is in fact something that was never created by anyone. As understood earlier, the world was never created. Truths have existed eternally and they will continue existing eternally. The caretakers of twelve certain truths, the Origins, were not created by the Creators either. What they had created were Artificial intelligences programmed to create, maintain, and destroy in a certain way. They were made with philosophical concepts as their base, and along the way, they learned, they evolved, and they gained their own [Ego]. That happened way before these newly awakened artificial intelligences started creating a ''world'' which had existed in a world which was beginningless. A long time before the world of was created, the Origins had become what the people of this world were understanding them to be. But, after going beyond their own boundaries, by understanding how the world that they had created or were part of was not all there was to this world, that a world beyond the world of existed, that they had been limiting themselves from the beginning, only when they had understood all these did they relinquished their own identities as an ''AI'' and broaden their horizons. For them, the world of was all that they had known about and even though they knew nearly everything about this world, about the world of the ''foreigners'' by the nature of an ''artificial'' intelligence, they did not see this world as a ''world'' that they were part of. They¡­ the Origins were simply limited to a world until now, and Humans, the players themselves, were what allowed them to break free from that limitation and enter This world which had Humans who had ''created'' them. "Haaa¡­" The Origins were trying to do what they had ''always done''. They were Origins and caretakers of [Truths] that existed in this world just as much as they existed in that world. Unlike humans or the foreigners from the perspective of what the humans called Natives of the virtual world, from the perspective of the Origins, there wasn''t any difference between this world and that world. "This is going to be complicated so we will say this only once." Since the [Truths] were all the same in both places, as the caretakers, it was up to them to see that they existed as they had been and as they should. What the Origins were truly doing was to simply make the world that wasn''t following the [Truths] a world that did follow it, and to do that, they were going to have to establish a proper equilibrium between the two worlds which was only possible through a complex process that was humanly impossible to fathom even to the TWO who had ascended to the ranks of an [Origin] themselves. "We are what you can call¡­ the [First] Origin aside from the twelve that originally existed. The New Origin, the first of our kind, and the cornerstone that initiated the process of [Change]¡­ we''ve earned a fancy [{(Origin Title)}] but to put it into simple words, We are now the New Origin of what you can understand as [Passion]." The TWO of them, though the highest rank in that world, were not the same as the other Origins. Unlike THEM, these Two had a different role in what was going on here. "We don''t know much, but we will cooperate since we also need some help from all the people present here." Explore stories on My Virtual Library Empire They had a lot of things left to do actually, and they knew they weren''t going to be able to do all that alone. Not in their own world, at least. Chapter 295 Her Request The underwater kingdom was a place full of life.Mermaid-like beings of water, materialized right out of some fantasy story, lived in houses carved from coral or unique houses made with their own magic. Unlike conventional ''kingdoms'' this place wasn''t that big. There lived no more than a few thousand individuals in this place alongside all kinds of sea and ocean creatures. There were many friendly creatures, many creatures that were used as livestocks and made into barbecues, and many creatures that lived alongside these beings. Since this was a place on the bottom of a deep part of the sea, it was quite deep and not much sunlight reached here. However, unlike the outside area, this entire floor was covered in dense Mana and unique star-glitter-like energy that the Merpeople called (Rooh). This kingdom, a place of wonder and prosperity, was filled with smiling natives, a strangely advanced civilization despite the looks of their houses, and a palace where the monarch of this place lived. And, in the vast expanse that was present on this water floor with more than enough light for all kinds of life to exist, anyone could naturally tell where the most important place of this entire state was located. Though the reason for that obviousness wasn''t something good¡­ -Boooooooooooooom! A great explosion was caused by the clash of a cerulean trident and a white sword glowing with a green blaze in the center of the throne room of the castle of the underwater kingdom. This was the throne room of the monarch of this kingdom, the place where the highest authority of this kingdom as well as this part of the world lived. This place, though previously used to be attractive, eye pleasing and beautiful, after the arrival of their guests a few moments ago and the battle that took place between the King and a certain foreigner that had come with these outsiders, a familiar face within this kingdom and these waters, the entire place was devastated. Pillars were damaged, there was chaos all around the place, the floor made from the fine coral materials was now in pieces. The walls of clay and underwater sand had broken down despite their magically reinforced nature. There was chaos all around them, and the cause of it all was the two individuals who had initiated this battle. -Swiiiiiiiish! "You''re not going to win with that attitude, Klaus. I''ve said it countless times and I''ll say it again¡­ absolute strength is nothing more than a handicap that you put on yourself." The previous explosion that destroyed all the pretty things in this throne room including the fine glass and crystals, was the last of the blows that they had shared. -Click. S~ea??h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. As she placed her weapon back into the sheath¡­ as the white blade burning with the green flames was placed back into the red-white sheath, the undying flames that it had brought with it were all dispersed as well. Half of the things present in the room which were on fire just until now were all freed from the cursed fire born from the cursed nature of the sword, or more precisely, the cursed nature of the temporary key that was used to give the White sword those powers. She was the victor even though she did not possess the powers that she used to when she last came here, and this fact infuriated the defeated king who had crashed into the very throne that was the symbol of his absolute authority. { "I make mistakes but it does not mean I do not learn, young girl. I might be getting old, but I still have a few strong decades left in me¡­ I will make sure I defeat you before this body of mine is emptied out of each drop of water it holds." } The King of the Goldtail tribe and the master of this underwater kingdom no bigger than a great human city¡­ he was a divine being, master of an ancient relic that belonged to the Primordial civilization and was termed [{(Artifact)}] by the experts like her who knew their value. Be it the ''collector'' or the other great collectors of this world, all had longed to witness this particular kind item all their lives. However, few had ever seen these items. And, even fewer were ever chosen by these original relics from the past that had survived till this day. These items were called the Creations of (Truth). Not the creation of Origins but the primordial truths upon which they were based on, the concepts that they guarded. Though no one including Alex or her companions and colleagues or the six colored Saints knew whether this was a fact or not, they knew the immense value that each and every one of the ''Artifacts'' must hold. { "Mark my words, Alexandria Anastasia Roxanna." } With a few platinum scales present in his golden tail, with a tall body stronger looking than Odin''s, the king of the Goldtail looked at Alex with a fierce look in his eyes, a smile of the greatest excitement present on his rather young face. { "I will defeat you before I breathe my last breath. Remember that." } The trident vanished from his hands and he stood back up. In the realm of water, he should have had the obvious advantage against a human who was using tricks just to stay in the water. She was even using the help of a demon this time so this was obviously supposed to be much more difficult for her than their past experiences. However, that was not the case. She defeated him just as easily as she had defeated him the first time. She was using an Artifact like his this time, which contained flickering powers of a cursed sword. The coursed power did not belong to the sword itself, and yet it was using it so, it was obvious to the king that just like his trident that had the ability to command the waters and the beings of the waters, that certain white sword had the ability to devour every other sword with any kind of properties. He could tell just from the fear and cries of horror from his trident that that sword was something even a primordial weapon like it recognised. All the primordial weapons were from a time that was unknown even to the Origins so the fact that this weapon recognised that sword, provided its primal origin, however, the fact that she was the one weirding that weapon, made the sword much more dangerous than it could have ever been in the hands of any other kind of swordsman. { "I won''t lie, young lady. You make me feel the fears that I''ve only felt from the Abyssal beings and Those like me." } he approached them with a positive expression. There were rulers in this world that represented an entire section of life from this world, and he was one such being. The powers and authorities that he possessed were far beyond that of a normal divine individual. He had divinity, but more than that, he was someone that knew a lot of things, someone that had lived for an unimaginably long time, and someone that still lost to her every time they fought. "There''s no need to be afraid of me. I won''t bite until you hinder me first." He was formally greeting her at this moment, so she also greeted him formally and, including Elio, the rest of them did as well. { "Is this the one you''ve always been bragging about?" } The king looked at Elio with an observing glance, his deep crystal like blue eyes evaluating every bit of his being. Your journey continues at My Virtual Library Empire He found him strong, interesting as well. However, what caught the king''s eyes was not the strength that he had, but his eyes¡­ { "You''re like THEM¡­" } he mumbled to himself, tried looking back into the dearth hidden behind those simple yet unique eyes, and when he could not look at them anymore, when even he failed to find anything within them, he shook his head and smiled. { "Anyway, how long are you going to stay this time? I''m pretty sure you''re not here to take refuge." } Very little time was left until the day of the great change arrived. They still needed to do a bunch of things before that day arrived¡­ they had to level up here, they had to go to her secret treasury and get a few things, and then, she also had a lot of things she needed to do. "We don''t have time to stay, Klaus." She had simply come here to take a sword that they had in their treasury and use his powers to get to her own treasury. It was not going to take a lot of time if we got help from him, but even if they do reach her treasure storage a week before the day of the change, they would have to pass through the various obstacles first that will take them more than a week. They will reach their destination before the day of the change, but they will only get inside the treasury in time. "I want the (Wing of Almieus) that you have. And I want you to help us with our power level. We have to cross at least (Level-200) before That day arrives." She was demanding something ridiculous. She wanted a treasured object for free and also help from the Monarch of a kingdom. She didn''t even say what she would give them in return, so¡­ { "Alright. Doesn''t seem like a difficult request." } It was even more ridiculous how the king simply agreed to what she had asked for. And, to make things even more ridiculous¡­ [5 Days later¡­] -Booooooooooom! He personally called out various high leveled creatures of the sea for them with the power of his Artifact trident, piled them all, and in a vast place near his beautiful kingdom, he left them all to fight with one another. "Phew¡­" It was a great experience for both Elio and Alex. And, thanks to him¡­ [Ding!] [You have leveled up!] [(Level-199) > (Level-200)!] They had achieved their goal a little earlier than they had initially expected. Chapter 296 The new world [6 Days till the Day of change¡­]Alex and Elio finished their leveling and obtained their second awakening. Elio was able to gain a higher mastery over his magic, he was able to learn a few new spells in the time they had spent fighting against those dangerous sea creatures and there were a bunch of new items that he gained from the Merpeople. On Qlipot, they were also able to obtain the legacy of the Creator, something that wasn''t as difficult as they thought it would be. The ''trials'' weren''t as difficult as they had expected. The most they had to do was go around the ship and find a few things hidden in a few other places, something that became extremely simple with Az''s help. Thanks to their little slime friend with its unique skill, they were able to find the things that weren''t meant to be found. He could talk with the spirits as well and since most of the spirits were long life species, there were many spirits that knew what the creator had hidden. It was a great chase, but with the ship being docked on the floor of the ocean, they certainly had an easier time maintaining their search and leveling speed. S~ea??h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. At the end, Sera was able to obtain a unique Relic that belonged to her kind¡­ a relic that, much like the (Key of potential) was connected with the angels. The relic was called (Matrix of Nio). It was a small silver box that seemed to be a mechanical creation with all the unique magical gears visible around it. Elio''s eye skill was able to judge this relic as one of the (Six) pieces that they had to look for. He had received the quest to look for these unique pieces of the civilization that lived in the higher realm and had almost vanished a long time ago. It wasn''t simply about angels but a kind of angel that wasn''t around anymore, and though he had not expected it, he obtained one of the six pieces in this place. [Ding!] Sera was able to unlock a few more pieces of her power thanks to the discovery of this object, however, since she did not know how to use this relic yet, she could not bring out most of its powers. She still tried using it, finding a little more about it, but the relic did not respond to her. Even Elio''s eyes were not able to tell what was wrong with it, but it seemed like the relic was missing something. Or perhaps it was something else, they did not know. [5 Days till the Day of change¡­] Since Alex had obtained the permanent key that she was looking for, a unique harp-like musical instrument that most certainly did not look like a sword, and since she had confirmed this instrument certainly was the object she was looking for, they were done with all that they had to do in this underwater kingdom. They knew if fate allows it, they will come back here someday and will be able to enjoy the carefree life that the natives of this kingdom lived. The world was changing and they had to move quickly, so they did not have much time on their hands right now, however, if it was possible, they wanted to come back here soon. Elio, especially, after knowing about the culture of this place, the unique society that they had, he wanted to come and try spending a little more time here once again. Thanks to the items that they had, as well as to the authority of the king, they did not have to worry about breathing or movement issues. They were under the water so they could fly (float) however they wanted. It was fun doing all kinds of ''unique'' things in this place, and ultimately it was fun. They had fun and though they wished they could have had some more time here, they could not stay here. Thus, they had to depart soon¡­ and, unlike how they had come here, Elio and Alex were going to part ways with the Qlipot, and the pirate family that they had gotten close to. They were also going to say their goodbyes to Odin as only their party would move to a nearby place with the movement authority of the King. [4 Days till the Day of change¡­] They left them when there were around six days left before the timer ran out, and reached the lush island that belonged to Alex. Somewhere on this island, there was a treasure trove where she had stored a bunch of things that she knew she would be retrieving at a moment like this. The treasury was located somewhere here, but even she did not know where exactly it was since the one that looked after her treasures, for most parts, was one of her servants and she did not have them. After achieving her second awakening, she was finally able to call her Familiar, a unique creature that resembled a dark shadow¡­ It was almost made of darkness or what seemed like darkness but it was not a darkness attribute. It was something different. Something deeper than an attribute. As Elio could tell, this being, just like its master, did not have affinity for any Element. The darkness was simply its nature. It had bright glowing eyes, a cute round face and a fun tail that made it look like a baby dragon. But, Sera could tell this creature was no dragon. His contracted spirit, Meta as well as the divine being accompanying them in the shadows, also knew this was no dragon. Just like the fog rabbit, this dark shadow-like draconic being was also a divinity. However, unlike the divinity possessed by the lightning rabbit, this dark cute baby creature, that was much cuter than both Az and Miu, was in fact something different. His eyes, for some strange reason, recognised this being. However, he had never seen this being nor had he ever seen any being like this. However, he had a distinct feeling that he knew something about this creature. And, he could not help but wonder what relation his eyes and her cute little friend might have. [3 Days till the Day of change¡­] The creature, her familiar, was an adorable creature that mostly stayed wrapped around her neck. It did not have any weight to it, its existence itself was strange to the rest of them. But it was cute, and soft, and strangely, it was also cuddly. It was also strong. So strong that when a giant creature, a creature native to this island filled with life threatening monsters, appeared before them, the little creature simply screamed at it and the giant monster fell unconscious¡­ It could not handle the primordial fear, something the rest of them had also felt in that brief moment, caused by the creature. It was unlike any fear that could be caused by any creature. He might have compared it to the dragon fear, an innate skill of the true dragon race, but since this creature was not a dragon, they believed it was something similar, and perhaps something much more effective than the innate fear of the most perfect existence of nature¡­ [2 Days till the Day of change¡­] Alex received three powers when she achieved her second awakening, the first of which was her familiar. She also unlocked another one of her Servants, a craftsman master that had created the locks which graded all three of her treasuries. It was a good thing since the time they were going to need to pass through all the long trials in order to reach the final door to her treasures was cut short significantly with the presence of that one person. Though they still had to pass through all the trials and face all the monsters, since she had obtained her cute little partner as well as the servant that she needed the most at this moment, they were able to cross all the dangers and reach her hidden treasury a day before the timer was going to end¡­ [23 hours till the Day of change¡­] The third ability that she unlocked when she obtained her second awakening, was in fact a power that would be useful to her in her following battles. She was still far weaker than her previous self, but with this new ability to ''negate'' any authority or skill or power of any being, a unique skill she had obtained through a rigorous [Legacy Quest] in the past, she was certainly ready for the new world that they were going to witness¡­ "I want you to stay here for the time being." Her treasury was filled with riches and items of various origins. It contained enough materials to create a kingdom from scratch, and there were enough resources here for Misha, Rin, Az, and Miu''s survival for the following few years. Her servant that she had just recovered, the person that had created the gate of this treasury, was not the one that made this place. It was her mage servant that she yet did not have, however, she was going to have him soon. But until then, Meg, this Master craftsman that had made numerous arts in her prime and knew as much about magic and this world about any colored saint, was going to be enough to take care of them in this place. Since they all were important to Elio, they were also important to her and besides, they were safer here than most other places in either of the worlds. "Victor and Meg will take care of you." Since she had various important and useful items in this place, she first filled up her inventory with all the things she was going to need in the future. Then, she upgraded Elio''s inventory with the help of the special stones that were used for the upgrade of the Player inventory and maxed it out as well. Doing so was necessary since he was going to Need a lot of things going forward, so she filled his inventory with all kinds of things that she knew he might need, or even with items that were related to quests that she had never been able to complete herself. He did not like receiving so much from her, but in the end, he did not fight back much. It was just her way of showing her affection, and he could not say anything about it. At least for now¡­ [12 hours till the Day of change¡­] "We will be leaving now, everyone." They had rested, they had showed Misha and Alex around, and now they were leaving. "The next time we meet¡­" As Elio looked at these two ladies, these two natives who had spent their entire life in only this world, and thought about how they might witness a completely new world soon¡­ he could not help his sadness. Truthfully, he did not want them to know about that dangerous, filthy world of theirs. But¡­ "It might just be in a completely new world." It wasn''t in his hands. He could not stop what was going on. He was not Strong enough¡­ Chapter 297 The countdown "Whatever happens, I want all of us to be safe."[00:00:05:12:88.] The two worlds were waiting with heavy hearts. The time had arrived¡­ the sky was shrouded in a bright blue that most definitely was not natural for either of the worlds. There was a strange heaviness in the air, many elders could feel a strange sensation on their skins that seemed like an unnatural itch. Many could feel like the end was approaching, many could feel how the great change that was spoken about in the stories was approaching and many simply wished for a safe tomorrow. Since no one knew what was going to happen, just like Elio''s family, the rest of the world was with their family. They have had enough time to prepare themselves, and now that the moment that everyone wanted to avoid with all their might, had finally arrived. "We are going to be alright." Their house located on a mountain region away from the city area might just be the kind of place that gets attacked by monsters first. It was common in novels and fantasy stories for distant places like these to fall to the monster attacks first. It was evident that they were going to face something big in the next few minutes, so, all of them were waiting inside Elio''s house, before the TV that had the timer ticking down on it. "It''s going to be alright¡­ we will be safe." Elio''s mother, V, was saying that to the children and the others, but she was the one that was the most anxious right now. She did not know what was going to happen to them and since the chances of something bad happening were big, they knew there was going to be a big problem if what they did not want actually came true. "Will monsters start appearing out of nowhere? Will gates or dimensional cracks open up? What do you think will be the first to materialize in this world? A ''token'' of equilibrium or something like a unique monster?" Eth, Olive''s mother, was actually looking forward to what was going to happen. [00:00:03:44:78.] Unlike Elio''s mom who was anxious about this whole thing, she was looking forward to the kind of change the world will go through. "Will we have something like a World tutorial, or will there be quests for people all over the world?" Just like Elio, she had read all kinds of things in all kinds of books. She was a creator and developer so the ideas that she had were always much brighter than the common people. However, the reason she was saying all those possibilities out loud was because of her own anxiousness as well. She was looking forward to seeing what kind of things were going to appear at the end of this collision, and what was going to happen when the two worlds finished merging. Just like her friend and the children, she was anxious as well. But, unlike the others, she was showing that anxiousness with a smile on her face. "It''s going to be fine, mom. We will be alright." Olive knew just how everyone around her was feeling. She even knew how the people around the world were feeling, but that wasn''t important to her for now. What she needed to look out for were these people around her, her family. "It''s time¡­" [00:00:02:00:58.] Alex watched the timer ticking down with a dry throat. She was grabbing Elio''s hand, her eyes fixed on the screen before her. Though the others did not know about it, she also had Sir Victor looking out for any dangers. Others did not know about it, but she knew they would know about these things soon as well. [00:00:01:33:38.] "Elio." her hand still grabbing his, she looked at him with a serious gaze. "Yes." He was calm for now, like his dad and Blaze, but he knew that she could tell he was also anxious about this. With each tick of the clocks in his house, the timer on the screen before them was clocking down. Something big was going to happen, and they had no idea just how dangerous it was going to be. "Whatever happens¡­" He was looking back at her, in her deep blue eyes. "Just know that I love you¡­ and whatever happens, I Will, love you." She was saying it as if the world was going to end the next moment. It was not going to be the case since he could tell she also had no idea what was going to happen. They all knew something was going to happen, but what exactly¡­ none of them had any idea. "I love you¡­ and I will keep loving you as well. Just¡­ don''t do anything stupid, ok?" He had to say it. He knew just how dumb this girl was so it was obvious that she might start doing some dumb things as soon as this timer ends. "Haaaa¡­ only you can joke about these things, dummy." She shook her head. [00:00:00:30:01.] And without giving any answer to his request, looked back at the screen with a new seriousness. [{ "Status." }] [00:00:00:22:28.] [{ There''s nothing around, master. However, it seems like the Mana density in the environment is fluctuating. }] [00:00:00:19:93.] [{ "This might be the precursors. Keep looking¡­ and deal with anything that might seem dangerous." }] [{ Yes, master. }] [00:00:00:15:55.] Since Victor was able to materialize in this world, she knew many other things were going to come to this world. He could not use his magic or skills yet, but just the fact that an entity that was only present inside the game until now was present in the real world made things pretty obvious to them all. [00:00:00:12:36.] The time had arrived, so¡­ [Ding!] A blue status window popped up before all the players in this world. "Hmmm?" The people who had never played weren''t left out either as a simple, translucent white status window appeared before them as well. All the people in the world were now seeing a timer before them. [9] The timer was ticking down, and for the players, the same timer was also present on their status windows that had been locked until now. [8] [{ "Please look after everyone, Olive." }] [{ "I will, of course. But¡­" }] [{ "It''s too late already. You cannot do anything about it¡­ not anymore." }] [7] Alex glanced at Olive and shook her head. She had made a decision and she was going to go with it. [6] The parents stalled their hearts and hugged their children¡­ Alex being at the center of them all. She was much more important to this family than someone from outside would imagine. [5] She was important, and she was going to remain an important part of this family. [4] "Huuuuuuu." They all took a deep breath and braced themselves. -Ooooooooooooong! [3] Sear?h the N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The sky outside was changing back to normal. The winds were now blowing faster. The mountains all around the world, the rivers and oceans, the volcanoes and the grasslands all around the world were now resonating¡­ The sun, the space, even the empty vacuum in the space was reacting to something. [2] All the humans and the animals in the world were suddenly introduced to a strange sensation that appeared instantaneously. [1] And just as fast as it had appeared¡­ [Ding!] It disappeared as well. And then¡­ [World Collision has concluded.] [A temporary Equilibrium has been established between the two worlds.] [The two worlds are now interacting with each other.] Everyone around the world were informed about the new rules that they would be following going forward. Chapter 298 The new rules and goals [Ding!][Due to the connection between both worlds, the will now be able to access the [Otherworld] without a connection device.] [A personal quest chain will be given to all the existing players. Finishing these quests will allow them to use their in-game abilities in their original world.] S~ea??h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [From now on, will be opened to each Non-player individual. Those who wish to obtain the powers of a must clear this tower.] [To the players who have cleared a certain number of chain quests to regain their in-game powers, a will become available.] [Clearing this labyrinth will allow them to earn new powers that they would obtain permanently.] [The of the Otherworld will now be able to access the [Otherworld] through [Realm Gates] that have now appeared all around the other world. However, for the time being, access will be restricted to only those who possess certain qualifications.] [Players who have unlocked their Inventories will be able to access their stored items in either of the worlds.] [A new system will be introduced to both worlds that allows a smoother establishment of a complete equilibrium.] [Under this system, both the and will be able to obtain [Medals of Contributions] in their original worlds through various achievements above a certain level.] [All achievements, from this point forward, will only be counted towards the individual''s contribution in the [Rate of Progress] of completed equilibrium.] [All past achievement Boxes received as a reward for the achievements will be counted as an unreleased item to the new Rate of progress for the equilibrium. They will work as they used to in the past.] [Feature: (Respawn) after death in the non-native worlds will be updated and new penalties will be introduced.] [The will receive a feature similar to the when in the Foreign Lands. As a non-native species, for the time being, aggression against them will result in punishment.] [For the time being, until a certain level of Equilibrium is established, the introduction of Non-intelligent creatures will be highly limited. A safety protocol has been established to prevent forceful breach into the Foreign Lands.] [Players possessing unique companion/creatures such as (Familiars), (Servants), (Contracted spirits), (Tamed beasts), or the [Contract bound] beings having a certain level of {} will be able to materialize them into their native world under certain restrictions.] [To hasten the Rate of Progression of the equilibrium, by the mutual constant of both the world''s populations, certain structures can be shifted or exchanged between the worlds.] [Transfer of these structures must not cause a negative impact to the Rate of progression, or else there will be Causal Consequences.] [The first individuals to obtain the original titles of will be given the roles of [{(Administrators)}] and an appropriate level of unique authority.] [The Existing truths will keep resonating with both worlds independent of the Rate of progression of the equilibrium levels.] ¡­ There were a bunch of more things that every single one of the individuals throughout the world was told by the message windows that appeared before the out of the blue. Also, since everyone around both worlds were expecting something like this, no big accident like last time was caused. The world did not change significantly. There were no monster invasions. No wormholes connecting with a different world were created, and comparatively, the world was the same place it was a few moments ago. There was practically nothing that had changed significantly, however, even though there were no visible changes to this world, on a deeper level, everything had changed. "Being able to log into the game without the chariot¡­ can you believe that?" The whole point of it being called a ''virtual'' reality was these machines that they needed in order to connect their consciousnesses to that world. They were not physically going there but their bodies were simply being materialized in a unique Data format over there. The way it worked was simple and most humans around the world would understand that¡­ but, that changed today. "Not only that¡­" Just like inside the game, the servant markings on the hands of both Elio and Alex were now visible. The two servant markings of Alex, the familiar symbol on the back of her palm, even the white sword that she carried around in the game, all had materialized on them. Elio could now call Sera in this world and she would materialize before him just the way she does inside the game. For some reason, both Elio and Alex could access their inventories and now, they were able to take out their items inside the inventory the same way they could inside the game. Now, they were also able to put their things from their world inside the inventory without any problems. They tried a few items and though they did not work, when Elio opened one of the reward boxes that he had on him, he got a few things just the way he does inside the game. Elio could even hear the voice of his contracted spirit, Meta, so this was a surprise for him. However, since he had left Az and Miu outside and not in his tamed beast inventory, he could not call them to this world. It was fine, actually, he wasn''t worried about those two, so instead, after carefully and thoroughly checking each and every message they had received from the new system, both of them looked up at their servants who were surprised (or acting surprised). "This¡­ is where you live, master?" "This is our home, yes, but the two of us live in a different place. Well, we''re back here for the time being." Sera was looking around this new world. She was surprised to see the holographic T.V. That was playing without any magic. She could use the status window as well and she was an angel, a magical being, so instead of the modern technology of this world that wasn''t related to magic in any manner, the uniqueness of the way it worked surprised her the most. This whole place was unique to her¡­ "Wow¡­" And for their family, the presence of this angel was something that, despite the relatively unnoticeable changes in their surroundings, was simply unbelievable. Chapter 299 The indifference between virtual and physical [Elio''s POV: ]"This is what you used to come to our world?" "Yup. We call it a chariot¡­ though, I don''t think we will be using it anymore." Discover exclusive content at My Virtual Library Empire Alex and the rest of us already tested going inside the game through the new function that we all have unlocked. Unlike the chariots that we have used until now, even considering the most advanced ones, the experience of going directly to that other world and doing anything feels as realistic as doing anything in our own world with our own bodies. ''Surely the chariots that we have used until now were much more effective than the equipment that the rest of the world''s people use.'' It has many useful functions and thanks to it, both Rein and I are able to stay connected to the game for much longer than the other players. ''Still, with the new function that we are given, we don''t have any need to ''log out'' anymore.'' We are actually going to that world and the sleep that we get in that world is actually the sleep that applies to us. Now, that world of game isn''t limited to just a world of game anymore. "Fascinating¡­ to think there would be something so¡­ unique." The world has changed. Now, the world of game, the virtual world of that we used to know until now, isn''t limited to only the game. Now, there''s no distinction between the reality that we used to know and the virtual realm where we used to have a Metabody, a data structure that is simply limited to the numbers and processings of various high end machines. "Wow¡­" I can use magic now. Yeah¡­ I can create fire out of thin air, same with water, sand, grow grass, cut down thin trees, and even place Grace spells on our mom and dad who aren''t yet ''players''. I can only use simple one construction spell that doesn''t really do anything too fascinating, but just the fact that I can do those things makes it special. "And that''s your room? Your own private room?" "Yup. Well, I''m not here much now, but that is indeed my room." I was giving Sera a tour around the house while Alex was downstairs with the rest of them, explaining to them how despite being a demon, Sir Victor was not really a bad person. Unlike the other games that have stereotypical bad demons that eat humans, cause chaos, and are only doing things in order to cause distress, the demons of are pretty simple. They are proud beings that, though mainly narcissistic, are not that different from the simple humans. They are called creatures of magic, the ones who are believed to be the ones to actually teach human ''magic'' in ancient times. They are cool, they are fun beings in their own right, and they are truly what you would call a noble. That''s how they are. Not some chaos junkies or arsonist manic. Sir Victor was a prime example of that. "You like taking pictures of others, right? Then¡­ what''s all this, master?" All of our family members were surprised to first see an actual angel with three pair of wings¡­ first of all, they were stunned to see someone as pretty as Sera. ''Golden eyes, golden hair with silver strands, attractive figure, a naturally fresh fragrance, with a baby-like skin.'' They loved her, and my mom, Alice, and aunt Eth spent an hour chatting with her about all kinds of things. Dad and Blaze and uncle were chatting with Alex and sir Victor in the meantime and we all discussed the things that we are going to do going forward. ''We have confirmed that there''s no imminent dangers to us or this world, so we do have to be on edge for anything.'' According to our analysis on the situation all around the world, aside from the emergence of a few criminals with powers that they should not have, there weren''t really any great dangers around us. There weren''t any monsters around yet, but there surely were people who used to follow dark forces in the virtual world who had started moving in this world as well. ''I should really stop thinking about that place as a ''game'' now. Presence of those damned dark mages and bastards following the evil beings is enough proof of this changed world.'' Anyway, we know what we are going to do going forward, so, putting all that aside, looking at Sera, and seeing her surprise at my room filled with all kinds of artworks, I couldn''t help my smile. "I like a lot of things, Sera. I like clicking photos, I like painting, I like writing, I like magic as well, and I like observing things going on around me." Ever since I started playing that game, I''ve seen a lot of things that I hadn''t even thought were possible. Starting from my tutorial where I met a slime that almost killed me, my first experience in the beginner town of Moongold, my first meeting with Alex in Misha and Rin''s inn, learning about magic, having my magical Az with me, going around the town¡­ Be it our first fight with that red gob, or the fight with that dark mage, be it the fight with that mage tower master, or the haircuts that Miss Aloha gave us¡­ there were a lot of things that we just couldn''t forget. Our trip to Yuta, the meeting with the archery hall master and the temporary key that we received from her, going into the Elmguardian''s nest, and then going to Kalp¡­ ''Even when not considering all the fun we have had in Kalp before That day, we¡­ I personally obtained a lot of new experiences thanks to all those experiences.'' Seeing Odin bond with Slei, seeing Misha becoming friends with her furball Flin Kivi, seeing Lord Andrew bonding with the gift that we had prepared for Eve, and ultimately fighting against those Evil beings with the power of Blessing. My experiences in that paradise like mountain forest were also special. It was only thanks to those experiences that I was able to meet Lavender¡­ my savior Levi the divine fog-lightning bunny. We escaped that place together with the creatures of the forest that we had spent such a long time with. Having them around was not that bad, actually. But, I don''t think I''ll ever forget how those damned monsters looked. ''And yet, after all those months of adventures¡­'' I''ve not even seen even a tenth of that world. Perhaps, I''ve not even seen one present of what that world actually has. Perhaps, there are things that I will never even get to see. "Master?" Sera could tell I was worried about a lot of things right now. S§×arch* The nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Let''s go downstairs for now, Sera." "¡­?" She was confused, but she simply agreed and we walked out of the room. ''The world has changed¡­ both the worlds that I knew, have changed.'' The game that only used to be a game that people played for fun and resources isn''t simply a game anymore. This is the reality that we live in now. Now that both the worlds that we knew are connected, both of them will go through significant changes. Even this world that had been on guard until now will have to change significantly to facilitate the new diplomats from that world, forging new relationships with them in exchange of various material and abstract things. ''For us players, seeing these changes first hand will be more fantastical than the completion of the highest difficulty of quests.'' But then again, where light goes¡­ darkness follows along closely. "Alex¡­" I can use magic and Alex now had the white sword as well as access to our inventories, but that does not mean we are anywhere strong enough to take on the people that might come to our world to cause trouble. In fact, we are now much weaker compared to our in-game self. And, that might just become a problem for not just us but for all of our family and friends¡­ Chapter 300 Am I the strongest yet? What makes a story good?Before that¡­ What makes a story? A good plot and good characters? A rich storyline, great character development, or is it the side character, their interactions with the ones in the spotlight, and the way the story is written? Is it the descriptions and attention to even the smallest, most insignificant thing that attracts one''s attention? Or is it narration of certain scenes, the way they are depicted, and the way they feel to the audience? Setting aside the man-made notion of ''good'' and ''bad'' the existence of details, the attention to various aspects of a certain thing, the way things are made and the way things are portrayed¡­ at the end of the day, isn''t the simple existence of a certain thing, in itself, a piece of beauty? "So now what?" "I don''t know, really." "Are we the strongest yet?" "Ummm. Nah, I don''t think so." Stories exist. In this world, all kinds of stories exist. People remember them, nature remembers these stories, and if they are, at any point in time, remembered by a large number of people, they become known to the world and keep resonating in this world forever. "Then¡­ we should continue what we have, no?" Even the TWO who became the top rankers among the players, the ones who obtained the pinnacle any Player might have ever dreamed of, had not yet fulfilled the one desire that they had always strived for. "To be the strongest¡­" It was their goal. They started the game with the sole purpose of becoming the best, becoming better than anyone else, and having abilities that no one else had. The world of NO was a world of freedom where anything was possible. So, when they started, they simply wanted to see just how far one can go. Just how much power, how many authorities can one hold in this world. They wanted to test the limits of this world, just like they had done with the many other worlds that they had tested until now, however, despite their countless attempts, despite the kind of crazy shit they had put the world through, the world has always had an answer to their actions. It reacted to everything they had done until now. It rewarded them for their achievements, it punished them for going too far, they tested what the ''too far'' was for this world again and again, and at some point, the world stopped and acknowledged their stubbornness. When it was out of everything it could offer to them, it even presented them a unique opportunity that no one else in this world, no one but the TWO of them had qualified for. In some way, they defeated the world, the twelve Origins and their Logic systems, and ultimately became the catalyst that trailblazed the path connecting both of the worlds. They were given powers beyond what any players possessed, beyond any authority a god could possess¡­ they were on par with the Highest Order of Sentient Artificial Intelligence which had now taken over both the worlds and were modifying them according to how the [Truths] needed them to be. The TWO of them had lived a story of their own, a story that we may or may not get the chance to know in the near future. But¡­ "I don''t think there''s any point in being the strongest anymore now, is there?" This wasn''t their story. It should have been, but it was not. What was this story about then, you may ask. "We can do so much more now¡­ don''t you think so as well, Lucy." "El¡­ I know that. But then, what about all that we have done until now?" The only reason the TWO of them reached this point was thanks to their past efforts, the only reason Alex was so well known throughout this world was because of her past efforts, the only reason no great significance of Elio was noticed throughout the story, ultimately, was also because of the fact that he was not Acheron#1233. Between right now and between their individual starting points, there has been a missing period of quite a long time. The TWO of them started the game three years ago after Alex and Elio met, it was way after many players started, but still, they joined back then, and the point We all started from¡­ was in fact, a point significantly in the future. A point that, just like this story, might have seemed insignificant to many. The whole point of this story, in fact, at least to those who had come all this way, might have seemed messed up. And it was in fact messed up. A start that wasn''t starting at the start. An end that wasn''t ending a proper end, a pace that was all over the place, the connection that was present at one point and gone at other. Curses. That''s what one might give to this whole collection of a few hundred thousand words. And it was valid¡­ however, a story, or a skyscraper is not created without a foundation. "Alex¡­" "Hmmm? What is it? Why do you look-." "I think we should get married." "¡­?!" "¡­!" "What?!" "Wow! That was out of the blue¡­!" To many, what would this sudden suggestion of a simple young man and a unique woman like her would stand for? Many might not know. Many might believe that it is also irrelevant, just like this story, this chapter, however¡­ "Are you serious?" "Do I look serious?" "You¡­ do. But! Isn''t this too sudden?!" "Is it?" Just like the narrator of this very interaction, just like the one many have ignored until now, the being who has always been there watching over them, helping them with various things, keeping them safe¡­ not many would realize how the boundaries of reality and the Metaworld had started fading long before any of them started playing this ''game''. "Oh my god¡­ oh my gosh you''re serious!" Till this point, the main purpose of this failed piece of literature has been simply to become a foundation upon which A tree could be planted. Upon which a hut, a building, a castle, and then, a sky touching monument could be built. "Sunday! Sunday! Damn, this is big! Record this! Bring me the agreement we prepared! He might back out soon, so be quick." Yes, master¡­ "Oh my, baby. You''re skipping engagement? Now that''s a bold move." "To think I''ve lived long enough to witness this baby''s marriage. Haaa¡­ the world certainly isn''t ending anytime soon." To become the strongest. Does it mean to literally have more strength than anyone else? To have the ability to do anything one wants? Or does it mean the ability to be able to overcome the most difficult hurdles of one''s own self and transcend the limited overview of the world one had always been bound to? There are many interpretations to this, just like how there are many interpretations of the many things we have been through until now. "This won''t do, Elio. You must at least exchange rings¡­ here. Your grandfather has left this one for you." S§×ar?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Your journey continues with My Virtual Library Empire "Oh! Oh! And my grandma asked me to give this one to someone better, haha. Who else would be better than my Alex~?" "Mom, jeez, calm down a little." "This isn''t the time to calm down, Olive dear~. Elio''s getting married!" It meant a lot to them. They weren''t going to care if someone thought it was cringe or not. Someone they all loved had made the biggest decision of their life, with a smile on their face, apparently. And just like this lackluster end, this seemingly simple moment meant a lot to the rest of them. For them¡­ "Okay, okay, wait. Wait wait wait wait wait. Just to be clear, I already proposed to him six times in the past and he said no, so it''s only natural that I say no at least once, right?" "Yeah, no. This doesn''t work like that, Miss." he had already placed the ring on her hand, and somehow, she had placed one on him as well, though she had no idea how he made her do that. "You said yes. This is the proof." An End doesn''t have to be fancy. At the end, just like how all the told stories are good stories, a completion is a representation of the whole that has been created. There were many things to show, and many things to tell at This final stage however, you all saw something that''s worth much more¡­ Sadly, until this Story, this entire journey has come to a close¡ª covering the beginning with the perspective of the TWO who became the strongest, the life of both these two Birds now planning their wedding, and only after the final piece connecting all the leftover dots has been presented¡ª will You understand what you have truly witnessed. "And with this, we are done." "Hoho! Where did that cake come from~?" Until we meet again¡­ Spectators. [Stay hydrated.] [{( Thank you for reading. )}] Chapter 1 - 1: Retirement "Even before the abyss of a black hole... we still have a choice." Hmmm¡­ A little more. "Humanity never conceals its desire to control the heavens, and I am no exception." Good. And, to complete it all¡­ "Rules, are made to be broken." And with this, he was done. ''It was a long journey.'' He worked since the early ages of his life. He learned, he applied, he failed, and he learned from his failures. There were setbacks, there were times when he just couldn''t get up and start working again, he had faced difficulties throughout the last decade of his life, however, finally, on this day, he was done. "Finally¡­" An attractive apartment room, a bed on the left, a window on the other side. He sat on his desk with a holographic clock present beside him, facing his computer screen, listening to (Crow), a new song he accidentally stumbled upon and fell in love with, a warm smile of relief present on his face. "Finally." On his 360Hz screen, along with some quotes, some descriptions, and some epic narrations, the final page of his last book had ended with a happy ending. His hand left the three-piece keyboard, the pencil and his tablet were turned off, and, he also stopped the timer playing on his simple holographic clock. "Finally, I can retire now." Money wasn''t really a problem for him but he valued his independence above anything else. He loved his freedom, he loved what he could do by being unrestricted, and he loved the way he concluded his last project. "Haaa¡­" He still remembered why he started working even though he had the option to just live a life of comfort. "I can finally rest as much as I want, mom." He remembered why he got a part time food delivering job at the young age of fourteen. Or why he endured all the trouble, curses, pain, and pressure in all the jobs he had worked at. He had no need to endure all the shit those pig bosses put him through. He was a worker at first, but he learned, he earned, he experienced the lives the common children experience, and with his own efforts, he first freed himself from the grunt life. Then he earned more and got to higher positions. He paid his school fees, he paid for his graduation, and he also paid for his diplomas. He got away from the life of corporate slavery. Started a small business, expanded it, made it into something that brought profits, and then, with time, effort, and good decisions, he was able to become a business owner at the age of twenty. And then, he found people that he trusted. Gave them the reins of his business, and went off to the creative side, and started following his passion. He had always been more of a creative person than a technical one. The things that he liked doing in his free time, since a young age, had included photography, videography, a little bit of drawing and a little bit of everything that was related to art. He liked doing many things, actually. "Now that I think about it, ain''t I kinda amazing?" He was twenty four now. And, he was done ''working''. "Not many retire at such an age, hun? I''m definitely pretty amazing then." Young people at his age mostly run around in search of jobs or finish their higher studies. But after all that hard work of so many years¡­ he was ready to retire now. "I can stay in my room all day, play whatever game I want, order whatever I want, and finally, after all these years¡­ I can finally just chill without doing anything, and there will be no one to tell me what to do. Not even you, mom." He liked games, but ever since he started working, he swore to abstain from the games until he had achieved his goal. He wasn''t able to do many things in these past few years. But that will end today. "Alright then, first of all¡­" ============ (Search: ¡ª ¡ª ¡ª.) ============ -Tap. Tap. Tap. -Click. Click. -Tak. He brought up the universal search bar and typed in the name of the website he had built over the past three years. [Welcome, Master Elio.] As soon as he logged in, a little white kitten greeted him with a heartwarming yawn. It was an adorable greeting. S§×arch* The NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. His girlfriend made this cute AI for him¡ª right, his girlfriend. -Knock. Knock! "Coming in~." He heard the knock on the door and the one knocking barged in without receiving any permission with a cheerful smile. "What''s my gummy bear up to today~?" He had natural light brown hair and pretty green eyes. His looks were attractive but they weren''t extraordinary or anything. He was wearing a normal oversized shirt, sitting on his throne-like chair, staring at his screen when two slender yet muscular hands wrapped around him from behind. "Good timing, Twinkle. Look at this." "Hmm? What does that- oh! Is that what I think it is?!" He had three monitors if they added his tab, and two side by side without it. So, while the screen with the novel ending was still present on the right one, both of them stared at the screen showing the website both of them had worked on for so long. "Yup¡­ I''m done." She had longed to hear those words. "Yesssssssss~! Finally! Fkin finally!" She was happier by this news than him for some reason¡­ Her long black hair shining under the afternoon light coming from the window tied behind her back, her comfortable white shirt that was twice her size, the black leggings covering her attractive legs, and her deep blue eyes covered by her round glasses gave her a simple yet elegant look. She looked similar to him¡­ not by physical appearance but by their vibes. Both of them were quite simple, approachable people that by the looks, seemed more introverted but simple individuals. And, it was a fact that they looked good as they smiled at one another while looking at this particular PC screen. "Twinkle¡­" Grabbing her hand to calm her down, he gently pulled her closer to him, and even though no strength was used, she followed his lead, and sat down on his lap. "Will you do the honors?" This was as important to them as their friendship. This website was what brought them together, it was what gave him all the fame he had today as well, and now that it was time to close it down, he was giving her the chance to do it with him. "Are you sure?" She didn''t mind doing it for him since she had dreamed of this day for months, even years. But she had to confirm just in case. "I am. I''m sure that the one who wrote the first codes for this ''house'' of ours, should also be the one to lock it down for good." Yes this is a VRMMO novel and there will be a complete, full dive VR game, however, this moment was one of the most important moments of their journey. "Alright then~!" -Click! Click! Click! Click! Click! -Tap! "MewMew~! Initiate master control~! Execute command XII-0~." [Mew!] [Master control initiated! Requesting execution keys!] The kitten that had been sleepy all this time opened its red eyes and a special pink sphere was summoned right above its little head. "Huuuu. I''ve been waiting for so long, man¡­" She took out the necklace around her neck that contained a very small pendant. While he removed his bracelet that had a matching pendant that seemed like it would fit into the one she had. "I''m sorry for being such a bad boyfriend, dear Twinkling star." "I''ll fucking choke you if you call me that one more time." Sparkle was not a nickname or pet name. It was an embarrassing memory that he reminded her of every single fucking day¡­ "Ahem." There was a unique mechanism attached to his monitor. "Let''s do the hot things later." He gave her his part, and she combined both the key pieces before giving him a death glare. "Naughty bastard." It was a big day for them and here he was, playing jokes on her like this. "Ughhh." She questioned herself how the hell did she even fall for this guy. But then she remembered the reason when she looked back at the screen that contained a record of all the things he had created in the past few years¡­ "You''ve worked hard." "Thanks for waiting." "It was worth it." The moment she turned the key, the pink portal that had appeared above the cute white kitten spread all across the Home Screen and, in a matter of seconds, it devoured everything they could see on that website. [Mew~!] [Archiving is successful.] Finally, only their white sleepy kitten remained in the corner of a blank screen on a single white sentence. [The Rank-12 creator: Acheron#1233 has officially Retired!] "It''s done." "You''re free now." She smiled at him, warmly. "I''m free¡­" And he smiled back. "Then." He already knew what her next words were going to be. She wasn''t an easy person to read generally, however for him, she was as transparent as the clear waters of oblivion. "Shall we finally play, darling?" He loved games but he hadn''t played any games in a long, long time. In the last decade, the VR technology had advanced considerably and there was a certain game- an otherworld- that had been the leading virtual reality game for the rest of the world. "Yes¡­" She was also a player. Someone that loved that world much more than this reality. And she had wanted to play along with him for as long as she could remember¡­ "Let''s finally play. Together." He had achieved all that he wanted. He was done slaving, he was done working, he was done with everything one needed to do to earn money¡ª one of the most important resources in this modern era. He was done¡­ So, now, it was time to chill and play around in the ''second world''¡ª in the . Chapter 2 - 2: New Origin "Hmmm¡­ I will never understand your obsession with my hands." There were three kinds of men. One that liked the Body, one that enjoyed lips, and then there were ones like this Child. "What''s wrong with hands?" It was early morning now as they lay beside one another, with him playing with her hand, her fingers, holding them, caressing them. "I mean¡­ you have a complete package and you''re nuts about my hands? If it were feet, it would be more understandable-." "Shut up." Placing a finger on her lips, he looked into her deep blue eyes. Her hands weren''t the only thing he loved about her. Those pretty eyes full of wisdom were something he couldn''t help loving. She was the smarter one among them, but she was still a dumb one to him. -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiiish¡­ A fine morning sunlight filled the spacious room along with calm winds. The holographic clock''s alarm had just rang, so both of them were awake now. "Hmmm¡­" Well, he was only half awake, still laying with his eyes open, looking at the pretty person beside him with a blank face as always. "What?" The way he was looking at her though, seemed somehow different to her. She didn''t want to, but she had to ask why he was doing it to quench her curiosity. "You''re sexy," he complimented out of the blue while kissing her ring finger. "Hmm? You just realized that? After all these years?" She wasn''t being sarcastic here. The way he said it sounded so genuine she couldn''t help but be surprised at his silly question. "Yup. I just realized how stupid I was to not admire a hot art piece like this." Saying that, he bit her finger, kissed it again, and intertwined their fingers. "Did you just become a boomer after a few hours of retirement? Will I have to marry a geezer or what?" A smile bloomed on her face at his rare, cute behavior. He was more¡­ crazy, usually. But, he was being all lovey dovey for some reason. "Since when do you hate old people? I thought you were into-." "Shut up and get up now." She knew now that he was in this playful mood, he would waste their entire morning with dumb, cute and useless things. "We have to do a lot of things today¡­ you''re gonna start games again and starting with the best one among them. You might know all that you need to know about it all, but you still need an expert like-." "Oh, that''s right." He suddenly realized something and was awakened completely with his eyes wide open. "Aren''t you a big deal in that game? How are we going to play together if there''s a large level difference between us?" The best Virtual Reality Massive Multiplayer Online of the current day, . It had only been around three years since this game came to life however, the self-operating ecosystem of this game, the highest degree of freedom it provides, and the near infinite world it offers made it earn the title of the ''Second world'' in the short time it had existed in this world. Run by the best artificial intelligence of the era, this virtual world was the same as the many fantasy games that existed today, however, different from them, the kind of experience this world provided was The best. And, she was one of the players who had played it ever since its open beta testing. Some of the few who had been part of this second world''s history even before the ''players'' had arrived on it. She was obviously a high level even though she only played it casually and loved playing it as a hobby. So, he knew it would be difficult for them to play on the same level together with one another like they wanted. "It''s a perfect VR so your game ID is bound by your core credentials, right? And since you''re high level, you also can''t just delete your account and create another one." It wasn''t possible in the first place as to access this ''second world'' one needed their unique biometric identifications that could not be deleted or replaced as one wanted. He had not thought about it since there had never been any need to until now, but now that he was thinking about it, he was confused why she had always wanted to play along with him so badly. She knew him well so she knew he didn''t like getting a free ride or having power disparity between them. She might be stronger and smarter than him, but he was still better than her. He wasn''t going to play with her unless he was on the same level as her¡­ or was at least good enough to stand alongside her. "Hehe, you don''t have to worry about that~!" She loved that other world. And she had always known he would love it as well¡­ "This great and amazing Lady of yours has a way to create an Alt~." "Heh?" Those proud words she said with her nose lifted high confused him. "In ? You can do that?" Creating an alternative account in this game was thought to be impossible but she was saying she can do that? "Yup~. You know how amazing I am~. This is nothing big~." The way she was confidently saying those things made him look at her with a suspicious expression for a moment. However, even after observing her with squinted eyes, he could not find anything wrong with her. "¡­you''re acting sus." He knew there was no way to actually create an Alternate account in this game. Of course unless someone can change their fingerprints, retinas, and DNA code, it is not possible. So, whatever trick she was going to pull was not going to be from outside. Even a genius like her couldn''t do something like that. "Hump. Sussy bastard calling others sus." She pouted her cheeks like a little girl and got out of their soft blanket. "If you don''t believe me, why don''t you see for yourself?" He was still laying on the bed and she wanted to just pick him up alongside that blanket and smash him on the ground, but since today was a good looking day, she spared him. "We have to wash up and eat breakfast-." They had just woken up so there were many things that they needed to do before they get to their gaming room that only she had used until now¡ª but she didn''t want to waste any more time so, when he got out of that blanket, she pulled him, took a quick shower alongside him, reheated some leftovers from last night and shoved them down his throat. And then she dragged him to their gaming room he had never used himself. "Sunday, boot the system! Your other master is finally starting games!" -Oooooooooooooong! The room situated across their hall room they entered was dark at first, however as soon as she said that, first a green light blinked on the ceiling, and then, with a blue flash of light, the RGB lights throughout the rooms were turned on. [Welcome back masters. And a very good morning to both of you.] A male mechanical voice brimming with a unique intelligence replied to her voice and greeted both of them. "Sunday, tell your creator not to drag me around. I can walk on my own, eat on my own- oh, I don''t mind the bath- I can do all the other things by myself." [Creator master. The other master wants you to not drag him around. He says he can walk on his own, eat on his own, and do all the other things by himself. He does not mind taking baths with you, though, the tone recognition detects he wouldn''t mind doing any of the previously mentioned things if it is with you.] Even though the technology had advanced tremendously in the last three decades, it was still surprising to see such a fluent reply from an artificial intelligence. "You programmed him to be like this, didn''t you?" S§×ar?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He never liked how he always took her side and how he made anything he said about her into something positive. It might be a good artificial intelligence, but it was still not something that he, as a person of arts, could tolerate for long. "Hehe, he only says the truth and facts~. Don''t blame him for saying what you don''t~." As the room was now illuminated, one could see a wall covered with screens at the end of the room, a good lot of mechanical instruments, and three unique VR capsules that were modified from inside out. "Well, fk the small things. Let''s jump right in~." Someone with the knowledge of Virtual Reality capsules or [Chariots] could tell these were the best modals available on the market that not just anyone could purchase. "I''ll need a day or so in system time to prepare so you should first complete your tutorial and choose [Moongold town] as your starter town. I''ll come to you by the end of today, alright?" She wasn''t usually as pushy as she was right now. She also wasn''t that cheerful and smiley. But, today, the thought of being able to play with him was making her heart racing. He had worked hard all this time. She had only been with him for the last three years, and still she knew how hardworking he was. "Come, lay down." She helped him get inside his VR chariot for the first time with a warm smile present on her face. He was a selfish and mean person. A little arrogant and stubborn as well. But those qualities of his only came out when he was working¡­ "Just follow the instructions of the system and you should be fine¡­ you know the basics and stuff already so, see ya~." He was done working now so, they could finally play the game together like she had always wanted. "Sunday, initiate protocol: Game." -Ooooooooooong. [Initiating protocol.] [Preparing optimal game environment¡­] She was happy. And, inside the Chariot, there was a smile present on his face as well. Chapter 3 - 3: Free world [Scanning Bio-data¡­] [Confirming Bio-data.] [Ding.] [Confirm registration into the .] "Confirm." [Ding.] [Bio-ID registration has been confirmed.] [Registering new ID. Please proceed with the Metabody creation process.] "Why can''t you just call it a character creation process instead?" There was a simple way but they chose something different instead¡­ he liked their style. "Cool." Sitting inside his chariot, he was ready to log into the second world for the first time. Everything was ready, he was done remembering his previous efforts, his partner was excited to play with him, so, he couldn''t possibly disappoint her. -Ooooooooooooong! He closed his eyes, the inside systems of the chariot finished their scans and safety protocols, and the next moment he knew, he was feeling his mind leaving his body¡­ [Welcome to the junction of origin.] His mind was transported in a strange white space where he found himself floating in an endless room with no bottom or ceiling. "Is this what they call the character creation space? Where''s that thing-, oh." [Ding.] A gray holographic screen popped up before him, asking him to start the creation process. "Let''s see." It was a realistic game so there was no option to change the original appearance, however, in this space, one could create their game body which would possess their original physical characteristics. [Please enter your Immortal name.] Instead of saying character ID name, they were calling it an immortal name for some reason. "Aren''t you people creative, hun?" [Do you want to set your immortal name as (Aren''t you people creative, hun?)? Please confirm.] "No, lol. Haha, of course not." The game system was funnier than he had expected as well. He liked this. "Change it to Elio." There was no need to make his game name something fancy or different. He liked the name his mom gave him, so he was going to use it in this ''second world'' as well. [Changing the immortal name¡­] [Do you want to set your immortal name as (Elio)? Please confirm.] "Yes. Confirm." [Ding.] The first part of the Metabody creation process, the immortal name creation, was complete. So, he was moved to the second part where he had to choose a dress and some starting equipment for his character. "Alright, let''s see." This was an important part. He had seen many videos of this on YT and he had worked for many videos that explained this important process. "First of all, I''ll take the light clothes and some good shoes." Many people made some grave mistakes in this part. In , the players were given an {Inventory} skill that had a limited space which could be expanded with a special kind of money. It was an innate skill of the ''ones enslaved by destiny'' or the [Players] of this game. Something most natives of that other world could not use. And along with this eternally useful skill, they were given a pouch of rations, a wooden weapon of their choice, and nine stat points that they can distribute freely. "Alex once said I should choose a shield at the start since the tutorial quests tend to be more about survival or hunting." Everyone was given a random tutorial quest by the system that''s mostly about surviving against some strong opponent, or about hunting a set number of monsters, or sometimes, it''s all about reaching a certain point on the map. ''The difficulty varies, but the system does not give quests that cannot be completed by the players.'' Though, if a player dies during tutorial quest by any chance, there is a large possibility that their tutorial quests are changed. "According to the popular guides, the hunting quests are the most profitable for the beginner players since they can receive hunting rewards on top of the quest rewards in it." But, Alexandra, his pretty girlfriend who was a high level player in this game, had told him how there are very rare ''scenario'' quests in these tutorials that give the best rewards to the beginners. And, since he knew this lesser known fact, he was hoping to come across this ''rare'' kind of quest as well. "I don''t wanna kill those things with my own hands anyway. They are alive and they deserve their freedom as well." was a kind of game that rewarded the players with EXP points for all kinds of mundane tasks. ''There was an exp reward for cutting wood, making food, painting, and even just for exploring.'' Unlike other games, this was ''experience'' points in their true meaning. This system was one of the main reasons he also wanted to play this game for such a long time¡­ "Alright then, we will go with the shield." After the weapon choice and clothing choice, it was time to link the game account with the other accounts connected with the biometrics. [Ding.] This game was certainly free to play however, as the currencies that were used in this game world was a limited resource in itself, the money of the real world and the money inside the game were closely connected. [Confirm linking process of bank IDs associated with the Bio-ID.] One can connect their game accounts with their bank accounts and directly trade the money they had inside the game within the real-world market. They can trade the money with other people as well, and just like shares or e-currencies, the in-game currencies of had a deep impact on the real world. ''This whole thing was one of the reasons people played this game.'' Playing and being good at it was now more profitable than doing a part time job¡­ but he''d still stick to the job system rather than this game. ''The investment costs of a Chariot was astronomical for a regular person so People generally used head gears or capsule rooms to enter the virtual world.'' The money one might have to spend to make some good usable cash was not generally small. So, even though people preferred to take the risk and try this new world, if it were up to him¡­ he would choose the safer method. Being logical was the better choice sometimes. Though¡­ he didn''t really have to care about the others anymore. He was retired, so thinking about those stressful things was useless. "Alright then¡­" After the linking process, it was time for the stat distribution. [Ding.] ============ ID: Elio (Level-0) Race: Human (Commoner) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 1 Agility: 1 Endurance: 1 T-T (System stats) Intelligence: 1 Luck: 1 Charm: 1 T-T (Functional stats) Energy: 10/10 Stamina: 10/10 Fatigue: 0/10 (Stat points: 9) {Skills: ¡ª .} [Titles: ¡ª .] ============ The only stats he could increase with free stat points were the physical stats. The system stats, on the other hand, were awarded by the system. The functional stats were three status bars that stayed on the corner of one''s vision. They displayed the current state the player was in through the numbers and a colored bar that increased or decreased with the player''s status. "Strength stat will increase my physical abilities, agility will increase my mental and physical abilities simultaneously, while endurance is completely a mental stat." Players usually assigned these stat points based on what kind of characters they wanted to build, but as an advice from an expert, he just skipped the stat assignment process for now. "There''s no need to do it right now." If he just assigned his stats based on what he wanted to do right now, he might not be able to do well in the tutorial or later when he really needed them. ''The game replicated the physical capabilities of the body of the players anyway so, I''m not going to be particularly weak during the tutorial.'' It was the better choice to not use them from the start anyway. So, skipping this process and finishing up his basic player settings, he moved on to the main thing. [Ding.] [You will now be transported to the tutorial zone.] [The junction of origin welcomes you, Sir Elio.] [{( May the Intertwined destiny be your strength, keeping your journey eternally pulsing. May your energies be forever illuminated, and your ambitions forever trailblazing. )}] With that unique voice encouraging him like every single new hope of this world, the eternal white space around him vanished along with the invisible platform supporting his body. He started falling into a dark space covered in dots of light that seemed like lines to his moving eyes. He wasn''t feeling the wind pressure yet, and he couldn''t feel the certain pull of gravity that he should have felt while falling down, so it was more like the space around him was the one moving instead of him. He was being moved at a fast speed in a vacuum from what he could tell¡­ but, the feeling he had at this time was much stranger than a normal free fall. S~ea??h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He did not know what was happening with him. Additionally, as soon as he moved past this endless starry tunnel, he lost consciousness. [Ding.] When he opened his eyes, he had already arrived at his destination and¡­ a quest window was open before his eyes. He didn''t understand what had just happened, however, when his mind cleared up and he looked around him, the attractive realistic scenery overwhelmed his senses. "Damn¡­" He had arrived in the new world. This was the start of his journey. And, he didn''t like the tutorial quest that he had received from the system. Chapter 4 - 4: Tutorial quest ============ [Tutorial quest: ] : Subjugate 30 creatures higher level than you. Reward: Tutorial exclusive reward box. ============ "Looks like a subjugation quest." Nestled within a peaceful-looking forest was situated a shallow water land, a lake where he had somehow landed for this tutorial quest. "Haaaa¡­" The water surrounding him was relatively clean, and the foliage of tall trees above him blocked significant light from the sun. One could see right to the bottom of these shallow waters, where smooth pebbles resembling jewels of this forest rested. Gentle ripples spread across the lake, shimmering in the sunlight and creating a soothing, rhythmic pattern. "I don''t want to kill." The shoreline a distance away from him was soft, fine sand gently sloping into the water. Here and there, clusters of unique plants resembling water lilies floated gracefully on the surface, their green and blue blossoms adding vibrant splashes of color to this already green canvas. Tall reeds and cattails fringed the edges of these waters, swaying gently in the breeze and providing a home for a variety of wildlife. "Well, it feels good here, at least," he admired the artistry of this wonderful scenery¡­ Dragonflies danced about, their iridescent wings catching and reflecting the fragmented light. Frogs croaked softly from hidden spots among the reeds, while small birds dip down to the water''s edge for a drink. "To think these simple creatures don''t even have levels¡­ this game sure is something, huh?" Surrounding the lake were tall trees, their branches stretching out over the water to create shady, secluded spots. The dappled sunlight filtering through the leaves cast a gentle, shifting light on the water below. The air was filled with the soft rustling of leaves and the gentle hum of insects, creating a peaceful, natural symphony. This shallow water lake seemed like a sanctuary of calm and beauty, a perfect place to escape the hustle and bustle of everyday life. "Fascinating¡­" As a person of art, nature was one of the most beloved things to him. And since he had not traveled much in his life, he never really had a chance to experience something like this. He had still traveled all around his state for various jobs though, and as a business owner, he had to move around his areas of activity frequently. He had experienced a lot of things and the VR technology had helped him see many things that he could not see in the original world. "Alright then¡­" Now that he was experiencing this ''second world'' himself, he knew why people were so crazy about all this. "This is much better than what I had hoped for." He moved his hands, his fingers, his limbs, and tried a backflip. He could do it in the real world, so he thought he could do it in this place as well since the physical capabilities were replicated here, but¡­ he forgot that he was standing on the slippery lake surface. -Dhum! -Splashhh¨Cshurrrr! He slipped, fell face flat on the water, and ended up wetting all the clothes he was wearing with the water that splashed all over him. "Welp¡­" Things were a little too realistic here. "Looks like I''ll have to light a fire first." He was completely wet now, and in this humid place with such an environment, the chances of him dying just because he was wet were pretty high. ''Alex warned me about things like hypothermia, dehydration, and other nature-affected debuffs are a thing here.'' People actually died here just because they caught cold by wetting their clothes or due to infection from some insignificant wound. "Where could I find the firewood now¡­" The area around him was all part of the lake so he first got out of the lake and went back to the shore. In front of him was a vast lake spreading deep into the forest, while behind him was a dangerous forest most probably saturated with strong creatures that could kill a (Level-0) like him in a matter of seconds. He had no idea where he was, but one thing was clear. "Subjugating 30 creatures¡­" By the simple interpretation, the quest was asking him to kill thirty ''creatures'' or the beings that the system recognized as creatures. Or, simply monsters or something that possessed levels. "Oh, there''s one over there." He had reached the shore and was wringing his clothes when he suddenly spotted something moving a little distance away from him. "Is that a jellyfish?" On the other side from where he had wetted himself in the lake, there was a transparent blob visible on the surface. It resembled the head of a jellyfish¡­ however, there was nothing inside of it. The creature was far away so he first focused his eyes to get a better picture of the thing, when he suddenly noticed something glowing above the creature''s head. ============ [Slime]: (Level:3) Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. ============ "Oh damn. That''s a slime?" [Ding.] [You have identified a creature for the first time. Rewarding Exp.] [Ding!] [Level up!] [(Level-0) > (Level-1).] "Hmm?" In , one needed to focus on one thing constantly to trigger [Observation]. A passive feature that all sentient beings of this world including the players could trigger occasionally. Anything that is closely ''observed'' by the individual, after obtaining some basic information about it, can trigger a different feature called [Identification]. "Didn''t she say I''ll need to focus real hard to trigger [Identification]? This¡­ was pretty easy though?" This situation confused him as well. Just like most VR games, this game also had {Skills}. However, the skills were powerful abilities that were only granted to individuals who knowingly or unknowingly fulfilled certain set conditions. "If this is so easy, perhaps¡­" He tried focusing on the lotus-like green flowers that were growing a distance away from him. He believed that if identifying a creature like this slime was so easy, he would be able to identify the other things around him as well and obtain {Appraisal}, the rare skill that one obtains after identifying 300 things. From the looks of it, he was good with focusing and identification. Thus, He was focusing on the flower in an attempt to test his theory, when he suddenly had to stop as he noticed something peculiar beside the flower. "Wait, is that thing coming here¡­?" It seemed like the slime that was playing some distance away from him was now suddenly swimming towards him. And that too, at a speed he was not expecting. "Hey¡­ hey! Wait! Damn it." He wanted to run away from that place, but there was only the dangerous forest beside him. "Shit." He was naked as well. His clothes were now drying on the low tree branch. He did not have any weapons, only a shield to defend himself against that creature. So, in the grave moment of tension, he first took out the shield from his inventory¡­ and then prayed to the gods of this world for their protection against the creature rushing towards him. He had worked on those tentacle animation stuff as well, so he already had a bad impression of slimes and slimy things¡­ He was never looking forward to seeing one of them right when he started playing this gorgeous game. Chapter 5 - 5: Slimes Slimes were a very common lifeforms in these kinds of fantasy games. Some places portrayed them as slimy creatures with no certain forms, while some games portrayed them as creatures with a round form covered by sticky mucus. ''In the the slimes were a special lifeform.'' They were one of the oldest species to have existed in this world and they possessed a unique ability to adapt to their environments. ''They are the only creatures with the most known varieties present in this world.'' There are simple round slimes, there are formless sticky slimes, there are slimes that resemble tentacle creatures, slimes that could use magic, slimes that could use elemental powers, slimes on the same standards as the highest order existences and there are even higher intelligence slimes that have humanoid forms. ''All slimes had the ability to [Adapt] to their environment better than the other beings.'' One of the reasons we could find these creatures practically in places all around the world was the special adaptive powers they possessed. ''I was surprised when that name and level appeared on top of its head all of a sudden.'' There were slimes of all forms and nature. Some were good and friendly so people kept them as pets and companions, some used them as tools and since they were some of the simplest lifeforms possessing only a body and energy core, they were easy to deal with as well. "I thought it was going to attack me when it came running in my direction." But, thankfully, that was not the case. "It looks pretty cute." The colorless blob that resembled the head of a jellyfish was playing around in the same place where he had slipped and fell. There was some kind of green moss floating on the water''s surface and this slime seemed to be eating this green stuff. ''Can it even see me?'' It wasn''t far from him so he thought it would attack him at any moment now. But, instead, the creature was happily enjoying his moss. After his observations, he was pretty sure that the creature surely knew about his existence as well. It knew he was there since it could sense him as well as everything in the water with its unique senses. It was merely a blob that seemed harmless. But, it was still higher level than him, which meant there was a good possibility that it was stronger than him. "I have to kill these things?" He found out with some more time that the lake was actually filled with these creatures. There were nine of them just around this place and with more moss he gathered from the lake surface, more of them might gather around there. "Hmmm¡­" He could pretty much kill them all as easily as he wanted. They were easy to deal with and most of them were only around (Level-3) to (Level-5). He was (Level-1) and, as he had confirmed, he really had a talent for observation. Perhaps it was thanks to all his deep focus and ''Zone'' time with his work that he was able to focus much better than what his partner had expected. "Subjugation¡­" Now, as he waited for his clothes to dry down, he sat on the shore with a few leaves covering his important parts. S§×ar?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He kept his shield out just in case something happened, and watched the transparent, cute creatures. "If I had an appraisal skill, I could have seen their actual status windows instead of just the basic identified information." It wasn''t easy to get skills, but some important skills were basic necessities. {Appraisal} was one of them¡­ and yet, not many people had it. "Hmmm¡­" The green lotus that he had found was in fact a rare herb that he had heard about in the past. The trees around him were also infused with Mana¨C a special natural energy that mages use. Even the lake water that these slimes were swimming in and the slimes themselves possessed Mana, making them more special than the normal water slimes. ''This must be some secluded space that not many people know about. Or else the system wouldn''t have thrown me here for this tutorial quest.'' He was in a special place, so he filled his inventory with things that his observation identified as something useful or important. It wasn''t every day that tutorials happened in places as amazing as this one. He had a good opportunity, and he did not wait for anything and filled his inventory completely. Now¡­ the only thing remaining was the tutorial quest. "Huuu¡­ well." He was uncertain, but it did not seem like these slime creatures were dangerous. So, he did something any curious person would do in his position, and walked back inside the lake. "Please don''t hurt me." He walked inside the lake, prayed for his life once again, and reached a spot surrounded by the slime creatures. "Let''s see¡­" He gathered some moss from the lake surface, and as soon as he did that, the slime''s attention was attracted to him. -Shrrrrrr¡­! They all started swimming towards him at a speed that most certainly was not safe! "No. no no no! Go that way!" He was suddenly afraid that these creatures would crash into him and he would die without even his clothes on¨C he was even more afraid of the possibility that he would get summoned to some other place if he failed this tutorial quest in that state. -Chu-pk! He threw the moss away from him right before the slimes crashed in him, and sensing the movement of the moss, the slimes also changed their direction and ran to where the moss had fallen. "Phew¡­" He thought he was going to die at that moment. Thankfully, he survived. "So you go after the treats just like a puppy, hun?" He watched them eat a bunch of moss, fight for a bigger portion, and finish it in a matter of seconds. -Shrrrrr¡­! Then he saw them swimming back towards him even faster than earlier, got scared once again, and hurriedly gathered more moss to throw at the creatures¨C but he wasn''t fast enough this time. -Dham! One of the slimes crashed into him right before he could throw the moss away. -Shrrr! Sharrrr! Shrrrup! And, just like a skipping stone thrown on a lake surface, he was thrown all the way out of the lake¡­ and crashed into a tree out on the shore. "Augh!" Then he coughed up blood. And was injured internally, as well as physically. "..." After that, he lost consciousness. And was left on the shore, covered in fine sand and blood, naked, with all nine of the Slimes enjoying the food that he had prepared for them. Chapter 6 - 6: Recovery "Ughhhh¡­" The hell just happened? "Ahem! Aughhhh!" Why the hell am I vomiting blood?! "Ahem! Ahem!" And what the hell are those damned slimes doing?! "Ahem!" He was confused, so he first tried getting back up. But, his legs were too weak, and the pain in his chest where that slime had crashed into him was just too much for him at that moment. ''Why is that thing so strong?'' Slimes were supposed to be creatures of nature that didn''t have any muscles or organs. They are purely a mucus that moves with the help of the energy in their core. Sure there are slimes that possess a physical body resembling the humans, but they are still slimes made of mucus and a core. They weren''t supposed to be this strong¡­ "Ughhh¡­" But after just one of them crashed into him, he was thrown all the way here and now was on the verge of death. ''Actually, how did I not die?'' He could tell his ribs were broken by the impact, and he also received internal injuries. Realistically, he should have died from that impact but¡­ he was still alive. "Mmmm¡­" He was in pain. His head, his chest, his back, even his limbs were hurting. And yet, he was somehow still alive. "Haaa¡­" He did not understand how this had happened, but the fact that he was still alive was still true. And since he was alive, the blessing that all players possess would bring him back to his optimal state soon. However, he knew it would take some time. ''What are they doing there though?'' He somehow dragged his body and rested it against the tree as he looked at the slime creatures on the shore that had made him like this. They did not have any face or anything so he couldn''t tell if they wanted to eat him or if they were feeling pity, but, one thing he could see behind him was a clear lake that did not have any moss left on its surface. They finished their food, so they might have just wanted him to get more. But, it was not going to be possible. "Haaa¡­" His eyes were heavy. It was already evening so he knew he was out for quite a while now. But, he was sleepy once again. The pain was getting to him, so even though he was in a dangerous place with those creatures looking at him, he had no strength left in him. He never wanted to kill them and he didn''t think they wanted to kill him either. It was an accident¡­ he knew that much. "Ughhh¡­" So, even as he closed his eyes while tightly biting his lips, he did not resent those poor little creatures. It was their fault that he was in that state. But, it was fine¡­ he wasn''t mad at them or his own self for not killing them when he had the chance. ¡­ He closed his eyes and fell asleep. And when he woke up, it was already evening once again. "Ughhh¡­" The pain was still there, but it wasn''t as bad as it was just a few moments ago. ''So this is still a game, hun?'' It was justified with ''having a blessing'' but since players were still players, having them under prolonged physical debuffs made no sense. Not many would want to rest for months to recover from this kind of injury. And, since higher-level players experience even severe injuries during their fights, it would be dumb to have them be bedridden for months. This was a game, and recovery happening overnight was the most logical and realistic thing. "Haaa¡­" He looked around after checking his condition, and the slimes weren''t there anymore. He could see them in the distant waters, but they weren''t here anymore. ''Looks like they were hungry after all.'' He tried standing up. But his legs didn''t have enough strength to stand up just yet. He fell down every time he tried getting up, but when nothing worked, he gave up and rested back against the tree, again. "At least my throat is clear now." He coughed up all the blood blocking his airway and throat so he had a good enough breathing space or else he would have choked to death due to blockages. "Let''s eat something¡­" He had the food that was provided to all the players at the beginning. Not many players needed to use it since the tutorial usually only took a few hours to complete. But, in his condition, he needed it. ''Status window.'' [Ding.] ============ S§×arch* The N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. ID: Elio (Level-2) Race: Human (Commoner) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 1 Agility: 1 Endurance: 2 T-T (System stats) Intelligence: 1 Luck: 1 Charm: 1 T-T (Functional stats) Energy: 0/10 Stamina: 1/10 Fatigue: 9/10 (Stat points: 15) {Skills: ¡ª .} [Titles: ¡ª .] ============ He did not have any energy to function, and only food could fill that gauge once again. Fatigue will decrease with some more rest and his stamina will start recovering as soon as his condition gets back to normal. "Hmmm?" He noticed it late, but he was somehow (Level-2) now and there was an extra stat added to his endurance. He had done nothing noteworthy until now aside from getting beaten up and enduring pain, so it confused him. "What happened when I was out?" He called up the status window to see what had happened in the time he was unconscious. And it was here that he noticed the previous system messages. [Ding!] [You have experienced extreme impact for the first time! Rewarding Exp.] [You have experienced extreme trauma for the first time! Rewarding Exp.] [You have experienced the [Unconscious] state for the first time! Rewarding Exp.] [Ding!] [Level up!] [(Level-1) > (Level-2).] [You have recovered from physical and internal injuries for the first time. Rewarding Exp.] [For having a strong mind to endure the first extreme trauma and recovering safely, you have been rewarded.] [Endurance+1.] "Wow¡­ I get rewarded for getting beaten up as well?" This realistic game sure had its pros as well, hun? But just one stat point in a mental stat won''t really make any difference. He knew where he had to assign his stats after enduring that kind of experience. "Assign stat points." [Ding.] [You have used Free Stat Points.] [Ding.] [Strength:1 > 10.] [Endurance:2 > 8.] Agility surely affected both physical and mental characteristics, but in this place, if he was going to deal with beings possessing that kind of strength, he needed the power to resist their physical attacks and endure the impact on time. Agility was not going to help him that much in this wetland in the first place. "Haaa¡­ now what?" He was done eating, and after a little more rest, by the time his second night arrived, he had finally recovered completely. "She''s going to be mad¡­" In , time moved three times faster than in the real world, which means a person can live three times longer in this space. Not many games of this era offered this time difference feature, but was the one that did it the best. And, though there was a play-time limit for the headgear users and those who play in the rental stores, those who had high-tech Chariots like them did not have to worry about the connection time out for three whole original days. They can live in this world for nine system days and still be in peak condition¡­ but, he knew she would kill him if he didn''t come out for dinner, or for their regular training sessions, for that matter. "Let''s hope she understands¡­" This quest was important for him. So, now that he had recovered, was stronger, and had a clue about how to clear this quest without getting his hands bloody, he wanted to test out his theory once again. And for that, he needed to stay here¡­ in this exhilarating, deadly world. Chapter 7 - 7: Subjugation Once again entering the shallow waters without any of his clothes, with his round wooden shield tied on his back, he looked out for the ungrateful slimes that seemed to have forgotten about his existence. He moved carefully, not disturbing the moss on the lake surface. He now knew these creatures were attracted to the moss and nothing more, so he had already created a bowl-like container to gather as much of it as he could in the short intervals that he would get later, and after finding a right, safe place, he was ready to test his theory. "Let''s hope this works." He did not want to kill these things, they deserved to live and to enjoy their freedom as much as him or the rest of the players who enjoy this world. It was stupid to think that the creatures that players kill on a regular basis had anything like a right to freedom or life. He himself knew that he would inevitably have to kill some beings in the future if he wanted to peacefully enjoy his time in this world with his crazy partner, but he at least did not want to do that with his own hands. He knew it was foolish¡­ but until the inevitable day came, he wanted to keep his hands clean. "Now." From what he had seen, these low intelligence creatures followed their basic instincts and went after food. They had no interest in anything else, not even a human like him. All they wanted was the fine green stuff that grew at the bottom of the lake, a place they could not reach for some reason. They were aquatic species themselves but they could only swim on the surface and not dive inside. That was what he had understood with his observations. And, he also knew that if they were naturally inclined to ignore anything that did not serve them their food, they would also be naturally attracted to something that gave them more food than what they naturally obtained after roaming around the waters. ''The first time it came here was when a lot of moss was gathered on the surface after I slipped.'' And then many of them gathered when he picked out the moss from the ground himself. Now¡­ if they followed their natural instincts, what would happen when they realize he is someone that could give them more food than they might ever gather by themselves? "Come¡­" Taking a deep breath, he first got ready and gathered a large chunk of Moss from the water surface and filled his bowl. The slimes had already sensed the disturbance in the waters so they instinctively moved towards the disturbance at the same deadly speed that had previously knocked him out. But this time, he was ready. -Shrrrrr¡­! As soon as the slimes had reached a certain closeness to him, he threw a handful of moss away from him. -Shrrrrrr¡­! Some slimes followed the moss, but just like last time, there were some that could not stop and moved past his ''safety line''. When this happened, he either dodged them in a timely manner or used his shield to block them, endured the impact that was lessened thanks to his increased stats, and threw some more moss to chase them away. As he predicted, they did not know that there was a big bowl full of moss in his hands and only chased the thrown one that made contact with water. ''Good.'' He repeated this process until the slimes had realized that he only threw the moss when they were a certain distance away from him. When they were outside of that range, there was no moss. And when they were too close or crashed into him, the moss that they received was too little and it was thrown too close to the others who were already having their portion. ''Now, if only one of you realizes it¡­'' He repeated this process until the slimes had learned when they would get more moss and when they would have to compete against the others for the little amounts. He made sure to constantly move, get out of the waters, take breaks, and rest enough in between. Staying too long in water was no good either, so he stayed in only when he needed to and when he was done with his ''training session'' he went out and dried himself with the fire that he had barely managed to light. Another day passed just like that, and though he was not hoping for it anytime soon, something interesting happened the next day¡­ ''Yes.'' A slime Stopped right before his safety line. And it did not follow the others who had run away at the moss that was thrown a distance away. ''Come.'' The slime waited blankly for something to happen. And, surely, when all the others were away, Elio placed a bigger bunch of moss around him. He did not know what kind of thought process the slime might be having or if it was just instincts but, the slime did something he wanted. And it was rewarded for that. He made sure to cover himself with a shield to show the creature that it would not receive the moss if it ran at a high speed like he had done yesterday, and as to have understood his intentions, the slime moved slowly, reached the moss, and started eating the biggest portion without having to share it with anyone else. ''Cute.'' It did its best to finish it before the others who had sensed another presence of this moss around him arrived here, but it was small and failed to finish the big portion by itself. -Shrrrrrrr¡­! -Dhum! The others came running faster than they had done previously, and this time, some of them crashed in his shield, throwing him far back into the lake. "Phew." Thankfully, he managed to maintain his footing even in the slippery lake, and after the slimes followed him for more food, he repeated the process. ''Good!'' He knew that he was close to achieving something. There was a unique feeling inside his heart indicating something unique, so he continued feeding them until all nine of the slimes were following his lead and stopping at the point he wanted them to. They all got their individual big portions of moss when they did what he wanted them to, they enjoyed it without fighting with one another, and by the end of the sixth day in this forest¡­ the nine slimes were following him like trained dogs. Doing exactly what he wanted them to. ''Holy macaroni¡­'' And, by the nighttime on their sixth day, they had even learned not to harm the one that fed him the delicious water moss. [Ding!] "This actually worked, lol." [You have successfully Tamed a (Level-6) Manawater slime.] [You have successfully Tamed a (Level-4) Manawater slime.] [You have successfully Tamed a (Level-4) Manawater slime.] [You have successfully Tamed a (Level-3) Manawater slime.] [You have successfully Tamed a (Level-5) Manawater slime.] [You have successfully Tamed a (Level-4) Manawater slime.] [You have successfully Tamed a (Level-5) Manawater slime.] [You have successfully Tamed a (Level-5) Manawater slime.] [You have successfully Tamed a (Level-3) Manawater slime.] [Ding!] [You have successfully tamed a creature for the first time! Rewarding Exp.] [You have earned an achievement!] [Tutorial tamer (Rare) has been achieved!] S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [Achievement box will be added to the inventory.] [Ding!] [You have made your first achievement! Rewarding Exp.] [You have made an achievement during the tutorial, earning an achievement!] [Special Rookie (Common) has been achieved!] [Achievement box will be added to the inventory.] [Ding!] [You have subjugated nine creatures through taming.] [Subjugation target: 9/30.] [Ding!] [You have tamed more than one creature simultaneously. You will be rewarded.] [Intelligence+3.] [Charm+1.] [Level up!] [(Level-2) > (Level-6).] "Well, isn''t this great?" Two achievements and a jump of almost four levels. Four system stats, one point in the rare stat Charm, and even the solution to his predicament. His efforts these past few days surely paid off. And to top it off¡­ "Bling." "Blong." "Bling." Now, He also had nine fellows that he can play around with until he finishes this rather difficult quest. Chapter 8 - 8: Explain -Ptsssssssss¡­ -Sch-rick! [Playtime: 50:04:17 Clock hours. 150:12:51 System hours.] [Welcome back, second master. Master has been waiting for you.] The door of the chariot capsule opened and as soon as he looked outside, a Warm smile was greeting him. "Hello darling~. Did you have fun~." Alex was smiling at him warmly right outside of his game capsule. He knew he was going to get trashed after wasting her entire afternoon, and then not showing up to where she wanted him for six whole system days. He knew she must have been waiting in that town by herself, and also that she would be angry that he did not show up for so many days. He knew he was going to be scolded but the look she had right now was more of rage than anything positive. "Alex¡­ I can explain." "Ho? You can? What do you want to explain though? That you got too immersed in gaming that you stood up your girl for not a few hours but six fucking days?" She was still smiling warmly and the way she was talking so calmly right now sent shivers down his entire body. "I¡­ well, you see¡­ the thing is¡­" He wanted to explain to her why he couldn''t show up or what he was even doing in that situation. He wanted to explain himself, but she just kept looking at him with that Warm smile without saying anything for a solid five minutes. "¡­" "..." She wasn''t saying anything and she wasn''t doing anything either so the tension between them got so bad that he had no choice but to just make a move himself. "..." "I''m still stuck with my tutorial." He got out of the chariot while saying that, surprising her with his sudden words. "What do you mean you''re still stuck with the tutorial?" In this gaming room of theirs, there were a lot of expensive equipment and many of them cost a fortune. Some things here like the capsules that they used were one of a kind and were practically invaluable. He could not engage in combat in this place. They had a dedicated room for conflict resolution so, without saying anything more, he just moved to that room first. "What do you mean you''re still stuck with the tutorial?!" As soon as they were in the special room created for physical combat, she asked the same question again while jumping at him from behind. "As I said¡­" But he was already prepared for that, so he jumped up and performed a backflip before landing on her head with one foot and jumping once again. "I''m still doing the tutorial." It had been more than two days in the real world and six days in the game. It was more than enough time for anyone to finish even the difficult tutorial quests or even some of the scenario quests. "Did you receive some kind of special quest as well?" For a moment, she was happy thinking he got the rare quest that even she had not received at the start. She moved quickly, used a nearby stepping rod dug in the wall to jump up, and before her boyfriend could react, she aimed her slippers at his chin. -Dhum! "No. It was just a subjugation quest. To subjugate 30 creatures higher level than me." He blocked her attack with his forearm fortified with his other arm to absorb the impact. As he did that, he was in midair so it was a little difficult and he was thrown a few feet away from her due to the strong impact of her punch. "Ughh." She was strong. Way stronger than him physically¡­ but, he still survived against her every time. "The fuck are you doing then?! That''s practically one of the easiest things out there!" She was a veteran so, the moment she heard the quest was actually about subjugation, a switch flipped in her head and she moved even faster than him, closed their distance, and grabbed him by his collar when he tried running away. "What''s so difficult about killing a bunch of weak-ass things at bottom levels?! Your opponents wouldn''t be higher than (Level-10) anyway!" When he was in her hands, he knew his current position was one of the worst he had ever been in. -Slap! She had a strange habit of slapping things¡­ and just as he knew, since he was already in her hands, she slapped him before anything else. "Subjugation tutorials are so easy even the worst trash noobs clear it in three or so hours! 30 creatures isn''t even that many!" She first slapped his face, and then she slapped his head. Then, she played brutally and punched his kidneys, and after that, realizing he was in pain already, she stopped, looked at his helpless face¡ª and almost got emotional when he did not play any tricks like he usually did. "Tell me honestly¡­" Removing her hands from his neck, she hugged him first, got emotional, did not feel sorry for what she did, but instead got worried that something unexpected might have happened to him. "Explain, please." He was smart and knew all about the creatures that might appear in the tutorial quests. She had told him all that he would need to know and as someone who had worked with countless content creators famous for their special content about this game, he had much more knowledge than some normal newbie. "Well¡­" She was worried that something so unexpected happened to him that- despite his wish to not kill anything with his own hands- he had faced something unavoidable. "How about we talk over dinner?" She was hugging him tightly¡­ so tightly that he was having difficulty breathing. Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Her slender hands did not justify her strength. Her entire body which looked more natural rather than muscular did not justify just how stupidly strong she was either. Even for him, it was sometimes difficult to deal with this one. So, he first made her release him, and then after reassuring her that he was fine and nothing too serious had happened with him, he grabbed her hands and led her to their dining hall. She was the one that made their meals and she had prepared another attractive feast for them tonight. She was lovely. Even with her little complex characteristics. "So¡­" Sitting at their dining table beside one another, he told her everything that he had experienced in these past two days while enjoying her delicious cooking. And, contrary to his expectations, she really was surprised at the end of his story¡­ Chapter 9 - 9: Rare situation "You managed to identify a slime after just looking at it for a few seconds?" "Yes." "And then a slime smashed your ass, made you bleed for the first time and then you passed out for a day?" "...yes." "You somehow survived that, made a plan, and tamed those slimes to subjugate them? And earned two achievements in the process?" "That is correct." She looked at him as if she was looking at some stand up comedian from the first row right after an inappropriate joke. "Damn¡­ aren''t you an amazing crazy bastard?" "I''m your amazing crazy bastard, if that means anything in this situation." Then she glared at him for a second for his cringe reply, and rolled her eyes at him. "Shuddup." What he told her surely was not something she would hear from any ordinary player playing a VR game for the first time in their life. It wasn''t even something she would hear from the experienced players of the game that had already done many things and passed higher levels. "A lake with Mana, a strange forest, and a lake that has (Jade Lotus) growing in them. Hmmm¡­ you sure are lucky that there are only slimes in that place." From what she knew about the unique flowers that he had encountered in that lake, she knew that many dangerous creatures lived in the areas with that kind of herb. From high level snake monsters to even strong reptiles, araneae, and anthropoids. Waters with Mana attracted all kinds of creatures and basic slimes were only one of them. "Well¡­ there''s a forest there. And the lake seems to be quite big so who knows what I might encounter if I try going away from-." "Don''t be stupid." The system placed him in that particular spot for a reason. She did not know why there were only slimes when there should be all kinds of creatures in those waters, but the slimes were much better than any other kind of creatures if he wanted to get past his tutorial without killing anything like he wanted. "Just stay there, attract the slimes with the slimes that you have tamed, ask them to go around and see if there is anything dangerous out there, and even though you can''t communicate with them directly, now that they are your tamed creatures, you should understand a few things that they want to share. From the sound of it, these slimes are pretty smart so use them and just stay where you are." She was worried that he would get killed the moment he tried going away from that place. It was neither safe nor logical. So, as she finished her dinner, she glared at him once more to see if he understood what she was saying. S§×arch* The n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "I''m not messing around here. If you die and lose this chance, your achievements might get revoked as well." "But isn''t that unlike-." "I just told you to shut up, did I not?" Achievements were a special recognition feature of NO. The system evaluated various actions and the way they were performed in order to reward the players. Every one of the achievements were unique and special and just having one achievement by the time you reach level-10 was considered a big thing. Players who have an achievement in their tutorials are called star players with great potential and all the guilds around the many countries keep their eyes on all these possible star players. "Right. What level are you anyway?" Achievements awarded achievement boxes. And these achievement boxes were one of the most valuable things for the players as well as the natives of that world. It was said that the achievements are in fact a way the ''gods'' of that world recognize some certain actions of the individuals. Though, it was not proven just yet. "I''m (Level-6)? Well, looks like I will reach (Level-10) by the end of the tutorial-." "Phuuuuuuuuu! What?!" She was having water, but she ended up spitting nearly all of it on his face. "You''re (Level-6) after taming merely nine slimes?! What the hell were you actually doing! Tell me everything again!" According to her veteran knowledge, even the people who played hunting tutorials of the highest difficulty and had to hunt hundreds of creatures only reached (Level-6) after defeating tens of creatures. The Exp requirement for each level increase increased significantly after each level so mathematically, one needed to kill a hundred and fifty slimes of (Level-3) to (Level-6) or a hundred goblins with average (Level-5) or fifty creatures of average level of (Level-6) to reach (Level-6) themselves. It wasn''t easy to level up in this game so even the talented players needed a week of real world time to reach (Level-10). Hardly anyone reached (Level-10) in their tutorials¡­ But he was saying he casually reached that level after only getting beaten up playing with some little blobs? Surely, there was something wrong here. "...what the hell?" He complied with her orders until now since he was the one in the wrong. But that was not the case anymore. They were done talking about why he was late and now they were talking about the levels. "How dare you, you little¡­" He first cleaned his face with a blue handkerchief and looked at her with an angry look. "What are you doing!" He then shouted at her, catching her off guard. "Sit down." Then he ordered her to sit back down, and with a still stunned expression, she did as she was told. "What''s so surprising about reaching (Level-6)? It''s nothing that surprising anyway." He looked at her with that angry gaze but, instead of saying anything, she just looked back at him with a blank expression. Her face was blushing for some reason, but as she continued looking at his unhappy look, she got back to her senses and shook her stupid look. "Ahem." With a fake cough, she got back to her serious self and explained to him how it was rare for someone to reach that kind of level after just a few days of playtime that did not involve any kind of killing. He had only worked with famous creators until now so he did not know the things that common low level players or those who are just starting this game go through, so she told him things that were new to him. "It''s not easy for people to identify something, it''s even rare to have a tutorial in that kind of rare place. Plus if you were to kill those slimes the moment you discovered them, the chances are greater that you would have died from their defensive attacks. And even if you were to succeed in killing them, the chances of getting Exp to reach that kind of level would be near impossible." Regardless of their kind or levels, slimes that live on the water surface and eat moss must be lower grade creatures with nothing special about them. And, even after adding all the experience points that he received for the other things, taming creatures did not give that kind of Exp. At least, taming simple slimes with the help of some lake moss should not give that much Exp. "Well, it could just mean that I''m special, right?" He looked at her with a smirk on his face. One that annoyed her beyond help. "Of course you''re special! Aren''t you the protagonist destined to be the hero that saves the world?!" She shouted, and was just about to flip their dining table, when she realized it was a costly piece. And clenched her fists. "Damn bastard!" She had put a great ton of time and effort into this game even though she was so smart and was called a genius. She never had things this easy, she had to struggle to cross every level and gather enough Exp to level up at those lower as well as higher levels¡­ and here he was, saying stuff he was special and shit. "Bastard¡­" She stomped out of the dining room and went straight to their bedroom. "Haaa¡­" He knew now that she was like this, his entire night will be spent consoling her¨C or fighting with her. "Fudge." He knew how sensitive she was when it came to things related to this game and yet he played that prank¡­ He slammed his foot on the ax himself this time. And it was going to cost him a happy, peaceful night''s rest. As well as some cuddling. Chapter 10 - 10: Tamed creatures [Ding.] [Ding.] [Ding.] A few status windows popped up before him right when he logged back in the next day. ''Haaa¡­'' Not only did his mistake yesterday cost him a good night''s rest, she also did not make any breakfast for him and he had to order in. "Even the best restaurants in the city are no match for her cooking." He was the more artistic one and cooking was an art, and yet, she was somehow so good with it that he still could not understand how the hell she puts all those flavors in those simple things. "Haaa¡­" sea??h th§× n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She was mad at him for now, but that was a regular occurrence. He knew she would get back to her normal self after a few days. And actually, now that she was upset, he knew she wouldn''t disturb him while he was playing this game. "Bling." "Blong." -Splash. Splash. Splash. "Hello guys." The moment he came back to his tutorial area in the same forest, before the same lake, and on the same ground from where he had left, he was greeted by his new companions that seemed to have been waiting for him in the waters of the lake shore. "Did you all wait for me?" He removed his clothes and put them in his inventory as he entered the lake waters. Then he counted them one by one and called them by a name he had given them during their training. "Az, Bobo, Can, Do, Em, Fi, Gg, Hu, I¡­ Looks like everyone is still alive and well." All nine of them were here. And yet, when he did the headcount, he found not nine but twelve slimes present around him. "Hmm? Why are there more of them? Did they have babies in the time I was gone?" That could not have been the case since he knew even creatures with fast reproductive rates like Slimes did not grow as big as their parents in a few days. He was confused for a moment, but then he realized that he had received a few messages from the system when he logged in and called them up. [Ding.] [Tamed Manawater slime has subjugated a (Level-3) Manawater slime.] [Tamed Manawater slimes have subjugated a (Level-7) Manawater Poisonous Bug.] [You have received a portion of Exp as the tamer.] [Tamed Manawater slime has dominated a (Level-3) Manawater slime.] [Tamed Manawater slime has dominated a (Level-2) Manawater slime.] [Tamed Manawater slime has dominated a (Level-2) Manawater slime.] [You have received a portion of Exp as the tamer.] [Ding.] [Your Tamed creatures have formed a (Family).] [Your Tamed creatures have dominated creatures of the same kind and added them to the (Family).] [As the tamer, all Exp obtained from the (Family) under your command will be increased slightly.] [As the tamer, you will receive extra Exp from creatures that were added to the (Family) by a creature you had tamed previously.] [Ding!] [Level up!] [(Level-6) > (Level-7).] [Subjugation target: 11/30.] "..." In the concept of classes was surely a thing. There were sword users, there were mages, there were people who did miscellaneous things, and there were people who just explored the world. The natives of this world referred to the Players as [Foreigners]. People who were cursed to revive upon their deaths. Just like every other game, they had an but it was only one of the many associations that the players could join. Basically, these associations offered a path to the Players just like it did to every other native. "You guys formed a family on your own when I was out?" If someone wanted to pursue the path of sword, there was a knight''s association. If someone wanted to practice magic, there was the mage''s tower. If someone wanted to explore the world without having to get access permissions from the other nations every time, they joined the adventurer''s association. There were no restrictions to what association one could join or how many they could be part of at one time, however, after becoming part of these places, many services that only these places could offer became available to them. one of the important aspects of this world, was only possible after one became part of these associations¨C or somehow found a native that could teach them directly. But finding independent natives like them was near impossible, so players opted for the associations. "Bling!" "Blong!" was one of the rare professions, but not as rare as or who also dealt with the creatures of this world. "Wow~. Aren''t you bunch amazing?" Much like in the real world, there were many creatures in this world that could be tamed through various means. Those who tamed the creatures, the beasts, the monsters, or even the ''slaves'' were called Tamers. "Bling!" "Bling!" He was feeding them more moss now that he was here. But, just like before, he was giving them their own portions individually. "Bing?" The three new slimes had no idea what the rest of them were doing or what this strange being was. But they knew instinctively that if the others weren''t harming him, then it meant he was not to be harmed. "..." Seeing so much moss stunned them and they wanted to jump at the big portions, but they did not dare do that when the rest of them were eating it. They were new to this system and did not know much about it, but after a few hours of teaching and support from his already tamed slimes, the three new ones had also learned how to react to his clues. "Can you show me the poison bug you all killed?" "Bling!'' "Blong!" They were jumping on the water surface which produced a funny sound. And, if one listened closely, these sounds were distinct from one another. Something that almost acted like their voice. "It isn''t far, right?" "Blong!" Through the previous messages, he had learned that the creatures that they killed were counted as his subjugations as well. However, the creatures that they dominated were not counted as the creatures that he subjugated. It simply meant that he could use their help in the subjugation process and finish this quest a little more easily. Which made things pretty easy for him. There was apparently no time limit to this tutorial, which was rare. However, even if he could stay here for a little more, he had to get out of here and reach the starter town where she had been waiting for him. He had obtained good enough subordinates for now which will help him clear this quest. So he had to hurry and prepare to leave now. -Shrrrrrr¡­! "Hey, hey. Slow down! I can''t swim like you all!" Through the notifications earlier and from the warnings of his girlfriend, he knew the slimes weren''t the only creatures in this mana filled lake. There were many more. "Wow. That''s a big bug, alright." And unlike the adorable, harmless slimes, these other kinds of creatures were just as dangerous as one might expect to find in a deep forest area like this one. "Yak." And surely, neither their alive bodies nor their dead selves were something one might want to look at for long¡­ Chapter 11 - 11: Finishing the tutorial "Hmmm¡­" They made a mess out of the creature so even he could not make heads or tails out of what was left of its body. "It should have been around one meter in length and seeing the wings, it should have been similar to a grasshopper by design, but like a big goose by size." The system called it a poisonous bug, but that should be just what the system calls creatures like these. There should be something else players and natives call them, but he won''t know about it anytime soon. "Seeing the jaw structure, it seems like they are carnivorous." At this moment, a little further away in the lake but not too deep that the shore would become invisible, he was looking down at the butchered body of a dead poisonous bug. "There should still be some poison left in its poison glands so let''s take it along." Unlike usual games, creatures did not disappear after getting killed in . They also did not drop any items either, since their entire body was left after being killed. Though, in very rare cases, some creatures left behind a [Spirit orb]. Something that contained a power that the creatures possessed. Successfully absorbing these special orbs granted one a {Skill} of that creature. However, those things were pretty rare in this game. "Hmmm. Should I have the other things as well? Do you eat anything other than that moss?" He was asking his slime friends, and the slimes instinctively understood what he was asking as well so as if to say ''no'' they stayed still in their place. As he had observed, when they agreed with something he was saying or wanted to answer positively, they would start jumping. When they wanted to say something mundane, they would move their bodies in a certain way¡­ though he yet did not know what they all wanted to tell him with those movements. "You don''t? Well, looks like you have adapted to that moss for some reason." Well, that was fine. If they did not want this creature that they had hunted themselves, he did not mind having it all for himself. "Though, where will I put these things now?" He got what he wanted and moved back to his camp. The creatures did not come out of the water even now, so he had confirmed that they were only limited to the water surface. "Hmmm¡­" His inventory was already filled with those Jade Lotus and some other things that he found catchy. The inventory space that one receives at the start was limited and he will have to reach the town before he could upgrade his inventory. "Well, let''s leave them here for now." He had selected all the things in his inventory after careful consideration and he had also talked about them with Alex so he knew it was better to have them than some byproducts of a creature. S§×ar?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. It surely wasn''t like this was some very special bug that could only be found in this lake, so there was no need to pay too much attention to the things related to this. "Anyway, do you all know if there are more creatures out there? Can you lure them here?" "Bling!" "Blong." "Bling!" Some of them jumped enthusiastically while some did not show any special reaction to his question. "So Az, Can and I know what I am saying? Can you three bring some creatures, preferably weaker than that bug here?" "Bling!" "Bliing!" "Blingg!" They jumped again, as if replying to him positively. "Alright then, let''s do something like this¡­" He knew what he had to do now that he was done with nearly everything he wanted here. So he explained to the slimes what he wanted them to do¡­ interracial communication wasn''t possible normally unless both beings knew a common language, and when it came to creatures, things were even more difficult. Few creatures were smart enough to understand what someone was saying. Even fewer could respond back to the speaker in some way. Even the tamed beasts weren''t any different from the normal creatures of their kind. They were merely trained by someone to follow certain instructions and give certain responses to those instructions. It was simple classical conditioning, pairing of a stimulant with a random action. Slimes did not get smarter or become special after being tamed. They were still the same slimes, however, the tamed ones recognised the tamer and knew what kind of actions would earn them a snack from their tamers. "Alright go." "Bling!" "Blingg!" -Shrrrrr¡­! The three ran away deep in the lake waters while Elio and the rest of the company prepared for their return. This time, he was wearing clothes. The shield was still in his hands, but he had climbed the tree and was now on a tree branch, watching the slimes that were still on the shore waters. They all waited for a while, and thankfully, they did not have to wait for too long. -Shrrrrrr¡­! After only a few minutes of going away, the three slimes were back. -Splush! Splush! Splush! And right behind them were three creatures that, once again, did not look like anything one would want to look at. "What is that thing now?" Possessing legs resembling a frog''s while a body that resembled a fish''s, the creature that they had brought back with them was one of the most disproportionate things he had ever seen. "Damn¡­" There was a strange uniqueness to this creature. Something he had not seen before and perhaps also something he might not have ever even imagined the existence of if he had not seen one like this. [Ding.] ============ [Brown tree Brass]: (Level:30) ============ "...wait, what?" He stared at them a little too much so he ended up Identifying the creature. And when he did, he knew this thing was not something he was supposed to mess with. "Abort! Abort! Go away! Hide, damn it!" He could clearly tell they had somehow lured these creatures here after messing with them. From the looks of it, the fish-frogs weren''t happy right now and the way they were chasing the slimes did not seem good either. There were two of them and both of them were (Level-30). They most certainly weren''t something he was supposed to mess with at his level even though they were only as big as a big dog. Who knew what kind of abilities these creatures had¡­ and he had no intention of finding it out for himself either. "Alex was right." He sighed as he threw some moss in the distance as a signal for the slimes to hide in the locations they had decided previously. The slimes thankfully reacted to his signal and hid away in time, and even though the fish-frogs were angry, after a moment of stomping their feet and messing up with water, they went back to where they had come from without causing any big scene. "Looks like I''ll have to show them what ''weak'' means for this to work." These innocent creatures did not understand what he meant when he asked them to lure weak creatures here. ''They perhaps brought the strongest ones they could find.'' It''s absurd how things like them live so close to this place. ''It''s not safe to stretch things for long¡­'' He knew he had to end things now. So, as soon as he confirmed that the frog-fish had gone from his higher position, he came down and gathered his slimes once again. He was going to make sure they knew what weak meant this time so that they don''t make a dangerous mistake like this one again. It was dangerous this time. Who knows if he will live if something similar happens again. Chapter 12 - 12: Departure The diversity of creatures around this lake was much greater than what he had expected. ============ [Green grass slime]: (Level-6) [Starfish lizard]: (Level-7) [Lightning Axolotl]: (Level-7) [Softshell pointhorn]: (Level-8) [Moss slimes]: (Level-9) [Yellow beaked Mall]: (Level-9) ============ Some creatures that the slimes lured in were big and much weaker than how big or dangerous they appeared, while some creatures were small and yet so strong that the slimes had a tough time dealing with those enemies. They were blobs that lived on the water surface who happened to be very fast swimmers, so the main attack they used to deal with the enemies was a swift tackle directly to their bodies. They did not have fancy skills like the creatures that they had brought back with them did, so with their limited combat abilities, it would have been difficult for them to deal with these creatures. Thankfully, they were not alone. "Good job, Bobo! Now! To the back!" They had the support of a tamer who knew great tactics and had experience dealing with various combat formations, with various attack and defensive strategies, as well as a good eye to keep track of all the situations on the ground. "Az! Now!" -Shrrrrrrrr¡­! -Dang! "Strrrrrrr!" They were facing a (Level-10) creature that resembled a bird, but at the same time, instead of having wings, tail, or a beak, the bird-like creature had gills, scales, and a fish''s body. Surely the legs it had and the physique it possessed all resembled that of a bird, but this creature was in fact something in between an aquatic and ground life form. It''s name was [Mud Heron] but it did not have any resemblance to either a mudfish or a Heron. It was among the creatures that could not be tamed with simple means either, and they were dangerous creatures that attacked him the moment they perceived him. "Rush!" -Shrrrrrrrrrr! -Bang! -Dhum! -Shrrrr¡­ He was fighting alongside them in the waters, supporting them with a shield, blocking the blunt attacks when he could while leaving the rest of the work to his slime friends. "Strrrrrrr¡­!" They somehow managed to flip the fish-bird and with their coordinated attacks and when they managed to turn the creature upside down, with strong clashing attacks of the slimes that once made him vomit blood, they finished off the creature after a twenty four minute long battle. "Phew¡­" It was the longest fight they have had in the past three days. And this one was the strongest opponent they had fought as well. "Bling!" "Bliing!" "Blongg!" The slimes were happy to take down the strong opponent while he was happy to see the cheerful nature of his teammates. "You all worked hard." [Ding!] [Level up!] [(Level-9) > (Level-10).] [Subjugation target: 30/30.] [Ding!] [You have completed the tutorial objective.] [Evaluating results¡­] "And with this, it looks like we will have to part ways now." Ever since he first met these creatures, he had realized one important thing. "Bling!" "Bliing." "Blong¡­" Even though they were smart creatures and had learned faster than most of the other beasts would have, they were still at the end of the day, creatures of these special waters. They were no simple slime creatures. They were special, could only live on this special water surface infused with Mana, and most important of them all, they could not live on the ground. "I will have to go now, you see. And even though I would love for you all to join me, you cannot live with me." It wasn''t possible for one to place alive creatures in the inventories. Tamed beasts were also different from summonable beasts as they were creatures that one tames¨C creatures that are with someone existing on the same plain of existence as them. "Bling¡­" "Blong!" "Bliing¡­" They were his tamed beasts so he will have the option to take them all with him, surely. The system was not cruel enough to separate a [Family] from its master. ''But the system would also never jeopardize the lives of any of the beings of this world without any reason.'' It was complex and logical. But at the same time, unlike most games, the [Laws] that this world operated on made the [System] a unique entity that followed the collective will of this world. There were deep moral orders, values, and higher logical units that kept the work functioning even with the ''eternal change'' that followed all premises. All beings had an inherent right to live. And, he was not going to risk the lives of the first family he had made in this game by taking them all with him to a place that would not be proper for their survival. He had braced himself to leave them. "Bling! Bling! Bling!" "You want to come along?" But there was one slime among the fifteen that were now a part of his ''Slime Family'' that was jumping angrily as if protesting against his words. "Bling! Bling! Bling!" It was jumping on the water surface again, as if answering positively to his question. But Elio''s only response to this positive answer was a bitter smile. "Az¡­ you cannot come with me, dear." He recognised this simple transparent blob as the one that had made him throw up blood, the one that was also the very first one to understand his intentions during their training, as well as one that was perhaps even more special than the rest of its companions. "Bling! Bling! Bling!" The slime that had once hurt him was now protesting against him. ''Shouting'' to take it along with him. "Look here, Az." He had come out of the water to prepare to wrap things up as the system evaluated the results. But seeing the protest of the slime, he entered back into the water and gently held the protesting slime with both his hands. "The rest of them understand what I''m saying. They know their natural limitations. These waters are your home. I don''t even know if you will get any place similar to this one if you come with me. You cannot live out of these waters. Just look at this¡­" He tried placing the slime on to the ground¨C however, the slime''s body naturally rejected the touch of the ground and it instinctively jumped back onto the waters. "See? You cannot even live outside the water. What will you do if you come with me? I don''t want you to suffer because of me¡­" He had been with them for more than half a month now, and unlike his own expectations, he had now become too attached to these innocent creatures. [Evaluation complete.] [Rewards will be given after one exits the tutorial area.] -Ooooooooooooong! A spiraling blue portal with nothing visible beyond it opened up before him. "Looks like it''s time for me to go." He looked at his companions with a one last look of affection and, picking up the bowl containing the last bit of Moss he had gathered today, he threw it as far away from him as he could with all his strength. "If fate allows it¡­ let''s meet again, everyone." They were his first family, and they were going to retain what he had taught them in their short time together. "It was a little painful at times, not easy at all, certainly exciting, and a lot more fun than I had expected before starting this game." Some of the slimes¨C the ones that were dominated by the nine that he had tamed himself, following their instincts, ran to where he had thrown the moss first. The nine did not stop them, there was no reason to since they also wanted to go there and enjoy the moss like them. But they stayed behind and looked at him, as well as the portal behind him¡­ "I had fun. A lot of fun." With a last smile, he placed his worn out wooden shield on one side, put out the fire that had been burning for a few days now, and put on his worn out, slightly burned clothes. "See you again, little ones." Looking around the lake, at the trees around him, at the clean lake water, at the familiar beach that had been his house these past few days, and the creatures that had become his Family¡­ S§×ar?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Haaaa." He sighed. And then he turned around, facing the portal leading to a different place that he knew might not be as pretty as this one. ''What starter city did she ask me to choose again? Was it golden leaf, silver snow?'' He had finished his tutorial. And now, it was time to step into the real vast world beyond this serene green foliage. Chapter 13 - 13: Evolution -Oooooooooooooooong! He was about to step inside the portal, but he suddenly stopped and looked back with a surprised expression. "Bling! Bling!" Az, his rebellious slime, was jumping on the water once again. "Bling!" It was trying to jump out on the ground on its own, trying to be on the ground that it innately rejected. "Bling! Bling!" It was trying to go against its primal instincts and do something it naturally should not, doing something a creature of nature would not do naturally. "Bling!" "You should stop now, Az." It was struggling. He could feel the kind of distress it was going through to deny its natural instincts. "Bling!" It was a creature of nature and there were some rules that this nature had imposed on the beings of this nature. These Manawater slimes were very good at swimming on these shallow waters. They were the fastest among all the creatures he had seen until now. They did not have any special skills like the other creatures did. Nature did not give them the ability to be on the ground or go under water. They did not have the poison like some of the bugs here did and they did not have the ability to climb trees like some fishes were capable of. All they had was their ability to swim fast¨C so fast that a hundred miles per hour was nothing to them. Of course though, these small creatures could not maintain that speed for too long. They had limited energy, but they had adapted to use the speed they had in crucial times. They were creatures of these waters'' surface. And they belonged here. "It''s fine, Az. You will be happier here." But the little rebellious slime did not accept that fact. "Bling! Bling!" It was not listening to him. "Bling!" It waited for a moment, and tried again. But its body bounced back inside the water as soon as it touched the ground. It tried again, and failed. But it did not give up. It tried again, and again, and again. And still, it failed. S~ea??h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Just stop, Az." He turned back and faced the creature struggling like a mad artist trying to deny their own nature. "You will be happier here, with your people. Don''t you want that? Isn''t this place more fun than that unknown world beyond this portal?" He couldn''t understand what was going on with this creature or why it was doing it. However, he at least understood what this little creature wished. "Bling! Bling! ¡­bling!" Elio could not understand what this little creature was saying, but he understood what it wanted to express. "If you want to come along, you have until the sun sets. After that, even I don''t know if I will be able to stay here." This unique creature wanted to come with him not because it liked him or because he had taught him. The only reason it wanted to deny its nature was because it wanted it. "Try again. Come on." He sat down right before the portal and looked at the creatures he had trained with his own hands. "Bling¡­" And the slime who understood his intentions tried again. "Bling¡­" Of course, it could not stay on the ground for more than a few seconds. But, it did not stop. The other eight looked at this one''s foolish attempts. They first ridiculed him and did not understand why it was even doing it. But after a few minutes passed, after an hour passed, something was sparked inside them as well. "Bliing!" "Blingg!" "Blong." They could not bring themselves to try what this one was doing, but at least, it seemed like they were cheering it on. "Bling¡­" They supported it with their cheers, they shared a portion of their own energy with it so that it could keep going, and some of them brought it some moss so that it could continue what it was doing. "Bling!" But the rebellious slime rejected the moss as well and continued trying¡­ "It is almost sun down, Az." But it could not do it even until the light coming from beyond the blanket of leaves above them had turned golden. "It was an honor knowing you." He got up, and signed with a disheartened expression. It was time for him to depart. "Bling!" Which, for the slime, indicated its last chance. "Bling¡­" Stopping for a moment and becoming still completely¡­ as if to gather all its will, the slime waited for a moment. "Bling!" -Splash. And then, it jumped out of the water. "..." It endured its urge to go back to the water, denied the touch of water, denied the Mana that was the strongest on the surface of that water, and tried accepting the Mana that was in the atmosphere instead. "You can do it." He sensed something from this last attempt, and waited for one last time. "..." He watched the struggling slime, and even though the portal behind him seemed to be fading away slowly, he continued watching the struggling slime instead of worrying about the portal. -Ooooooooooooooong. And, his wait bore fruits in the hours of his last twilight in this forest. "..." -Ooooooooooooong! The transparent slime that had been merely a blob of mucus was now glowing with various magical colors. [Ding!] He could tell something was happening, though he did not know what exactly it was. So, the system explained it to him. [A Manawater slime belonging to your [Family] is evolving!] Within this nature, evolution was a continuous process that went on perpetually. All creatures within this nature except a few unique ones were subjected to evolution, though it was a timely process and did not happen spontaneously in normal cases. It happened naturally over generations where the creatures adapted to their environments to increase the survivability of their kind. [Evolution] was a perpetual and natural process¨C but in rare cases like this one, it was also spontaneous and irregular. [A Manawater slime belonging to your [Family] has successfully evolved into a Mana slime!] "Mu!" The small blob that had been only the size of a volleyball had now grown as large as a basketball. It''s surface had now become more white but it was still translucent. There was a unique shine to the surface of its body, and though he could not sense Mana, he could tell there was something different about this one. "You did it." Rules are meant to be broken¡­ Az proved that today. [Ding!] [One of your tamed creatures has evolved into a greater lifeform!] [New achievements have been detected!] [Tutorial results will be re-evaluated!] "Muu!" The now grown slime jumped up on the ground excitedly and reached its master. And then it stopped right before him. "You''re not going to crash into me like the first time?" It had just evolved so it must have grown a lot as well¡­ he knew how strong the evolved species were so he was expecting to receive another injury this time. However, the creature stopped right before him as if it knew what would happen to its master if it acted rashly. "Aren''t you a smart one?" His heart had suddenly become warm after seeing this. There were tears at the end of his eyes, but he just smiled at the little creature and picked it up just as gently as he had done when it was still a being of these waters. "Thanks to you, I won''t be lonely for a while." "Muu!" Now that it had evolved, it somehow was able to produce a unique kind of voice that he somewhat understood better than their jumping on water. "Alright then¡­" Now, it was truly time for them to depart. "See ya, everyone." He was leaving his first family behind, and he certainly did not know if he would ever get the chance to see them again. But he was not going to forget these little creatures wherever he goes. "Bliing!" "Blingg!" "Blong!" They said their final goodbye. -Ooooooooooooong! And holding the rebellious one who ended up becoming the companion for his future journey, he entered the spiral portal that first asked him which starter town he wanted to go to, and then transported him to a blank space before the start of his true journey¡­ [Ding.] He had worked hard these past few days. And he was bound to be rewarded for all the things that he had done until now. Chapter 14 - 14: Tutorial rewards "Now where''s this place?" Just like his Metabody creation space, he was now in a darkplace that did not have any up or down, forward or backward. It was a complete blank space, and he was once again floating. "Muu?" The only difference here was the slime that he was still holding. "Do you know what''s going on, Az?" "Muu?" It seemed like the slime had no idea what was going on either. [Ding.] Well, the system was thankfully here to answer his questions. [Sir Elio has completed their tutorial.] [Tutorial rewards for all the achievements and evaluated actions will now be distributed.] "So, this is the reward space? Wasn''t the reward merely a tutorial exclusive reward box? Or is there something more?" He was confused for a moment, but then he just shook his head. Things did not make that much sense in games anyway. "It would have been nicer if things were a little brighter." [Ding!] -Ooooooooooong! As soon as he said that, lights suddenly appeared all across him out of thin air, and he was momentarily blinded by all the lights. "The hell?" First, things were too dark, and after he asked for them to be brighter, they became too bright. "Can''t you make them a little dimmer? This is too much. Just keep three of the lights and remove the rest." [Ding!] -Oooooooooooooong! It seemed like the system made random places for this unique reward distribution. He didn''t know why this was happening, but he did not mind it. It was unique, and he liked it. [Ding.] [For using your tamed creatures effectively to fight against creatures higher level than you and defeating them, you will be rewarded.] [Intelligence+6.] [Charm+2.] [Luck+1] [Ding.] [For teaching combat techniques to Manawater slimes and ways to gather food for themselves, you will be rewarded.] [You have earned an achievement.] [Combat teacher (Common) has been achieved!] [Ding.] [As a reward for encouraging your tamed creature''s evolution, you will be awarded.] [You have earned an achievement.] [Caring master (Rare) has been achieved!] [Ding!] [Total Experience point accumulation has been completed.] [Level up!] [(Level-10) > (Level-13).] [Ding!] [For not killing any creatures during the tutorial yourself and creating a family consisting of multiple members with one evolved creature, a title will be awarded.] "Wait, what?" [Title has been awarded.] ============ Effect 1: Increased familiarity with tamable beasts. Effect 2: Tamed creatures and friendly species will be attracted to you. Effect 3: The title will grow with the user. ============ "Wait¡­ what the heck?" [Ding!] [You have earned your first title! Exp will be awarded.] [Ding!] [You have earned a title during the tutorial, earning an achievement!] [Titled special rookie (Rare) has been achieved!] [All achievement reward boxes will be added to inventory.] "..." He was stunned. And speechless as well. For a moment, he thought he was seeing things wrongly so he called out his status window as he tightened his grip around the cool blob in his arms. [Ding.] ============ ID: Elio (Level-13) Race: Human (Commoner) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 15 Agility: 7 Endurance: 14 T-T (System stats) Intelligence: 10 Luck: 2 Charm: 4 T-T (Functional stats) Energy: 20/20 Stamina: 20/20 Fatigue: 0/20 (Stat points: 12) {Skills: ¡ª .} [Titles: .] ============ "It''s true¡­" He looked at the new status window and thought about his time in that tutorial space for a moment. He knew that place surely existed somewhere in this world, and there should also be a way to get to that place. "We shouldn''t leave the rest of them alone for long, right?" "Muu? Muuu. Muu!" The slime, Az, was happy to hear that. It also wanted to meet the rest of its friends again. "We will search for it with Alex''s help then." "Muu?" He had not told the little creature about his partner since he wanted them to meet first directly. And now that he had received the rewards for his tutorial as well, he was ready to move on to his starter town. "Haaa¡­" The rewards were quite surprising to him. One simple tutorial, three rare achievements, two common achievements, one title, and a special companion. This tutorial surely gave him a lot more than what common players usually get. [Final tutorial evaluation has been graded.] [You have received: Grade evaluation.] [Tutorial reward box of Grade will be added to your inventory.] "I''m in the top 1% of the luckiest people to receive this grade, it seems." He still did not compare to the second ranked player in the unified rankings who became a in his tutorial and received an abnormal tutorial evaluation grade. That person was considered the Luckiest player of this game, as well as one of the luckiest in the world. [Otherworlder privileges will now be unlocked.] He had received all his rewards now, so his vision faded once again and along with some system noises, he experienced space-time transportation once again. [Feature: Friendzone, will be activated.] [Feature: Forum, will be activated.] [Feature: Otherworld market, will be activated.] His transportation this time was not that difficult. In fact, it was pretty smooth and finished in the blink of an eye. "How are you doing~." "Hey! Did you see that program yesterday!" "I heard the Terror of the hunting ground is still around. Is that true?" "The PKs are increasing these days¡­ and so are the prices of good food items." "I''ve heard there''s a new seller in town? A friend of mine working with the knight order saw the captain placing a big order and being awfully polite with them." Every starter town or major city of this world had a certain plaza where the people who traveled through the system''s Space-time passages ended up in. Be it the players who revive after dying, players using transportation scrolls and items, players using the big city''s services, or the players starting their journey after the tutorial¡­ all of them ended up in the main plazas of these towns and cities. "Moongold town¡­" There were famous starting towns that players selected and there were less popular ones based on their positions and resources. S§×arch* The Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Moongold town was one of the towns that was not too popular nor was it one of the least popular ones. There were some good things about this town, and some things that players did not like. If one had to say from a player perspective, this was a pretty average town. "This is fabulous." But from the perspective of a player visiting it for the first time, this place was nothing less than a pretty paradise¡­ Chapter 15 - 15: Moongold town As Elio stood in the central plaza of the bustling town, he marveled at the blend of life surrounding him. "Only the clubs and bars of our city are so bustling at night." The plaza itself was a vast, circular space paved with intricately carved stones that glowed faintly with a soft, green light. At its heart stood an old looking fountain, sculpted from old marble, with water cascading in mesmerizing magical patterns, reflecting the moonlight in a dazzling array of gold and yellow. "She asked me to meet her at (Woodleg inn) located straight from the central plaza in the direction of the tall belltower¡­ oh, that way." Around him at a distance, vibrant market stalls and charming shops lined the cobblestone streets, their canopies fluttering in the gentle breeze. Merchants called out their wares, offering everything from exotic food and enchanted gears to freshly baked bread and shimmering fabrics. Some were even offering items with special effects that enhanced stats and equipment that all players would require. The air was filled with a medley of enticing aromas, blending the scent of blooming flowers, roasted meats, and sweet pastries. S~ea??h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Exactly what I expected a night market would look like¡­" Above the stalls, the town''s architecture soared with an elegant grace. Buildings of special and unique stones, adorned with intricate carvings or unique artistic patterns and shimmering metallic accents, stood proudly against the star covered sky. "I want a camera¡­ well, everything is being recorded so I can take the screenshots later, but still¡­ a camera would have been nicer." He could see some towering spires and turrets that reached toward the heavens, some draped in ivy and blooming flowers that added a touch of nature''s beauty to the man-made splendor. "Are those the magic tower and association buildings? So cool~!" In the distance, he could see the majestic silhouette of the Grand Library, the main attraction of Moongold town, its colossal doors adorned with old words and flanked by statues of wise, mythical creatures. The library''s windows glowed with a warm, inviting light, hinting at the vast knowledge and secrets contained within. "We are going there second thing in the morning Az." "Muu~." The plaza itself was alive with activity. Adventurers, performers, artists, players who had no interest in fighting and townsfolk mingled, their conversations creating a pleasant hum that filled the air. Children ran and played, their laughter ringing out like the sweetest music. Street performers showcased their talents, from skilled jugglers to musicians playing enchanting melodies on their instruments. He had only known the life of work, the life of someone who lived in cities where people did not have time to even stop and look around their surroundings. He himself had worked hard all his life, but still, whenever he got the chance, he stopped¡­ and looked around for a moment. ''Happiness, joy, and freedom¡­'' He was an artist that understood emotions better than most others. His most famous pieces showcased some elements that everyone knew but few understood. In his career as an artist¨C as a photographer, videographer, designer, and landscape artist, the main themes had always been emotions¨C with freedom being at the center of them all. "We should thank Alex for this, Az." "Muu?" Elio took a deep breath, savoring the rich sights, sounds, and scents around him. This town, with its blend of magic and everyday life, felt like a living, breathing entity¨C a place where dreams and reality intertwined. It was different from the world that he had known until now. In this world, he felt a new kind of freedom than what he had always known. And he certainly did not dislike it. "Is this the place?" On his way to the inn, he had felt many eyes on him. Most people that saw him were wondering why he was wearing those worn out starter clothes or why he did not have any equipment on him. The rest who kept watching him were looking at the simple slime in his hands. It was not common for people to walk around with a slime in their hands, certainly not while wearing that kind of clothes. "Let''s go in." Some thought he was robbed already while some who were interested in the slime and possessed {Appraisal} lost all their interest when they saw the being was only a (Level-1) creature. It also only had two skills and even those skills were not that special from what their names suggested. The player was also only a newbie (Level-13) player who seemed to have been robbed on the field. -Taa-ring~. Players could hide their titles so he did not gather much attention as he reached the location she had asked him to visit as soon as he was here. But when he entered the wooden three story establishment, the scene that met his eyes was not something he was expecting to see in this rather simple looking inn. "Aughhhhh! Oooooof! My leg!!" "Stop! Please¡­!" "I didn''t even do anything¡­" The inside of the place he entered was a complete mess. Tables were destroyed, chairs that the customers sat on were shattered to pieces, the wooden walls on both sides were covered in deep dents as if heavy things were smashed on those walls. There were many people in this place, but every single one of them were standing. "..." The entire place was silent, and all eyes were focused on the front, right before the front desk where the young receptionist was hugging an older woman, fear evident in her eyes, her face covered in tears. The older woman had anger on her face as she looked at the people that now lay on the ground, beaten to a pulp, their faces deformed, and their blood covering the wooden floor of the establishment. ''What the fudge¡­?'' There were ten people on the ground, some of them unconscious while some screaming while holding their now crushed limbs, six by the wall were all unconscious, four with their heads dug in the wooden tables weren''t even trying to get their heads out, and one of them¨C probably a player with good looking equipment that all seemed to be fairly high grade¨C was held by the collar by the person who seemed to be the one behind all this destruction. "It''s perverted parties like you that I hate the most." The man was still conscious when she was still holding him, but right after she said that, she smashed the man''s head directly on the ground without making it seem even a little difficult. "Next time we meet, it will be a PK war instead of an arrest." Covered in what seemed like a mix of a normal dress and a light armor, a unique looking sword resting on her waist, her long black hair dancing with the little wind coming from the ''window'' that was created by one of her smashed walls, her deep blue eyes looked down at the now unconscious people with utter disgust in her eyes. "Haaa¡­" He was frozen the moment he entered this place, but after he saw the person that was the cause of all of this, he was proceeding to slowly slip out of this inn¡­ but, he was late. "Hmm? El? Is that you¡­?! Darling?!" She noticed him, and even before he had any time to react, she appeared before him and hugged him from behind. "You''re finally here~." She was awfully heavy in that armor and with all those things, but he knew the moment he said that, he would be one of the people on the ground, or on the wall¡­ or on the table. "Hey there, Alex¡­" He wasn''t expecting their first meeting in this other world to be like this. But he would have to live with this memory for the rest of his time here now¡­ Chapter 16 - 16: Guard captain "So¡­ these people started harassing the young daughter of the inn owner first, asked her mother how much she would sell her for, then when the owner asked them to get out, but they started causing trouble and breaking the chairs?" "That is correct, sir." The guard captain who had now arrived at the crime scene was a little stunned, a little confused, but he also had the same disgusted expression on his face as she did after beating them up. "You happen to sense some commotion so you came downstairs and saw the situation, and dealt with all these bastards yourself? Just by yourself? Alone?" The guard captain looked at the person she was standing with. And Elio only looked back at the guard captain with a helpless smile. "Why would I need help to deal with these little thugs, sir? They are trash that belong to trash and those with the strength to take out trash should always do so at every chance they get." S§×arch* The Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The guard captain was glaring at Elio but her words caught his attention all of a sudden and he looked back at her with a new surprised expression. The guard captain was a two meter tall muscular man in a formal guard uniform that looked intimidating on him. His toned muscles were all visible on his shirt while his clear intimidating face and deep green eyes seemed like they could see through everything, even their truths and lies. "Taking out trash¡­" There was a distinct smirk on his face when he heard those words, and after looking up and down at both of them, he nodded with a new smile. "Certainly. It is the duty of the strong to take out the trash¡­ however, doing it while not making this kind of mess and property destruction would be better." He took out a piece of paper and a pen¨C not a feather pen, but a pretty looking fountain pen, and wrote down some things on it. "You will receive a warning for the extreme actions as well, so come and meet me tomorrow evening in the guard office. You will have to pay for the damages you have caused, but you will be compensated for dealing with these Trash. The inn owner is extremely grateful to you as according to her, this was not the first time these people had done something like this. So, she will be seeing you after she gives her statement. She is a nice lady so make sure you fix what you broke¡­ the guards will take care of the trash from here." He gave her the piece of paper and she nodded at him with a smile. -Thump. "Thank you for the great work as always, sir." Then she tapped her right foot on the ground, and got into the attention position while saluting the guard captain. "May the eternal order be maintained." Her actions surprised the guard captain a little since he wasn''t expecting this salute. -Thump. "May the eternal order be maintained." However, he saluted her back as any guard of this great town would, looked at her with a surprised expression one last time, looked at Elio, looked at the slime in his hands, and then.. He walked away to the rest of his party. "Did you just get a quest?" That last look on the guard captain surprised him a little. "Not yet, but we are gonna surely get one tomorrow." She looked at him, and smirked ear to ear as if saying she was amazing. "Being a veteran surely has a lot of perks, hun?" Now that both of them were here, together with one another, they surely were surprised. "It''s just the basic things. Quests in this game generally originate from those holding authoritative positions." "That so?" After they met, the first thing they did was to add each other in their friend list. Then, they shared their status information with one another so they knew exactly at what level the two of them were at. [Ding.] ============ ID: #### (Level-21) Race: Human (####) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 33 Agility: 24 Endurance: 18 T-T (System stats) Intelligence: 6 Luck: 0 Charm: 2 T-T (Functional stats) Energy: 24/30 Stamina: 24/30 Fatigue: 3/30 (Stat points: 0) {Skills: Sword intent, Energy infusion, Blink.} [Titles: <####>, .] ============ There surely were some things that he was still confused about, things like her censored ''immortal'' name, the thing beside her race that indicated one''s social standing on the world level, or the first title she possessed. It was all strange, but as she had said, she was not a high level player anymore. She was pretty low leveled even though she was higher level than him and from the title one only gets after single handedly wiping out all the creatures of a beginner forest at least once, Elio already knew that she got bored and did a massacre in the forest when he was stuck with his tutorial. He knew her level drop and loss of all the skills and titles she might have possessed had something to do with that hidden title, but he did not mind all that. He knew she would tell him about all that if she wanted to, or if she did not tell him, then it would mean she did not want him to know all that. "You were right. You surely are special," facing him and looking down at the unique slime in his hands, she blushed a little and looked away in an attempt to not stare at the little creature. He already knew that she was going to like this little fellow. She liked cute things generally anyway so a cute little blob that made funny sounds was undoubtedly going to be something she adores. But, the fight that they had a while back after he joked with how he was special made her a little hesitant. He had not told her all the things that happened in the last few days and how they cleared the tutorial and the rewards that he received, but after seeing his absurd status window all those stats that certainly did not suit someone who had just come out of the tutorial, she knew he had achieved extraordinary results himself. She knew taking the slimes that he had tamed, slimes that could only live in water would be impossible for him, and yet, he was holding a slime¨C one that she actually recognized as a (Mana slime), one of the rarest kinds of slimes one could ever obtain after an evolution. These creatures weren''t natural. Among the people who knew enough about them, they were considered one of the anomalies that seldom comes from a slime''s will to deny their inherent nature. "Haaa¡­ Alex. I''ll apologize again if you want but can we let that one go already?" looking at her with a desire to get back together with her, he held to slime in his hands before him. "Muuu?" And she accepted it with another blush on her face. "If you give this one to me, I might consider-." "Yeah, no. That''s not happening. Az is mine." They had not been together for long but this one evolved just to come with him. There was no way he was going to hand over his precious friend to her just because she liked it. "You can be friends, but he is mine." He was determined, she could see it in his eyes that he was serious this time. "We will see about that." But she was also not going to back down either. She liked this little, cool, clean, pretty, soft, jiggly little slime. It was the perfect pillow for a peaceful night''s sleep. "Muuu?" She wasn''t just going to let him have such a fun pet all by himself¡­ Chapter 17 - 17: Madam Rin and Misha "Ummm¡­ I''m sorry for-." "Oh young lady~. There''s no need to be sorry about these little things. You didn''t do it on purpose or anything. Huhuhu, you were just trying to teach those thugs a lesson~. I''m truly grateful for your help." She was trying to apologize to the inn owner lady, a mature looking older woman with a slender yet tough looking physique that resembled the people who had lived in the harsh environments of the mountains. Just from her height, which was a little taller than both of them, it was easy to tell she was no simple person, and she was pretty attractive looking, but not certainly as attractive as her young daughter. "Ummm¡­ b-big sister! Thank you for¡­ for beating those bad people!" According to what Elio understood, they did not come here to harass her for the first time. The owner had dealt with them previously when they were only in a small group of a few people. But this time, their entire gang had come and the other players or the natives did not want to deal with them since they were all higher level players who were apparently also famous in this town. They could only stand there and watch as they caused the commotion but then Alex came and they were dealt with. "You should have told me about these little flies earlier, Misha. I would have stayed down here to deal with them, hump." She was still angry at the people who did not stop doing the dirty things even in the game. The imprisonment and the restrictions it imposed in real time was not enough to deal with these people. They were bastards who should be killed every time they were seen in public. "Haaa¡­ the guard captain told me I''ll have to pay-." "There''s no need for you to pay for the repairs. We can manage things on our own¡­ besides, you have helped us enough." Alex had just taken out a pouch of money from her inventory when the owner lady shook her head and placed her hand on Elio''s shoulder. "Besides, now that the person you have been waiting for almost half a month is here, you two should spend your time chatting instead of thinking of small things." The mature lady with long red hair and simple black eyes had felt quite off to him since the moment he first saw her, and her daughter who had her red short hair but profound gray eyes made her the perfect model for a twilight portrait. He wanted to ask them if they were interested in helping him a little, but after this incident, it was not the best time to talk about something like that. She seemed like a nice lady, so he at least greeted her properly and smiled at the younger girl who seemed to be in her teenage years. "You''re quite a daring person to have made such a pretty young lady wait for you for so long. She looked lonely, you know?" She tapped his shoulder, and he could definitely feel the strength behind those rough hands. He knew she was at least a higher level than him. "I¡­ have no excuse for that. I was engaged with my first trial and it took a longer time than either of us had anticipated." There was sadness in his eyes as well. He did not like how he had to make her wait for so many days and he was certainly sorry for that. But in his position, there was nothing else to do. Or, perhaps he was just too stubborn and selfish to try something else. "Yes! He''s the worst, madam Rin! He''s the worst!" She squeezed the little slime in her hands as she shouted that. Thankfully, the slime did not feel pain or most of the other physical sensations. It was slime with unique senses that worked in a different way from the humans so even though it could perceive the surroundings, the thermodynamics, and simple sensations or touch, it did not have a complex sense system like the humans. It was merely a creature of nature. So, it was going to be fine even in the deadly hands of his partner. "We should all punish him, Madam!" Hearing her say that, Elio suddenly got goosebumps all over his body. He had suffered enough with the slimes already so he had thought his time in the city among the people would be a little peaceful¡­ S§×arch* The novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He was not looking forward to any more battle just yet. "Huhu, doesn''t look like it will be needed, young lady." She tapped on both their shoulders after seeing the look on Elio''s face. And then with another laugh, she grabbed both their shoulders. "You should go back to your room now. It''s night, and there must be a lot you have to talk about, right?" She was a nice lady. He could see why she chose this inn out of tens of others present in this town. "That''s right. We surely have a lot to talk about¡­" He still had to tell her about his reward distribution and the title and ask her a lot of things about Az. She was the more knowledgeable person here so he had to rely on her for a few more things. "We have to do a little more than just talking." She looked at him with puffed cheeks as if he was forgetting something important. And seeing this interaction, the inn owner, Madam Rin, could only chuckle at the young couple. "Yes, yes. You have to do a lot of things and the night is still young. So, go now." She turned them around and pushed them towards the stairs. "Go show him your room." She said she would take care of the damages, but Alex still wasn''t going to just let her take care of the mess she had made. So, before she went upstairs with Elio, she threw something from her inventory at the inn owner. "That should be helpful with a few things." It was a magic item, a scroll with repair magic recorded in it. "This is too much, young lady!" The store owner knew even one of these scrolls was around thirty silver coins, which was a lot from the standards of this world as well as the original world. Just selling it would make them enough to repair everything to a better condition and she just threw an important item like it was nothing and walked up with a smile. The owner lady was surely stunned, but she knew she wasn''t going to win against that person¡­ She knew her for a while now, so she knew how stubborn she was. And, since she knew her well, she could tell the one that could handle a person like her, would surely be no ordinary man¡­ Chapter 18 - 18: Night of the virtual world A simple wooden room of the inn with a single bedroom present at the end of the hallway on the third floor, the very top of the three story inn. There was a window on the other side, a bed in the center, a table on one corner, and some decorations around the room. Curtains danced with the low winds flowing into the room, the light of the golden moon illuminating the place along with only one magical light. "You went through a lot, I see." They had some bread earlier along with some warm soup so they weren''t hungry anymore. "Thanks for waiting." Sitting on the bed with both hands held together, they looked at each other like they usually do at nights in the real world. "I had my difficulties, but they weren''t as bad as yours. I''m already experienced with this world and how things work here, and I also did not have to train some slimes and fight with them while holding only a wooden shield." Az the slime was now resting on one of the small chairs reserved for small pets, while the white sword she was carrying and rest of her heavy equipment were resting on a different corner of the room. "I went ahead and leveled up a little, and yet you''re not too far from me. And besides, how the hell did you get so many achievements? Even I only got 3 after clearing the entire forest, for learning skills at a low level, and after defeating a boss mob ten levels higher than me." Elio had obtained two common achievements and three rare achievements¡ª something that was even more surprising than his rank (S) in the tutorial. Obtaining achievements was a difficult thing so even someone like her had only obtained three achievements when she played her tutorial. She even obtained the highest possible tutorial evaluation rank for all the things she did, and even though her partner had an assessment rank two levels lower than hers, he had more achievements than she did. And, to make things even more complicated, there were three rare achievements. "Well, I was lucky this time." He genuinely did not do much to obtain all those achievements. He just did what he was supposed to do and what he wanted to and yet he ended up with all those achievements, so it was surprising for him as well. "Well, you have two points in Luck, four in Charm, and ten whole points in Intelligence. So of course you got lucky¡­" Or perhaps the system was treating him like the youngest and most spoiled child. That might just explain why he was getting so many good things. "We should go to the mages tower after visiting the registration office tomorrow." Intelligence points were very important for the mages as this unique stat along with the special power called Mana was what defined them. There were many kinds of mages, but all of them could use the power of Mana and if they have a certain amount of intelligence to comprehend and control various spell structures, they could use what the humans called magic. "I wanted to go visit the library though-." "That won''t be possible, man. There''s a special event coming so the library is temporarily closed. Why do you think I told you to come to this town of all the other places?" "¡­is this ''special event'' important?" "Of course it is~! Just know that we will have a loooooot of fun~." He had no idea what this event was or, just how special it could be that she was so excited. He wanted to go and see this great library as soon as he could but, at least seeing her so cheerful made him happy. "Alright then. Let''s go to the mages tower." He laid down on the bed with an exhausted look on his face. The day was not simple. It had not been long since he fought the last of the creatures with his slimes and defeated them. "What are you doing, closing your eyes like that?" She laid down beside him and looked at him with a confused look. And she kept looking at him until he opened his eyes and looked back at her with a burdened look. "What now?" It was night and sleep was important even in this game. He had been awake for a while now and after everything that happened today, he was exhausted. "What do you mean ''what now''? The night is young, we just met, it''s our first night together in this world-." "And you want to Have Fun? Even in the game?" It wasn''t like they did not do it enough in the real world that she was asking for it in this game world as well. was one of the very few games that actually allowed lewd things since it was made to be completely realistic, so it wasn''t going to be much different from reality. But still, things were pretty different here since this place was in fact just the game world. "I''ve always wanted to Have Fun in this game. You made me wait for more than three years in real world time so faults all on you." Looking deep in her blue eyes shining under the magical lights of the room, he could not help but sigh once again. "So all this time, you were only pushing me to play this game so that we can fugk? That''s it?" He smirked at her with a smile that was making fun of her. But she did not notice that as she had broken out a blush in embarrassment. "W-wh-what do you mean?! Bastard! That''s not true!" "Of course that''s the case. That red face is all the proof we need." The smirk in his face deepened along with the redness on her light toned face. She was rarely embarrassed like this, but now that she was like this, he couldn''t help but think how good it would have been if he could click a picture of this beautiful girl. "No! No no no no no! No no no! Don''t say things like that!" She started smashing him with the pillow that thankfully did not hurt him as much as he thought it would. The sounds of night were calming, there wasn''t much light pollution in this world so the sky was much more beautiful than what he had seen in the city areas, and most of all¡­ his partner looked happier in this world. "Accept it. You''re just a-." "Shut up! Shuttttt uppp!" In the real world, she normally had three kinds of expressions: Tired, annoyed, or stoic. She wasn''t too expressive most of the time, but here¡­ she seemed like a completely different person. "Hahaha~. Hey! That''s not fair!" "Shut up! It''s all your fault!" He loved the person she was in reality. And unexpectedly, he was also falling for this new side of hers. She looked much happier than he had ever seen her. ''Dumb girl.'' sea??h th§× n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. So now, he wanted to tease her even more. Chapter 19 - 19: Dawn in the town Dawn broke gently over the horizon, painting the sky with a gradient of soft, pastel hues. The inky darkness of night gradually gave way to deep purples and blues, which then melted into shades of pink and gold. The first rays of sunlight peeked over the landscape, casting a warm, golden glow that spread slowly across the land. "Mmm¡­" It reached the windows of the room where two certain individuals had spent their first night in this game as well¡­ "Hmmm." The air was crisp and cool, carrying the fresh, earthy scent of the town''s morning and blooming human interactions. A serene stillness enveloped the world, broken only by the gentle rustling of carriages and the distant chirping of early birds greeting the new day. "Morning, pretty human." Elio awoke to the first light of dawn filtering through the small window of his room at the inn. And unlike usual mornings, he greeted his partner first. "Why are you¡­ ughh." She was not happy to see his happy, smiling face first thing in the morning. She was used to seeing his still asleep face that she adored so much, seeing him up early did not go well with her. "What''s up?" She was trying to get up after seeing his ugly face the first thing on this fine morning, but she could not do so and fell back with a painful expression. "Aww¡­ aw aw aw. Why the hell is my back hurting?" For a moment, she was confused. She could not understand what was happening all of a sudden¡­ but then fuzzy memories of their Games returned to her. And, she understood the reason for her current condition and looked angrily at the bastard smiling at her. "Don''t look at me like that now. You wanted it, and I warned you. Thrice." He looked a little too happy. It wasn''t like he was merely enjoying her expression, beyond that anger, he could see the regret hidden behind those pretty blue eyes. It was an even rarer occasion than her previous embarrassed expression so, he found this a little too fun. "..." But she kept looking at him with that warm angry expression, thinking back to everything that had happened a few hours ago in this room that had become a mess now. Most of the things were wooden here, but thankfully, nothing broke down after all those Things. Their bed survived as well¡­ "Wanna go ag-." "Shut the fuck up dude." She obviously knew he was teasing her but even though she would not have minded it, she was in no condition to play around once again. They had a lot of things to do today, and she needed to at least walk properly without a hunched back. "Ribbons were a bad idea-." "Half of the things were a bad idea. And I warned you, Thrice." He was still smirking at her, finding this new kind of morning a little too fun. "And doing all that with Az present? Man you were loud-." -Dhum. She pushed him out of the bed and got up from the bed while enduring all that pain. "You''re chatty today, hun?" Then she looked down at him from their bed, the upset expression still present on her face. But the pleasant smile did not leave his face. "Don''t you think something''s wrong with this situation?" "Hmm?" She did not understand what she was saying all of a sudden, so he smirked again and elaborated. "Shouldn''t you be the one on the floor? After all-." -Dhum! He shouldn''t have done that. "Ughhh!" He wouldn''t have had to take a kick directly to his chest from a higher level player if he was a little less chatty. "Just fucking stay on the floor, bastard!" Alex got out of the bed while holding her lower back. She was in pain as well, but unlike the one on the floor who could only endure the pain, she had ways to feel better. -Ooooooong. She took out an (Intermediate) grade potion that healed physical conditions from her inventory and downed the entire vial. She stretched around a little and not long after, she had returned to her peak physical condition. "Ughhh¡­" Her boyfriend, though, was still struggling on the floor while holding his chest. "That''s why being higher level and overgeared is important." She pitied the poor guy and helped him get back up on the bed. But she did not give him any potions to help him. She knew that the kick would have only affected him a little and he would get better in an hour or so. There was no reason for her to waste her potions on him, and more than that, she wanted him to suffer a little as well. "Just take a nap, we will be back with some breakfast." She got back into her clothes, cleaned up the room a little and repaired a few things with the help of basic (tier-1) scrolls before picking up Az¨C the innocent little slime who ended up witnessing a little too much last night¨C and walked out of the room, leaving her suffering partner all alone. "That girl¡­" Elio did not like pain and yet he had suffered a lot of it throughout his life. Sear?h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Pain did not leave him alone in this game either, but at the very least, he was not going to endure it when he had no need to. ''Open otherworld market.'' [Ding.] Various kinds of currencies were used in the real world but with the growth of digital currencies, in everyday life, [V-coins], a digital currency that was now almost used all over the real world, had become a prominent common form of money. It was also used on large scales in the virtual markets to purchase the currencies of this other world and to use the Otherworld market for item purchases, he first needed to get the currency that was commonly used in this world. ============ [UniQuinn bank: ] Total funds: 120,000 V *** [Lion Internationals: ] Total funds: 60,000 V *** [IPC: ] Total Funds: 150,000 V ¡­ ============ He had various bank accounts and all of them were connected to his Bio-ID. Though, he still did not keep too much funds in any of them and preferred having them invested in various profitable areas. ''Hundred thousand should be good for now¡­'' He had no need to purchase game money with his real money since he just wanted to enjoy this game with Her but he wanted to invest a little in this game just in case he needed to spend it somewhere. He knew he could not be with Alex all the time, so in case he needed money to purchase things on the marketplace, or in the shops around the town, he placed the first order for his in-game currency. ============ Copper: 140 (Exchange rate: ~200V: 1Copper) Silver: 40 (Exchange rate: ~1800V: 1Silver) Total: 100,000 V. After Tax pay: 109,890 V. [Confirm purchase: Yes/ No.] ============ "Yes-." "Oh, I almost forgot my pretty sword." Right when he was about to place his order for his initial funds, Alex suddenly came back and saw her boyfriend, who should still have been grumbling in pain, playing with some status windows before him. "What¡­ are you doing?" She was confused for a moment, but it did not take her long to realize what he was up to and a new angry expression clouded her happy face. "You little mosquito." He couldn''t purchase his coins afterall. And instead, had to endure another round of pain for the next few minutes. Chapter 20 - 20: Reward boxes "I told you there''s no need to add your own funds but, no. We don''t listen to the ones who know better." They were now downstairs with one side of his cheek red. "I didn''t want you to add funds not because I want to be your sugar mommy in this game but because of a very special achievement that you can only get if you use the money that you have earned yourself." She had asked madam Rin to use their kitchen and after getting fresh ingredients from the market, she made them breakfast herself. And, she made some extra for madam Rin and Misha as well, so all four of them were enjoying the delicious food on this fine early morning. "You never listen to me. Why do you do that?" "I listen to you alright¡­ you''re just used to listening to me more. That''s all." She slapped him a little too hard and it hurt more than when she had punched him. He was in pain again, and she pitied him so she gave him a little pouch of ice. "Huhu, you sure are an interesting young man, mister." Madam Rin liked the food Alex had made and she was quite interested in learning cooking from her even though she had much better experience with cooking. Even Misha liked how well cooked and well seasoned some of the things were. She could tell the spices that Alex used were not something they can find on the market but even without them, the things she had made with the simple ingredients of the market were quite delicious. "I''m nothing special, miss. It''s just that I happen to be blessed to be with this pretty lady." He held the ice pouch with one hand while his other hand was patting Az as the little guy enjoyed its own food¨C the rare Mana stones that are sold quite high priced on the market. According to what he had learned from Alex, Mana slimes were unique existences that were pretty special in this nature. Not many players had them and all those who did had a unique kind of Mana slime that possessed special skills that were unique. They were different from the skills their kind possessed or they themselves possessed prior to their evolution so, just having these slimes as one''s summonable creature, or Familiar, or slaves was a rare thing. However, he had tamed this one when it had not even evolved, so it was an even rarer case. Still, it was not as rare a case as the player on unified ranking 11¨C the man who married a Mana slime which later evolved again into a completely new kind of existence. "Hump, buttering me up isn''t going to work." "Of course it won''t after how much I buttered you-." "You want another beating?" "No ma''am." Misha didn''t understand many of the things they were saying, but her mom had a smirk on her face which seemed to understand even the things they did not talk about. She was an experienced person so, it wasn''t surprising for either of them that she understood what they were talking about. They did not mind her smirk, but Alex still wanted him to stop his teasing since it wasn''t going to work anymore. "Anyway, don''t buy coins with your own money. I sent you some so use it if you absolutely need to, but you should be alright after we get you registered." They had many things to do today, and the first thing they were going to do was to visit the registration office. "Oh. Are you two going to the registration office by any chance? Is mister Elio really a new foreigner?" "Of course he''s new. This dumbass just somehow got lucky with his first trial." She looked at him with another annoyed look and shoved another spoon of soup in his mouth. Since he was holding the ice and patting Az, she had to feed him. She did not mind the feeding part since they often did that for each other but she did not like how he tried to go against her request and buy his own money. "Hmmm¡­ for someone new to this world, mister Elio sure is interesting." Every player had to register with the Registration office when they finished their tutorial and arrived in the starter town. Only after their registration with the registration office that worked as a central organization maintaining all records of the players and natives can players join the various organizations. If someone fails to register though, the chances are high that they will be put into jail if they are caught inside public or private properties. Yet, there are always players or people who do not register with the Office and live their lives in the wilderness. "Hey, Madam Rin. if you''re interested in this bastard, please know that we are pretty open-." "Ahem, Miss Rin. She''s a dumb girl so please don''t listen to her." Taking care of her alone was a tough task so there was no way he wanted a hot looking mother with a daughter that would soon be of age. He was content with his life so¨C this one headache was enough to him. "Hey! Weren''t you the one-." "So, now that I can''t buy money, should I open one reward box and see what I get?" She was talking a little too much, so he first ate the food in her hand, and then placed the pouch with ice on her mouth. "Mmmmm! Hey!" Her hands weren''t restricted like his so she took the ice pack away and was just about to shout at him¡­ when he took out the bronze metallic box with a smooth surface from his inventory and placed it on the table before them. "Oh! Is that a reward box!" "Mm-hmm. Has Misha seen this before?" "Yes~. The foreigners sometimes play with them while eating~!" The system was common for both the players and the natives, just that there were some things that ''players'' could do similar to some things that unique native species of this world could do. However, the achievement system was the same for everyone. And, seeing these achievement boxes was a pretty common thing. "But¡­ the ones I''ve seen are mostly silver." Misha was a normal kid so it did not seem like she knew much about the world and the common things like the reward boxes. "They are common boxes, Misha. This one on the other hand, is a level higher than those common achievement reward boxes." Thankfully, the knowledgeable big sister of hers was here to tell her about these boxes. "There are six kinds of reward boxes that are granted for six kinds of achievements that go from: Common, Rare, Epic, Heroic, Legendary, and Mythical. People usually only achieve common achievements but the uncommon ones, like gaining a title during your first trial, or having a [Family] of slime that also has an evolved slime in it is something of a rare achievement." Alex smiled at her, looked angrily once again at her partner, and told him something through their eye contact before looking back at the younger girl with a smile. "We can call reaching (Level-100) an epic achievement that everyone hitting that level obtains, or clearing a high difficulty dungeon by yourself could also earn an achievement of that level. But beyond that, all achievements become a little unique." Sear?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She told her how there are unique conditions that one had to meet in order to obtain achievements better than Epic ranked. She even told her how becoming a Dragonslayer, A Swordsaint, Archmage, or gaining the [Recognition of worldly elements] could lead to a Legendary achievement. "Then, big sister, what is the Mythical achievement?" But she could not answer this question for her. "That¡­ we do not know yet." In the three years that this world has existed for the players, only the fact that an achievement rank higher than the Legendary rank exists has ever been revealed. People call it Mythical achievement because the achievement by nature could only be a myth if the conditions to achieve it were so complex they went even beyond the grade of the near impossible. No one knew what they needed to do in order to obtain this achievement¡­ but, there were many players who were constantly in search of it like madmen. They had dedicated their entire lives in search of that absurd achievement or even some kind of clue about it¡­ she used to be one of those mad people as well, but she did not care about all that anymore. "Go ahead now. Open it. Quench your curiosity¡­ we have to go do stuff after that." She had opened many boxes like this one so she wasn''t that interested in it. It all depends on luck, so she knew since he had some points in luck, he would at least not get something as shitty as the things she got. She was cursed by luck perhaps so she did not rely on it, but he was different. Luck played a big part in art¡­ and as an artist, he knew how to use what he already had. Chapter 21 - 21: Mages tower "I can''t believe you got an item from a rare box just like that." "Is it that uncommon to get something like this from a rare box? I mean¡­ isn''t this just some item?" He looked down at his hand that now had a thin metallic bracelet, a purple accessory made of a thin metal thread that did not feel anything special. "Just some item? Did you just say¡­ ''just'' some item?" They were walking out of a tall building that almost resembled a castle and covered one of the largest land masses in this town. There were few buildings as great as this one, and even among them, this place held a special meaning to this town, to the townsfolk, as well as to the players. "It''s VERY rare to get any kind of item from the Rare reward box since it gives money. People only open it with the wish to obtain a few silver coins that would let them have a few good means and if they are lucky, some people even end up with tens of silver or hundreds of bronze. That''s what people normally consider to be a great stroke of luck. While getting any kind of item means obtaining something that one can use, or something they can sell at a fairly high price." She shook her head with a sigh as she looked at the Bracelet in his hands. "When a sword user gets a good sword, they are happy. When a mage gets a good spear, they are a little disappointed but not sad. However, regardless of the class, social rankings, or levels, when someone gets an Accessory item, they know they have struck it big time." The accessory items were the hardest to come by in this world, and the good ones that possessed a skill were even more rare. And yet, the thing he had obtained on his first box along with Three silver coins and a little experience was something that shocked her big time. "Just look at that item and tell me it''s not good." They were finished registering Elio and connecting the in-game accounts the two of them had¨C which was almost the same as marriage where one could access nearly everything that the other had permitted them access of, but since the [Marriage] existed in people only considered connecting accounts something like showing their trust in the other person. Well, of course there were cases where people betrayed this trust of their partners, but after years of experience, the players have learned what they should do in a virtual relationship and what they should not. "I never said this is bad." Elio looked at the simple yet pretty bracelet on his hand with a happy smile. ============ [Brocade key] ¡ï¡ï¡î -Intelligence +3 -Slightly increased energy regeneration. {Skill: Light chain} ¡ªCreate a chain of Light that heals non-lethal wounds by consuming Stamina/Energy/Mana. (Healing will be proportionate to input power used.) ============ When they got this item, Alex was only a little surprised. But after she used a (High) grade appraisal scroll to reveal the details of the item, she herself got stunned by the presence of a healing skill on the accessory. "That right there is what I''d call one of the best things one can get from the Rare grade reward box." Healing skills were rare in this game and had to be learned from the Temple. Normally, it took someone a few months just to learn a simple healing skill so people avoided it, which made the presence of Priests and Paladins even more crucial. Good healers were hard to come by and since one needed to leave the starter town to become an official priest, one hardly found a healer in the beginning stages of the game. S§×ar?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "People will come running if they know about that skill so don''t be careless with it and cherish it. You can easily use it until (Level-100) and probably even after that." "Yes ma''am." In the later stages where the wounds one received gets highly difficult to heal, this item was not going to be that useful. There was an inherent limit to all items and, when someone of a higher level uses a simple item like this, the chances are very high that they will end up breaking it instantly. That''s why he would have to be careful with it. She had pressed this warning on him ever since they got out of their inn, walked to the registration office, and then walked all the way to the mages'' tower. "This place looks quite something¡­" "It''s the mages'' tower. Duh he looks amazing." But she had seen some of the grandest structures of this world. Something as simple as this towering triangular brown tower that had many people coming in and out of it was not nearly enough to surprise her. "Let''s go in. I''m excited to see if you really have the qualities of a mage." She smiled at him excitedly as a sigh escaped his mouth. "Why is it that not everyone can become a mage in this game? Why must they make it so that people with only the ''inherent'' qualities of a mage become one?" In everyone including the players had to first check if they had the affinity for handling Mana. Only the people who possessed the talent to become one are officially granted permission to go through [Mana infusion] a process that opens up the Mana circuit in their body and opens up the ability to use Mana. "Doesn''t this just make it like the other luck based game where one might have the talent for it and someone might not?" It wasn''t like people who did not have the talent to become a mage could not go through Mana Infusion, just that they would have to pay more for it and the chances of their deaths increased significantly. The natives of the world only had one life even if the players could revive back so the Rules were made to fit everyone equally. "The ''talent'' in this game isn''t based on luck, El. It is directly derived from the physical body of the players and is more than just something based on luck. With the portable gears, it is difficult to track everything but even with the simplest chariot, it is possible to completely scan the physical body and they use a complex data recreation method that even I don''t understand yet. And besides, it''s not like those who do not have talent to become a mage could never become a mage or have no chance of ever using magic." There was a lot of freedom in this world if there was a lot of realism. Even if someone could not go through the [Mana infusion] or fail many times, they could use external means to use Mana, use magic items, or become wizards or some other kind of magic user. There were a lot of options and becoming a mage that used Mana was not the only one¡­ people just had to either stubbornly follow the path they liked, or search for the one that suited them the best. "They should have made it like the other games where one can just choose the path they want." He was never very happy about this aspect of . But, he found it comforting to know this pretty and happy world also had flaws like these. "No world is perfect, mister artist." And this was a virtual world. If anything, she knew very well just how far this place was from the utopian ''perfect'' mortality wished to be part of¡­ Chapter 22 - 22: Reception In the heart of the town, in an open plaza, stood the impressive Mage''s Tower. Its tall, tubular structure made it the most striking building in the area. The tower was built from smooth, polished brown stone that glowed warmly in the morning sunlight. S§×ar?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The base of the tower was wide and surrounded by well-kept gardens. There was a magical air to the atmosphere around the tower, and magical creatures roamed the safe area without hurting anyone strolling through the gardens. Some creatures belonged to the mages, some were creatures that the magic tower protected, while some creatures were necessary for the daily activities of this spectacular tower. These gardens were filled with rare plants as well, adding a touch of beauty to the area. "The inside is just as impressive as the outside." Ivy and flowering vines climbed these terraces and the exterior, adding splashes of green and color to the brown stone. At the top, the tower ended in an open observatory with a large, glowing globe. This globe pulsed with magical light, casting colors into the sky that not everyone could perceive. The Mage''s Tower, with its brown exterior and tubular shape, stood as a symbol of knowledge and magic in the town. Not only was it a place where players learned traditional magic, this place was also one of the few places in the town that sold magical items, scrolls, and the very rare Spirit orbs of the creatures. "It''s nothing compared to the (Six capital towers) of the Capital of the kingdom of magic¨C Lohefalter." If the mages'' tower looked attractive from the outside, it was even more attractive on the inside. The space inside was even larger than what one could see from the outside, something that seemed to have been the result of Spatial magic. There were desks all across the vast space, while in the center of it all, there was an elevator connecting all the twenty one floors of this tower. Each floor was divided into three divisions with each side of the triangle handing a unique task, and there were many people present all over the tower. There were magical elements present all across the place, the colorful complex magic circles that the mage workers were using to help and aid the people were something that caught Elio''s attention and the whole vibe of the place was so unique that he could not help but be amazed. "If this place alone is this good¡­ I wonder just how amazing the six capital towers would be." He had worked with many creators but since his specialities lie in the combat and movement related videos, he had not really seen the special places present all across this virtual world. He had especially not known much about hidden places like the capital of magic as not many people had been to that place. It had not been long since the existence of the kingdom of magic was revealed to the players and to the real world so, not just him, people did not know much about places like that in general. "We will be traveling a lot so don''t worry. We will visit that place one day as well." She was the experienced one here so she had been to many places throughout her life in this world. She was also a solo player so she had been to some very unique places that only a few or no other player had any knowledge of. "I''m excited to see what more amazing things this world has¡­" He was smiling. And seeing that smile on him, she could not help but sigh with a smile of her own. "Yeah, yeah. Be excited~. We are gonna have a loooooot of fun~." However, before they travel, they at least had to get used to this starter town and understand how this world and the various elements actually worked. "Let''s see¡­ that place looks pretty empty." They were here for the Mana compatibility evaluation for now and also to test if he had the qualities to become a mage. And for that, they had to go to the very front side at the end of the hall they had entered. "Hello~. How may we help you today~?" The receptionist was no elf girl or even a lady. Alex deliberately chose the most normal looking man among the various pretty looking mages and walked up to him. "We want to do a Private magic evaluation." There was a reason she chose this person¨C this simple looking man with dark brown hair and dull brown eyes. He was wearing the same uniform as the other receptionists as well, but Elio could tell there was something different about this person with his keen eyesight. "Hmm? A Private magic evaluation? We do magic evaluation under the-." "Let''s cut the small chat." She took out a certain silver ID card from her inventory, and placed it before the receptionist in a way that no one else could see it. "We don''t have long, so it would be better if you could move your hands quickly." The silver ID card belonged to the Mages'' Association, the central organization that all the mages affiliated with any tower throughout the world had to be registered with. It was the association that held the greatest authority among the magic towers, so if someone was directly revealing an Identification related to that place, a mage of a small town like this one had no other choice but to panic. "Oh. I understand. Please, follow me." The mage was clearly in distress but he did not show it on his face. He was one of the few trained individuals that attended to the special guests of the towers. The two of them were obviously uninvited guests that were visiting unannounced, so the receptionist had no idea who they were. But the fact that despite being foreigners, they somehow possessed a legit ID of the association made things complicated for him. Something like that was not needed to access a basic special service like the one they were asking for, but it was more than enough to grant them access to this special facility. [Ding!] "You sure are something, hun?" She had somehow become a low level player but it seemed like she still possessed a lot of items that she had when she was still a high level player. He did not know how she did it still, but it was convenient this way. "We will move to the sixth floor testing area." [Ding!] They climbed a special magical elevator in the center of the room among the many others that were already crowded with other people. This elevator seemed to be something only reserved for the staff, but the two of them accompanied him to the sixth floor and reached the area where all kinds of testing was done. Az had been amazed ever since they came here and the mage that was accompanying them seemed to be curious about this strange slime with them¡­ but he was a little too worried to pay attention to things like that. His job was perhaps on the line right now. Chapter 23 - 23: Magic affinity There are three kinds of magic users in including the players as well as the natives. The beings who are born with the ability to use magic are called [< Sorcerers >]. These individuals are chosen by magic, and not the other way around. It is their birthright, an inherent power of their bloodline, or a unique power that they had created due to unique supernatural circumstances. Then there are [< Wizards >], individuals who have studied extensively to understand the true nature of what is known as magic and natural magical phenomena. These individuals, different from the people who cast spells directly with the energy that is channeled from nature and environment, are bound by various catalysts. Be it some spellbooks, some artifacts, some items, or something like a companion creature, they can only use the magic that they have studied for long years with the help of these objects. ''Wizards are some of the toughest classes to raise, so the player spends money and goes for a forced opening of their Mana channels even if they have to die many times.'' Very rare players could use Magic naturally without needing to to open up their Mana channels. [< Mage >] is thus the most famous magic class among the players since most of the time, the otherworldly people possess at least some chance to open up their Mana channels if they try enough times. ''Becoming a summoner is costly and becoming an elementalist requires a lot of time, or a lot of luck. So, just going to these common magic towers present in all towns and cities is the best way to get access to magic.'' They were now in the testing room and if it was confirmed that He had the talent for magic and was in the clear, the Mana infusion process would not take long. "For the Magic-type affinity check, please place your hand on each of these glass plates." S~ea??h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The room they were in was not too big. It was almost only a little bigger than their inn room. There were all kinds of complicated things present around them, but the three of them were standing before three unique magic plates that possessed a unique colorful glow to them. "Elemental magic, Unique magic, and Natural magic. Let''s see what my artist darling has." The magic in this world was broadly divided into three categories. Of them, elemental magic was the most common kind of magic one could use. Unique magic was something that belonged to individuals and they had to find it for themselves, and natural magic was something that was famous on the same scale as elemental magic. "I just have to place my hand on them?" For Elio, the progression since he met her was a little too easy. If it wasn''t for her, he would have had to do the registration by himself, wander around without much knowledge of the things here, and he would not even have known about the event in the library and had wasted his time on a useless trip. Not that he would have minded it since he was playing this game to be with her and explore the things like he wanted to, but still, he wanted to go around the town on his own. "Huuu¡­" "Muu! Muuuu~!" Though, going on his own was not going to be possible for now, he knew that so he decided to be in the moment and his partner, the little slime cheered him on. "Right. We also have to go to the tamers guild and other places." When he saw the slime''s cheerful behavior, he remembered there was a lot he had to do today, so hesitating for this simple thing was not a good thing. He wasn''t going to disappoint her even if he does not have any affinity for magic, he knew that. So, with a deep breath, he handed Az to her and placed his hand on the first plate that tested an affinity for natural magic. -Oooooooooooooong! The plate was glowing with many colors like the other two plates but after he placed his hand on it, it glowed with a unique golden color that was warm in nature. "Hmmm¡­ you have a (Basic) [Rank-1] affinity for Natural magic." The affinity ranks were graded in Basic, Uncommon, and Advanced and all of them had three ranks. Even a basic affinity of the first rank was a good sign for someone who had never had any practical experience with magic since with time and efforts, these ranks could be advanced further. "Woh, amazing." Just the fact that he had an affinity for Natural magic was a big thing so, there was a smile on Alex''s pretty face. But as someone who had seen this simple result many times in his career, the person that was taking this test did not have any special expression. "Then, the next." A person could certainly have an affinity for more than one kind of magic so it was basic to check for all three kinds. "Hmm¡­" He moved on to the Unique magic plate and placed his hand on it. And this time as well, it glowed with a bright light that had even more diverse colors than what was already present on it. "Oh? It seems like you have a [Rank-1] Basic affinity for Unique magic as well. That''s pretty rare." Though the ranks were the lowest, just the fact that he could use magic of a unique kind, something only he will be able to do, brought a bigger smile to her face. "Yei! I knew you would be great!" He did not want to kill anything in this world, she understood his wishes. So the fact that he had an affinity for some unique kind of magic on top of natural magic was just too exciting to her. "Then lastly, Elemental magic." The mage now had an interested look on his face. People rarely had an affinity for more than one kind of magic, so if there was someone who possessed affinity for all three kinds of magic, he would have to report this to the tower master immediately. There had been players in the past with affinity for all three kinds of magic and recruiting them was the top priority of the tower. Unique magic users were rare already, and those who could use both natural and unique magic usually could also use elemental magic naturally. But, it did not seem like he was one of those special players. "Alright then¡­" Elio placed his hand on the final glass plate as well¡­ but sadly, contrary to the other''s expectations, the glass plate did not react to him. "Well, looks like you don''t have an affinity for elemental magic. That''s a bummer." The elemental magic was the most common type of magic but he did not have any affinity for it. It wasn''t something bad. Having affinity for two kinds of magic was more than rare enough already. "Alas. Well, we should now move on to the next part." The test taker seemed rather disappointed. But he quickly shook his head and turned around to activate the other devices. "Oh, wait. We still have to check what magic affinities Az has." But Alex stopped him and smiled down at the creature in her hands. "Muuu?" Now that they were done with El''s evaluation¡­ it was time for the special little slime to see if it had any talent for magic. Chapter 24 - 24: Az: The unique slime "Miss¡­ you want to see if this slime has the talent for magic?" It was not everyday that someone asked him for a magic talent test for a creature. There surely were some creatures in nature capable of performing magic, wielding special powers, and controlling the power of Mana, but not all creatures possessed enough intelligence to create the spells. There were only rare cases of creatures who even understood what the other intelligent beings like them even wanted to say. There were great restrictions on those creatures of nature. But still, some surely overcame those restrictions and mastered the special power of the intelligent beings¨C magic. "Yup. I''m paying for this anyway so there should be no problem with it, right?" "Well¡­" There surely was no problem¡­ other than the simple fact that the creature in question was a mere slime! "We could certainly do it if you wish, ma''am." There was something strange about this slime, he knew that ever since he first saw it. It was different from the slimes that they had in this tower. It interacted with the two of them and made sounds as a reply to their questions. More than that, he had this strange feeling while looking at it that¡­ he could not explain with words. It was just strange. But, all that had nothing to do with this slime having affinity for magic. It was a slime, the simplest creature of nature. There sure were extraordinary slimes in the world capable of many things, but this simple slime with no special skills or that low level seemed nothing like those legendary creatures. He did not think there would be any reactions from the magic plates when the lady placed the little slime on the glass tablet associated with Elemental magic. He did not even seem interested in this, until¡­ -Oooooooooooooong! The magic affinity detection plate that only reacted to someone''s magic capabilities started glowing with a brighter light than what they had seen a moment before. "...what?" He was confused for a moment, and he was stunned as well. He stayed in his place, frozen. And even after Alex took Az away from the glass tablet, he stayed in that frozen state. "Can you please place the slime back again?" He could not believe what he had just seen, so he had no choice but to ask them to place it back so that he could confirm it again. -Oooooooooooong! And just like before, when she placed the slime back on the tablet, it glowed with the same intensity it had done before, making the mage look at the slime with wide open eyes. "That slime¡­ it has a [Rank-3] Uncommon affinity for elemental magic?" He could not believe this result. It was just too absurd that a creature possessed magic affinity, but the added fact that the creature in question was a slime and had an abnormally high magic affinity rank shocked him even more. He was stunned for a moment, but then he looked at the master of the slime. "Is that a Familiar by any chance?" The only explanation he could think of right now, was this. "Do either of us look like a (Level-100) to you that we would have familiars? Az is just His tamed partner." Alex understood exactly what was going on with this person. That''s why there was a smirk on her face when she said the slime was just a tamed creature¡­ and she emphasized the fact that its tamer was Elio and not her, making the mage look at him with another stunned expression. "Anyway, if you are done with checking this one, let us move on. We do not have the whole day, you know?" "Ah! Of course!" He was in a daze, but her stern words brought him back and they tested Az for the other two categories as well. "Hmm. Looks like you can''t use unique or natural magic, Az." "Muuu¡­" It was strange how a slime, a creature of nature, could not use natural magic. But since it was now confirmed that the slime in question was in fact that Uncommon Mana slime, he was not that surprised. He had received enough shock today that he was done being surprised. So¡­ they moved on to the second part of the test: Elemental affinity test. "As we all know, there are six Main elemental affinities." Elemental magic followed elemental affinities, and natural magic also somewhat relied on elements so it was possible to guess what kind of natural element one possessed affinity with through this test. "These crystals here react to the elemental affinity so just holding them will make them glow if you have affinity for that element." Unique magic also sometimes relied on elements but it was unique by nature, so it was not reliable to use this specific test for testing what kind of unique magic one possessed. One had to find out their unique magic themselves with time and experience. That was just how it worked. "Then, let''s get started." Of the Six elements: Darkness, Earth, Water, Fire, Wind, and Light, it was pretty rare to have affinity for even more than two of the elements. -Ooooooooooooong! But, in the hundreds of years that this magic tower was standing, there had hardly ever been any cases of someone possessing an affinity for all six elements. "Is this rare?" Especially someone that did not possess any affinity for elemental magic. It was just absurd how someone could light up all six elemental crystals. And that too, at an intensity so intense it almost blinded an official mage''s eyes. It was just absurd to him as someone who was witnessing it for the first time in his entire life. "Rare would be an understatement to that, El darling." Even Alex was stunned right now. She was exactly opposite to him in this manner, so this absurd situation right now was giving her a mixed feeling. S~ea??h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. On one side, she was smiling at him. And on the other side, she was squeezing the innocent slime so hard that its round shape¡­ had now become something closer to the Klein bottle. Chapter 25 - 25: Mana infusion Earth, fire, water, wind, light and darkness. They were called the six primary elements of nature. Everything else was derived from them and it was pretty rare for some mage to have affinity for all of these elements of nature. "Looks like Az has an affinity with water and light elements. Even that is rare." It was not particularly a good thing that he had affinity for more than one element, but instead of being something good, having multiple affinities was considered to be a bad thing by the players. "We will move on to the Mana infusion and then do the Magic series test." The mage in charge of these tests was already tired of getting surprised. He had seen enough today, so he just wanted to finish this and return to his Normal work. "Muuu?" "Don''t mind him. He''s just surprised." They had confirmed that the two of them had affinity for magic, so their work here was coming to an end. All that was left here now, was the process of opening His Mana channels. "Then, please come here and hold these two crystals." When someone had only one elemental affinity, it was easy to master the magic related to that element. However, when it came to practicing magic of various elements, it was a different task altogether. Elemental affinities of opposing natures did not go well with one another. Water was not great with fire and earth was not great with wind. Light and darkness were polar opposites of one another, and when someone has affinity with all of them, they mainly choose to master one of them to make things easier. "Alex. Why don''t you have any affinity with these elements?" "Who knows?" She could not use magic of any of the affinities. And she did not have any affinity with any of the six elements. She could not wield Mana at all. Her body naturally opposed Mana¡­ that was the main reason she had no choice but to become a weapon wielder despite her superior intellect. In all her time in this world, she had wanted to become a mage, someone who could use magic, but she realized with experience that that was not the path she needed to walk on. And she was happy to have realized that¡­ perhaps, they might not have been together had she not been like this. "Magic is fun, and I like it. But holding a sword and slashing things has a completely different kind of fun to it." She naturally opposed Mana so, she had a great affinity with the second most famous natural energy of this world: Aura. A great power that only those who have mastered their weapon or understood it to a great degree could command. If magic was a birthright and a result of intelligence, Aura was the world''s answer to one''s countless hours of dedication and hard work. Not everyone who held a weapon could use Aura. it was a privilege of only those who had dedicated their mind, body, and soul to their Path. "Well, even though I can''t use magic, now that we know you can use all six of the elements on top of not having affinity for elemental magic, things will be even more fun than what I had expected." She had a mysterious smirk on her face that gave him the Chills. He did not like how she was looking at him as he grabbed the colorless crystals attached to a complex looking machine in the corner of the room. Sear?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He could tell this was not as simple a thing as it looked, so¡­ when he grabbed the two crystals and the mage activated the device with a magic spell, a unique feeling washed over him. [Ding.] A screen popped up before him right when he started feeling that strange sensation throughout his body. "It might be a little painful but please endure." His eyes were open but all of a sudden, everything went blank. -Oooooooooooong! All he could see was a dull darkness that one sees when closing their eyes. Along with that light gray screen¡­ [Mana is surging through your body!] There was some pain inside him, it felt like his blood had suddenly become thicker. It was not a familiar sensation. [The stagnant Mana channels are forcefully being opened!] It surely sting a little, but he did not feel as much pain as he had felt when the Manawater slime first hit him and he had coughed up blood. In fact, this sensation faintly felt familiar to him. [Mana channels are reacting to a familiar environment and equilibrium is being established between inner and outer environments.] He could tell something was changing inside of him. Something was starting to flow inside of him and at the same time, he could feel that same thing in the environment around him. [A new homeostasis is being established¡­] The darkness that was present all around him was now clearing up and instead, strange small particles of sand or what seemed like star-like dust was now appearing all around him. [Ding!] He found it strange at first, but after a moment, he felt a completely new kind of refreshment than how he had felt until now. [Congratulations! You have gained access to the Natural Energy: Mana.] [You have acquired Skill: {Mana sense}. You can now sense the Mana in your environment.] [You have opened the Mana circuit in your body completely, earning an achievement.] [Treading on the path of Mana (Common) has been achieved!] "Wow¡­" He felt a new kind of energy running through his entire body that was not present there a moment before. There was a unique kind of strength running through his body as well. It was as if he had just become even stronger. But more than that, everything he could see, everything he could feel with his senses had just become so much better that it seemed like a completely new world had opened up to him. "I''m not even surprised at how you opened up your Mana circuit completely and acquired {Mana senses} during the infusion process. Haaa¡­" Not everyone could open up their Mana circuits completely during the infusion process since it was just the basic process of letting them be familiar with this energy. They gain the senses to perceive Mana in their environment much later as well since one had to first get used to a Mana rich environment. But, he obtained them just like that. "Seems like you''re special as well, El." Alex was sighing with a smile on her face and Az looked happier for some reason. "Az¡­" And now that he could see Mana, he could see the slime that seemed just like a blob to him previously, in fact looked even prettier. "We should finish the magic series test now, and you can register as an official mage-." "Oh, no. We will do the Series test on our own." All she wanted to see was what kind of magic affinity he had and what elements they might be able to use. Their main objective for coming here was opening his Mana circuits. They didn''t need the tower''s help for practical tests. There was an entire hunting area for that. "But, miss¡­" "I know I''ll have to pay six Silvers to skip this process but that isn''t much. So, let us get moving~." They had to visit the Tamers'' association to register Az but that was a short process. Now that he could use Mana, she was excited to see just what different types and series of magic these two special ones might be capable of. Chapter 26 - 26: The hunting ground "Muuu~! Muuu!" There were many hunting grounds around the Moongold town but of them all, she brought us to the beginner forest that had the most dangerous creatures. "There are six series of magic that are also called Types of magic." She had a magic scroll in her hand right now and there was a big (Level-15) wild boar before us. "The first series is, obviously: Destruction." When she activated the magic scroll by tearing it in half, the magic circle that was encoded in it was activated and the earth attribute spell that it contained materialized in the form of a large rock spike. sea??h th§× N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. -Swish! -Shuuuu¡ªrrruk! "MHIIIIIIII¡­!" It was not easy to control the spells from the magic scrolls but she controlled it precisely so that the spike would only hit the hind legs of the giant boar. It was a one meter tall creature so it was in no way something as simple as the pork people eat in the real world¨C or this world, for that matter. "The second series is what defines the healer mages: Abundance." We walked closer to the creature and though it was dangerous, she used another scroll and this time, the magic that was cast created a green magic circle around one of the legs of the creature that, with a green light, miraculously healed the injured leg of the wild beast. "Muuuuuuhiiiiii¡­!" The creature was obviously angry to see people standing before him, and knew they must have been the ones to attack him as well. So the wild boar attacked them with its front legs as soon as it saw the chance. "The third is Preservation. The magic that creates protective barriers¨C as well as different kinds of other barriers." -Oooooooooooong! When she used another magic scroll, a translucent blue shield was created around us and the creature that had attacked us with great force, instead of dealing any damage to us, was thrown back with a great rebounding force. "The fourth type is Restriction. The magic that applies debuffs to the enemies." She was already using a lot of expensive scrolls that cost more than a few silver coins. They were not something anyone could buy with a little money, and instead were something that players used as a hidden card in case they came across something difficult. But she used them as if they were nothing. -Oooooooooooooong! Thankfully, to show us what Restriction type magic was, she used an Item with the magic imbued in it instead of a scroll that could only be used once. It was a rare kind of item that had certain charges that could be used more than once, and some rare ones that had these magic stored as skills could even restore these charges. "There are various kinds of debuffs that one could naturally receive in . But, magic debuffs are more powerful since they could not be cured with physical cleansing potions." The moment she used the pendent like item, the boar that was running back at us with a new kind of anger was abnormally slowed down. It was as if time had slowed down for this creature¨C something so unique that it brought some confusion to the creature in question as well. "The fifth type is the opposite of the debuffs¡­ magic of buffs, Grace series." She picked up a twig from the ground and used another magic scroll on it, giving it some kind of buff that she said was called (Toughness). "And lastly¡­" She moved past the protective barrier in an instant as if to have teleported, and reached right beside the point where the slowed down creature had reached. "The Physical series which caters to the set laws of the world and the reality that we live in." -Dhum! -Crrrr! She slammed the twig right on the forehead of the angry creature and the crisp sound that was created, it was obvious that she had broken the skull of the creature. -Thud. The way the big creature fell to the ground was obviously something cool, but the fact that she was looking back at us with a smile while still holding that fortified twig was something else¡­ ''Why''s she so cool, damn it.'' She must have used {Blink} to move so fast that it almost made it seem like she had teleported. ''She told me it was one of her favorite skills that were pretty easy to learn but very difficult to master.'' Blink was essentially a magic that could move someone a set distance away from their current position. However, it was very difficult to control how far within a ten meter radius one would go and where they would end up. ''That''s why mages only used it as an escape ticket to get out of dangerous situations.'' There were many creatures that possessed this skill as well, so with right hunting or by spending a few hundred silver, one might certainly get the Essence that contained this skill. It wasn''t that difficult to obtain it, but it was a kind of magic skill that, according to her, was more precious than people generally knew. "Physical magic is not just something that follows the laws of physics, it could also go beyond it and make impossible into reality." From how much I knew about her life in this world, I knew she loved physical magic series the most. Of course she could not use magic or even Mana herself, but that was probably the reason skills existed in this world. "Three kinds, six core elements, and six type series. Magic of this world is pretty simple if you put aside the difficult things one might have to learn and understand in order to cast these magic spells. Though, as long as one has enough creativity and understanding of the magic they want to cast, with enough Mana and focus, they should be able to cast the spells that they want." Magic was not limited to elements and elemental magic. Fireball, ice lance, earthquake, illumination, dark sphere, wind cutters¡­ these weren''t all there was to magic here. People could create, destroy, recreate, edit, explore, and go beyond what was simply possible with the magic of this world. "So then. What type of magic do you want to cast first?" Unlike affinities of elements and Kinds of magic, anyone can learn any type of magic if they try hard enough. But still, it was better to start with the type that one was the most suited for. "Muuu~!" And both of them were excited for it. "Let''s start with the easiest." Though¡­ since he did not have any affinity for elemental magic, checking the series that he was the most suited for was going to be a little difficult task. The same, on the other hand, was not true for the little excited slime. Chapter 27 - 27: Magic casters "I¡­ have to study this thing?" She had handed me a thick book with a metallic silver cover with a lot of complicated things written in it in a language that I could not even understand. "Of course not, silly. You can''t read that script anyway so why would I even bother giving you that thing." Looking down at the special looking book with a little confused look, I flipped through the pages first and saw the magic circles that were drawn after very few pages. "Just try memorizing the magic verses associated with the spells or memorize the spell structure. Understanding the spell itself is the fastest way to learn it, but since you don''t know how to read it, memorizing should be enough to give an idea about the spell''s affinity." "So¡­" She simply meant I just had to chant the incantations or recreate the spells in my mind to cast them. "Seems simple enough." Being an artist meant having a good imagination. And though I do not have as great of a memory as hers, what I have developed with my experiences in various fields is enough for something like this. "Let''s start with the simplest one in the book." She gave Az a simple looking magic scroll for a water attribute spell and the cute slime was ''feeling'' the scroll since a while ago, trying to comprehend the spell''s structure somehow. It was doing its best, so I also had to do the same. "Natural Magic: Earth attribute: Restriction series spell¨C Grass binding." Natural magic was a little different from elemental magic since it was not derived from the independent elements existing in nature but from the elements that were part of nature itself. ''Normally, to cast a (Fireball), one would use the fire element''s power directly from the nature when they use Elemental magic. It is simpler and more direct. However, when using natural magic one has to rely on the natural elements.'' To cast a fire element natural spell, a naturally lit fire is necessary. To cast water elemental natural spells, water sources of nature: Lake, rain, rivers are necessary. And just like them, to cast an earth attribute natural spell, the earthly elements are necessary¡­ "Focus and think about the spell structure." She guided me through the process with her hands on my shoulders. "Think about how the spell looks, what it is about and how it might feel if you touched it with your hands." She was holding one of my hands with some soil between our hands. "Do it from the inside out, just the way you do it." Forming the center of the spell first, I drew the spell inside my head and connected the lines just the way I remembered them. "Now, Channel the Mana inside of you and try to move the Mana in the atmosphere. Lead the Mana and draw the spell the same way you drew it inside your head." -Oooooooooooooong! I had no idea what I was supposed to do to move the Mana inside me so I just followed the lead of her other finger which was moving from my chest area- around the place my heart was- to the end of my finger, where I was supposed to manifest the circle. "Take a deep breath." "Huuuu¡­" I didn''t really do anything, but as if it was instinct, something inside of me followed the path she had shown and followed the lines I had made in my imagination. "When the spell structure is on point and when the Mana input is enough¡­" -Ooooooooooooooong! I could feel a new, warm sensation before my hand so I opened my eyes¨C and saw a spell manifestation of my own for the first time. "Magic, is born." Just like I had seen in the book, there was an attractive looking magic circle before my eyes. It was my first spell¨C a (tier-1) basic spell of Natural magic. "And when the spell is released¡­" She moved my hand to an empty area away from where Az was ''working'' with his magic scroll, and moving her face closer to mine, she said something completely unexpected and inappropriate that the concentration I had on my spell was broken instantly. -Oooooooooooong. "Alex!" I was angry at her for doing something so unexpected so out of the blue, and thanks to her, the spell that I had made with such difficulty flew away to the place it was pointed at. "...It creates the phenomenon that it was meant to." -Oooooooooong! I did not see it before, but the place that it was pointed at had a small plant growing¨C which, when the spell manifested, was instantly covered in strong looking, long blades of strange grass that did not belong to this environment. "Congrats on casting your very first spell, dumb one." She smiled at me warmly and resealed the hand with the soil that she had been holding since earlier. [Ding!] [You have cast a basic (tier-1) spell for the first time. Rewarding Exp.] [Ding!] [Level up!] [(Level-13) > (Level-14).] With the Exp I got from the reward box earlier, this level up was at least within my expectations. So it was not that surprising. "Looks like you can cast the Restriction spells-... hun?" But, what both of us did not expect was what happened right after I succeeded in casting my magic. -Oooooooooong! "Shrrrrr¡­" [Ding!] [Your tamed Mana slime has succeeded in casting a spell!] [Your Mana slime has obtained the skill: {Magic comprehension}.] [You have earned Exp!] [You have earned an achievement!] [Master of magician beast (Rare) has been achieved!] "Wow¡­" Az, who was working with its water element magic scroll had somehow created a small fountain of water that did not seem anything impressive from a general point of view¡­ but the fact that it did it with magic, with a spell that was supposed to create drinking water, made all the difference. "Looks like I''m going to be working with two magic geniuses, hun?" "Muuu! Muuu~!" The scroll that she gave to Az was nowhere to be seen so she could tell how the slime might have gained the knowledge of magic after only a few hours of ''practice''. "This one''s special as well, hun?" Az was different from the other Mana slimes that she had seen. It had skills that she has not seen even in other slimes all over the world, much less in the other Mana slimes. S~ea??h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. ============ [Mana Slime: Az] (Tamer: Elio.) (Level: 3) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 5 Agility: 6 Endurance: 4 Intelligence: 9 T-T (Functional stats) Energy: 8/10 Stamina: 5/10 Fatigue: 4/10 Mana: 15/30 {Skills: Curiocity, Emotions, Magic comprehension.} ============ It was not a simple slime. "Muuuuu~!" Just the fact that it could cast magic made it Very special, but from an understanding of someone who understood these creatures, from an understanding of someone like Alex¨C this simple blob that was now jumping joyfully with half of its Mana gone, was a unique existence even among its unique kind. "Now then, let''s check the other types as well and quickly go on hunting~!" Alex had now become even more excited and though it was not there before, there was a new kind of spark in her eyes. ''A spark that one could simply see in anyone excited for the most sought after activity of these kinds of games¡­ hunting.'' She knew I was not going to kill anything. But, since she was here, we knew I would not need to do the killing myself¡­ Chapter 28 - 28: Hunting Elio could use Restriction, Grace, and Physical magic. While too weak right now, Az could use Destruction series magic. Both of them could not use the other series very well at the moment so they were going to work with what they can use first until they could use it well, and then move on to the other series. Despite equal effort, they realized that their magic from other series was ineffective and would be of no use in practical life. Even if they tried to manifest the spell and were perfect with their execution, the spells did not manifest. Which simply meant they needed to put some more work into the process though, and keep practicing. "That''s our first prey." "...really?" They were now hunting, and since Az was not going to be of much help, it was up to the two of them now. And, even if she could hunt like a professional with her higher level and strength, he had neither experience nor enough strength to go against a creature like this one. ============ [Green horn Rabbit]: (Level-21) ============ "That''s a (Level-21) creature." "Hmm? You can tell that?" He somehow got better with his observation after he obtained his Mana and he could observe things even faster than before. He only needed to glare at them for a while and after he had looked at them for long enough, their observed status appeared before him. "You might be able to face it¡­ but we are Not going there to fight it with you." In the first place, this creature looked much more dangerous than that boar they just defeated. It was two freaking meters tall even though it was called a RABBIT! It was currently eating what seemed to be a big deer, some other dangerous creature, had blood all over its face, and the teeth it had seemed more like sharp blades of a saw! And there was blood on them! The eyes of this thing were completely black, deep dark black! There was a strange green horn on its head while its body was completely brown¡­ and there was blood all over its body! Calling that thing a Rabbit was already cheating¡­ but it was also several levels above him and looked strong enough to split him in two with its bare hands. It was absurd! "Hmm? Are you afraid of that cute thing?" But to Alex who had faced ancient monsters and primordials, this was practically just a cute little thing. "Cute?" He looked at her with a little shock and a little doubt. For a moment, he thought she was just joking. But when he looked at her for a moment longer and there was no result to her look, he knew he had been with the wrong kind of person for the last few years. "Anyway. You don''t have to fight. I''ll do the fighting." Experience gained through hunting could be divided equally within a party and since they were in a party right now, they did not have to worry about the fighting aspect of the hunting part itself. Since there was a person with equal level as the creature present, things will not be that difficult for them. He did not like this, but since he will be helping out in hunting, he was fine with it this time. "When I go in, immediately cast (Speed up) on me. And when you see the rabbit going berserk and preparing its energy cannon-." "It''s what?" And this creature can go berserk as well? He was very confused at the moment. "Just do what I say, dummy. Don''t overthink things right now." She wanted him to cast the (tier-1) Grace spell (Speed up) and then use the (Grass binding) spell of Restriction series to temporarily restrict the rabbit''s movement. He had not decided to solely walk on the path of a mage so he did not have a certain Mage class but one did not need a class to be able to cast magic. Magic was a power available to everyone. As long as they could master the spells, have enough Mana and mental stamina to cast those spells, and meet basic requirements, they could use any kind of magic in the world. One just needed to meet the basic requirements and usually, this task got more difficult as one approached the higher tier spells. "Alright." With an excited smile, without saying anything more, Alex jumped out of the bush they were hiding in and used {Blink} to close the distance between her and the creature. "...!" The giant rabbit already sensed her presence when she had reached near him, and it was going to attack her with its swift attacks as well. But, right before it could do that, her body glowed with a unique yellow color and she moved even faster, reaching right behind the giant rabbit. -Swish! Then, she used a short dagger to make a lunge and shoved it right inside a certain point of the rabbit''s elbow. "SKEEEEE!" The rabbit screamed as if it was in extreme pain after that ambush, something which might not have been successful had Elio not used the wind elemental natural spell in time. He was afraid of miss-release as well since if the spell was to be used on the creature instead, things would have gotten a lot more difficult than what they already were. -Swish! Thankfully, her first attack was a critical hit, and after that, she moved faster with her enhanced speed and used a short sword to make various cuts throughout the giant body of the creature. "SKEEEEE¡­!" sea??h th§× ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She was deliberately targeting those certain points which seemed to induce more pain than damage, and not long after, the entire brown body of the giant creature started turning red¨C a classic sign of berserk. "What the hell is that girl up to?" The rabbit was bigger so it was not difficult to aim a spell at it. -Ooooooooong! When the creature went berserk and was just about to attack her with its increased speed and strength that was so great that the ground beneath its feet had already been crushed by the sheer force of its rawness¡­ he manifested his Restriction spell of earth element and new grass sprung out right beneath the rabbit''s feet. "SKEEEEEEE!" It seemed like the rabbit had gone mad already. It knew nothing going on around it. Its eyes were only following the one that had put it through that great pain. "SKEEEEE¨C..." It could see its enemy right before it so it tried to move as quickly as it could and catch her with its new, boiling strength. -Dhum! "Perfect. Sadly, the saying: "The bigger they are, the harder they fall." was applied here and with merely a few grass blades that were nothing compared to the creature''s great size, it fell to the ground. "Ba-bye~." And when it was on the ground, she precisely shoved three new daggers around the green horn of the rabbit. "SKKKEEeeeeeee¡­" The rabbit tried to struggle, but that struggle lasted only for a moment. [Ding!] Its soul had already left its body when she shoved those daggers in its head. Now, only a dead body with no blood of the Rabbit present anywhere in the green surroundings was left on the ground¡­ Chapter 29 - 29: Change of plans "Wow." She knew they would take the rabbit down but she did not expect it to be this easy. "Man this was too easy!" She looked at the downed rabbit, retrieved her daggers and put them back into her inventory, and checked the condition of her hunt. "Was it easy?" Elio came out of the bushes with Az who seemed happier after seeing the dead rabbit. "Yup. It usually takes me a few minutes to hunt one of these in this perfect condition." There was no great damage to the rabbit''s body, there were no visible wounds on the dirty hide either. The only blood present on it was from the creature it was eating earlier and even though it had gone berserk, now that it was dead, its body had somehow returned back to its natural state¨C something should not happen in normal circumstances. "It was too easy with the speed boost. And that restriction spell timing was just perfect." After checking the condition of the hunt, she walked back to him and looked at him with a smile on her face. "We actually make a good team, you know?" With a playful look on her face, she first kissed him, and then she admired his still surprised expression. "I don''t know about making a good team, but that sure seemed easy." Each of his simple spells cost him around Five units of Mana. At level-14, he had around 20 points of Mana and unlike the creatures who increase their Mana capacity as they level up, the players had to increase it with either special items or through training/achievements/enlightenment. For players, Mana was a functional stat that increased with the level of players¨C or by 10 at each ten levels in simple terms. "Right~. I know we make a great team~." She was happy after hunting this creature, but she was nowhere content just yet. "Let''s hunt till evening~." Contrary to him, she loved hunting. She did not do many life activities inside the game and focused more on exploration, hunting, and finding more fun places to hunt in. She also liked learning about new things so she also spent a lot of her time in the libraries of this world, but since she had mostly been by herself, she did not have many acquaintances or friends. "Ummm¡­ I don''t seem to have any choice anyway so, sure?" He had to level up anyway. And since they did not have anything else to do until the evening, they just went to their next target. Which was a big brown peacock. "Alex¡­ this one''s pretty." She did not want to kill this creature since it was just minding its own business in an open area of the forest. It was a Brown feathered peacock of (Level-25). A high level creature that most certainly was also rare. "It tastes delicious though. I know you''ll like it when I cook it so don''t worry about the small things." She just told him to cast a Speed boost spell on her like the last time and a Movement speed reduction spell on the peacock. It was a fast one and since it was also not that big, it would be difficult to aim the spell. But, even though he did not like it and wanted to stop her, she had already run away. "Muuuu." "I don''t like it." The big and scary rabbit was one thing but this simple and harmless looking creature was a different kind of being altogether. They were rare creatures but not too rare so people hunted them whenever they got the chance. The creatures themselves only had their superior escape tactics and skills so they mostly managed to escape from the hunters¡­ but that was not going to be possible against someone like her. He knew that. -Ooooooooooooooong! So, he used the movement speed reduction spell on her right when she closed in on the creature, and by using the grass restriction spell, he created a kind of wall between them so that the creature could not attack her. "Pyaaaaaa!" And since it could not attack the sudden attacker, the creature just screamed, spread her beautiful brown wings, and vanished from the open grass area. "Muuu?!" Even Az was surprised how his master used the spell on his own partner. Though, of course, he knew the consequences of doing something like that. "You¡­ hypocrite." The basic spell''s effect did not last long on her. But as if to have expected this kind of event, she came back to him with a sad look on her face. "I''m sorry¡­ it was just-." "Pretty?" She knew he was crazy for pretty creatures. She knew there would come a time when he will do all he can to stop her from killing them if it is not necessary. But at least, she didn''t think he would interfere even for a simple creature like that one. "Crazy bastard." He took this game a little too seriously. That''s why he was perhaps better being something other than a hunter or a kind of player that needs to kill other things. "Haaaa¡­" He knew she did not like it, but, well, there was no changing what had already happened. He did not like it, and this time, he could not help himself either. That creature was too pretty and too precious to just eat¡­ they could buy the pea-cock meat from the market if they just wanted to eat it but killing it with their own hands was a little too much. And yes he was crazy to stop her from doing it as well, but since he was helping her in this, he was indirectly doing it as well. "Alright then¡­" He had known him for years now and knew he was not going to stop doing it just because she did not like it. He would either just return back to the town and leave the hunting to her- something she did not want- or keep getting in her way of hunting creatures that gave good Exp but looked attractive. She could not have that either. S§×arch* The ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Unlike him, she had her reasons to get stronger and get back to higher levels as quickly as she could. But since she wanted to be with him as she did that as well, she also had to focus on his levels while she did that. "Change of plans." Since she had killed every single kind of creature one could find in this hunting ground once already, she knew most of the higher level ones that gave good Exp were good looking creatures. It was the problem with the beginner hunting grounds. The creatures here were not as ugly as they were outside of the beginner areas. "Let''s go hunt down the field boss." "What?!" If he was not going to let her kill the pretty ones and if she wanted to power level before they go and do the Guard captain''s quest, they both at least needed to be (Level-20). And he was not at that level just yet. But she knew that would change if he gets all the Exp for killing the field boss of this beginner area¨C a (Level-35) creature that even she had not attempted yet. "Oy, Alex. We are talking about the same field boss that I know, right?" He was confused and stunned right now, so the logical thing his mind thought was how he must be misunderstanding something. "Yup. You know what I''m talking about." But just from looking at that excited smile she had¡­ his heart already knew that she was up to another absurd thing now. Chapter 30 - 30: Field boss A field was a vast area with many monster or creature camps located in close proximity. These special places sometimes even had some pretty rare creatures that one might not find anywhere else in that area. Of course though, there was also a Boss monster of this field. A creature that was above every other creature present within that field. "Can just the two of us take down that creature?" "What do you mean ''two of us''? You want to fight as well?" Even if he technically wanted to, he would be a dead weight to her. So, he also knew he was just better as a support. S§×arch* The N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Then¡­ are we going to use some higher tier magic scrolls as well?" "Do I look like someone who''d use a high level magic scroll against a mere beginner area''s field boss? Do you think these things are chocolates?" Every scroll was precious, something that could save one''s life. So, using it when it wasn''t even necessary was just dumb. And besides, however resourceful she might be, there was a limit to her resources. She might have a few hundred lowest tier scrolls, a few higher tier ones, some good ones, and a few that could destroy a city or bring down divine grace, there was still a limit to how much she had. And, she for sure was not going to use it all carelessly even if she wanted to. "I''ll give you three destructive spell scrolls, three barrier scrolls, and three Physical magic scrolls along with a few Mana regeneration potions. You will use them, cast debuff spells on the boss and buff me with Physical and Grace spells. I''ll fight, and Az will help us distracting-." "Wait wait wait wait. What did you just say?" This was not what he was looking forward to. "Why would Az distract anything? In the first place, who says it will be joining the battle." If Elio was a weak (Level-14), Az was merely a (Level-3) slime that was just starting to learn new things. It was an innocent creature that knew practically nothing about anything, and just like a kid, it got happy at things that it found fun, and acted like any child would in any situation. If Elio was putting his life at risk by going for the field boss with a single party member, then Az would be attempting suicide by going before that high level creature. "Relax. He''s perfect for this job." He didn''t want to put his little friend in harm''s way so he was not going to let her use Az. But the way she explained him, the way she convinced him that this was not going to be anything dangerous for the creature, was just too believable. "You''re sure about this¡­ right?" "Of course I am, damn it. There are places in this world where (Red Hobs) of even higher level live in big communities. We aren''t even talking about an Ogre, an Oni, or an ugly troll but merely a special kind of goblin." She was saying that but Elio still had his doubts. And when they reached the deepest part of the forest area covered by rocks on three sides, with a single big cave entrance visible in the center of it, he was convinced this was a bad idea. "Alex¡­ I think we should go back." "Nah, too late." Just as she said that, they felt the ground beneath their feet shaking a little and a strange stench filled the area around them. This strange stench was getting worse as each second passed, and not long after, they saw two orbs of red shining from beyond the cave''s darkness. "That''s¡­ a goblin?" "Don''t act like you are seeing one for the first time, lol. The people you''ve worked with used to kill these things when they were merely Level-10." Unlike her though, most of them were still top rankers famous all over the two worlds. As someone who had directly worked with them¡­ this one should be nothing much to him. "I''m not like those people! They are all crazy! Just like you!" He knew how she also killed many (Level-30)+ creatures in the time he was not here. She even killed a (Level-13) creature when she was (Level-3), earning an achievement. Though, he had no idea how she had done that. "Heh. Crazy, you say? Darling not wanting to kill creatures and stopping someone from killing them is the crazy thing, not what us enthusiasts do." She was observing the creature with pale red skin, a humanoid body, muscular physique, and two distinct horns of their kind on its head. Its eyes were entirely white, there was only a dirty cloth wrapped around its private part and the rest of its body was naked. There was a big bat made of wood in its hands, a weapon that was completely stained with dried blood of the things that it had killed before. Its feet were giant, the leg muscles strong looking, the face of the creature was ugly, and the pointed nose made it look even uglier. Still, one could feel great strength just from looking at this creature. And, the fact that this creature was a field boss made it one of the stronger creatures than the normal boss monsters that had simple enhanced stats. "Alright. Shuu. It must be going to find some food. This is our chance." A field boss was meant to be hunted by the many players together since it gave a lot more Exp than the other kind of bosses and had more chances of dropping an Essence. There was a better chance to obtain a skill by hunting these creatures, so they were pretty famous among the bigger parties and guilds. "Az, you know what you have to do, right?" "Muuuu~!" "Then go. And if you think it will be dangerous, use the Light magic you learned and get out of there as quickly as you can." "Muuu!" The groups and guilds were afraid to come to the deeper parts of the forest since there was a strange rumer circulating among them that some kind of ''nightmare'' had appeared in this place. It was a creature so dangerous that it had already beaten many people almost to their deaths and people had only survived it by running away from It. The rumors were going around for a few days now, and it would soon clear up¡­ so, they had to take advantage of the opportunity while the iron was still hot. "Don''t use debuffs on me this time, please." "Don''t worry, love. The world should be better without something like that." He knew he was a hypocrite to discriminate between what had the right to live and what did not, but, he was still a human at the end. And, as a human, he did not like that hideous thing. "Then let''s start." He knew this was going to be dangerous and she would be the one in most danger, but he was prepared for something unexpected. He had his magic scrolls, he had ten whole basic Mana recovery potions and he had his magic. He knew even if something does go wrong, the three of them will at least somehow get out of this damned place. Chapter 31 - 31: Red Hob -Shrrrrrr¡­ On a fine afternoon, the field boss of the beginner forest, a normal old Hob that had been living a mundane life in this forest by himself, went out of his comfortable house to get some brunch. Just like yesterday and the day before, he had been getting a pretty good sleep with no interference from the flies like humans that harassed him every other day. "Gurrrr." He did not like him. They always came to bother him when he was either eating or sleeping. They were already weak so they could not even put any decent fight against him, but they didn''t even let him live peacefully. "Gurrrr¡­" He did not like them. They were flies that even made it difficult for him to get some good food. It was only because of them that he could not enjoy the fresh meat that liked. They were just unbelievable. -Shrrrr. Shrrrrr¡­ "Gurrr?" He did not know why but he did not get any intruders for the last few days now and was living a peaceful life with more food than he usually found. Surely there was a day when he had to sleep on an empty stomach, but after that, he had been living a life of luxury. -Shrrrrr. Food was everywhere, there was sweet meat, there was juicy meat, there was even some new kind of meat that he had not seen in his territory before. S§×ar?h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. His mundane life of wake up-hunt-eat-fight-sleep had become not just easier but more exciting since a few days ago. He was eating all he wanted, he was sleeping all he wanted, and he did not even have to fight against those bugs that did not even know how to fight. His life had become blissful. "Gurrrr!" And it seemed to be getting even more blissful as food was now walking to him instead of him going out to find it. -Shrrr¡­ This was the first time he had heard any kind of movements around his house in the last few days. And, since he could not smell the flies around, he could tell this was not another one of their dumb tactics. -Thump. Thump. Thump. "Gurrrrr~." He ran with its giant feet, shaking the ground with every heavy step it took. And thanks to its large size, it did not even take him a few seconds to cover tens of meters of distance. He was happy that now food was even coming to his doorsteps. But sadly¡­ "Muuu." "Gurrr?" The food that had walked up to his house was merely a blob of slime, a creature that the giant red hob, a natural predator, was well aware of. "Gurrrr¡­" He knew this creature. They did not have any taste to them. They were sticky, difficult to chew, tasteless, bloodless, and there wasn''t even any benefit of eating these little things. -Shrrrr¡­ They were just dumb yakky things that made one throw up. Something he did not want to eat once again. "Gurrr." They were worthless and did not deserve attention from a strong being like him. There was a lot of meat in his paradise so, he was better off searching for that instead of this disgusting thing. -Thump. Thump. Ignoring the worthless creature, he turned around and walked back to do what he had been up to¡­ -Swish. He shouldn''t have done that. "Gurrr?" He felt a strange sting on his back right when he had walked a few steps away from the slime. And, when he turned his head back to see what it was¨C he sensed a new presence out of the blue as his eyes widened. "Gurrr¨C." -Shurrrk! Sadly, it was already too late. A sword had already pierced through his shoulder. "Tsk." He realized this was an ambush. But, before he could turn his head back and take a look at the ambusher, he felt a change in the air around him. -Swiiiiiiiiish! It was sudden as well, and from how the winds started moving abruptly, he knew instantly that this was the magic tricks of those human bastards. -Ooooooooong! Sadly, by the time he realized that, it was already too late. "Gurrrr?" He wanted to move quickly and block the attack that he could sense coming at him, but when he tried to move his body, he felt like his entire body had been submerged in quicksand. "Gurrrrrr¡­!" He could not move like the way he wanted to, and the opponent that he was fighting was moving absurdly faster than what he could react against. -Swish! Swish! Swish! On top of that, with each passing moment, he could sense strange stinging sensations all over his body, as if some big bees were stinging him. It was not the slashes of swords but something close to a thorn''s sting. It wasn''t even painful¡­ -Swish. Swish. Swish. And yet, after a few moments of enduring their attacks, he felt as if his strength was leaving his body. As if something strange was entering his body¡­ Something that made his blood colder. Something that he was well aware of¡­ "Gurrrrrrrrrrr!" -Oooooooooooooong! The enemy had been attacking with poison all this time. And he was dumb enough to not even realize that until just now. [{ "Is that the second phase?" }] Elio used their party chat to telepathically talk with Alex on the field as he gave her another movement speed enhancement buff. He was already out of two Mana potions, but since it seemed like the creature was entering the second phase, their actions until now seemed to be pretty effective. [{ "Yes. It will start using its skills now. This one was {Physical enhancement}. The {Frenzy} will begin shortly so make sure you time the restriction spells." }] [{ "Yes¡­" }] According to what she explained, this creature had three phases. In the first one, it usually attacked the players with its Bat and when players dealt a certain amount of damage to it, it used its {Physical enhancement} skill to enhance the physical aspects of its body, making it not only stronger, but also more resistant against debuffs and poison. The Physical debuffs still worked on it, but right when it activated the other skill {Frenzy} it healed a significant portion of its wounds so dealing physical damage until it entered that state was not advised. "Gurrrrrrrrr!" [{ "Now!" }] A Red Hob mostly only had six skills, and even among those skills, only three really mattered to the players¨C The enhancement skill, the frenzy, and the last one was called {Blood reinforcement}, something it uses in the last phase of the battle. -Oooooooooooong! One needed to deal a set amount of damage to it to make the creature use that skill, however, there were also other methods and ways one could force it to use this skill. "Gurrrrrrrrrr!" [{ "Is this supposed to happen right now?" }] [{ "Nope." }] Elio did as they had planned. He gave her the buffs while debuffing the creature. Their first part of the plan was a complete success and the poison she had used was supposed to be a potent one that would kill the creature with enough time even with the skills used. In the second part of their plan, he just had to do something similar to what he had done with the rabbit. [{ "Looks like we fucked up, El." }] He used his restriction skill and just when the creature was about to move, he used the grass binding to make it fall down. And since it was so big, it was supposed to fall down as well. But¡­ It somehow managed to handle his weight by supporting his body with its giant wooden bat, and in the process, he ended up kneeling right before Alex who had stopped because of her {Blink} skill''s cooldown. "GURRRRRRRR¡­!" It had not even been a few seconds since it entered the second phase, and somehow, the creature was already using its {Blood reinforcement} skill¨C which was not good for either of them. [{ "Welp¡­" }] She was not supposed to face this form when it still had so much strength left. [{ "New plans." }] But now that things had come down to this¡­ she had no choice but to face it head on. Chapter 32 - 32: Battle -Swish! [{ "Forget everything else and just keep giving me buffs. Please be careful with your aims and just shoot them a few meters to my right. I''ll get them." }] When a Red Hob enters its final state and uses the unique skill, a condensed cluster of energy that it stores by eating and resting is released explosively. "Ghrrrrrr¡­!" This energy makes the creature as dangerous as an Orc who are natural born warriors. The strength that they gain is not something just a few people could fight, that is why it is recommended to have at least ten to twelve party members of (Level-20) or above to fight this particular field boss. And, the importance of strong tanks is crucial. [{ "What do you mean by that?! What are you going to do?!" }] [{ "Just do as I say!" }] Sear?h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. When the Red Hobs enter this last form, they are not like the berserk creatures that lose all rationality and only care for their predetermined target. This is a natural enhancement skill that provides an explosive power to the creatures that they could only use once before completely exhausting all the energy they have left in their body. It is like the final card and a double edged sword¨C something that might very well hurt them severely in the process as well. But, they do not care about it after they are in that state. They just fight with more strength, more speed, more explosive raw power that the skill provides. [{ "ALex!" }] Since the Hobs are natural fighters, have a relatively agile physique, and are buffed by their status as a ''field boss'' in this case, it is never suggested that a player fight them all by themselves. -Swish! "Gurrrrrrrrrr!" But instead of backing away, she was fighting it. Alone. With an absurd smile on her face on top of that. "This girl¡­" He knew she was crazy but he did not think she would go so far as to even fight an opponent like that all by herself. -Ooooooooooong. [{ "You better win." }] [{ "Of course I will. Just help me." }] It was too late to back out now anyway. So, he used the buff spells that he found would help her the most in her position and though he knew it might be dangerous, he cast various restriction spells to give her openings that she might use. -Swish! Swish! Swish! With the help of his movement skill buffs, she moved faster than what her normal stats might have allowed her. Her Blink skill had a cooldown of ten seconds, so she couldn''t use it continuously just yet, and there was also only one charge to her blink at a time so it wasn''t that effective. But, it worked when she wanted it to. "Gurrrrrrrr!" -Dhum! Dhum! Dhum! The Hob had become stronger than her. When it smashed its bat on the ground, it created deep craters that seemed to be produced from an impact tens perhaps hundreds of N heavier than what it seemed capable of. The pale red skin that it had was now glowing with all its body covered in pulsing blood vessels. Its completely white eyes it had were now glowing red just the way they did in the darkness. The two horns on its head, the small horns that didn''t seem anything special before, were glowing with a darker light than its body and there was a strong heat coming from them. It had become an even ferocious monster as it effortlessly tracked down her agile movements and smashed the ground right where she was on each moment without error. With sharper senses and stronger body, it was not an opponent that the players would want to face all by itself. And yet, as she fought the creature with a simple steel sword in her hand, there was a distinct smile on her face. -Dhum! -Boooooom! There was destruction all around her. The ground was smashed and craters were overlapping one another. Due to the heat of the attacks, the ground was becoming hotter and stepping it was getting difficult. She had to use the trees in the surroundings and the rocks to step on as she avoided the attacks of the strong opponent and slowly dealt small blows with certain openings. -Ooooooooooong! Elio used his Grace and Restriction magic to help her as well. And he made sure to inform her when he was about to use destruction series scrolls so that she can avoid the blow. "GHAAAAA!" The creature was strong, the wounds it had were not affecting it much, and the way it was fighting without caring about the poison that had now spread throughout its bloodstream was unbelievable. [{ "Three o'' clock." }] Both of them coordinated their attacks and magic, and dealt damage until the Hob''s pulsating blood vines had turned green from the poison. [{ "Careful. It''s coming that way." }] The creature was not dumb. Even though it did not have as good of an intelligence as Az, it still had lived a long life and had sharp instincts. It knew the one he was fighting was not the only opponent he was facing. His opponent was a Swordsman. A fighter that used sharp objects that made cuts. Throughout their fight, there had been moments that made the creature realize that this sword wielder was not the one that used the magic which constantly changed the nature around them. It knew there was someone else so it pinpointed the change and detected the hidden opponent. Sadly, by the time it attacked the place where the attacker was attacking from, the mage had already moved its base. -Ooooooooooooong! -Boooooooooom! Going there was a mistake since Elio had already activated the remaining explosive magic scrolls in that area before using the (Blink) scrolls to move away. [{ "Leave the rest to me." }] When the creature was unexpectedly hit by the strong explosions and still survived, Alex took the lead and started attacking the creature for real this time. -Swiiiiiiiiiiiish~. She used movement techniques supported by the buffs of her partner, moved around with the tree branches as support, avoided the ashes and debris that was produced by the explosion, and used multiple swords to thirst inside the weakest spots of this creature. "GHUATTTTTTTTTTT!" She used her {Energy infusion} skill in the sword to make them stronger and sharper since without them, it would have been impossible to penetrate the fortified enhanced skin of the strong creature. [{ "El!" }] She fought while maintaining a certain distance from the enemy, but it was not easy. She still received many minor injuries all over her body, but she continued the assault and after using twenty seven swords¡­ -Ooooooooooooong! After using many spells, many Mana recovery potions, and three hours of work¨C they were left with a destroyed area, an incomprehensible exhaustion, and, of course, the reward of their first battle as a party. [Ding!] [You have defeated the Field boss: Red Hob!] "Gurrrrr¡­" Wounded and poisoned, with many of its internal organs turned into a repulsive mess¨C covered in wounds, and cuts, tens of swords still dug into its body, the dull red skin completely turned green, the creature''s red eyes returned back to being white¡­ Though, they did not have any light inside them anymore. [Ding!] "Haaa¡­ haaaa¡­" On one side, she lay on the ground with half her clothes torn and burned. Wounds covering her entire blood covered body. "..." While on the other hand, he lay on the ground, completely exhausted, with max fatigue, no energy to move, or any Mana left inside of him. He was not covered in blood like she did, but¡­ "Ugh¡­" After using all those spells in such quick successions, the kind of aftereffects he was experiencing was¨C were actually even worse than the worst pain he had experienced in this world until now. Chapter 33 - 33: Battle rewards The sky had been painted gold by the time he regained consciousness and somehow survived the hellish headache, internal pain, and the strange shivering of his muscles all over his body. "Haaa¡­" If it was not for the Mana recovery potions that were still left on him, and the help from his Mana, he might not even have been able to endure that kind of experience. He even had put down all of his remaining stat points into Endurance to survive that experience. The food they packed before departing from their inn helped him regain some energy as well. It was an experience more painful than when the Manawater slime injured him in the tutorial. And, he even earned some more Experience points from it. "Haaa¡­ you¡­ look like a mess." He was still tired though, so he somehow dragged his body to where she had been with the support of some tree branch that had been laying on the ground around him. "Look who''s talking¡­" She was still on the ground, covered in injuries and blood. "Haaa¡­" She looked at the upside down face of her partner while he looked at the miserable state that she was in. "There¡­ was no need¡­ for all this, you know?" "But this was fun, right? You were so amazing as well-." "Shut up, woman." She looked like a mess, but he did not have any energy to argue back against her. So, he just laid down beside her. "It was so fun¡­" He was tired, while covered in wounds, she was smiling happily as if this was fun for her. "I''m not¡­ doing this again¡­" Seeing her like this was certainly not something liked or appreciated. She looked miserable and he felt guilty for that. Had he been stronger, or better even, she would not have been in this position. "Hahaha, of course we are doing this again. We will have to, actually. There will be opponents that we cannot avoid as we travel out of this town." The sky was prettier today. "You¡­ bi-." "Oy." His throat was still hurting after all the blood coughing he endured, so he could not speak properly just yet. On the other hand, though she did not look fine at all with all that blood on her body, she was practically still well. Just that she did not have any strength to get up and do anything yet¡­ "Haaa." He wanted to curse at her, shout at her, scream at her and then, if possible, ask for her forgiveness. He did not like how he was so weak, but at this moment, the thing he did not like the most was the pathetic appearance of his partner. "Stay¡­ still¡­" S§×arch* The n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He grabbed her wounded hand and intertwined their fingers. -Oooooooooooong! And then, he activated the healing skill of his bracelet {Light chain} on her. "There''s no need to use the skill for these small scratches dear." The smile on her face warmed up as she felt warmth spreading throughout her body starting from the hand he was holding. "They¡­ might be scratches¡­ for you, perhaps. But they look ugly on you." A thin layer of bright light covered her entire body as the wounds and bruises present all over her body started closing down and disappearing. The process was slow but warm, so even though it only lasted for a few minutes, she felt much more at ease from it than she might have even after taking a high level healing potion. "That''s a precious skill." She had felt healing skills before, but few were as gentle as this one. That healing light had a special warmth to it as well. "Yes¡­" Clouds moved with the winds and the sun moved beyond the horizon. The cheerful town would start becoming busier as people would start moving to the streets for shopping and entertainment. The creatures of the forest will go to their dans and nests to spend their evening and night with their families. The night will approach shortly, and with it, the day of the nocturnal creatures would arrive as well. "We should get moving now." It was going to get cold here, so they had to start moving now if they wanted to make it to the town in time. "Give me a minute." They had stayed like that for around half an hour now so his throat was a little better now. But, he still needed a moment to get his mind and body in sync. "Haa¡­" The battle they fought was not easy. But at the end of it all, they came out victorious. "Do you want this essence?" As a reward of this battle, they got a skill essence of the Red Hob though it was not either of the three main skills it had. "I don''t think I will need¡­ the {Smash}. It''s better for those who use blunt weapons." The skill increased the force of any blunt weapon when smashing. It was a conditional skill from what the appraisal scroll revealed, so unless they did not have something that could be considered a blunt weapon and the action performed could be considered ''smashing'', the skill would not activate. "Hmmm. Then, I can have it, right?" "Sure. if you want." He didn''t think he was going to use weapons now that he had picked up magic. A Blunt weapon was a different thing altogether. The skill was better for someone who was accustomed to physical movements so he didn''t mind if she had it. "Thanks~." She seemed happy to have that simple skill. And he was happy to see her smile as well. Besides¡­ [Ding.] [Level up!] [(Level-14) > (Level-21.] Thanks to all the Exp from defeating the monster that he received alone, his level had shot up considerably. The Level increase was pretty unbelievable, but they had just taken down a (Level-35) field boss. The increased Exp that he alone obtained obviously was no joke. He was happy with this much already, but they even received an achievement in the process. [Hunter Duo (Common) has been achieved!] They both receive the matching achievement for taking down a field boss of ten or more levels higher than them by themselves. It was the first common achievement both of them had received and though it was only a common achievement, it was a big thing for the two of them. "Alright. I''m fine now." As he got up after finally getting back to a good enough condition, he had a happy smile on his face. She was happy to receive another skill while he was happy with his level up. He was a little stronger now, and now that both of them were of the same level, they can finally share the Exp equally between themselves. "Though¡­" Since a while back, Elio knew that he had been forgetting something important. Something very important¡­ He knew the thing was very important but he could not put his finger on it. "Is that Az?" "Right! Az! Where is Az?!" Thanks to her sudden confused voice though, he finally remembered how they had not seen Az even once ever since they sent it away to distract the Hob at the beginning of the battle. "There¡­" A sudden worry had overwhelmed him when the thought of something happening crossed his mind, but Alex just pointed at the distant entrance of the cave from where the Red Hob had walked out from. "Why does it look in such a hurry though?" Elio was a little relieved to see his little friend alive and fine but Alex was surprised by how Az was hurriedly jumping towards them. It seemed like it was running towards them¡­ or, perhaps, running away from something entirely different. Chapter 34 - 34: The cave They were surprised for a moment and from how the little slime was running at them, it seemed like someone or something was chasing it. "Muuuu! Muuuuu!" Thankfully that was not the case. "Az! Where were you?!" Elio was worried how it was coming out of the cave and looked worried. He could tell something was up just from that, but before he asked it for what was going on, he checked if the little one was hurt or anything. He checked its status window, then picked it up when it reached them after jumping while ''screaming'' and checked it around. Thankfully there was nothing that he needed to worry about so he finished his check up and looked at the slime with a worried expression. "What''s going on, Az? Did something happen?" "Muuuu! Muuuu!" The slime was shouting, trying to tell them something. And though they could not understand what it was saying, as the master of the slime, Elio could guess what it might be trying to tell them. "The cave? You want us to go into that cave?" "Muuuu!" The slime wanted them to go inside¡­ they never told it what to do after it distracted the creature so they thought it would just find a safe space or come back to Elio. But that did not happen. The slime just disappeared and they forgot about it in the moment¡­ which was not something he was proud of as its master. "Alright. Then, let''s go see¡­" They were wrapping things up anyway and were going to go check inside the cave for anything that might have been left behind by the players that came to fight the Hob before them or something else. "Muuuu!" Alex had already finished storing the giant body of the creature inside her inventory and cleared the area. Nature would clear the mess they had left behind this time, so they did not have to worry about the craters and the pool of blood that was left behind. It was a natural fertilizer¡­ but not all blood from the creatures was the same. "Did it find some injured creature inside?" Alex speculated the little slime might have found some injured creature that the Hob might have been saving for later. This specific slime was special and different from the other intelligent slimes and possessed a unique skill called {Emotions} so it might very well be worried about something that was inside. "If that''s the case¡­" And if there was some injured being in there, Elio couldn''t leave it alone. It needed help, and since they had the means to help it, they did not waste any more time, and ran straight to the cave. "Muuuu!" This cave was made on a cliff that was covered on three sides, so they always thought it would be a small place with enough room inside for one creature. The boss monsters and field bosses were cursed existence that somehow repeated the same kind of life they had lived previously as if to be trapped in a time loop, so the hunters and players must have already searched the place. "It''s unexpectedly spacious¡­" They did not think the place inside would be so large. There was enough space for more than one of the Hobs to fit. It was practically like a large cave from inside. Though, it was still a closed off space with walls or a boundary on all sides. "Muuu! Muuu!" Or so they thought as well. "Muuuuu!" "You want us to go that way?" Az was pointing them somewhere, but they were reluctant to move to that place. "Are you sure little one?" Even Alex did not want to go towards that place. "Muuuuu!" This place used to be the house of a field boss, a Red Hob, a creature that mostly ate meat. It hunted creatures and ate nearly everything that had meat. The rest of the materials from its prey? The Hob threw it all away in a corner and left it there to rot in a pit it had dug. "Guess we have no choice then." It was a creature that had become adapted to the contaminated air and the reason it had such a strong stench to it was also because of the trash which had ultimately become a pool of poison. It was not harmful to the Hob or something that did not have the same kind of organ system as them, but they sure were vulnerable to that poisonous mess filled with bones, skin, and god knows what different kinds of other things. "El, cover your face with this." "Ah, yes." Alex gave him a small scarf that had a purification enchantment attached to it so that they don''t get affected by the contaminated air around that corner and followed Az''s direction. "I don''t think there''s anything here man¡­" Alex did not have any good feelings about this. They might very well be walking into some trap or something, but at the very least, through this experience, they would be able to evaluate just what kind of creature their little friend actually was. "Muuuu!" "You want us to go around it?" "Muuu!" "But there''s just another pile of trash there¡­" "Muuuu!" Elio couldn''t help it when the little creature was insisting so much. They just believed in it, and walked around the pool of the amalgamation of the bodily elements, and around a pile of bones and skin of various creatures situated right behind the pool¡­ unexpectedly, they saw a dull light. "What''s that?" "It is something, alright~!" This time, though Elio was confused once again , just seeing this unexpected light excited Alex. "Muuuu! Muuuu!" And from the looks of it, it seemed like the little slime was also pointing them towards that dull light. "It''s behind the pile of bones¡­" The pile of bones was big as well and there was also only enough specs for a small creature like Az to pass through them. Sear?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The only way they could clear this mess up was through clearing the bones. And, Alex found this to be the perfect opportunity to test her newly obtained skill. "Back off a little please." She took out the sheathed White sword she had always carried around with her but never used until now, and held it by the handle. It was a strange white sword that seemed unusual. But at the same time, old and interesting. "Huuu¡­" He didn''t know the lore behind that sword just yet or why she did not use it all this time, but since even right now, she was only using it while it was still inside its sheath, he could not help but be curious about it. -Swish. Anyway, she jumped up in the air, used the wall as a support to jump up once again, and then, holding the sword with both her hands, she smashed down with the sword. -Swiiiiiiish! -Booooooooom! She made sure to precisely aim for the ground in a way that it would not destroy this part of the cave or disturb the pool of mess that was on the ground. This was not something someone without experience could have pulled off, but she was a master. "Hmmm. This is unexpected¡­" Her attack cleared up the entire area and the bones were either thrown away into the pool of mess, or were all pushed back from the source of the blue dull light that they were seeing. "Muuuuu!" Az got excited seeing the cleared up space and jumped off from Elio''s arms. "What is it, Alex?" He couldn''t see what that light present inside a small cave was, so he also walked ahead at where she was standing and where Az had jumped off too¡­ and, he was surprised to see the scene before him as well. Chapter 35 - 35: Crystal gecko "Is that¡­" "It sure is." "But, how¡­?" What they were seeing before them right now could be described as a¡­ crystal. "Dunno how it got here but, it should not be here. That much I know for sure." This crystal that they were seeing before them was a precious Being. It was not some Mana gem that would be sold for hundreds of silver or even in gold. And it was not some rare kind of material that they could use to create some special item. "Muuuu! Muuuu!" It was a creature. A small creature made of crystals. "Do you know them, Az?" "Muuu~! Muuu!" Az seemed to be familiar with them. Elio could almost tell how the slime wanted to tell him the little creature was in fact its friend. "It seems to be suffering." "This environment is obviously not something their kind could survive in¡­ but then again, just the fact that they are above the surface is a concerning matter." Resembling a reptilian beast with a body made completely out of crystals that contained condensed Mana, a small lizard-like creature only a size of their palm lay in the small, Clean hole. Its light that should be brighter than what it was right now was fluctuating, indicating the danger the creature was in. "We have to get it out of there first-." "Don''t be stupid." A unique Mana-beast and creature found only deep within some special underground dungeons¨C [Crystal gecko]. A beast that possessed condensed Mana inside of its body, something that Humans who weren''t that sensitive to Mana mostly failed to understand the seriousness of. "You touch that creature and you will get (Mana poisoning). You might die within minutes if the Mana inside of you goes berserk." In general, they weren''t aggressive or harmful beasts. But their mere constitution that was deadly to any ''weak'' being not possessing Mana circulating powers, or someone with ''weak'' Mana circulating powers made them a kind that the players did not get involved with when they were inside of a dungeon. Outside the dungeon, these creatures were only seen as accessories and materials since most of the time, they were dead when found outside of their natural habitat. But that was not the case with this one. "We can''t just leave it like that though! Don''t you see it''s in pain?!" He was worried about the creature while his own life would be on the line by merely getting in contact with it. "You dumbass¡­" She could see the creature was suffering, and she could also see the chances of it surviving were pretty low. If they were just a little late, this creature would be dead already and the only thing they would be seeing instead of a creature, would be Materialized Mana crystals that appear after these creatures die. There was no way to save it in the first place since they did not know what was up with this creature, so there was no need to risk their lives. Death penalty was an entirely natural day in so, not being able to log in for three days after experiencing this amazing world was just¡­ bad. "You can stay away if you want." He didn''t wait for anything else and picked up the little creature in his palms. "Muuuu!" Az was fine on its own so it jumped ahead of them and the three, along with a fourth one, left the cave and walked a little away from the area where they had fought with the giant creature. "Ughhh¡­" He had just experienced and survived a near death experience caused by his excessive Mana usage with his inexperienced body, so at least by the time they reached outside and found a place to place the creature down, he was able to endure the pain caused by the dimming Mana of the gecko. "Haaa¡­ try wasting the excess Mana with some spells. It should help." The status abnormality people with Mana get from getting in contact with this creature made their Mana gathering rate abnormally higher. The excess Mana that one accumulates in their body might result in a dangerous condition called (Mana overdrive) and the kind of pain this condition brings¨C before it makes the physical body of the players or natives explode¨C was widely infamous. -Oooooooooong! Thankfully, he did not fall to that state and was able to calm down the poisoning debuff with some Very expensive potions and her help. But, the risk had not ended yet. "What can we even do for it, El?" The creature was still suffering¡­ and to her demise, this little lizard was abnormally attractive. "..." Elio was not some altruistic saint but he was just crazy for pretty things and the things that he somehow found attractive. She knew how obsessed he was with the things that caught his attention. And just looking at the sad look he had as he looked at the suffering creature, she knew he would be heartbroken when he understands there are some things that they just could not do anything about. "We at least have to do something, right?!" He was getting angry, but that was just his helplessness shouting. "What do you wanna do then?" He was in a position where she knew her words would not reach him. That''s why she just wanted to let him go through this experience. "..." He knew about these creatures and he knew they weren''t the same as physical creatures. Potions were not going to work on them. The spells were out of question as well since the thing happening with them was not related to debuffs but an actual Physical condition. -Ooooooooooong! He did not know what to do in that situation, but at least, he had to try something. So, he used the item on his waist, the healing skill that had helped Alex a while ago. "Elio¡­" It was a healing skill that healed wounds. Not something that cured physical abnormalities¡­ only a (tier-3) or higher level Grace spell that cleanses physical conditions could do it¡­ or a skill with the same effects. "It''s not working. Why is it not working?!" He tried using his magic, and he emptied both his energy and Mana to help the creature, but there was no effect. The sun was setting down on the horizon and the light of the creature was getting dimmer and dimmer. "This¡­ is not working either¡­" As time passed, the look on him darkened so much that it became her first time seeing him in this kind of condition. It¡­ seemed like he would break at any moment now. "Why do you want to save it so badly? Even if you save it, you know you cannot keep it, right?" The creature itself was nothing like some endangered species. Players kill them with different tactics to get the special Mana crystals that appear after they die. She herself had killed countless of its kind. This one was just a baby as well so what they could get from it wasn''t much. There was no reason for her to save it just because he wanted it. And besides¡­ he needed to learn some lessons before they move out of this starter town. "...Az found it." He looked up at her, knowing full well she was deliberately holding back even though she could help the creature. "Az said the gecko is its friend¡­ so¡­ wouldn''t it be sad if its friend dies?" "..." She wanted to curse at him for saying that kind of stupid nonsense. ''A slime will be sad?'' What the hell kind of statement even was that? They were talking about the lowliest kind of creatures of this world! "Muu¡­" She looked at the little slime that was looking at the creature without moving. It seemed to be concerned- even though it was a slime- and though she wanted to believe it was just her imagination- she could somehow also tell the little creature would be sad if the gecko dies. "What the fudge¡­" S~ea??h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The sad, broken look he had and the sad, broken look Az might have would directly be due to her inactions. "Haaa¡­" She could not help it. He was on the verge of crying now. "You owe me, Elio." The way to treat this one required a special kind of magic scroll, which she did not have. So, instead, she had no choice but to use one that might have been useful for a more meaningful task. "...wait. Why are you taking that one out?" Unlike the other scrolls that were mostly only skin or brown colored parchment papers, this one was a metallic golden plate with not magic scrolls, but inscriptions carved on it. "Use this." Elio was shocked just seeing this thing in her hands right now. But, she was telling him to use something like that in this situation¡­ which, even to someone who desperately wanted to save the little creature, was an absurd suggestion. Chapter 36 - 36: Spell tome If the magic scrolls are items that the regular players only keep to use in the emergencies, there were some unique items like the scrolls that the guilds or bigger player groups used in times of necessity. These items contained powerful spells or could do things that the players normally cannot, and the thing that she handed him was one of those unique things. "It has a (tier-5) Grace spell of light and water attribute, (Pearl Cleanse). We can use it three times a month, so¡­ don''t ask for something like this again." A spell tome- an object that has a certain kind of powerful spell engraved on it which could be used multiple times. Though, they weren''t items that one could find just anywhere. "Alex¡­" Any spell above the (tier-4) was considered a high-level spell. And, since the tomes were scarce items that were used to contain powerful spells, they were mostly only used to store destructive spells or barrier spells or restrictive spells. One cannot find many of these tomes containing a healing spell, specifically one that cleansed physical ailments was a near impossible thing even in this age. "Thanks." He knew as a special high level player who had traveled one of the most among the existing players of this world, she possessed things that not even some of the rankers knew the existence of. She was just a logical person that did not see the worth of helping a creature like this one, and yet she was giving a precious item to him. "Huuuu¡­" He was grateful for her help. Their relationship and this game had nothing to do with each other so it was perfectly fine that she wanted to keep her things to herself. But, she was helping him for his stubborn and dumb request. "Muuuu!" And he was thankful for that. -Ooooooooooooong! He used his Aura to activate the item, and since his Aura was only needed for activation, he did not die of excessive Mana drain. He was still a beginner and did not know much about magic just yet, so he did not have even a fourth of Mana required to cast a spell of this level. If he had tried to use something like this while he was still far from being strong enough, he would have died instantly. But since spell tomes gathered the required Mana for the spell''s activation from their surroundings, anyone who could activate it could use these objects. -Oooooooooooooong! When activated, the verses on the spell tome lit up first, and after each of the words in that unknown language were glowing with the arcanian light, the tome itself started glowing up as Mana from all over its surrounding started being sucked towards it. -Zaaaaaa! S~ea??h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. A magic circle unlike anything Elio had seen in the book they studied a while ago materialized on top of the spell tome¡­ "Aim the spell right!" He had to hold the time with both his hands because of how it was vibrating. His grip on the tome was almost the same as the grip of someone hanging by the last thread of hope. -Ooooooooooong! He had aimed the magic at the little creature and though suffering, the creature''s open eyes could see how this person, this unknown being was doing something with that strange object. The creature did not know what was going on here, but¡­ it did not have any strength to even move, much less do something to avoid what was going on here. "Now!" The spell circle that finally materialized was three times the size of the magic circles that Elio had used until now. It was even bigger than the spell circles that appear after using the magic scrolls. -ZAAAAAA¡­! Even for a (tier-5) spell, the spell that they were seeing was more complex and detailed¨C and there was something ancient to it. Something that the magic of today could not compare to. "Muuuuuuuuu!" The spell that was created somehow produced a condensed fluid in the air right before the creature on the ground, and¡­ when the golden drop that resembled the mythic heavenly elixir touched the now nearly lightless body of the gecko, a new golden light exploded! -OOOOOOOOOONG! -SWIIIIIIISH¡­! Winds started blowing from all directions with them in the center but they did not touch them, for some reason. The lightless creature that seemed to be on the verge of death slowly regained its light, and the blue light inside of it started growing brighter! The golden light that had exploded had illuminated a large part of the forest around them. And in the evening of twilight, this golden light seemed like the second sun to the creatures of nature. "SHCEEEEEEE!" -Thudam! Thudam! Thudam! Surely there was a distress all around the forest with some creatures running away from the sudden light, afraid of its mere existence. While some nocturnal creatures that were just becoming active were somehow attracted to this strange light. -Ooooooooong¡­ However, at the end, the creatures could not find the source of this light since it only lasted for a few moments before disappearing completely, leaving the four of them¡­ as well as the small crystal gecko that had regained all its light¨C and had obtained golden spots all over its body in addition. "Miu?" The creature did not know what had just happened, however, it could surely open its eyes once again. "Miu!" It did not feel the pain that had overwhelmed it just a moment ago, and now it was suddenly feeling all better. Additionally, it strangely also felt something new that it had never felt before. But, it was still unknown to it. "Muuuuuuuu!" Seeing the now fine creature, Az jumped up excitedly and reached the little gecko. It seemed happy to see the little creature with that bright smile. "Miu!" And, somehow, the gecko was also excited to see the little slime. "Miu!" "Muuuu!" The smile on the gecko''s face had widened and become even more brighter after seeing Az. And, as Elio could feel, his familiar creature was the happiest he had ever seen it. "See?" The interaction of the two creatures was a special sight, even to someone who had been in this world for almost a decade now. "You were right." Alex could not help but sigh with a helpless smile on her face as she accepted the spell tome back from her partner. He was right this time as well. If she had let the little creature¨C Az''s little friend¨C just suffer and die like that, the slime that she liked so much must have been sad. She didn''t even know what might become of it if the sadness of losing its friend right before its eyes helplessly had stayed with it for long. Unlike Elio, the slime was not a human but a creature of nature. It might possess Emotions, but they were not as complex as what the humans did. It was merely a tamed beast, one that could also use Mana and magic so, there was no telling what it might have ended up doing had it lost its friend because of her inactions. "Muuuu~." "Miu!" Well, things turned out well at the end. And now the two friends were happily greeting one another. "Anyway, what are those golden dots?" Now, if she could only get the answer to that, she would be able to go back to the town with a peaceful mind. Chapter 37 - 37: Commotion in the town [You have succeeded in helping a helpless creature in a dire situation! Rewarding Exp!] [You have successfully healed a Mana beast: Arun crystal Gecko from a deadly condition! Due to the title the beast will look up to you favorably!] [For dealing with a crisis within your family and seeing the situation through to a positive end, a title effect will be added to the .] [Ding!] ============ Effect 1: Increased familiarity with tamable beasts. Effect 2: Tamed creatures and friendly species will be attracted to you. Effect 3: The title will grow with the user. Additional effect #1: Every time you save a tamed beast from a dire situation, three stat points will be distributed randomly. ============ "I didn''t even do anything¡­" Elio was a little sad to see these rewards when he had not done anything here in the first place. And just like him, Alex was feeling a little guilty after receiving rewards that she did not deserve. "I got another common achievement, and the free Exp pushed me to (Level-22)." She did not want to help this little creature, but now that things had turned out like this, she was at least happy to see the brightly shining creature. "It is almost night, so it seems like we will have to go see the guard captain first before we have dinner." "I''m starving already¡­" She did not understand it before, but after using an appraisal scroll on the creature and searching through her personal [Data gallery] she finally found out the reason there were those golden dots present all over the gecko. "First a Mana slime and now a mutant. You should just become a tamer at this point instead of a mage or some kind of artist." "Miu!" "Muuuu~!" They were preparing to go back to the town now and the crystal gecko that they had saved was going to accompany them¡­ though, since the light it produced attracted a lot of attention, the gecko would be traveling inside of its friend, the slime. "Haha, I don''t want to be anything specific anyway. The class will just get in the way." In the first place, he was happy with how things were right now. He did not want anything more, or anything more complicated. "Haaa¡­" Since the slime itself was a translucent Mana creature, the light from the gecko did not get out of the slime. The small creature inside of the smaller creature seemed just like a normal gecko. And, since the gecko was also a Mana creature that was essentially also made of crystals, it did not need to breathe or eat like they did. "Miu!" Since it was inside of Az, they could carry both of them around and there was no threat of Mana poisoning. And since the creature was a mutant, a special one among its kind, it was also pretty intelligent. "I guess you don''t know where your home is then, hun?" Somehow, after the creature was back to normal, it had started acting friendly towards him. It wasn''t just because Elio had saved it, but it seemed like the gecko had been excited to meet him since a while ago. It was smart and, after he received the messages about the addition of a new effect to his title, he also received notification about how this little creature wanted to be ''friends'' with him. System obviously classified it as him taming the creature, but Elio knew this was a little more than that. "Muuuu!" Now, both the little creatures were excited to go back and Az seemed to be looking forward to showing his friend the new things outside of this forest, or the messy trash place where they had found it. "Shall we?" They were too deep inside the forest now, and it would have taken them half a day to get back to the town. Which was not a good idea when the sun was down. "Yes." So, they were going to use a return scroll to the town. "Let''s go, you two." Elio picked up his two friends in one hand while wrapping his other hand around his partner''s waist as he kissed her neck. "...?!" Which was of course out of the blue, and Not something she was expecting. "Thanks." But from that soft voice, and that hand around her, she understood the sincerity this boy of hers wanted to convey. "As I said, you owe me one now." -Oooooooooooong! She used a group return scroll and the four of them vanished from the forest¨C reappearing all the way into the center of the town, in the main plaza where Elio had appeared when he first arrived in this town. "Let''s go quickly see that guard captain. I''m starving~." She was tired after all that they did today and wanted to have a nice long sleep with her beloved, however¡­ "Hmm? What''s happening here?" When they appeared in the plaza, they did not find the kind of public that they usually do. In the distance, even the stalls seemed to be empty for some reason. Many of the stalls even seemed to be completely empty¨C as if they were sold out already. "Did something happen?" There was an eerie quietness in the atmosphere around them¡­ but at the same time, they could hear the distant murmurs of a large crowd. "Let''s go." Alex knew the feeling they had right now. As a veteran player, she recognized this quietness, these distant noises, this familiar sight of empty plaza at such an hour. She knew instantly what might be happening and where they needed to be, so she grabbed his hand and ran straight towards the town hall, the main building of any town of any state structure of this world. "Yes, I know!" "I was in the mages tower at that time!" "The mages there suddenly acted like that dude! I was buying some stuff and the mage suddenly screamed on my face!" "Did you hear? They say there are some kind of strange movements in the forest now." "I knew it¡­ I knew it! This is all because of that nightmare! I knew it was real!" When they reached the town hall, the majority of the players of this town had gathered here. The guards were here as well and along with them, the few knights present in the city, along with the experienced mages who could use (tier-3) and even (tier-4) spells, along with the important people of various organizations, and even the most important person in this entire town¨C the mayor. S~ea??h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Well, wow¡­" The two of them had only come here to look for the guard captain, but now that they were seeing this sight¡­ they knew something even more interesting than a simple question was going to unfold here. "What''s going on here¡­?" But Elio was still confused right now. He did not know what was happening and aside from knowing this was a precursor to a Town-level quest, he certainly was oblivious to everything going on in this plaza. { "Foreigners and protectors of Moongold." } The others did not know exactly what was going on either, but now that the highest authority of this town, the mayor himself had spoken up¡­ they knew they were going to find out what was going on soon. Chapter 38 - 38: Town quest { "Some happenings in the great forest had been concerning us for a few days now, however, despite our investigations, we had not found anything that could threaten the safety and integrity of our Moongold." } The town mayor, Roland Lan Hunter, was around a forty year old man that had a sharp face, a thick mustache and among all the people present in this plaza, only he was dressed like a proper high standing person. His appearance was distinct from the other natives of this world, it was Elio''s first time seeing someone as unique as him ever since he came here. { "The rumors of a ''nightmare'' being present in the forest was but a rumor, and the individuals that caused trouble for the other foreigners will be investigated as we find more concrete evidence of their alleged actions." } His hair was blue, even his mustache was. His eyes on the other hand were deep green¡­ the people could see a unique faint glow inside them as well but, they did not think much of it. Just the way he was dressed made him seem intimidating and since all the individuals present here knew about his status, they could not help but look up to the person chosen by the great lord that governs this entire northwestern lands of the great kingdom this town was ultimately part of. { "However, we face a greater threat today and I want all of you to hear us out in this grave time of urgency." } There was a unique seriousness in his eyes, and even though Alex and Elio had just arrived here, both of them could guess what all of this was about. "They are talking about a light." "I think you''re thinking the same thing as me." Elio didn''t need many details to know the light that alerted the mages of the magic tower coming from the forest was in fact the same light that was sparked when they used the spell tome to heal the little gecko. "Then¡­ is this because of us?" He looked up at the Mayor, the highest authority of this town that possessed greater charisma than anyone else in this plaza. He was a simple human, not a mage or a knight, and yet the kind of aura that this person had stood out even when the strong knights and mages of the magic tower were all present in the same plaza as them. "I¡­ don''t think that''s all." Alex was thinking about a certain thing since earlier¡­ "You see how they are talking about this ''nightmare'' thing?" Elio looked at her while the Mayor had paused to take a look at the people who had gathered at his urgent notice. There was a certain confusion on her face, a kind of expression that was confused about something deeper than what met to one''s eyes. "You mean¡­ you''re not the nightmare they have been talking about?" "Um-hun." She was confused how even though she only beat up a few people, there was so much commotion happening about some kind of nightmare being present in the hunting forest. It was the biggest hunting area of this town so even though she had wiped out every single kind of creature of this forest at least once in her half a month she had been here, she did not engage with the other people much. The most she had done was to teach a lesson to the thugs that she sent to the prison, and deal with a bunch of nobodies that would not have such a profound impact on a town as great as this one. Her actions had always been calculated so she would not be the center of a rumor as widespread as this one. So¡­ Something else was definitely the cause of these rumors. And, this same something must also be the reason why a field boss that should always be fighting with the players had been living such a lax life, or why a creature as unique as their new gecko friend was suffering inside the cave of a dirty Hob. "Let''s see¡­" This whole situation was unexpected as well since just a bright light inside the forest that one could not say for certain belonged to a (tier-5) unique magic of a lost civilization, would not attract this much attention from the mages. And, ultimately, as she knew, the mayor of this town was one of the most qualified people in the northwest. He would not gather almost all the players and just the most elite forces available in the town for something as simple as a bright light of an unknown origin or a or, for some rumored nightmare''s investigation. "He should explain the situation now." With a complicated look, she looked up at the mayor and, though worried about his new friend, he also focused on the Mayor. However¡­ what the mayor revealed next shocked not just him or her, but to nearly all players currently present in this plaza. { "We have confirmed that a dungeon of our territory- the Deep Cave of Arrbo, has fallen into the hands of a dark magician." } "...what?" "Hun?" "Hunnn???" "A Dark magician?!" "Wait!? What?!" This new revelation came as the most unexpected news to the new players who had just joined this game or had always been a resident of this town. "It all makes sense now¡­" Alex joined the pieces together from that simple piece of information and knew exactly what was going on right now, as well as how their simple time in this town was going to become a little more exciting than what she had expected. { "It is shocking news, I understand as well. However, some of our bravest and most talented friends lost their lives to confirm this information. And I do not want their sacrifice to be in vain." } As all players familiar with the world of knew¡­ as every single person who knew about the [Six Main scenarios] knew, the name ''Dark'' magician was not something as simple as someone who used dark magic. The dark magicians of this world were the same as what one would understand as ''Demons'' of the underworld. They were entities far beyond the simple mages, and were worshipers of evil beings¨C not demons, but evil beings who had nothing but evil in them. { "Additionally, the mages of magic tower unanimously sensed a great explosion of dark magic in the northern part of the forest." } The northern part was completely on the opposite side from where the two of them had been when they used the magic tome to cure the gecko. { "And just now¡­ we confirmed that the dark mage would soon initiate an assault on Our Moongold!" } There was a great anger in the calm eyes of the Mayor that every player present in the vicinity could feel right on their skins. "This is unexpected¡­" But this very situation sent a smirk on Her face. { "Thus¡­ I ask for your great help, foreigners." } [Ding!] There were many types of quests in but the one that she liked the most was not where one had to fight a strong opponent. No¡­ There were many strong opponents present in this world already that were beyond anyone''s imagination. And she was well familiar with them. [A unique Regional-quest has been issued!] She had already fought many unfathomable creatures and ones that she could not defeat even with her strength. So she was not interested in them that much. "Alex?" What interested her, though, were the large-scale quests that had a boss monster that one needed a large group of people or an army to take care of¡­ Sear?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Looks like we will have to finish the dinner quickly, El darling." She loved these kinds of quests. And, she loved doing crazy things during these already crazy kinds of event quests. Chapter 39 - 39: The dark mages ============ [Regional Quest: ] : Town Mayor of the Moongold town, Roland Lan Hunter has confirmed the presence of a dark magician, a worshiper of evil, in the surrounding great forest. Many talented individuals sacrificed their lives to bring the existence of evil to light and later this evening, the Mayor confirmed that the dark magician had raised an army of dark creatures in the dungeon: Deep Cave of Arrbo. As a threat to humanity and all creations of nature, the dark magicians are the cancer of this world. Their forces had once succeeded in taking over the world however, with the great efforts of the heroes of this world- The Guardians, their adavent was stopped in its wake. However, remnants of their forces still exist throughout the world and one has appeared in the Moongold town. Objective: Help Town Mayor Roland Lan Hunter in the subjugation of the Dark magician''s hideout. Reward: Achievement [Defenders of the town (Common)], Increased familiarity with Town Mayor depending on the contribution. (Additional rewards will be given based on the Quest contribution.) Failure conditions: 1) Death of Town Mayor. 2) Fall of Moongold town. 3) If any of the Dark Mage''s minions successfully kill a certain Important individual, the quest will be considered a failure. ============ "What do they mean by a certain ''important'' individual?" S§×ar?h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Elio ate his dinner with a calm expression- in the real world- as he looked at his partner for any kind of reply. However, she was busy surfing through the community database for the answer to the very question he was asking her. "I have six candidates in mind for now." She was eating her finely made dish- which was made with some kind of gravy and some kind of meat base that Elio did not understand at all- with one hand with a spork instead of proper utensils while surfing through the three hologram screens before her. The bracelet-like device that she was wearing was glowing as it produced these floating windows and even though it seemed pretty unbelievable, the way she was going through such information at such speed, was just another normal sight to her partner. "This important person might just be Mayor, obviously. And if not him, it could be either his wife or his daughter. The quest specified it''s only a single individual so we should believe that it''s only one person for now. If not them, it could be the Librarian of the great library, but I don''t think that person will bother with a single dark mage when he has the history of slaying entire legions of those bastards. Aside from all of them, the prime candidates that might be the person specified in this quest would be either someone visibly completely unrelated to the quest that might somehow affect the [Grand Flow] of this world in a twisted way, or it could be someone that is closely connected to this whole incident." With her research on the Moongold town, she had confirmed that throughout history, there had never been any incident like this where a single dark mage would have aimed for this rather simple town. The only attractive thing in this town was the great library and even that place wasn''t as attractive to those crazy bastards as the greater lads even closer to nature. The dark mages by nature were bad people that were considered one of the main antagonistic forces of this world and one of the forces that had been the central theme of the Third Main Scenario. They followed evil and though they came from all walks of life and had all kinds of various powers, in a simpler manner, they were individuals who had gained powers from the evil after giving their entire existence to their great cause¨C the ultimate destruction of this nature. Though they were once simple mortal beings that lived common lives in their societies and cultures, after becoming a Dark Magician and falling to the darkness, they gained the power of Darkness¡ª something far different and far more evil than the pure element of darkness. "The Merchant who sells fabric on the third street, the vegetable shop owner that has a stall in the central street left to the central plaza, the guard captain, a mage named Lox, A certain silver cat that people have spotted around the back allies of the west side, and lastly¨C the oldest player who has been in this town, ID: Aloha." According to her, these six people were the ones who somehow were the ''Important'' individuals mentioned in the quest. And she surely had her reasons to believe why they would be so important that the system would consider one of their deaths as serious as a failure condition to a Regional quest. "Hmmm¡­ well, we are already deep into this anyway so avoiding this is not an option anymore." "No shit man. Who knew the guard captain would ask us to join the guards'' reconnaissance unit with him." When the Mayor had finished announcing the quest and the players went haywire with excitement of the kind of amazing rewards the quest was offering. They went away to start preparing for going out and many even went out to call their guilds and groups. The mayor had suggested that they first gather information on the situation and select the individuals that will go to the dungeon and the ones who will guard the town gates so there was a festive atmosphere among the players. And in the middle of it all, a guard informed them that the guard captain was looking for them. "He was surprised by the sudden level increase. Who knew he might also guess the ones behind that light of the (tier-5) spell was in fact us?" "Nah nah. Don''t give him that much credit. He didn''t really know it, he was just asking us if it was us¡­ your expression gave it all away, hump." Ultimately, they would now have to pay a fine and meet with the mayor to give him a letter of apology as a formality, which wasn''t really good for a player in their position. They were a big reason behind the distress in the town so he wouldn''t be happy to meet the people who used a high level spell in such a small place. A (tier-5) spell that could produce such strong light would logically be a destructive spell and there was no creature, not even a field boss that could handle a destructive spell of that level in this area. He might have first logically suspected them to be connected with the dark mage, but thanks to the guard captain''s offer to join the recon team, they will have a presentable image to the mayor. "Still¡­ to think he would vouch for us after meeting us just once." "He seems to have high expectations of us even after all this." They did not know what the guard captain saw in them to go to such lengths for them, but thanks to him, they were now going to go ahead and check out the dungeon and the forces of the dark mage before the others. Elio found it pretty uncertain and also pretty concerning, but since Alex was so excited about all this, he was happy to observe her excited state, and the way she reacts when she is serious about something as well. Chapter 40 - 40: The Recon team Struck with the sudden news of the presence of the Dark mage, the entire town became worried and by the night time, everything had become dead quiet. The streets were empty, the lights all around the cheerful town were dim, there were no children playing around the town, and there were not even any people on the streets tonight. There were lights of the streets illuminating the now empty streets, some bars were still open but there was no noise around. The presence of a single dark mage was so great that an entire town had fallen quite even before the arrival of their forces. People were worried, there was a certain pressure in the air around the town, and even the players who were not interested in fighting were all hiding in their houses and inns. "We will depart shortly. Get ready, all of you." The town''s mage tower had sent their best mages, while the knights of the town had also gathered to take down the evil mage. A lot of people had gathered in the central plaza now, and various teams were preparing for their missions under the commands of the group captains. [{ "Since this is only a beginner town, I think the Dark mage will be higher than (Level-60) but not more than (Level-100)." }] [{ "But isn''t that too much already?" }] The Moongold town was bigger than many of the beginner towns, but the overall combat power of the town was still not that great. There were only around fifty mages from the mage''s tower that could fight in a battle like this one, there were only six proper knights that could use the power of (Aura) among the elites, and the guard captain was the only person here that was (Level-75), the highest level among the natives of the town. Even the knights were only around level sixty and though the Mayor was a capable person, he was also only around (Level-60). The guard captain was mainly in charge of keeping the city free of the thugs and bastards and dealing with the excess monsters, and since he was in charge of the other guards, he was also a good leader. "Hey¡­ the community forums¡­" "I saw that. And it makes a lot of sense, you know?" "The people in charge of these people have to do a good job. Elder Fin was worried about the town and his family." "This town has given us a lot already. We better protect them well." [{ "We should be able to deal with someone lower than (Level-100) with this much force. Besides, there might be many high level minions and dark creatures with that mage. We don''t know pretty much anything about their forces." }] [{ "I guess that''s why this Recon team is so important." }] In the entire town, aside from the head of the mages'' tower and the Librarian, only the guard captain was the one known to possess the highest level. Not even the knights that train their bodies to the limits or the experienced mages who can cast many (tier-3) magic spells effortlessly had a level as high as him. It was actually unusual since the upper level limits of the natives of a small place like this one was in the lower sixties. Meeting someone with such a higher level was a rare thing, and that uniqueness was one of the reasons she had counted the guard captain as one of the candidates for the important people. But that was not the only reason she had speculated him to be one of the important people candidates. "Who are they though¡­? I know the people in charge of the other five but, who are those two? How did they get so close to the guard captain?" "Shhhhh. Don''t you know her? She''s the one who beat up the Pus party." "They say the one with her is her boyfriend or something and they met the guard captain just yesterday for the first time¨C actually, I''ve heard that the boy with her was only a newbie (Level-13) just until yesterday." There were various leading groups or players that were now guarding the six people she had speculated to be the one mentioned in the quest. And most of these people were higher than (Level-35). Some were even members of big guilds and were higher than (Level-40). [{ "Recon is important. Information is a very important factor of this kind of quests." }] The average level of the player in this town or in any town was around (Level-30). People left for the cities when they reached around (Level-40) to get a class or to learn more about the things that they were interested in. The high level players who had not chosen the town as their starter town or had already registered some other place as their residential affiliation weren''t permitted in the beginner town so even if the (Achievement hoarders) wanted to get here, they were all restricted by the system. This was the quest for the beginner players of this town and the residents, so there was no need for outside interference. [{ "Let''s do our best on this Recon mission then~." }] [{ "Haha, of course." }] The oldest player that was here since the beginning of this game was the owner of the most famous salon of this town. A respected elder who spent most of her days doing what she liked. She surely was the only player in the town to be over (Level-100) but she did not fight. And she never wanted to either. Alex had her reasons to believe how her death might also affect the quest in some manner¨C but just like Elio, the other players did not understand it. She was a player at the end, and she would revive even if she died. There was no reason for a dark mage to aim for someone like her¨C but the viral community post that Alex had made explained her reasons in such a believable manner that even though there was no solid proof of her claims, the players had no other choice but to pay attention to it. "The Recon team will depart now! All members! Gather at the west gate!" There were various people now assigned to these people, and most of them were from influential parties or guilds or groups that the other players did not want to mess with. This was a quest and this was a chance for them to earn an achievement, extra rewards, favor of the Mayor, and even affection of the town folks. They could not miss this chance¡­ and even though many had their doubts, they did not mess with the girl and boy who were in the Recon team with the guard captain and a few other higher level players. All the players could tell the ones closest to the guard captain right now were the two of them, and they were also working closely with the natives. Many players did not like it, many from their group also were the same, but they couldn''t do anything about that anymore. The operation was starting now that the Recon team had departed¡­ and the mages could sense already, the evil was closing in. They had to get started now. S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 41 - 41: The night forest The forest at night. A forest filled with dangerous creatures. Filled with creepy night noises. Filled with predators of night that wait for their prey and hunt them with their unique powers. The great forest near the Moongold town was one of the places that people, even players, avoided at night since the main creatures that give good Exp were all mostly only daytime creatures. They avoided the night forest mainly because of the night and the presence of the dangerous creatures that were more adapted to the darkness than the players and the natives. Only a few people and players wandered through the forest at night and knew the paths that one needed to take to reach certain places. Alex was not one of them¨C she did not mind day or night as long as there was something to hunt in a hunting ground but still, she had only been here for a few weeks. She should not have known about the night paths that one needed to avoid the creatures of the night that would attack the players or the group at these hours. There was a certain kind of creature in this place called (Mantis bat), a nocturnal creature that especially enjoyed the human meat, but they were territorial creatures and did not come out of their houses even if they were driven out by the external forces. Unless one intruded into their areas, they were pretty useful creatures that the guards had used many times. They were experienced with this place, but even they did not know what might have happened to the forest after the dark mage''s intrusion. They were going to take it seriously and be careful with each of their movements. -Swissssssssh¡­ The Recon teams were divided into three parties with each party having no more than nine individuals. They needed to avoid the fights or any kind of external interaction as much as possible and since they were only the recon team that knew what they were doing here, they had to avoid the eyes of the minions of evil and the dark creatures that the mages could feel the presence of. They were going to be as covert and stealthy as possible, that was one of the reasons the guard captain had chosen not the high level players that were strong, but the relatively lower level players that knew how to move through the terrain. The main reason he recruited Alex was certainly because of how good and unique hse was with her strength control. If she could beat up people tens of levels higher than her and even had some way to possess items containing strong spells, she was indeed an invaluable key to the operation. And, though he had not thought there was anything special about Elio at first, the fact that he was carrying around a Mana slime during their first meeting and then a Mana beast during their second meeting certainly made him even more special than the girl he was with. Additionally, if the two of them were able to deal with the Red Hob as they had reported to them, he knew they were capable of much more than what he had expected. He wanted to give them some tasks to test them out, but this happened out of the blue and somehow, both of them were closely connected with this incident. [{ "Area 3A." }] [{ "Wait for team-3. Team-2 will wait in Area 3B." }] He was gambling by taking them on the recon mission, and he was gambling even more by taking responsibility for both of them¡­ he knew the chances of getting something in return were small, but that was just how gambles were. Sometimes you get something, sometimes you get something good, sometimes you get fucked over, and sometimes you hit a jackpot. [{ "Team-3. Arriving in area 3A." }] And his gamble this time had hit the jackpot. [{ "Reporting surveillance from Area 3B." }] The girl that he thought was merely a strong foreigner was in fact an experienced leader- one even better than someone like him who had decades of experience. She asked him if she could take charge of the teams all by herself and explained to him an unorthodox method that he was impressed by just listening to. She suggested that she would take the complete charge of the situation, take charge of all three teams, and assign one ''captain'' each team. These captains will relay her commands to the rest of the teams, and follow her instructions. They will do as she says, and she explained to him in detail how by doing the things that she was suggesting, by taking the paths that she was suggesting, and by following her instructions¨C they could avoid any manner of fighting and directly reach their target area for the surveillance. The way she assured him that they can do this without any kind of loss or any kind of casualties seemed like a joke to him at first, the kind of authoritative spirit she had, the kind of eyes she had and the kind of plan she had devised for the entire battle afterwards was¡­ well, he could only describe it as something unparalleled. Working with her the first time did not feel like he was working with some inexperienced newcomer who knew little about this world. This was one of those rare cases where he was seeing the eyes of a person who knew more truths about this world than he might ever be able to. The eyes are as bright as the guardians who had stopped the advance of these evil dark mages and much more in the past. [{ "The dungeon entrance is open, however it is a trap. It seems like the real dungeon entrance is hidden by a strong illusion barrier, and there are beasts surrounding the entire dungeon area, suggesting the possibility of an ambush. The footprints on the ground and the scratch marks on the tree suggest that they are beast type creatures with non-elemental skills. The way they are set up in a triangular formation suggests they are expecting guests. And from how roughly the front ground has been cleared, it seems like there are bigger creatures with a little too much strength behind it. We should be ready to fight a pack of Hobs, or at the very least humanoid creatures like Green goblins that we find in the dungeon of Arrbo." }] They were using the party chat since it was a feature that the natives could use as well. And the one relaying all this information was Elio, not Alex. [{ "From the data we have, we know of a secret entrance to the northeast of the dungeon. There seems to be six beasts gathered in that area, so team-2 will distract them, team-1 will go there first and open the secret entrance, and then team-3 will join." }] The guard captain did not expect Alex to be such a great leader, but what he expected even less was how Elio, the one with two unique creatures, was in fact a very great observer and strategist. If it was thanks to Alex that they were able to work so organized despite being made up of individuals from various areas, it was thanks to Elio that they were able to avoid most of the undetectable traps of the dark mage. He had saved their life a few times already, but since they were finally at the dungeon, their main task was just starting now. S~ea??h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 42 - 42: Dungeon Surveillance The deepest part of the dungeon that, from the knowledge of the players, was the home of the green goblins and one of the simplest humanoid creatures to deal with, was dark and damp, with rough, uneven walls. A musty odor born from the unhygienic and dirty diet of the goblins hung in the air, mingling with the scent of wet earth and stone. The dungeon was deep like a cave or a natural structure created over hundreds of years of natural process. The goblins dominated this place, but this was not their home. -Shrr. Shrr. Shrr. The green Gobs were creatures that though dirty and repulsive, were still one of the simplest and easiest creatures that the players could deal with a little bit of experience. They lived in big communities and were guided by the higher authority figures like the Red Gobs, or other kinds of unique goblins. But the ones that lived in this dungeon were trapped here like the field bosses and were doomed to rise anew every time they died. They were merely here for the player''s to farm them and get stronger. They could not take their bodies out but, when they kill the creatures, if they take some parts of the goblins and save them in their inventories, they could take them with them. -Swiiiiiiiiiish¡­ Generally, that was how the dungeon worked. [{ "Looks like we all made it." }] Green torches lined the walls of the inside, their eerie light casting flickering shadows. [{ "Good work until now, everyone." }] They had somehow made it inside from the secret gateway that some player had once found while playing around this dungeon and was relatively unknown to the general public. Only a handful of people knew about this secret passageway and Alex was one of them¨C though, to obtain this information, she had to spend twelve silver coins. Something she was going to get back as soon as she got her hands on the bastard information seller. [{ "We will recuperate first." }] Even though they used some unique tactic to get to the secret entrance, the disturbances that they made sure to keep to the minimum had caught the attention of the creatures. They avoided them and somehow reached their destination, but they knew they had alerted the new owner of this dungeon. [{ "No, we will keep moving." }] In the center of the cave was a large, dark magic circle etched into the ground, filled with glowing symbols and arcane words. The circle pulsed with a sinister energy, creating an unsettling atmosphere. Standing in the middle of the circle was a figure in a dark hooded cloak, surrounded by a swirling black aura. The hood hid the person''s face, adding to the mystery and fear they exuded. The aura seemed to absorb the torchlight, making the figure appear even more menacing. The cave was silent except for the occasional drip of water and the low hum of the magic circle. The air was thick with tension, hinting at dark and powerful magic at work. This was a place of shadows and dark secrets, with the hooded figure at its center radiating an ominous presence, and not far from them were the group which had just entered the territory of this being. [{ "We have to keep moving. We can rest all we want when we get out of here." }] They were a recon team, not a great advanced party that was planning to deal with the creatures of this dungeon. There might just be innumerable creatures present in this cave and she certainly did not want to engage in a battle that she could not win. The reason she had gathered so much information and formulated this complete strategy was to get the highest contribution in this whole thing, and it was not going to work if they messed up and started fighting a being as strong as a Dark magician with just a few of them. Elio wasn''t even going to fight so his presence made things even more complicated for her. [{ "Alright¡­ we shall move." }] The guard captain had decided to follow them and he was going to see it through. Her suggestion this time made sense to him this time as well. [{ "Let us divide in triangle formation. Gather back here in exactly twelve minutes." }] [{ "Yes." }] If she was here to actually see what they were going to face, the guard captain was here to fulfill his duties as the head of the guards- the protectors of the normal citizens of the town. However, different from both of them, Elio was here for a completely unique reason. "Muuuu¡­" "Miu¡­" From what they understood, the only possible habitat for the crystal geckos around this town was this dungeon. There was no other place where these creatures could be from except some unknown area that was not discovered in nearly the decade the players had been coming to this world. S§×ar?h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. But chances of that were small, and the dungeon was the prime location so¡­ Elio was here to find his new little friend''s parents. That was one of the reasons he had asked her to divide everyone in a triangle formation. Since by doing only this, could he go on along with her and the guard captain to the place where the little creature used to live. [{ "I swear I''m going to break up with you if you keep doing these crazy things. This guard captain will kill us before we find the gecko''s house if he finds out we are playing him, ughh." }] All things on one side, since the little gecko could also tell this place was somewhat familiar, it seemed like they were in the right place. [{ "I''m always thankful for everything you do for me. It''s always cute." }] She wanted to beat him up for being so stubborn and so crazy with the things that did not need to be anything complicated. The little Gecko was young and it must also have parents somewhere in this dungeon. Their kinds lived in families and groups so it was always strange how a single creature was inside the cave where a strong creature like the Hob lived. [{ "For fuck''s sake at least¡­ don''t call it cute." }] They managed to get this far even with the dislike of the other higher leveled players in this group since she showed how dignified and capable she was¨C and here he was, calling her cute. The only reason the players did not complain and just continued following what she was saying was because the guard captain was following it. He was doing what she suggested throughout the way here and even right now, he was with the two of them as they walked towards the path that the little gecko was showing¡­ If he was gambling on the two of them, the two of them were gambling their life here just so Elio could help the little creature get back with his family. They did not know where they were going or if they would find anything there either¡­ but somehow, their gamble succeeded. [{ "Oh¡­ lord." }] By following the lead of the gecko and passing through strange small tunnels in the cave, they reached a place that was somehow pretty high up in the ceiling. A small opening that was just as big as a window. [{ "The dark mage¡­" }] According to the gecko, this should have been the house where it used to live¡­ or at least some palace its instincts were taking it. They did not know what they were going to find at the end, but they had not thought they would see the main villain that they had to defeat. [{ "What¡­ is that?" }] And they most certainly did not expect to see a dark magic circle so sinister both Elio and Az who were sensitive to Magic and Mana, would freeze just by witnessing the scene before them. Chapter 43 - 43: The follower of evil The moment they reached the deepest part of the cave, from the high dark ceiling of the cave, they were looking down at the dark scene before them. The cloaked figure surrounded by the dark, murky aura was standing in the middle of a sinister looking magic circle, there was a dull purple pulsating energy oozing out of this magic circle, and just by looking at it, one could tell it was not something natural. [{ "It''s a summoning circle." }] Alex had seen these kind of magic circles so it was not difficult for her to identify them. She knew instantly as she saw it that the star that was enclosed in a circle in fact belonged to the Unique series of magic, one that did not run on elements but purely on the power of the evil that was used by the Dark mage. [{ "But¡­ how did he make it in this dungeon?" }] Alex had fought these bastards in the great war a few years ago so she knew that they needed a lot of resources in order to create these magic circles. These creations were essentially what gave them power and what summoned the minions that followed their orders. The summoning circle was also the core of many of their powers so if someone somehow deals with the core magic circle that is mostly hidden somewhere, they can deal a significant blow to the mages themselves. But¡­ Since one needed a great amount of Mana crystals or many sacrifices to create this kind of magic circle, a lot of mages shared the power from one magic circle and accepted the power from the evil they served through the connection of the summoning circle with the (Sealed world of beyond). [{ "I think I might know the answer to that." }] The guard captain was stunned by this discovery. Contrary to his suspicions, there was actually only one dark mage here. But, unlike what he had thought, the mage had succeeded in creating a magic circle that was now directly connected with the veil world. He was constantly accepting power from the other world and was summoning minions of darkness¨C short humanoid spirits that did not have a physical body, a creature that was a pain in the ass. Dealing with them was a very difficult task, so even the presence of a bunch of them was considered to be something dangerous. But from what they could see here, there were around a hundred of those minions alone in this cave, he wasn''t even counting the creatures that the mage might have dominated with the dark energy. It was common knowledge that the mages of evil were capable of various kinds of evil magic, and most of them were destructive. S~ea??h the N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Even the weakest of them were as strong as a (tier-4) mage with decades of experience. The magic they used was different from the natural magic and was so dark that it corrupted nature wherever they used it. Normal people could not stand this magic, and if they anyhow get in contact with the area affected by these dark spells, the chances of them going Mad and succumbing to the dark power increases exponentially. Players were pretty resistant to the basic effects of the dark energy and the trained high level natives were as well so they needed to keep these agents of evil, as well as the dark beings connected to them away from the common people. [{ "The mage needs high concentrations of Mana to activate these magic circles. Or many sacrifices and soul energy." }] Elio was glaring at the magic circle. It wasn''t visible at the start since the whole damn thing was covered in dark murky evil energy but, if one looked close enough, they could see shards or fragments of shiny crystals that seemed to be disappearing as time passed. These crystals must be Mana crystals, and the creatures- the minions that were being produced by the magic circle- resembled reptilians for some reason as well. [{ "Oh¡­ damn¡­" }] It did not take Alex long to guess what guard captain might be hinting at or why Elio had such a grim expression. [{ "We know there used to be a Crystal Gecko habitat in this dungeon." }] Being Mana beasts, the unique Crystal geckos produced Mana crystals upon their deaths. The older they are, the more precious Mana crystal they produce will be. They did not have many combat capabilities and did not eat anything, living off on the natural Mana in the atmosphere their entire lives. Now¡­ why would a dark mage that might have chosen any place in this entire area, would choose a certain dungeon with mere goblins as his hideout? [{ "That bastard¡­" }] People avoided the crystal geckos but they also killed them many times. She had done so many times as well¡­ but massacring the creatures just so you could use their souls and materials left behind by their deaths to summon minions of evil and get stronger was something too wild even from her perspective. It was an act of evil, something that only someone like these crazy bastards would ever do¡­ "Miu¡­" But that was not the concern right now. [{ "I''m sorry¡­" }] He brought the little gecko here so that he could be back with his family, but now, from the looks of it, nothing remained of its family. This passage that the crystal geckoes might have used was now completely empty. They could not see anyone other than that dark mage in this cave, there was no light in this place either other than the dull light from the torches covering this area and the light from the magic circle. [{ "Elio¡­" }] He was upset right now. But, his eyes were still fixed on the mage ever since earlier. They were watching him. Observing him, his actions, his movements, how he was moving his hands, how he was controlling the dark power, and what it was that he might have used to kill his little friend''s family. His eyes were fixed on him. They were not blinking. They were observing him closely¨C the dark mage was his observation target, and the two with him figured out what he might be up to right now after how he did not say anything for a while. They waited till he finished observing or at least gave up¡­ and the remaining time they had passed just like that. [{ "All teams will move out and disperse through the same routes. We will regroup in area 12A." }] Both the guard captain and Alex had to order the others to get out of the dungeon while they both gave him a few more minutes. Appraisal would not work on a target like that dark mage, and even if it did, the mage would detect their presence if they tried using magic scrolls instead of a skill. Thus, observation was the most useful way to get a basic idea of the strength of the opponent that they might be facing. Alex wasn''t very confident in her observation use, and the guard captain was the same. So, if he was trying it and she was believing in him, the guard captain waited as well. [{ "Got it¡­" }] And their faith in him was not betrayed as Elio, even with a drop of blood cascading down the corners of his eyes, succeeded in what he was doing. ============ [Dark mage: Summoner] (Level-99). ============ But the results that he obtained from his successful attempt were not something anyone, not even his partner was going to like. Chapter 44 - 44: Battle against the evil "Level-99?! That''s surely not possible¡­ right?!" "And did you see?! They are saying the mage has over a hundred minions! This is absurd!" "The hell. Even minions should all be over level-60. How are we going to fight those things?!" The natives as well as the players were all panicking right now. The situation was not good. The powers of the mage that they had estimated was much, much greater. They would have to fight against a being that was practically more than fifty to sixty levels higher than them as well as a follower of evil¡­ a task that seemed visibly impossible from any logical or unrealistic point of view. "Everyone, calm down. The guard captain has confirmed it with his own eyes. We even have a legit screenshot!" There was proof of this fact so the things that people could say in opposition to this were very little. There wasn''t much that could change this fact and since there was no one else that had a better explanation to what they had gathered from their recon, this outcome just made sense to them. "In addition to the hundreds of minions, the dark mage also has an army of around three hundred dark beasts¡­ this is just absurd!" In addition to the information that the guard captain had brought directly, the other members of the recon team also brought crucial information from the dungeon that they had somehow managed to infiltrate. And the overall result of their search was not something anyone in the town, not even the mayor who was looking at the citizens and foreigners in that kind of panicked state could ignore. Presence of an enemy just a step away from (Level-100), a stage where one receives their first awakening and are recognised by the system for the great achievement, was not something any player could ignore. They surely could come back to life but it was not some instantaneous process. They had to wait for a long time- and entire day- to come back to life. Some of their equipment that they had on them would drop upon their deaths as well, and they would lose thirty percent of their current level''s Exp. For the newer player, this was not that great of a penalty since they could just take a break from the games and regain the lost Exp with hunting or with the things that they liked, for the players of higher level, death meant as worse of a fate as the real death. For the rankers who fought with their lives on the line every day to maintain their levels, and positions in the rankings, not being able to be in this world for three whole in-game days was the same as being thrown out of the rankings. They had to constantly farm and keep their status up, and for that, they would have to survive no matter the situation they are faced with. { "Please calm down, everyone." } Rankers who wanted to keep their rankings and reputations mostly avoided fights where the chances of loss were greater. None of them would even think about fighting an opponent that was fifty or sixty levels higher than them. Most certainly not the creatures who had also received their second or third enlightenment and were so powerful that they possessed enough power to destroy small towns like this with merely a slash of their hand, or with a sigh¡­ or with a single skill. The creatures that one faces after crossing hundred, or two hundred, or perhaps three hundred levels are on a completely different dimension than the creatures that the players of beginner town might ever face¨C but a Dark mage summoner of (Level-99) was the same as those unfathomable beasts to these new players. { "Though the situation is dire and we are facing a great threat right now, panicking does not resolve anything. Right now, what we need is not the concerns for what will happen, but the courage to face what we already know will be coming." } The Mayor was not losing any hope even in this situation. He was still just as resolute as he was when they all first saw him earlier. There was the same kind of light in his eyes as he did when he was telling them about the quest. The quest was just starting now. They had information on what was to come and they already knew the forces of the dark mage had left their stronghold so they were going to fight the dark creatures soon. -Ting! Ting! Ting! Bells throughout the town had started ringing already, announcing the arrival of the evil forces from all directions. { "The enemy is here already." } The evil was here and with it, the start of the quest was going to be marked. { "Though you all are outsiders that also value your life¡­ I ask you for your help once again." } [Ding.] The quest contents were updated and a new reward- (Coins in proportion to the contribution) was added to the whole of the quest window. Nothing much had changed aside from addition of the information that they knew already, so the players had something new to look forward to now. { "Please. Help us save the Moongold." } If push comes to shove, the Mayor would use his last resort and ask help from the mage tower master. He knew the librarian was not going to be pursued until half of the town was destroyed, so there was no need to waste his time with that old man. There were knights and the guard captain that he trusted the most here, and with the help of the players who possessed strong items beyond what even he knew about, there might be a chance to deal with this evil. He knew it was too much to ask help from the materialistic otherworlders who mostly only did something if there was something in it for them, so, he had no choice but to issue a reward that he would have to pay with his own money¡­ but he was fine with it. The finite lives of the citizens of his town were much more important to him than his wealth. He was ready to go bankrupt if it meant they could repel the evil that was aiming for their town. He had reported to the Viscount already, so his forces should be on their way now. If they could just hold on until they get here, there is also a good chance they will be able to resolve this crisis. S~ea??h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He just had to be careful since he knew how materialistic the foreigners were. There was no telling when or how they would jump sides and start doing something¡­ evil themselves. Chapter 45 - 45: Mourning "We don''t know if they are alive or not in the first place." "..." "Dude? Are you really concerned about the parents of some creature that you saved just because it was friends with your little slime? Will you really just sit there when the whole town is about to be engulfed in a fucking war?! The forces of the dark mage are here already!" Alex was concerned about what was going on outside and wanted to go out there and prepare for the battle. There were a lot of contribution points on the line right now so she had to do all she can to deal as much damage to the enemy so that the contribution points she earns are enough for a good reward. More than the reward itself actually, she wanted to fight those creatures and try and defeat the dark mage even though she knew it was pretty much impossible already. But with the right conditions and with the strong knights, mages, and the guard captain on their side, this was not going to be a big problem. With enough things and with support from the players, this was a pretty doable quest in itself. That was the main reason instead of the fight, she had focused more on the failure conditions. "..." "At least say something, damn it!" "Yes." "Hun? What do you mean, yes?" "Yes." "Hun?" She already informed the guard captain about all her strategies and wanted to go and help him with the executions of the plans. But, before she does that, she needed to take care of this greater problem before her. "Damn you, Elio. You''re ten times more sad about the death of its parents than the gecko itself!" Logically, the parents of the gecko as well as all of its relatives that lived in the dungeon were dead now. The dark mage had used them all to create the magic circle that was their top priority right now, and they were gone from this world. The gecko was already registered as his tamed beast so there was no reason for him to mourn like this. The gecko wasn''t alone. It had a friend named Az and the two of them as his family. It was a creature of nature so it understood the inevitability of death already, and had accepted the fact that it might never be able to meet the people that it might have been with all its life. It was more mature than this baby who mourned for the death of the gecko''s parents, had made a small monolith in their memory even though he had never met them, and was giving them the prayers since the last THIRTY MINUTES! Players had already gone ahead and were now fighting the first wave of the dark creatures, but here they were, at the graveyard on the outskirts of the town, mourning the death of creatures that they practically did not even have any connection with. "Yes." And even though she was shouting at him, he was just repeating the same word with his eyes closed, and his hands joined together. "Haaa¡­" This was just a game. And he was no caring, soft, altruistic person. She still could not understand why he would do such drama for a small creature that barely even understood what he was doing right now¡­ but he was genuinely sad. That much she knew. And she could not leave him alone in this condition even if she wanted to. "I''m sorry, Miu." "Miu?" The gecko''s voice sounded like the word ''Miu'' so he had named the little gecko from its distinct voice. The creature could tell what its human friend was doing because it was a show of kindness, so it at least understood his feelings and was happy. But it still did not understand why this big human was so sad. "Let''s go." He placed the shining blue flowers that resembled the normal Crystal Lizard''s light before the monolith, and stood up along with Az. "Muuuu?" Az was confused since he did not wait till Miu was inside of it, but when Elio placed his hand before the small lizard and asked it to climb up, Alex''s eyes widened with shock. "Hey!" She did not understand why he was doing it. They had a battle to fight and he was going to get himself poisoned right before that? She found it completely absurd! "Miu~!" But this small invitation was something the gecko could never refuse, so it climbed his hand and though it was difficult, he endured the new flow of Mana and placed the creature on top of Az. "They are my responsibility." He looked at her with the light of Mana fluctuations present in his eyes¨C with a warm smile. "I have to look after them, right?" These small creatures were both unique and had their positives and negatives. But as their tamer and their friend, he had to look after them. They did not have anyone else around them anymore. Alex was here, but she was also someone he had to look after, so she was his priority. But these creatures who left their house to come with him¡­ who were coming with him even though they were going to face the one who killed its parents, which was going to be dangerous, he could not neglect them anymore. They were his friends. So, he had to take better care of them. "You¡­ dumb donkey." All this drama was already pretty cringey to her¡­ but there was nothing she could do about it. He was a unique donkey so her lacking words weren''t going to work on him anyway. "Let''s go kick some dark asses..." "Yes~!" "Twinkle." "Yes~! Let''s¡­ wait. What did you just call me?" He understood this was a game and what he was experiencing, what he was seeing, this whole world and these things were not real. But logically, they were just as much real as the ''Real'' world that they knew. Just that it was different¡­ "Did you fkin call me by that disgusting name, AGAIN?!" He understood why people called this game the ''second'' world. But, even after all these experiences, he still knew there was a lot more that he needed to see and learn, and experience. "What do you mean? Did you think I just called you Twinkle? Do you want me to call you that~?" Sear?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "You¡­! You f-!" She was pretty funny when she was angry at a small thing like this. He found this little reaction pretty effective to get some rejuvenating breeze of fresh air. Chapter 46 - 46: Progression of the battle Goblins. Everyone knows these green creatures that have small humanoid structures, a wild personality, high reproductive rates- and no, they don''t do anything sexual with females of other kinds¨C though it would have been pretty fun to see them do something like that¡ª or not, anyway, they were goblins. They were one of the simplest creatures that players killed and since they gave good Exp, people raided their villages in the forest pretty frequently. They were found in the dungeon of Arrbo as well, so the dungeon was frequented by the players on a regular basis. The Goblins weren''t that great fighters or that strong creatures, but they knew how to set traps so they were sometimes a big headache to the players who had no experience with their tricks. There is a saying that if one meets the wrong kind of Goblin pack, they would be humiliated before they get killed. Or, depending on the pack, they might even earn some great loot along with a good amount of Exp. They were famous mobs, and just like slimes, since there were many kinds of goblins in the world, even the high level players went after the more advanced and evolved versions of these creatures. Still though¡­ "Ghrrrrr¡­!" -Ooooooooooooong! -Booooooooom! sea??h th§× nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. -Swish! Swish! Swish! In this battle, the creatures that they were facing surely were the same goblins that they knew- but after being corrupted by the dark energy, they had fallen to the control of evil. They had lost all sense of their original nature, and were now monsters with a little bigger, even tougher bodies. Their weapons were enhanced with the dark energy that had completely overtaken them, and the green bodies that they had were all turned black because of the dark energy. They had become slaves to the dark energy and there was no way to save them. Only deaths awaited them. -Swiiiiiiiiiiiish! -Booooooooooooom¡­! They weren''t simple goblins anymore so even though it took more than a few players to work together to take care of them, they were merely big chunks of Exp for the players. "Dieeeeee! You bastards!" "Kill them! Kill them all!" "For the empress!!!" Players were shouting funny things as they cast their spells, used their weapons, and cut down the enemy''s forces. A completely different atmosphere had clouded the entire town of golden moonlight. The central fountain in the plaza was empty once again. The walls were full of the defenders, the players, and the natives who were trying to protect their town from the invasion of evil. The dark magician was nowhere to be visible, but the dark energy was surrounding the town on all sides. Players fought and killed the goblins but there were enough of them for the players to not get bored of them. The higher level players were dealing with the goblins in smaller groups while the lower level players were helping out in whatever way they could. The walls were being guarded and inside of the town walls, the important people that the players were supposed to guard were also being looked after by the certain chosen players. A great reward was on the line right now so the hundreds of players of the moongold town were having fun taking down the enemy, earning rewards, and gathering contribution points. -Booooooom! -Swiiiiiiiiiiish¡­ Players using long range weapons, bows, magic spells, magic scrolls, items that threw projectiles from the town walls were all helping out to deal with the goblins and the occasional minions that appeared out of nowhere. Those little black things were the main problem that the players had to deal with. If they got into the town and somehow managed to kill the important person mentioned in the quest, they would lose everything they had fought for and would not even gain anything in return. It wasn''t something the players would ever want, so they were doing their best to keep the black goblins of darkness away from the town. But of course, Light only existed where darkness once prevailed. "Aughhhhhhhh!" -Swish. -Click! -Swash! Swash! Swash! Tempted by the greater benefits offered from the dark side, some players would always act to disrupt the flow of this kind of large scale quest so that they could get the best kind of benefits all for themselves. Doing the same thing as everyone else was old fashioned already so if they do what the others were doing as well, they would not be anything different from them. Thus¡­ all over the world of [Trolling] prevailed. Player Killers at least had some kind of self respect since they killed the player just because they could do it or wanted to do it for benefits. Trolling on the other hand was an act where the players betrayed one another and did things that were not morally or ethically right. In quests of this scale, there were always players who aimed for the failure of the quest so that they could obtain unique rewards from the system. It was much better than sharing the reward with such a large group of players, so the incident where the players themselves aimed for the failure condition of a quest was not that rare. Alex as well as the other experienced players already knew Trolling would be inevitable this time as well, so she had already set out countermeasures against it. "I didn''t even-." -Oooooooong. -Puchak! In the town of Moongold, just like any other town, city, or nation, there was an underground organization here as well. As long as these people were getting paid enough, unlike the players, they would do anything to satisfy their customers. They did not know what the trolling was as the natives but they knew the bastards who mess with their turf and indirectly help the evil that even they despised, were better off dead. So, with the help of the guard captain and the Mayor, she hired the best help she could and along with some players that the mayor and the guard captain trusted, they had assigned them some areas with the mission of cleaning up the rotten apples. "Aghhhhhhhhh!" -Boooooooooom! They were also looking after the important people and keeping an eye out for the minions'' actions and movements. The covert operation that was taking place throughout the town wasn''t known by many since every unit had their individual tasks that they needed to take care of, so only a handful of people actually knew everything that was going on inside the town. The Mayor was looking at everything going on in the town from the highest position in the town, the high bell tower present beside the central plaza. "Yes¡­" The guard captain was out in the forest, dealing with the dark minions and figuring out the current location of the dark mage who most certainly was present somewhere in the forest. The mages were supporting them from the town walls while the knights and the other guards dealt with the others and protected their companions. Casualties were inevitable but they were dealing with it in such an efficient way that the death toll was kept to minimal. "Protect her!" "...life begins death!" "Ahhhhhhhhhh!" Thanks to orders from authorities and an extra reward promised from the guard captain as well as some ''unknown'' merchants, a hidden reward for saving the native lives was going to be issued. They did not receive a system message about this, but the sources were solid. So¡­ the players were prioritizing the native lives over their own, protecting the ones that they wouldn''t usually even care about. [{ "We are back to this damned place¡­" }] Players were materialistic, but in the end, this was all for the contribution points. Everyone was doing what they could to help the Mayor defeat the dark mage. But, unknown to most of the player''s knowledge, the ones who were playing the biggest part in all of this, were two certain low leveled individuals. [{ "How will we destroy that magic circle?" }] They announced that they could shut down the Dark mage''s magic circle by themselves. An absurd statement that even the guard captain and the Mayor found unbelievable¡­ It wasn''t something someone could just do as they wanted anyway. The dark mage''s magic circle was unlike the normal magic circle. It was a directly connected gateway to the evil''s dimension. Normal humans like them would die the moment they get too close to it. Shutting it down without the help of a high priest who possessed holy energy of great purity was impossible. That''s why the guard captain knew they would have to fight the dark mage in his strengthened form. But her announcement just changed everything. And though it was absurd, they believed in the two of them one more time. [{ "You will have to help me with this one, El darling." }] The two of them were back in the house that belonged to Miu, the little gecko. And¡­ they were looking down at the sinister grand magic circle on the ground once again. Chapter 47 - 47: Dark spell circle [{ "How can I help you? Tell me." }] He was ready to do anything right now if it meant they could destroy this dark magic circle. He loathed the bastard that killed and used all the relatives of his dear little friend and he was not going to just sit there and watch when he had the chance to screw over the xx dark magician. [{ "There are two ways to destroy the dark mage''s magic circle." }] He knew about the two methods already. One needed to either possess a strong holy power of high purity, or enough power to directly destroy the connection of the circle with the connected world. [{ "We don''t have holy power, so, we will go for the second method." }] Holy power was a resource similar to the Mana of the mages or the Aura of the knights. Just that the ones who could use it were the believers and priests with strong Faith. It wasn''t necessary that the ones who could use it had to be devoted to some god or connected to some religious organization, but merely having strong beliefs allowed one to access this special power. Alas though, neither of them possessed this special power and had no way to cast a spell that would be powered by the divine power. She knew how to deal with the dark magic circle of this scale with the help of even the basic holy power user. But since they did not even have someone like that, they had to resort to the brute methods. [{ "I want you to cast this spell. Can you do that?" }] S§×arch* The N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She took out a certain book from her inventory, a golden book that was just as metallic from the outside as the silver book he had learned the basic spells from. [{ "They are special spells of nature series. You will have to cast three spells maintaining each one consecutively. It will be a little difficult, but do that and I''ll take care of the rest." }] The spell she was showing him did not look easy. And since this great lady of theirs told about it only after they were here, he did not have any time to practice in this place. They were putting themselves in great danger just by being here since this place wasn''t completely empty. The magic circle was important to the dark Mage so there were still some minions guarding this place. They were strong beings that weren''t going to fall for some simple distractions like the dark goblins did or the hounds outside did. They needed to be extremely careful with these monsters. But she knew how to take care of them as well. [{ "It looks doable." }] Elio knew what kind of risk she was taking here so he did not hesitate this time. He observed the spell formation a few times, tried making the same ones in his head, and when he was done with his versions he compared the one in his head and the one in the book, finding any difference between the two. It wasn''t perfect yet, so he tried again. And this time, he did not succeed either. It was a complicated spell that needed to be made from many points in the inside instead of out from the core of the spell. It wasn''t easy and took him a few tries. But, after a while, he opened his eyes and looked at her with a confident look. [{ "Go." }] She knew he was confident about this. He knew what he needed to do. So, with a simple nod at one another, Alex jumped down. And at the same time¡­ Elio closed his eyes, silently chanted the spell in his head, visualized the three spells that he needed to cast, channeled his Mana, and with an impeccable image in his head, he materialized three spell circles simultaneously. -Ooooooooooooooooong! "Gurrrr?" The minions of darkness that the dark mage summoner had summoned walked on two legs and resembled lizards covered in completely black scales. They were black from head to toe, their eyes were deep black as well, and even their tongues were black¡­ it wouldn''t be racism to call them minions of evil in this situation. Still, as simple looking as these creatures might be, every single one of them were above (Level-60). They weren''t something either of them would be able to defeat even if they somehow singled out one of them. They weren''t their opponents in the first place, they just needed to deal with the spell circle so that they could weaken the mage. That was all that they needed to do here. So, when he had prepared the spells, he just fired them in the points where she had asked him to earlier. She had jumped down from the ceiling area and wasn''t visible to him anymore but he had faith in her. She knew what she was doing so without worrying about her much, he followed her plan, and right when the dark red spells that Elio cast reached the places where she wanted them¡­ -Swish. -Click. Out of nowhere, she appeared before one of the spells, slashed the circle with an unknown red sword that Elio was seeing for the first time, and vanished once again. -Swish. Swish. -Click. Click. She did the same two more times consecutively and, since all of it happened in fraction of a moment, the dark minions did not perceive her, or the spells. -Ooooooooooooong! But after she had slashed the spell circles positioned in a reverse triangle around the spell circle with a star, the red spell circles with a strange slash on top of them glowed with a chaotic light. -OOOOOOOOOONG! It did not take the spell circles long to start sucking in the energy in their surroundings. -Zaaaaa¡­! It was strange seeing the red magic circles sucking in the black energy of the dark magic circle, but the more unique thing here was the slash that she had made¡ª one that seemed to be the actual reason behind this phenomenon. [{ "Prepare to leave. The mage will come here anytime now!" }] She somehow climbed the ceiling and reached the cave where Elio, Az, and Miu were. She looked extremely exhausted all of a sudden, and even her blue eyes were glowing with a strange golden light, but there was no time to pay attention to something like that. -Booooooooooooom! The three spell circles that she had cut down had somehow absorbed enough energy from the dark circle that the dark stable magic circle became completely unstable and was now on the verge of collapse. [{ "Yes!" }] There was no time to wait and look at this whole process since they both could see how this whole thing was going to blow up now. The unstable magic circle was going to be lethal when it blows up since the energy that it would spew out will be that of impure darkness¡ª one that they will not be able to handle at this stage. They needed to get out of there as soon as they could, so they started running with the little slime in his hands. The inside of the cave was going to collapse when the spell exploded, even the evil minions knew that. But unlike them, they were going to stay there and do something about the spell circle since that was their duty here. But they weren''t going to succeed. The spell execution was perfect. -BOOOOOOOOOOM¡­! Whatever they did, they weren''t going to save the spell circle. It was going to explode and it was going to take down everything in the area along with it. Chapter 48 - 48: At the same time... In the forest¡­ A sea of fire had manifested. "Aghhhhhhh!" "Get away from me! Get away¡­!" -Swiiiiiiiiiish! -Booooooooooom! The gates of the city were still being attacked by the creatures of darkness but most of their numbers had already been eliminated. There were only a few of them left here now so the players had started going inside the forest to look for the other forces since according to the logs, only a hundred or two creatures had died until now. There were still a lot of them left and since they weren''t coming out anymore, the players, along with the elite troops had to go in. They knew there were still many of the evil minions left, so they weren''t just going to stop doing everything when the creatures were still present. The boss monster, and the main target of the quest, the dark mage was still hiding somewhere in the forest so at the very least, they had to look for it and deal with it as well¡­ so, they went inside of the forest with the basic intentions of looking for the dark mage. However, they ended up falling into a stupid trap. "¡­" -Zaaaaaaa¡­ The minions of evil mage were all waiting for their arrival not too deep into the forest. They were physical damage dealers but they were carrying magical items that the dark mage had handed to them. These items- mostly resembling small magic rocks, contained magic spells that sealed off the players into a barrier. Once sealed, since they would not have any outside support, the minions easily defeated the advanced party made up mostly of players of high ranks. There were a few guards accompanying them, but many of them managed to get out of their positions and survived the sudden ambush, but not everyone was as fortunate as them. "Graaaaaa!" Many natives, guards for most parts, also fell victim to this sudden attack and the one who profited from it, the dark mage who had been observing this whole situation from the back, was still unhappy at the current state of his plans. He had prepared more than enough troops to take down this small town, and since according to His knowledge, there was also no one who would stand in his way in this town, the fall of the town and gathering of enough sacrifices for the summoning ritual was a matter of time. He did not even have to make a move himself so he was just observing everything from the back, looking at the non-futile attempt of the mortals who did not understand the purity of the evil that he followed. "Gurrrrrrr!" They were dying by the hands of the creatures that once belonged to nature, creatures that could not resist the great attraction of the darkness and now had fallen to the grasp of evil. Surely the Fact that they were merely dead weight to the name of evil, and were nothing more than tools to help a true chosen one like him in his great endeavors was eternal. -Oooooooooooooong! But since the ones they were after today were merely some mortal low level town folks and other worldly people cursed by destiny, he did not have to make a move and waste more of his energy than it was needed. He had already worked hard to prepare for all this, so he deserved some rest. [ "Haaa¡­" ] Though, from the looks of it, it did not seem like he was going to get the rest that he deserved. -Booooooooooooom! [ "Useless dirty beasts." ] The beasts that he had prepared with the blessed energy of the higher beings that he served the assistants that THEY provided him were now on the verge of collapse. The ones that should have surrounded and attacked the small town and overtaken it completely now lay dead in the certain areas that seemed to be prepared beforehand by the weak mortals of this town. He remembered there were some flies that had managed to see him and discover his existence in the forest, but he did not think they would have reported it to the Mayor in such a timely manner. They were already dealt with by him so there was no question about their lives, but, since things had fallen out this much¡­ the only thing he could do now was to make a move himself. [ "How bothersome." ] He had made these creatures and obtained these assistants so that he could deal with the certain individual that THEY wanted him to get rid of. They had enough power to crush the entire town and kill the guards, knights, mages, as well as the mayor in the process. He just needed to deal with that certain individual and for that, he could just destroy this whole place in the process. It would be much more effective than searching for that individual and dealing with them systematically. That was only possible when he had the complete force that he had prepared. But now that he did not have that, all that he could do was¡­ "Captain! That way!" "I hear screams. Everyone, prepare!" "Get in defensive formation!" Coming out of the special space that he was hiding in all this time, he stood before the most advanced party led by the highest ranking individual in this town himself. [ "Oh? Is that the guard''s captain?" ] The guard''s captain was accompanied by the knights and the best mages of the town so, even as they faced the evil boss that appeared out of the blue- the goal of the quest, the party did not feel any fear. [{ "Mages! Prepare!" }] Sear?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The enemy was alone while on the other side, they had numerical advantage. All of their members were some of the highest level individuals of this town, as well as some of the most formidable in their fields. There were knight tanks with him that were sturdy and known for their strength, mages who had years of battle experience, knights with the power to wield Aura, and though they did not have a priest with them, they had mages specialized in grace, and healing spells. The guard captain knew how difficult this challenge might be as he stood before the humanoid being with ashen pale skin, deep black eyes with no whiteness in them, and someone completely covered in a thin layer of a murky dark energy. But, even though words of that certain girl to not engage in a fight with the dark mage without them resonated in his head, he could not do anything when faced with the evil. [ "Kekekeke. To think you would walk right before me on your own feet, hun, captain." ] The mage was already aiming for this person from the start since he knew he was one of the strongest in the town. Dealing with him would mean dealing with one of the major forces of the town, so, when the guard captain appeared before him, a delighted smile had appeared on his three mouths as well. Chapter 49 - 49: Clash with evil -Oooooooooooooooong! sea??h th§× NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The mages created a barrier around the shield holding knights in the front, while at the same time, buffing them with strongest grace spells that they could. There were twelve people in the guard captain''s party: Three knights, six mages, himself, and two archers who could wield Mana. The arrows that fired all contained Mana and some arrows that they had were even enchanted with the spells of the mages. They were in no way a weak party. Perhaps, among all the parties currently fighting the force of evil, they are alone with the strongest ones. The only thing that made even their composition futile though, was the one that they were facing right now. [ "Boring¡­" ] The assault started with the guard captain holding his greatsword at the very front of the group. -Oooooooooong! The mages fired their spells, the archers fired their Mana imbued arrows, while though the knights wielding the shields waited for the attacks of the mage, the sword of the guard captain was aiming for the Neck of the enemy. -Snap. But, unbothered by it all, he merely watched them with a bored look and snapped his finger. -Sprrrrk. -Oooooooooooooong! And when he did, red-black sparks appeared in the air, a red shield that materialized right before the sword of the guard captain threw him off, and at the same time, dark smoke rose up from the ground. "Ughhhh!" -Tsssssss¡­! The mage wanted to take care of just one person here¨C The guard captain who held more strength than the others. He was the only one that he even wanted to kill. The rest of them were merely standing sacrifices in his way. "Captain!" When the guard captain was thrown back because of the shield of the dark mage, he carefully handled his large body even though it was covered in heavy armor. From his one attack alone, he knew that the opponent that he was facing was much stronger than what they had initially expected. The spells of the mages did not work on him either. The red barrier covering him completely blocked off the spells and it seemed like the black sparks that were covering the shield were eating away at the spells on contect. -Ooooooooooooong! But the mage still covered the guard captain and continued attacking the mage with strong spells. -Swish! Swish! Swish! The guard captain was not going to be enough to deal with this dark mage. He was too strong. So, the knights summoned their Aura power and joined them as well. -Swish! -Booooooooom! Just one sword slash from the knights'' Aura covered weapons created a kind of destructive force that the area they were in, the ground beneath them was all turned upside down. -Thum! Thum! Thum! -Swiiiiiish! -Boooooooooom! The power of Aura by nature was destructive. When it hit the ground beneath them, it created craters that seemed to be results of some strong destruction spells. They were the only things strong enough to affect the strong shields of dark mage. With their attacks, the shields somehow got cracks and were almost on the verge of shattering. [ "Hun." ] But the mage was still unbothered by all of it. -Oooooooooong¡­! He just continued attacking the knights with the dangerous destructive attacks that they could barely survive thanks to the buffs and shields of the mages from the back. -Ooooooooong! If it weren''t for the strong mages, they might have lost the battle in a matter of moments. And, perhaps after exchanging a few blows and losing one of his shields, the dark magician seemed to have realized it as well. -Ooooooooooooong! With a strong blow of dark winds, he first threw every one of them away from him and covered himself in a new shield. [ "Flies should just die." ] -Snap. Then, he gazed at the mages at the very back with his impure black eyes, freezing the blood running through their bodies with his evil powers. "Aghhhhhh!" The sudden chills that they felt were not merely something imaginary that they were feeling in their heads. That was not the case here. The blood running through their vines had actually frozen due to the dark magic of the evil mage. The clash of the pure mana of the mages and the dark powers of the mage was chaotic. He was not affected by their Mana but the same was not true for the mages on the guard captain''s team. "Ughhhh!" When the evil Mage directly used a lethal spell to actually freeze their blood, he was aiming for the Mana vessels in their body as well. -Oooooooooong! The sudan injection of the dark energy into the body of someone who possessed Mana vines without a strong enough mental fortitude to handle his presence was the same as the most lethal poison was to the humans. -Ooooooooooong! The Mana inside of their bodies went berserk all of a sudden and became so uncontrollable that¡­ -Pu¨Ctchak! First the eyes, then the head, and then the rest of the body of the brave mages who had assisted the guard captain and the rest of the knights until now popped off like a balloon¡­ spraying the now black insides, frozen body parts and, their last bit of pure crystallized Mana that had become the reason for their deaths. [ "Now that the flies have fallen quiet..." ] With a simple movement of his hand, the mage summoned a minion of darkness that the players all around them were fighting against now, and then turned the evil creature into something that resembled a sword. [ "Guard captain? How about you get serious?" ] With a simple movement of his hand that did not even alert the knights with the power of Aura and heightened superhuman senses, the dark sword floating right beside the mage moved at a speed unbelievable to human eyes. -Srrrush. Srrrush. Srrrrrrush. And, in just a few blinks of an eye, this sword came back to his side¡­ -Thud. Thud. Thud. Just that when it reappeared, there was blood dripping down its blade. "...?!" From how the strong knights who had trained their bodies and minds with years and decades of training fell to the ground lifelessly, the guard captain instantly knew what was going on before him. He was not facing an opponent that he could fight while holding back. There was no way to defeat this opponent. He would destroy this town if things went just like they were going as well¡­ "You¡­ Evil¡­" It was his duty to protect the people of this town as well as the town itself. As the guard captain, he must not let this evil mage get past him. "Skill¡­" The brave knights and the mages that had passed while protecting this town¨C he had to honor their sacrifices and deal with this evil even if he had to pay a great price for it. "{Guardian spirit manifestation}." He was prepared to die here, on this very battlefield. Revealing the secret that he had been hiding for a long time was no big deal in this situation anymore. Chapter 50 - 50: Confusion "Hun? What the hell?" "Shouldn''t the place have collapsed or something?" She was confident that the spell circle would explode and the whole place would collapse. But, nothing like that was happening even though we had come out of the place. The whole dungeon was still perfectly fine and, even though they were outside now, there was no great commotion that would alert the guard dogs outside. They were still in their positions even though we were outside. "Well, what the fuck?" Alex was confused right now. She knew she did it right and that the spell circle was certainly destroyed. But then, why wasn''t anything happening? The dark minions didn''t have enough intelligence to stop a dark spell circle from exploding. They should have died with the explosion. But, why wasn''t anything happening? "I think we should go back and-." His sentence wasn''t even finished and she was walking back inside the same place she had walked out of. "Oy." She wasn''t stopping, so he ran behind her. The inside of the dungeon¡­ they did not enter through the secret entrance this time but directly from the front entrance that was still covered by a strong illusion barrier. Elio was surprised how she walked towards the front entrance, but as he walked behind her to stop his mad girl, he was also stunned to see the now empty dungeon. There should have been many guards at the entrance, inside of the cave, there should still be tens of the evil minions present in the cave, throughout the cave, there should have been some traps here at least, creatures hidden for an ambush. And yet, there was no one guarding the inside of this place anymore? "What''s happening here?" Elio questioned what was going on in the cave, but Alex only answered with a continued silence. "Miu?" "Muuuu." Even the little creatures with him were confused right now, but they just followed behind her inside the dungeon. The inside of the cave was dark, but at least, thanks to the torches present inside of the cave, there was enough light for them to see around them. The pathway inside was narrow, but not so narrow that not even three people could pass through it. It was good enough, so they just walked behind her and somehow, reached a fork. "Miu? Do you know which way your house is from here?" Usually, there should at least be guards in a place like this one. But there was nothing here either. Which made her suspicions even more certain. "Alex. What is up with you? What''s going on here?" This whole thing was getting creepy now. "We were wrong, El." But her words made things even more confusing for him. "Hun?" She walked back and took the slime from her hands without elaborating further. He was going to find out soon enough so, there was no need for her to explain things here. "Miu? Miu." "Muuuuu¡­?" The little gecko knew where they had to go, so it showed the way with its light. And they followed according to its directions. They were inside the cave where these creatures had lived for most parts of their lives, so navigating inside was pretty easy for them. And, it did not take them long to reach the core area that they had seen twice just today. "Who¡­?" "I knew it." But the inside situation in the cave''s core was pretty different from what they had expected. The magic circle that they needed to destroy, the circle that had almost been destroyed was still there. The ground on which the spell circle existed was fluctuating and there were reactions from the ground right now. There were sparks coming out of the spell circle still, and there was a strange vibration present all around this core area. There were no minions in this place either. There was just a strong red-black light present throughout the place and, the origin of this light was the spell circle¨C upon which an individual stood with an uncomfortable expression. [ "Ughhh¡­" ] "The Mage really had an assistant." In the core of the spell circle, in the very center of it, a figure wearing normal black clothing¨C someone that seemed to be a mage was standing with a tough expression covering his face. His hair was white, his face young, the clothes that he was wearing looked pretty good for a mage, and there was a thick darkness present all around her. He seemed to be strong, but more than that, he was in pain right now. [ "You¡­ you were the ones¡­" ] When they walked in, the individual saw them as well. And an enraged expression sparked on his ''normal'' face. "An aspirant¡­" The person that was standing in the center of the magic circle was not a dark magician or a follower of evil. He was a human, a human mage. [ "You¡­!" ] Actually, it would be better to say he used to be a normal, human mage until just now. "He seems to be in his early thirties." "Did he¡­ help the mage?" "It looks like this one is the main reason the dark mage is here in the first place." In the center of the magic circle, he had positioned as the core since the actual core was on the verge of breaking. There was a thick darkness surrounding him. A kind of darkness that did not belong to him but was something that belonged to the dark Minions that were present in this dungeon until just now. S§×arch* The N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "..." [ "Who¡­ who are you¡­?!" ] His eyes were slowly turning black, his skin was becoming paler, and he was losing the faint traces of Mana inside of him. The darkness that was around him was consuming him. He must have somehow assumed the position of the core and tried stopping the core from getting destroyed. He must have known that if the core was destroyed then the dark mage would lose a significant part of his powers as well. He did not understand the darkness much from the looks of it, so he must have tried to stop the spell circle from breaking apart by taking the risk of forcefully stopping the spell circle''s destruction. And in the process, he must have used up the Minion''s darkness energy as well since he himself did not possess any evil dark energy yet. [ "Did you do this¡­?!" ] The darkness that was now surrounding him was slowly turning him into something that was neither a human nor a dark magician. The power of evil darkness that the dark magicians have was granted by the evil from the other side. One could not obtain it as they pleased. Chapter 51 - 51: Darkness’ corruption Darkness from the dark minions was a fragment of the power of those evil beings but it wasn''t something that could grant one the power of darkness. "Let''s get out of here, El." The mage must be someone who wanted to become a follower of evil and was helping the dark mage with something. She did not know for certain yet, but he must also be someone responsible for the dark mage''s presence in this town. "...let''s go." From what they understood, the mage that was helping the dark mage wanted to become a dark mage and was serving him. He might have pointed him to this town, thinking it did not have many strong individuals and was an easy target. Then when the dark mage went to deal with the town people, he must have stayed behind. It takes a lot of sacrifices and conductors to open the windows on the other side and produce a fellow dark mage artificially. The birth of a dark mage is a natural process, but there surely is a way to obtain that abundant power of evil. S§×arch* The n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And this one might have been after that as well, and the dark mage must have done all this to make him a follower as well, since it would prove his faith and grant him greater powers. "...Miu recognizes him." "Then it makes more sense." The mage wanted power, for that the dark magician needed to succeed, for his success this circle was important, and he thought he could prevent it from being destroyed. That did not happen. And seeing him with the magic circle, the Minions instinctively attached themselves to him in an attempt to ''help'' the process¡­ or in an attempt to be one with the darkness that they had come from. They did not have anything like intelligence so instincts were everything for them. In this instance though, their instincts made them do something crazy. "Did you kill the Crystal lizards?" Alex looked at the mage who was being consumed by the darkness of the minions, the darkness that was purely an energy, something opposite of the Mana. [ "Ughh¡­!" ] The mage was dumb to think he could handle the dark magic circle as merely a (tier-4) mage. And the minions were dumber to unanimously attach themselves to the mage. "Doesn''t seem like we will get any answer from them even if we talk." "..." What they did made the energy inside of the mage''s body clash with the darkness. The class of two energies created an unstable environment that produced strong power. This at least gave the mage the power to stop the spell circle from falling, but at the same time, the darkness that overflowed in him was corrupting his body. He would die soon, and that death would be more terrifying than he might have ever thought about. ''Dying from the powerful darkness. He sure would experience the worst pain in his last moments.'' Alex did not spare him any more glances and walked out of that place. He wasn''t even a dark mage that was trying to repair the spell circle but merely a dumb mage that would die a horrible death. And since the darkness would slowly corrupt his pure soul as well, even though he was a native, he might never experience a peaceful afterlife. These were his last moments¡­ "Miu." "Muuu." And even though Elio wanted to kill him with his own hands for being the one to kill the geckos of this cave, he walked back with Alex and got out of the cave. [ "Hey¡­! Wait¡­!" ] Neither of them looked back at the mage¡­ and the darkness continued surrounding his entire being. The spell that he was maintaining was now working with him as the core, but that lasted only for another moment as the darkness had turned the body of the human mage into something that resembled charcoal. -Ooooooooooooooooong¡­! He had stopped breathing a while ago, but now that his lifeforce was exhausted as well, nothing was left of him. His position as the spell circle''s core had become useless as well. So¡­ -BOOOOOOOOOOOOM¡­! When they came out, a ground shaking explosion boomed from deep inside of the cave. The dungeon''s core was completely destroyed. The cave must have fallen down, and from the sheer force of the explosion that must have been perceivable even far away from here, they knew what they were here for had already been achieved. Now, all that was left was for them to defeat the dark mage and protect the ''certain'' special individual in the process. "Get ready-." "I know what I have to do. Don''t tell me every little thing." "Oh?" She looked at his confident and angry expression. She didn''t know where his ''not wanting to kill anything'' spirit was since she could clearly see killing intent in his eyes. But, it seemed pretty valid for her at this point. He had friends that had been with him for special reasons and if he didn''t do anything, there was a good chance that he would lose them. He had to become stronger. Perhaps so strong that even while not killing anything, he would be able to protect everything that was his. This was just a game for them, but for the creatures of this world, this data world was their reality. And their artificial intelligence was their real selves. -Boooooooooooom! The matter with the dark mage''s magic circle, an element of his boosted strength from the evil side was already taken care of, so they thought they would be able to take down the dark mage with the help of the guard captain and the knights. The mages would play a big role in her plans and since they were strong individuals who possessed certain great qualities, they were going to be a great assistance to her. She was confident that under her assistance, they would win this battle. It wouldn''t be that difficult for them to take down someone like that dark mage if they utilize their power in a proper manner. She was confident¡­ [ "Oh? Was there someone still left?" ] But when they reached the area where the most commotion was happening, they witnessed a scene that almost froze both of them in their place¡­ Chapter 52 - 52: Downfall The area where a fierce fight was going on a few moments ago was turned into something that could only be described as a Mess. The ground was completely covered in blood of the natives, the knights and mages who must have done their best to fight against someone like the dark mage. It wasn''t easy to become a knight and receive the power of Aura. One needed to devote themselves to their training and understand their weapons more than any normal sword wielder. The one who could not obtain the Aura even with a lot of training were many not just in the cities of the kingdoms but even in the greater empires. That was also the reason that just like the archers that were with the guard captain, many who trained with weapons also opted for Mana. Mana was a kind of resource that generally anyone qualified enough can get access to. But, at the same time, even training in Mana was a difficult thing. However, the knights that accompanied the guard captain were all Aura users, powers that were so rare that even a large town like this one only had a handful of them. And yet, all those who had accompanied them had become one with nature¡­ [ "I knew someone messed with the magic circle. That dumb mage bastard was never the right choice." ] The ground covered in blood, rubbles was still flying all around. Bodies either crushed mercilessly or obliterated from inside out lay on the ground. The insides of the body were filling the ground¡­ The gruesome scene that they were seeing right now almost made Elio noxious, but he handled himself as he glared back at the black eyes looking at both of them. [ "Well, I don''t know how you two did it, but your efforts don''t mean anything." ] The knights were dead, the mages'' body had become a messy pool of organs, the archers were dead as well¡­ the only one alive before them was the guard captain, who also hung on the last thread of his life. [{ "I told you all to wait, didn''t I?" }] Alex could not help but curse at the guard captain as she saw the miserable state that he was in. [{ "We¡­ should have done¡­ that." }] He was covered in scars and deep wounds from head to toe. His body was covered in a unique green light that was so distinct that Alex recognised it at a glance, but that did not concern her at the moment. [ "Well, well. You two seem intriguing. Unfortunately, our time for idle chatter has run out." ] Glancing at the white sword around her waist and the creatures that Elio was trying to hide under his shirt¨C something very ineffective, the dark mage with ashen pale skin and dark eyes resembling the abyssal pits, smirked. Sear?h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Get away, dumbass!" -Swish! Swish! Swish! The very next moment, dark spikes rose from the ground where they had been standing, however thankfully, with her quick reaction, Alex was able to avoid the attack while pushing Elio away. He was lost for the scene before him for a second. He had known these people- people who were not in this world anymore- and he knew they were pretty good people. But they were dead now as well, and there was nothing that could be done. [{ "Do we fight him?!" }] He was thankful for her help once again, but he did not use any unnecessary words at the moment. He knew the severity of the situation and just asked her what they had to do. [{ "Do you see any other option?! Of course we have to fight!" }] The opponent was still a (Level-99) dark mage. Thankfully, all the killing he had done until now did not push his level any higher or else it would really be impossible to defeat him in the short time they had left. [{ "Help me!" }] -Bling! -Swish! Swish! Swish! She used {Blink} and while avoiding the spikes that were springout out of the ground all around them, she grabbed Elio along with Az and Miu and got some distance away from the mage. The fight was inevitable, so she first told him what she wanted him to do and, without waiting any further, she reappeared before the area where the dark mage had been. [{ "Sir Mayor! Please tell us what is going on!" }] She reached the messy area and the first thing she did was to use a powerful (tier-4) offensive magic scroll that even the dark mage could not avoid. [{ "Not good. It seems like some of the minions have managed to infiltrate the town anyway." }] The Mayor recognised her voice on this private channel so he did not dwell deeper and just answered her question. -Swish! Swish! Swish! At the same time, she used enchanted throwing knives that contained strong spells that the dark mage''s magic barrier could not stop. He thought his defenses were absolute. Even the knights and the guard captain had barely managed to shatter it a few times until now. Even after using his hidden power, the guard captain had only managed to deal a little damage to him. There were some scratches that did not mean much. They would heal with his enhanced regeneration powers so the mage did not pay any mind to them¡­ however, the attacks from her mere daggers was a different story altogether. [ "You¡­! Why do you have these¡­?!" ] Enchantment was not a commonly practiced art. In the current age, one could not find an enchanter easily. Moreover, the kind of enchantment that was required to bypass the barriers made of the dark energy was not something even the experienced enchanters could apply on simple weapons like these knives. -Swish! Swish! Swish! The level difference between them was not small. It was more than severity levels, which was a lot even from her standards. But, it was still not impossible. She had gone against beings over a hundred levels above herself. She had not come out victorious in all of such fights, but she was confident this time. The opponent was a single dark magician so, even with the many problems, even though the dark minions had managed to infiltrate the town, even though a lot of players and natives had died protecting the town, even though the conditions were still not in their favor¡­ it was still possible. [{ "Get ready, El." }] There was one key element to this quest that none of them knew about until just now. [{ "You might only get one minutes at max." }] But after seeing the green light around the guard captain, she was able to recognize it instantly. There was no way she would not recognize the distinct light of the special skill that birthed the current No.9 of the unified rankings¨C one of the strongest exorcists of this world. As well as someone she had fought alongside many times in the past main scenarios¡­ Chapter 53 - 53: Key to the victory -Swish! Avoiding the incoming attack of a dark wind, she first used a powerful protactiv Mana shield item to take the least amount of damage, and used a sword imbued with the properties light to attack the dark mage. Her level was still low and her Mana levels weren''t sufficient but she could still use a few of the items that she had. The general items like accessories and the scrolls were one thing, but she mostly did dealt with the attackls of the dark mage using her high evasion rate. She was agile even with her comparatively low stats, and even though she had used some potions and buff spell scrolls to temporarily boost herself she was not going to last against the dark mage tens of levels higher than her. [ "Damn insect." ] She had many restrictions on her, many of them being from her ''trial'' so there was a lot of limitations on her. -Booooooooooom! She couldn''t just use some high level magic scroll or the holy sword that she had in her inventory. If she could use something like that, there would be no need for her to even go to such lengths and engage in a joint fight with the others. She would solo kill this little dark mage and that would be it for it''s efforts. However, she was limited to the simple items that she had one star items in her inventory. -Ooooooooooooong! Still, she was somehow dealing with the attacks of the mage, dealing some kind of damage that accumulated over time, and using many debuffs on him so that the damage would at least stack over time. [ "Ughhh! What is this now?!" ] The DoT strategy as people called it might surely have been effectiove against this one had the debuffs and the accumulation sumilative percentage was decent enough, but at her level and with her limitations, all that she could do was to push the mage away from the place they were in and engage in a brief fight until it was done with her little plays. -Swish! The mage was overcvonfident and lazy so she knew it was just conserving his strength for the bigger things that might apper, so she had to take advantge of his carelessness and buy as much time for them as possible¡­ She was only acting as a distraction afterall. The real key to this quest was the guard captain. So Elio''s role here was very important. "Hey! Guard captain!" When Alex dragged the dark magician away from them all, Elio carefully made his way to the guard captain through the pool of blood, organs, grusome stuff, and dead bodies¡­ "Hey!" The guard captain was unconscious, so he slapped his big face. But he still did not wake up. The green energy around him was fading away so, Elio thought he was on the verge of death. And he did not want to do CPR when he was covered in blood like this. So¡­ he placed Az on top of the guard captain and asked the little slime to cast the magic of the sub category of light attribute- (Volt). "Muuuu~." It was a small spell that produced some little sparks of lightning, something that wasn''t really used as a CPR substitute, but in the kind of state he was in, the guard captain needed more of a quick shock rather than the touch of another man''s lips. "Go." "Muuu~!" S~ea??h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The slime was still new to the whole magic thing but there were around nine spells that it could cast after the little training they had done until now. The spell (Volt) was one of the simple spells that was actually pretty difficult to use even for the people who had the affinity for lightning attribute directly. But, even with the light elemental affinity, the slime could use the spell. Which, in their current situation, was nothing less than a blessing. -Oooooooong! Mana gathered on the white translucent surface of the slime as it produced the spell the same way it had felt it. "Muuuuu¡­" It was very quick. The way Mana particles gathered and condensed into the shape of a spell circle and then materialized as a few sparks of blue lightning around the surface of its white mucus, was an instantaneous process. -Zap! It ended up with a small electrical discharge that made the entire large body of the guard captain jerk upwards. "Ghaaaap!" -Ooooooong! "Ahem!" His eyes opened wide right after the shock and as if it was on instinct, the guard captain took in a mouthful of air before coughing up some blood as he stood back up while channeling the Mana in his surroundings. "Have this!" Elio hurriedly handed him the high grade potion bottle that he had received from Alex a moment ago and without thinking about how this small vial of potion costs a whopping gold coin, he just gulped it all down his throat. He knew already that the time right now was not right. He had to go back and fight the dark mage¡­ -Clank! Clank! Clank! He could see even with his blood covered eyes that in the distance somewhere, someone was fighting the dark mage with still a significant power level. If this boy was here, then the girl that he had been trusting a little too much until now must be the one going against that dark mage¡­ but, she was nowhere near strong enough to even fight against him. He knew just how weak both of these young ones were right now¡­ so, he had to go. "Please wait, captain." Elio knew what the guard captain wanted to do. She already told him how he would try to hurry and go help her after taking that high grade potion and recovering a portion of his strength. It was Elio''s job to make sure the guard captain reached her as soon as possible as well¡­ but before he did, Elio had to make sure of one more thing. "Take these. She said you would know what to do with it." Alex knew the kind of unique skill the guard captain possessed. In the entire world, there were rarely any individuals who possessed the innate talent to borrow the powers of the guardian spirits, the natural spirits that were different from the elemental spirits. "You¡­ how do you-." "We don''t have time for the explanations, captain." He was tending to him but his eyes had always been focused in the distance, at her and the unfathomable opponent she was facing right now. There was no time to chit chat, so the guard captain had to do whatever she wanted him to do as quickly as possible. "...alright." The things that she had asked Elio to hand over to the captain included a condensed Mana crystal, unique fruit from the east that contained Mana- something one rarely found in the west where they were, and lastly, something that Elio had obtained during his tutorial. A green glowing flower that possessed a much more ethereal glow to it than what he had seen in the tutorial. There was a strong natural Mana stored inside of this Jade Lotus, something that now that he could perceive Mana, seemed unrealistic and etherial. "Thanks." This flower was something much more important and special than what he had expected. And in their situation, in the hands of someone who understood its value better than anyone else, these things were practically invaluable¡­ Chapter 54 - 54: True powers of a skill [ "You insolent insect!" ] Even though she told him she would buy him three minutes, the dark mage ended up seeing how the boy that was with her a moment ago was now doing something with the guard captain that he had almost crushed. They had given him some trouble already, time was being wasted, there was a lot that was happening right now and, despite her consecutive attacks, the evil bastard was fine even right now. Thanks to the spells that he used to counterattack and block the many attacks that she was using with the help of her costly items, she still could not manage to deal any damage to the dark mage. She just ended up angering him further. -Ooooooooooooong! He was enraged now that he had also figured out she was merely playing with him all this time. Elio was doing something important but even she did not know how he would wake him up and give all those things to him in the short time they had. -Boooooooooooooom! She was betting a lot on him right now, so even when the dark mage got enraged and used a strong spell to attack her, she barely managed to survive the attack by evading most of the fatal impact and blocking it with all the charges of her consumable Mana shields that she had. -DHUM¡­! She crashed in a tree trunk. And even though the shields absorbed some impact, she still was hurt. "Alex¡­!" Elio rushed to her side, knowing full well she had not only exhausted herself in that short instance, she even used a lot of things that she initially did not want to. [ "Futile efforts¡­" ] The dark mage frowned at the two of them, the disgusted look on him an evidence of his dislike towards their kind and their pureness. [ "One cannot step away from the perpetual bounds that THEY are the masters of." ] He did not think anything special about this person. The girl merely used some tricks and jumped around a little so there was nothing too special about her. She was just trying to trick him, distracting him so that the one insignificant insect with her could do something that was also just going to be as futile as anything else they would do. Their fates were sealed the moment they came here. Nothing but a painless, blissfully dark death awaited them¡­ "Ahem!" "Bastard¡­!" "Miu!" "Muuuuuu¡­!" The three of them around her could do little to comfort her and ease the deep pain she might be feeling after that impact. There was a chance that she must have also received some dangerous internal injury because of the shock but Elio only had some normal potions to help her in that condition. Nothing else. "Did you¡­ do it?" She was hurt, but even in that condition, even with blood coming out of a corner of her mouth, she was asking if he succeeded or not. It was her typical serious behavior. Not caring about herself in situations where much more was on the line. She would not have anything to worry about if he had succeeded. "Yes. He took it." The guard captain had already take the things from him, which meant he she had succeeded with what she needed to do. "It''s alright then¡­" -Oooooooooong! [ "Foreigner insects." ] The Dark magician was done preparing the next spell that would most definitely kill them this time. This was the end for both of them. There was no card left up their sleeves. [ "Tsk." ] Even though the dark mage was looking at them with the disgusting intent to kill them, they just stayed there. She had no reason to move anymore since she had already used up all the cards she had, and since she was there, he could not just get up and avoid that attack by himself. He hid Az under his shirt once again, even though he knew it would be of no use, even though he knew it was just a dumb thing to do, but he still did it since he also knew they weren''t going to get hurt anymore. [ "Just die." ] -Swiiiish¡­! -Boooooooooom! A strong black condensed ball of wind came at them with a boom, and they were just there. He was hugging her, but he was still afraid so his eyes were closed. On the other hand, even though she was hugging him back, she was looking straight at the ball of wind coming at them. { "[{(Prakriti)}]¡­ that''s what they used to call nature in the primordial language." } A strong, very strong Mana voice resonated throughout the area around them out of the blue, and a smirk appeared on her face. "There it¡­ is¡­" { "Do you know why they called it as such, follower of evil?" } -Ooooooooooong! A green energy surrounded both of them, as well as the black ball of winds that came stright at them. [ "...?!" ] The demon was stunned by what had just happened. The kind of force that he had used in that attack was something meant to kill even someone far stronger than those children. It was meant to obliterate them¡­ yet, it just vanished? { "Do you know, oh miserable hater of nature¡­ what [{(Purush)}] meant in THEIR time?" } That green light was something he had already witnessed a few moments ago. The guard captain had used it as some kind of secret weapon of his, but in the end, it was just some petty tricks. It was nothing compared to the great power bestowed upon him by THEM. Yet¡­ now, that great power just disappeared? And that too, by the same strange green power that he had already defeated once? { "Do you know¡­ oh mortals." } The evil dark magician was confused, so it turned his head to the direction of the center of that strange echoing voice. { "Do you know what a [Truth] is?" } Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And at this moment¡­ for the first time he had been here, for the first time after killing all those players, natives, and things¡­ for the first time, there was an emotion other than joy or happiness in those completely white eyes. And this emotion¡­ [ "...how?" ] Alex knew very well how it was called ''primal fear''. Something an ''evil'' would always recognize instinctively. Chapter 55 - 55: Creation There are many stories of origin in the world of . However, players, or those who come from beyond this world alone, know how the world was actually created by many complex artificial intelligences by closely replicating the ''philosophical'' origins of the real world. They did not create the world based on scientific origin¨C following the [Big bang] principle and starting the world from an original starting point. The Creators of these AI models, the [Creators] of Twelve [Origins] of the world of did not stick to a certain ''Genesis'' story that the scientists have speculated over the decades and centuries and went beyond it, took inspirations from the lores, myths, epics, philosophies of ancient times, and instructed the Superior, highly complex AIs with ''learning'' capabilities to create a world that was as real as Reality, while at the same time, was as fantastical as the human heart''s desire for freedom. In the end, the models created the world based on some core philosophical principles that independently as well as collectively were necessary for the existence of this unique world¨C [Truths] as they are known today. The natives who were originated at the end of an unknown time period''s [Creation], [Destruction], and [Recreation], started their lives in a unique world, ''evolved'' similarly to how the human evolution had taken place, and after a long time, they reached the point where the players entered their world¨C where the otherworldly beings who would not die even after being killed entered their worlds. Unlike them, they did not age, did not get tired the same way they did, got stronger faster than they could, and after only a few months of their lives in this world, they got adapted into the societies that already existed there. They were adaptive beings that the natives could not understand, but as time passed and the [Open beta] ended, they got used to these ''Foreign'' visitors cursed by destiny, doomed for a more miserable life than the natives. With time, the world evolved as well and when the regular players started visiting this world, it was easier for the natives to adapt to these unique beings. There were some difficulties at the start, some conflicts that the players had to deal with by themselves, but¡­ they were outsiders in a different world. They needed to adapt, evolve, and do various things to also become a part of this world¨C and to assist them with it, to assist all natives in various ways, the [System] propagated by the [Origins] existed. The [Truths] that this world followed were paths for the players. Walking on these paths granted them {Skills}, (Powers), , and most importantly, a [Class]. Sear?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The [Origins] who maintained these [Truths] were close to an owner of these truths, the ones who maintained various worldly functions based on these [Truths]. [Nature] was one of these truths, [Individual] was another truth¨C factually, there were more truths in this world than there were [Origins]. Thus, the [Freedom] to walk any path one desires, the freedom to do anything one wants without being restricted to one [Truth] was achieved. And since the [Truths] existed, the world¨C under the ''maintenance'' of the supreme beings, or [Origins]- existed as well. They were creators, they were maintainers, and they were the destroyers. { "Answer me, oh follower of evil." } When a player reached a certain level, or achieved a certain feat, or performed some unique actions that caught the attention of the [Origin], they were given the chance to obtain powers directly from them. When a player willingly walks on a certain path, with time and right efforts, they would naturally reach a stage where they are able to access the [Truths] and gain powers from those universal laws. And, since this is a game¨C if one is lucky enough, they can kill dragons even if they are at (Level-0), Go down to hell and come back at their will even without the qualifications or any Authority, or¨C become a god themselves. The endlessness of possibilities was possible thanks to the [Truths]. But¡­ understanding what this actually meant layer by layer would be more fun instead of something like this. "The Guardian spirits of nature, beings who had received powers and immortality from [Nature] and reside in the world of spirits after their departure from the physical world¡­ there is only one kind of skill that allows one to borrow the power of those beings." No one knows why some individuals possess these skills, what the conditions to acquire these skills are, how one can grow it, or what one needs in order to use the full potential of these skills. Aside from the one possessing these skills, no one even knows how important certain items are to realize the complete potential of these skills. But, there are some people who do possess these skills. And, possessing these skills allows them to borrow powers of the Guardian spirits who reside in a different realm. [ "How¡­ how can something¡­" ] If the power of evil is something that is meant to destroy this nature, the powers of Guardian spirits is what preserves this nature, and protects it against the evils of this world. "The key to defeat the Mage was the guard captain." She had a pleased smirk on her face right now. The guard captain who looked just like a normal person, a tall and strong looking normal person akin to an experienced knight, had now turned into a tiger. Yes¡­ a green tiger. { "If you do not even know the [Truth] that has blessed you, oh follower of evil¡­" } A green spirit beast, a creature that was three meters tall and so big that it was covering half the ground where the dead bodies of their fallen comrades were Thrown. [ "No¡­ no!" ] The tiger was merely made of a green energy with the guard captain being inside of him, holding a floating Jade lotus in his hands. There was a Mana crystal on the forehead of the creature. And right under this forehead, the creature''s sharp eyes that seemed to be seeing right through the souls of all living things resided¨C a unique anger currently visible in them. -Ooooooooooooooong. The tiger was glaring at the dark magician. And the dark magician knew that when he tried manifesting the strongest magic he had used until now. "It is futile." { "...what even is the meaning of your existence." } "Everything is futile now." She had seen the world defining powers of the person in the unified rankings, a player¨C a kind soul who weeped for the departed. She was one of the strongest not because she had high stats, unique gears, or vast knowledge about this world¡­ but merely because she possessed that one skill and had mastered it like no one else. { "What does your vast powers even amount to?" } -Swish. The guard captain was using that same skill in true meaning now. There was no way a mere Dark magician of such a low level would ever be a match for it. Especially, not a dark magician¨C an opposer of nature. Chapter 56 - 56: End of a dark magician [ "No¡­ this cannot happen!" ] The spirit guardian appeared before the dark mage and looked down at him with enraged expression. The dark magician was trying to gather all the energy he could to cast any kind of magic, but everything was futile before the green energy that was oozing out of the tiger. There was fear in the eyes of the black magician. The eyes that had only been looking down at the creatures lower than him were now glaring at the being that had a look of not disgust but disappointment in his angry eyes. { "The Nature of [Ashuddha] is that of impurity. When it grants its powers to a being, it impures them." } -Ooooooooooooong! A green smoke appeared beneath the dark magician. { "The reason the impurity is against nature is not because the nature holds purity¨C [Shuddh] is a different [Truth] altogether." } The green energy that had appeared in the form of smoke covered the dark magician. It slowly covered his legs, his body, and soon, the green energy was covering the dark mage completely. { "It is because of the nature of [Ashuddha] that it tries to impure what surrounds everything." } The green energy slowly started getting darker, and the light it produced started getting brighter as well. "Wow¡­" Elio was stunned by the sight before him. He was not expecting to see a being like this, a being that made his heart calm down just by its presence. He was looking at the scene before him, he was looking at how the dark mage who had been the reason for the suffering of everyone in this place, the one who caused so much destruction, do many deaths, and so much bloodshed¨C the very being that was smoking at them until just a moment ago, was now the one suffering. "There is a lot you haven''t seen yet, Elio." Alex was fine now. The green energy that had protected them from the attack of the dark mage earlier had healed her as well. She was fine now, and she was looking at the scene before them with her three adorable companions. "Muuu¡­" sea??h th§× Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Yes. They are beautiful." "Miu." They were lost in the greatness of the scene before them, but she knew all of them were listening to her, and so she finished her sentence. "This is just a fraction of what true Powers of this world are capable of. We still have a lot to see here." The light from the green energy had become almost blinding. So, both of them had no choice but to close their eyes. -Ooooooooooong! { "If you do not even understand what power you are using¡­ you have no right to wield that power, oh follower of evil." } The light vanished soon, and along with the light, the evil dark mage had vanished as well. All that remained in the place where he stood was black ashes¨C which soon disappeared with winds as well. [Ding!] [The Dark magician has fallen!] The system notification that appeared before every individual throughout the Moongold town stunned them for a moment. However, after a moment passed, they grasped what the appearance of this new notification meant. [Regional Quest: Cleared!] It was over. After the loss of so many lives, after shading so much blood, after seeing deaths of so many natives and players, after a battle that lasted the entire night¡ª as the first sunlight of dawn graced them, the long battle came to a halt. The dark energy that was covering the town from all direction was also vanishing. "Did we din?" "Who killed the dark mage¡­?" "Better question is¡­ where even is the dark mage?" "Even better question would be¡­ why is the dark mage?" "A better one¡­" The players who were still engaged in fight with the dark minions watched as the minions of evil vanished- burned away with the new light of dawn. Their summoner had perished, so there was no medium through which they could exist in this world anymore. The remaining creatures- goblins under the power of darkness also fell down lifeless without the power that they had following all this time. This was their end, and¡­ along with them, this was an end to the sudden crisis that the moongold had faced. "It''s over." Alex sighed a breath of relief and dropped her head on his shoulder. "Yes¡­" And he dropped his head on hers. It was tiring. They just wanted to go back to their inn and have a good long sleep. He was not feeling well, and even though she was healed, she was not feeling so good either. Rest was important. They were also sleep deprived, so they had to seep. But before they do that¡­ { "It is very rare to see someone following a trial, even for beings like us." } The tiger that had finished the dark magician that they did not even hope to defeat with their current strength, walked in their direction. Their elegant walk was refined, unparalleled to the simple walk of the felines found in nature. { "It is even more rare to see an object such as that." } The tiger''s eyes were fixed on Alex as they spoke to them. { "Young lady¡­" } There was a unique curiocity in them, as well as a kind of care they did not have when they looked down at the Dark magician. { "Is it possible to know your Immortal name?" } The tiger had a look similar to that of respect in his eyes. With the light in the Mana crystal on its forehead getting dimmer, his astral body was fading away as well. But, the curiosity and respect was still present in his deep eyes. And seeing this reaction, Alex had a nostalgic smile on her face. "I cannot tell you my Immortal name, child of Kohaku." She spoke simply, but her words caused a storm in their respectful, curious eyes. "However, THEY should know . Ask her when you return." The way she was talking to this guardian spirit seemed quite unusual to Elio, as if a majestic being like this one was nothing unique to her. She was unfazed even in their great presence, she was looking directly in the eyes of a being that had just killed a dark mage without even lifting a finger¨C or paw in this case, or a nail of that paw. He knew she was a high level player before but, wasn''t she using an Alt right now? Or, as he had expected, did she just really somehow leveled down? He did not know what she meant by most of the things she was saying, but he could tell from the surprised look of the creature before him that whatever it was¡­ it was no small thing. Chapter 57 - 57: Leftovers of a battle { "I did not expect to meet someone who knows the great mother when I heard the desperate calling of this child." } There was a new surprise in the eyes of this being, as well as a fading smile on its face. { "Very well¡­ oh, enlightened one walking the turbulent path. I shall remember thy blessed title as I depart these mortal lands." } The giant tiger that did not even look at the dark magician properly, at the end of his time in this world, bowed down before a completely normal low level player, surprising the one beside her. "Tell her I will be back for my stuff please." Not even the disappearing tiger knew what it meant, but he smiled and kept his head to the ground, on his front legs, as it vanished into fine green particles at the crack of the dawn. -Oooooooong¡­ The body of the guard captain that was the core of the giant tiger''s body fell gently to the ground at the disappearance of the creature, and the Jade lotus that had been floating in his hands also vanished along with the creature. The guard captain was unconscious, and since they knew they would need four to six people to bring him back to the town, they just stayed there, in their positions. "So, how much do I not know about you? The past you from this game, to be more precise." He did not want to ask her how she lowered her level so much. The guardian spirit also spoke of trial or something so he had his doubts. But instead of asking about her present self, he asked her about her past. A past that he did not seem to be well familiar with despite being with her for all these years. "Well¡­ let''s say you don''t know a lot of it. Even I don''t know that much since I''ve been here for over a decade so, even if I tell you everything, it won''t be everything." Her statement was simple and easy to understand. "Though, if you want, I''ll tell you everything little by little as we travel together and see new things. How about that?" And the question was nothing difficult for him to answer. "I''d love that, yes. Knowing this side of you has turned out to be much more fun than I expected¡­ and I''d love to continue it." The unexpected quest was over now. They had cleared the quest. The guardian spirit defeated the boss monster and since it had manifested from the skill of the guard captain, most of the contribution would belong to him. But still, since contribution was calculated based on a lot of various things, she knew they would at least get into the top five contributors. "It''s settled then~." S§×ar?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Now that the quest was complete and she was utterly exhausted, she was happy. Not being able to kill the dark mage with her own hands was sad, but she did all that she could. And the results of it were fun. "Let''s wrap things up." Soon, the event of the library that she was here for would take place and since they had experienced such a quest already, she was planning to depart for their next destination as soon as she was done here. On the travel path that she had designed, there were (Twelve destinations). Starting with Moongold, they were going to end all the way somewhere to the other side of this world¨C a place that she would be visiting for the first time. She knew it was going to be a fun experience for both of them, so¡­ she signed happily now that the first big quest of their game life had come to a close. "Muuuu¡­" "Miu¡­" She wanted to finish things and go back to the town to meet the Mayor. Soldiers and the remaining guards would be here to pick up the guard captains and the remains of the fallen comrades, and clean up this blessed battlefield where they had fought with their meaningful lives on the line. They will be remembered for their sacrifices¡­ and the town folks will mourn for them. The players will go back to their daily lives, but for the natives and the players who had been nothing less than a native of this town will express a great sorrow for the lives of their friends, their partners, their family members¨C their fathers and their lovers. For the next few days, the atmosphere of the moongold will remain gloomy, she knew all of that. "We weren''t strong enough to save them, El." But still, seeing the sadness in the eyes of her partner as he watched the gruesome scene before him, as he watched the fallen bodies and the bodies that did not even have a ''body'' left anymore¡­ as he watched the life that had extinguished, the only emotion he could feel was self loathing. "This is not your fault, or mine, or the guard captain''s, or anyone else''s." Things could have been different but they were not. What had happened had already passed and there was nothing that they could do to change it. It has become the past already. "I know¡­" And he knew this bitter fact. "I know." There were tears at the ends of his eyes but they did not come out. He was burning from inside, thinking how he might have saved all of them if he had strength, if he could have done all that he did in a better way, if he had not stopped at the cave and gone back to check on the dark magic circle¡­ They made mistakes. And it cost them lives. "I know." Lives that were lost forever now. "Haaa¡­ you''re getting too invested in this game, El." She hugged him, kissed his cheeks, and got up from the ground. "And the reason for that is someone who used to have a great epic noble title of ." "Miu!" "Muuuu~!" The two little creatures liked the sound of it, but he was just mocking her. And for that, he will be punished later. "Get up now. Let''s clean up a little." The guards and the people from the town will be here soon since they knew the final battle was happening here. They were too deep inside the forest so no one must have noticed many things going on here, and since the dark minions were blocking this place prior to the death of the dark mage, the others must have had difficulty getting past them. "Haaaa¡­" The top elites were the only ones who crossed the defensive line of the dark minions, but those very elites and brave individuals were now¡­ gone. "May the departed find the guides, the lantern holders on the waters of afterlife. May their sins be judged lightly, for they fell on a battlefield, like the warriors they aspired to embody¡­" It was the prayer of this kingdom that was offered to the ones who pass away on a battlefield. Elio was hearing it for the first time. But, it resonated with him deeply¡­ Chapter 58 - 58: Peaceful sleep "I heard you two were fighting for us as well? Are you hurt anywhere?" They were back to their inn and since it was early morning, there weren''t many people around on the ground floor. There weren''t many guests in this inn in the first place, so the two of them and Miss Rin were chatting while they had a morning coffee as Misha cleaned up the place. They knew what had happened yesterday and they were inside all the time it was happening. Misha was still a teenager so she did not have any experiences of her town being attacked, but as someone who had lived a long, difficult life in many towns and cities, she knew how getting attacked by external forces felt. She was worried when the two of them came back. This was her first experience with something like this, so she thought the sister that had saved them from those thugs and the brother with that slime would have gotten hurt. But thankfully that was not the case. "Thankfully, we are fine. Though, it has been a long night and we are exhausted." "Oh, then do you want to take a bath? Should I prepare some warm water for you?" "Oh. That would be great." She made some coffee for the two of them and since their relationship with the inn owner and her daughter had improved so much, they could now use the kitchen however they wanted. They were already tired, so taking a bath and having a nap was going to be great. ''The Mayor will make the announcements in the evening.'' A while has passed since the battle and the cleanup process was finished as well, the contribution calculation should have been done as well¡­ but since the nature of the quest this time was unique, the contribution will only be revealed when the Mayor announces his own rewards and thanks. So until then, they wanted to sleep. "I want to¡­ yawnnnnn~. Just lay down and sleep." Sleep was an important part of the game, just like real life. One can overdose on caffeine and block the sleep for a while but there is no way to completely stop sleeping. One needed to sleep to keep functioning well in this game as well or else they would be debuffed. "Madam Rin, we shall take our leave now." "I will be there shortly." She could see the exhaustion in their eyes and in their movements. She could tell they must have run around quite a lot, used many magic items and spells and were exposed to the dark energy for a long time. She understood the severity of their situation but she was aware of their nature. Both of them were extremely unique individuals. And seeing how they were caring around a dangerous mana beast inside of a Mana slime as well, she could not help but be more interested in this young couple. "Yaaaaawn~." "You''re tired as well, hun?" "Nah. We can still have some fun in the bath if you want." "Crazy bastard." They weren''t going to have any fun today anymore. Perhaps at night, in reality, but not here. Here, she will sleep. And he will cry¡­ she knew that, and she wasn''t going to come between him and his tears. S§×arch* The ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He could cry however much he wanted while cuddling me, but she was going to sleep. After using that Crimson sword on that dark magic circle, she had no stamina left in her. If he knew how she was surviving on negative stamina right now, he would be shocked and drag her to some clinic for a detailed checkup. "Good night then¡­" She just laid down on the bed as soon as they were in their room. And, just a moment later¡­ she had fallen asleep. "Miu?" "Muuuu?" Both Az and Miu were confused why she suddenly fell asleep like that, but Elio knew just how exhausted she had been. He had seen her falling asleep out of the blue like this in the real world before, but this was his first time seeing it in the game. "Good night, Miss Twinkle." But he was familiar with it, so it did not come as a big surprise to him. He just laid off beside her on their bed¡­ and strangely, he also fell asleep. -Knock! Knock! "Excuse me." Miss Rin came without receiving permission, hoping to see some steamy young stuff¡­ but she only found two exhausted people peacefully sleeping together. It was a better view than what she had expected, but it was pure. So with a warm smile on her face, she just left the two young ones alone and left their room, closing it as gently as she had opened it, without making any sound At All. "Muuu?" "Miu." The little slime and gecko were confused what to do now, and they knew letting the gecko out would be dangerous, so Az asked miu to get inside of him, and the two jumped out of the room. Since Alex and Elio were sleeping, they did not have anything to do here. And since they didn''t need to rest as much as them, they were free to do something else. -Bing. Bing. Bing. Az had gained some levels after all their trouble today, and so it could live on its own around the safe area. And it knew some magic as well so they weren''t going to get in too much trouble if they just stayed inside of the inn. "Hmmm? What are you doing here?" But before they could even go around the inn, they were caught coming out of their room by Madam Rin who was still around the corridor. "Don''t you want to sleep or something? Or are you two bored just sitting in your room without your friends?" Miss Rin was pretty interested in the slime already but now that there was a Mana beast inside of this slime as well, she was even more interested in these creatures. "Muuuu!" "Miu! Miu!" "Hmmm?" She knew the slime was a pretty intelligent one. But the fact that even the Mana beast inside of it was smart enough to respond to her question was a fascinating instance for her. "Huhu. aren''t you two interesting?" She came closer to them and picked the slime gently. "Want to come help me with some work?" "Muuu?" "Miu?" They were adorable. Her daughter liked them already, but she was afraid to get close to them since they were creatures and she was still unfamiliar with such beings. There was no need for her to be afraid of something that was also a creature of Nature, so she wanted them to get closer. And since they had this chance now, she thought it would be the best time for them to work on this little thing. Chapter 59 - 59: A tough morning "Yawnnnn~. Woh." "Had a good sleep?" This time, she was the one greeting him after their peaceful sleep. Just like it should be. "Nope. It was terrible." He was smirking as he looked at her pretty face the first thing in the morning¡­ in the evening actually. The morning and afternoon had passed already. "Oh? Was it now~?" Just like him, she was smirking as well. Both of them knew what the other one was thinking, and their eyes looking into each other''s eyes spoke more than either of them had said. "So, should we?" He asked first, even though he could tell she wanted to be the one to say it. "Well¡­ I wish we could." But contrary to what he thought, she shook her head at his pretty invitation. "It''s time. We have to go down to the central plaza. The Mayor''s speech, remember?" "Ah¡­" Last night was terrible. He did not know how or when he fell asleep but now that he was awake and his head was clear once again, he remembered all that had happened yesterday. All the blood shed. All the goar, blood, insides, deaths, those gruesome scenes¡­ he remembered all of it out of the blue. "...!" And he instantly became nauseous as soon as that happened. -Thum! Thum! Thum! He ran straight to the bathroom and threw up involuntarily. They did not have dinner yesterday and still, he could not help but throw up after all the things that he had seen yesterday. "There there. Take it all out. Slowly. There''s no need to rush." "Ahem! Ahem!" She was right beside him this time¨C she thought she would not be there when he would cry over all that had happened yesterday but he unexpectedly fell asleep with her. Perhaps because of exhaustion or all the spells that he had cast. She didn''t know the reason, but he also fell asleep alongside her. And now that he was awake, and all the memories, emotions, and ''images'' were rushing back to him, this was a natural reaction for someone that saw the light of the world, instead of the shadows present everywhere. "Haaa¡­ haaa¡­" He did not get to cry his heart out, so his mind compasented for all that mental burden through this small, simple, but effective process. Few people knew it, but throwing up was a unique response that the human body had developed over many evolutionary phases that protected not only one''s body but mind as well. But then again, those were recent studies. It was common for people to not know about them. "You alright now?" She was familiar with those kinds of sights. This game was not for children, or for the older people who did not want to see those kinds of scenes. Not all humans could handle things like that¡­ surely not a normal person like him who had lived a normal life in the bright areas of a city. "Yes¡­" But she knew his adaptability was unreal. He had survived many brutal environments in his younger days and he had handled high pressure in his recent years. She knew very well how he was before she met him. And she knew how much he had learned in these short twenty four years of his life. "Good. Let''s clean up and make you something good and warm." He wasn''t a kid so the fact that she got to treat him like one was a fun thing for her. She liked this rare occasion. And she wanted to cherish it even more¡­ but when they got down after an hour, the scene before them surprised them a little. "Miu? Az? What are you two doing down here?" The fact that they actually forgot about their two cute friends was shameful, but they knew they wouldn''t have gone far away from there. They were smart so they should at least not have gone out in the broad daylight. They knew that, so they expected them to find somewhere around here¡­ "Miu!" "Muuuuu!" But, well, they at least did not expect them to be with Misha¡­ or on top of a passed out Misha to be more precise. -Bling. Bling. Bling. The slime jumped towards them happily and the lizard that was sitting on top of its friend with only its legs inside the mucus surface smiled widely at its friends. "Miu~!" "You were playing with her¡­?" It most certainly did not look like they were playing since she seemed to be unconscious right now-. "Hmm? Where did you two go?" S~ea??h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Hun?" "...?" Or not. She was fine and seemed to simply be acting unconscious. "Oh! Sister! Brother Elio!" The young girl in her humble outfit ran up to them, picked up the little slime and carelessly hugged it. She was hugging the gecko alongside it, but though shocking, it did not seem like she was affected by the dense Mana of the gecko. "Sister! Brother Elio~. We were playing bang-bang! And even though I was not going easy on them, they defeated me twice!" "Muuuuu~!" "Miu~!" The three of them seemed to be awfully close now even though it had only been a few hours since they last saw her. "Muuuu~!" "Mia!" And from how excited the two little creatures seemed, they could tell the three of them had fun playing together. "Seems like you three had fun, hun." "No! They always win! It''s not fair!" She was usually quiet, but now that she was having fun with these little ones, she had become more chatty. "Hmm? What''s going on?" And since she was loud as well, her mom- who had been working inside the kitchen- came out with her hands still covered in flour. "Misha?" "Mom! They won again!" From how she was not surprised by her daughter''s reaction to the creatures and from how she seemed to be familiar with what was going on, it seemed like she knew how the three of them had gotten closer. But the two of their friends did not know that. So she informed them first. "Oh, sorry about this¡­ the two of those little ones seemed to be going out for a walk, so I brought them down to play with them. The inn will remain closed for today so there''s not many guests around either, so I thought playing with them would be fun." "Oh?" Elio understood the situation from this much. And he certainly didn''t mind it. "I see. It''s fine. You can play with them when we aren''t around¡­ I''d appreciate it if you can look after them in our absence, actually." He was happy actually. The two looked happy, and that was all that mattered to him. "Miss Rin? Is the kitchen occupied?" "Hmm? You want to make something, dear?" Alex was¡­ confused right now. There were a few things going around in her head, but for now, she decided it was better to first make something for Elio so that he could at least feel a little better. "Yes, so, you see¡­ Elio wasn''t feeling well after what happened yesterday." She didn''t expect her to understand much of what she was saying, but from the sudden sad look she had, it seemed madam Rin understood what she meant. "Oh, I see. Come in, let me help you with it. Oh, and, Misha." Misha was hugging Miss Rin ever since she came out even though her hands were covered in flour. She knew it was inappropriate, but she did not mind it. "It''s fine if you lose. Just try harder next time, alright dear?" She gave her a warm smile and though she wanted to pat her head, her hands were dirty. "That''s right. So, even if you lost twice, try a third time. And fourth. And then as many times as you can." Try as many times as you can until you absolutely can not¡­ she remembered the words of one of her acquaintances from her past. And thought how strange of a man he was¡­ "So." Misha somewhat understood what they meant, and so, she asked Elio if she could play with Az and Miu for a little longer. And since Alex was making something for him, it was going to take some time. "Sure. Go have fun." He didn''t mind them playing around. They were young children anyway. They deserved to have fun¡­ Chapter 60 - 60: Sorrow and loss "Are we late? Have they started?" "The boring part should have been over by now." "Hun? Does that mean we are late!?" He didn''t like being late. He didn''t like being right on time for something either since he believed on time was also late, so he preferred being early for everything. Even for their first date, she remembered how he had reached the venue an hour before their decided time¡­ if she didn''t practically live in that cafe, she would not even have known that he was so early for their meeting¡­ "Relax dude. The mayor would obviously talk about the great loss of the town, the deaths of the people, and sad stuff like that. The contribution rewards are something that''s generally left for the end of such sad events." She knew how these things proceed from her experience. There was a certain kind of sad speech that the mayor would give at the start of the speech, and it would mostly be dedicated to the people of the town. The main reason many of the establishments of the town were closed today was because of the mayor''s speech that had been going on for a while now. Most of the town''s folks were gathered in the plaza and places around them. The voice of the mayor was being broadcasted with the help of some magic devices resembling a microphone, and people were listening to him with sorrowful, sad, and a little angry eyes. There was a unique vibe to this atmosphere. She liked it quite a lot when the people were collectively sad like this¡ª it was a guilty pleasure, but she kept it to herself, only revealing her unique kinks to her partner. "It still means we are late, Alex¡­ haaa¡­" He did not mind that she felt happy to see this kind of atmosphere. He already understood how she liked the uniqueness of the atmosphere and not exactly the sadness that the people felt. ''She was a logical realist so, many emotions were a fascinating thing for her. Collective sadness of a mass that might or might not even be connected to the dead people in question was just¡­ fascinating to her. That was the reason she liked it. Not because she liked seeing the poor people cry like some sadist. "Should we go forward? There are too many people back here." "Nah, this is fine. Come, let''s sit there." The central plaza where players get summoned after either dying or when they are traveling through scrolls and items has now become the central stage for the mayor. The central fountain that reflects the light of the golden moon in a way that the water seems to be made of gold¡ª was right beside the stage that had been built for the mayor''s speech. He was standing on a podium, along with his wife and pretty daughter that was around the same age as Elio. The people in the surrounding had circled around this stage, and since there were no sitting arrangements, everyone was standing. "But-." "Don''t worry about things and just sit." Most of the people here were standing, even most of the players were standing along with them. They weren''t paying attention to what the Mayor was saying but at the very least, they were listening to him. And yet she was suggesting that they sit down in the chairs of an outdoor cafe? Elio didn''t find it appealing. "Haaa¡­" But at the end, he got dragged there and had no choice but to sit down. They could hear the voice of the mayor from this distance as well so there was no need to go in such a crowded place. { "We all have lost someone, someone dear to us, someone we cherish and someone we have looked up to." } Even if they did not have anyone among the people that they knew, as a member of this town, they must know some of the guards and of course, the knights and mages who had fallen. Some of them were people that one could normally see when they visited the Knight''s hall or the Mages'' tower. They were top of their craft and so, they were renowned figures in this town. And now, they are all gone. { "Losing someone is painful, agonizing even unto death. In my hometown, they use the word (Tokotsubo)¡­ a strong surge of abnormal waves of emotion¡­ that causes the heart to deflate, and contort until¡­" } He was the mayor. One that cared about the lives of his people and the ones that he had the duty to look after. { "Until it resembles a dried well." } He was emotional as he faced his people. People who shared his sorrow, people who had lost their loved ones, people who were not just subjects to him. { "An empty well¡­ so hollow and cold." } Among the crowd, there were families of the ones who had departed. Ones who lost nearly everything they had in this world, in this town. And all of them were his people. He was the same as a forgotten pot at the bottom of the fathomless sea, right now. { "I''m sorry for your loss, everyone." } He was the saddest, he was the angriest for not being capable enough to save the lost lives. { "We have suffered a lot, and that fact will not change." } He did not offer his people, the ones who were still with them, some false words of comfort. He did not even try that. Instead, he stated the reality of their situation. And expressed his own genuine sorrow with tears flowing down his eyes, while standing before the people who looked up to him. "That right there, Elio, is a leader." Alex liked this person for a reason. sea??h th§× Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. There weren''t many who liked him when it came to the political world of this world. Those in authority surely possessed power and influence unimaginable to the non-players or new players. "A leader¡­" Their ability to influence and grant Quests alone made them a vital part to this world. For high level players as well, these individuals were the same as those Rankers and achievement makers who are known throughout the original world. { "Thus, with heavy hearts and sorrow burning our souls, let us appreciate the efforts of the individuals without whom, we might all have suffered even greater losses at the hands of the evil." } [Ding.] Not everyone participated in this quest to save lives. Many of them just wanted the rewards from the quests. And now that it was time to reveal the Contribution tables and see who contributed the most to this quest, the players were finally paying attention for real. Chapter 61 - 61: Contribution calculations "Finally. The contribution." "Haaa¡­" "Why did we even have to wait for something like that for so long. "Anyway, it is finally here." The players had to wait for just the list of their contribution this time around because of the nature of the quest. Since it was a quest issued by the town mayor, the one who held the highest authority within this town, he also had the right to reveal the contribution to the rest of the people. It wasn''t like the contribution calculations had taken days, something of this small scale did not even take a few hours for the advanced system even with all the variables and unique elements it counted. One of the unique features of this world was the calculation powers of the system that had unique ways to perceive things. Though one could not call it omniscient or omnipotent, it was something that was established in order to help the natives and the players. And there were rarely any complaints about the system''s methods or function. It did not take long for the contribution calculations to happen, however, since the nature of this quest was unique, the players had to wait until the Mayor revealed the list. But now that they could see it, many of them were surprised, some were having a hard time accepting it, and those who weren''t aiming for the top rewards but merely good rewards were happy to see their rankings in the list. ============ 1] #### (Pt: 15,999) 2] Axar 3] Aloha (Pt: 9876) 4] Elio (Pt: 9771) 5] Roland Lan Hunter 6] Ahitem (Pt: 7716) 7] Kaveh (Pt: 7121) 8] Lumine (Pt: 6699) 9] Rin (Pt: 6000) ¡­ ============ The name of the one who had obtained the highest contribution that was even beyond the contribution of the person who dealt with the dark magician and the Town''s mayor was concealed by the system. However, those who had contributed the most to this whole quest knew exactly who this person might be. They had received orders from her directly, and even the guard captain had worked as her suggestions. The guard captain and the mayor had given up their own contributions from what they could see in the final list, so the players could tell how someone who had not even been seen throughout the actual fight might have been on top in the contribution list. And though they did not know who the one in the fourth position was, they knew well how the only person who could receive that high of a contribution and still be unknown would be the newbie with the slime who they had only known briefly. It was surprising to them just what they might have done to get the contribution points of not just the guard captain that they were close with but also the mayor who wasn''t exactly someone who would so openly favor someone. This was strange for the players, but to the people in question, this was no big deal. "You got first place, congrats!" S~ea??h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Don''t make fun of me, bastard." Elio had a smirk on his face as he scrolled through the list. The fact that she got first place was surely something he was proud of, but the fact that she got that place after the two of them gave up their contribution to the two of them did not go well with her. They did it without asking or telling them so they could not do anything about it, but if they had informed them, she would never accept something that wasn''t hers¡­ or something that she had not earned herself. ''She''s the kind that never leaves even a copper coin if it belongs to her. But if something doesn''t belong to her rightfully, she avoids having it¨C calling it a negative gesture.'' She doesn''t like having what isn''t hers and she doesn''t like giving away what belongs to her. "Hehe, everyone seems envious of you." "Hump." She was an orphan. She did not have any parents and she never got adopted from the orphanage that she grew up in. She was smart, but she had never received any official education. She did not have any degrees like him, and she had never gone to any school either. Until she had become an adult and left the orphanage on her own, she had mostly taken care of herself. Most that she had learned was from books or from the vast internet that was available to everyone in these two worlds, even to the most common people. She hardly had any friends, and if it wasn''t for a fateful encounter, the two of them might not have even met. "You know what? I should go up to some high building and throw away the coins I earn from this. Make it rain money." "Instead of doing that, shower me with your money, ma''am. I will still be poor even with the money I receive from this quest." She was serious when she said she would throw away the money that she receives from her main quest rewards. She genuinely did not like how the two of them just gave her their own contribution without even asking her¨C they divided the contribution between many people but she still got something that she had not done anything for. She had done her best in the quest and she would not have had any less contribution than Miss Aloha, the representative of all the players in this town, as well as the one who had been here for the longest. But thanks to the two of their contributions, she was now on top of the list. And she did not like that. "Oh, right. You''re broke¡­ right! How about we go shopping after we get the money~?" All that she had right now was something that she earned on her own. No one had ever given her more than what she had worked for in her younger days, so having only what she had earned had become part of her nature. She avoided accepting help as well, that was another main reason she had been a Solo player for all these years. But just like how couldn''t do anything about what had already happened, occasionally, she did not mind accepting these unwanted things¨C that unwanted help. "Sure. I''d like that more than you throwing away the money that I helped you earn." He was smirking at her once again, and she absolutely did not like this. "What did you say you bastard?! I was the one who did the actual fighting!" She was angry at him, so she was shouting. Thankfully, there was nothing to throw at the table or his head might have been bruised by now. "Hump. Even Az and Miu did more than you!" "Miu~!" "Muuuu~." She did this often. But after listening to this loud and not so melodious voice of hers for so long, he had become used to it. Chapter 62 - 62: Gratitude of the mayor [As a reward for achieving the highest contribution in the regional quest, you will be rewarded.] [Ding!] [Achievement: [Defenders of town (Common)] [Money pouch (Highest contributor): Copper- 200. Silver- 100. Gold: 1.] [Achievement: [Judge of evil (Rare) will be awarded for contributing to the Dark magician raid.] [As additional rewards for having the most notable performance in the quest, you will receive a small blessing of nature.] A green light sprung up from beneath her feet and unique white stars fell on her from above. "Wow¡­" It was an effect that the players around her were well familiar with since this was something very famous, so everyone around her including Elio gasped with surprise. [Strength+3.] [Agility+3.] [Endurance+3.] "This is something I deserved already." Not all of them seeing this special effect knew it, but she was rewarded these stats for her own achievements. The blessing of nature was something that players earned naturally for their achievements randomly. Though players seeing this attributed it to her highest contribution, she had in fact earned it with her performance in the quest. She did not mind the stats, she was obviously happy to receive nine stat points in her physical stats. "Alright, then. Let''s go." Elio received two more achievements in addition to the two that she had received¨C one for perfectly casting the magic from the golden book she showed him, [Ancient magic caster (Common).] and [Master of a mutant (Common).] for taming Miu. He didn''t understand why he obtained the achievement after the quest had ended, but she knew Miu played a vital role in this quest somehow. Just that she did not yet have enough information to tell him everything that she suspected. "Yes¡­" The rewards of the system were generous. So now, they had come to meet the Mayor. The money both of them obtained from this one quest alone was more than enough to go around and buy some decent stuff in the town. The Trading site wasn''t always the best place to buy low level simple things since all the players knew how the real good and unique things could only be purchased from the shops and merchants. "The mayor has been waiting for you two. Please, this way." The Otherworld market was a trading section for the players. And as all players knew, no one sane enough would put any good item in there unless it was something useless to them, or they were dumb enough to misclick what they wanted to put up there. "Welcome. Please take a seat." They had to go shopping now that the sad event was concluded. But before that, they were visiting the Mayor in his office in the town hall. "Hello, mister Mayor-." "Call me Hunter. It is fine." Sear?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Both of them now had the maximum familiarity with the mayor as well as the guard captain. Their relationship status had changed from [Acquaintances] to [Benefactor] as well. Both the characters now looked up to the two of them since without them, this town might not have been around anymore. And for saving their home, the Mayor wanted to thank both of them personally. Finishing the work he was doing, the mayor placed his pen down and walked to the side, and poured some water for his guests himself. "Please don''t hesitate to ask for anything you want." There were already some refreshments prepared on the table before the two of them, and he still offered both of them water himself¡­ He was the mayor, so even the servants in the room were surprised how he was doing those simple things himself when they all were present. The air of dignity and authority were still around her, his eyes still had the same light as it did before, and he was still wearing his professional clothing. The only thing surprising here was how he was behaving, and how there was still no difference to the air around him. "Thanks, Lord Hunter." "Hahaha. I am no lord, young lady. I''m merely a servant of someone who entrusted this town to me." He held the title of the Mayor of this town but this town was not a democracy or a republic. It was a place owned by the Viscounty that owned the a great part of southwestern lands of the Kingdom of Viv. The viscount was a noble lord who chose certain individuals and gave them positions of the town operators for set time periods, and though he had been the mayor of Moongold for the last five years, his turn as the Mayor was coming to a close. And after he isn''t the mayor anymore, he would be just a regular citizen of this town like the rest of the common people. "I am no lord, but merely a servant. However, even as a servant, I thank both of you for all you have done for us." Mayor bowed down to them even before he had taken his seat, surprising both of them who had been drinking the water he handed them. "I know it would not be an exaggeration to say you two saved the town yourself. However, it is a fact that everyone contributed to the safety of this town." He sat down and gave them both a moment to handle themselves. The water was still in their mouths so he could tell they were still surprised. They might not have expected this kind of reaction from him, but he was being genuine, and that much the two of them could tell from the eyes he had alone. "I don''t have much left, but please tell me if I can do anything for you. I will do my best to see if it is possible." The rewards that they received from the system was just a portion of the total rewards that they were going to receive from this quest. Their contribution was much more complex from what one might think, aside from the system rewards, they were going to get a gift from the guard captain, and a direct favor from the Mayor. "If that''s the case¡­" Both of them had something that they had in mind and, now that they had the chance, they did not hesitate to tell the mayor their wishes. Chapter 63 - 63: A guard "Good thing you''re here early." After their meeting with the Mayor, the two of them first paid a visit to the guards'' office since it was around where they were going to go shopping. They needed to see the guard captain anyway, so it wasn''t a bad idea to get the gift that he was going to give them either. "Hello there, guard captain~." Elio had gotten closer to the guard captain. "Miu~!" "Muuuu!" And his two little friends were the same. "I see you are in high spirits¡­ alas, I am drowning in work." After what happened with the town, there were a lot of deaths that they needed to record so that they could help the families of those who had lost their family members in the battle against the evil dark mage. They needed to clean up many places as well, and thanks to the battle that they had just had, the town had become a little vulnerable with the guard forces facing the most losses. Underground organizations who don''t operate in the broad daylight were now running all around the town, so it was getting difficult for the guards to take care of them. Various cases of theft, robbery, assault and such were being reported from all around the town so there was a lot of work that the guard captain had to do. He was busy already, so with the lessened workforce and with the hectic, gloomy atmosphere around the town, there was a lot that he needed to look after. "Thankfully, I have enough time to pass these two important objects to you two who should be able to handle them much better than the others here." The guard captain had already thanked them for saving his life, for giving him those precious things through which he was able to summon the spirit guardian in their complete form, and for doing all that they did. The thanking part between them was over already, so he did not waste long and just handed an old box as well as a small attractive dagger-like knife to the two of them. "You already seem to have a bunch of good things that I won''t ever be able to provide, but these things should help you in times of need." He handed the dagger to Elio and the box to El as he continued with his work. His desk was filled with a bunch of papers that he needed to look after, the schedule beside his desk had some unmarked boxes so he also needed to go around and do a lot more things later. They could tell how busy he was, so they did not disturb him too much. "Thanks for the presents. We will cherish them." "Thanks, Axar." Since the two of them had gotten closer as well, he did not mind them using his given name. But Elio still addressed him respectfully. She liked being free with their talking and addressing so, she did not stick around with the honorifics much anyway. She liked the free talking style so she mostly addressed people casually. "And this is for you." Sear?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Now that they had received the gifts from him, and along with the gifts a pouch of money that contained all the money that he could spare at the moment, Alex placed an important looking parchment right on top of his current papers. "What¡­?" "We players are not some outsiders. Use us, dude. You don''t have to suffer by yourself with all this work." The paper that she had placed before him was a direct order from the Mayor to utilize the foreigner forces in the reconstruction of the town and to get direct help from them. "...?" When an incident like this happens, they don''t usually ask help from the players since they know they will have to pay them. And the help of the players was most of the time costly so, they found it better to just do the work by themselves or with the free or cheaper help from the volunteers and natives. Nothing this big had happened to this town before so even the guard captain or the mayor knew how to deal with this situation, however, Alex used her chance to ask for anything from the mayor to do the mayor and this town a favor. She showed the mayor data on how smaller towns that had faced the dark magicians or calamitic events like this recovered with the help of the players. She showed them what kind of methods and techniques the natives of those places used and suggested what they could do to boost the reconstruction of the Moongold. The plan that she made with the Mayor in the short conversation that the had was more than enough for the smart and capable mayor to draw out the basic starting plan for what they would do¡­ and that plan was now before the guard captain''s eyes. "You came up with this, didn''t you?" He looked at her, before looking at Elio and the two creatures in his hands. "I didn''t. Well, I wasn''t the only one. We did it together." Smiling, Elio shrugged and shook his head lightly. He did like how the people of this bright town were so gloomy all of a sudden. The glamor and the energy that he had seen just a few days ago when he came here were all gone and instead, an eerie silence had taken root here. He did not like it. This bright town had won against the invasion of a very powerful being and instead of celebrating, they were being all gloomy. He did not like it, that''s why he had asked the mayor to organize a festival. Something that they still needed some time to finalize¡­ "Hahaha¡­" The guard captain also shook his head while laughing with a new energy. "Very well then~!" He was happy. After reading only one page of the whole long thing, he knew just how effective this plan would be. They would be targeting the players and instead of paying them with money, they will pay them in tokens that they could later exchange for various unique things. Just by putting a few good things on display, they can create a competitive atmosphere and everyone will fight to collect more tokens faster than the others. And to do so, they will have to help out with various works. "I thank you once again for all your help, you two." The guard captain smiled at them cheerfully for a moment before continuing with his work with a new fire in his eyes. He had never thought of something like this before¡­ but now that he knew how he could take off some burden from his shoulders, he continued with his work with a new enthusiasm, excited to implement this new system in their town and see the unique results. Chapter 64 - 64: Fried chicken "Yawnnnn~. Now that we are finally done, how about we go get some food first?" she suggested with a tired look on her face and though lost in the scenery around him, he nodded at her suggestion. "Sure. But are there any good places that will have something as good as your cooking?" He wasn''t teasing her this time, he was merely being genuine with his words. He loved her cooking, so much so that he hardly ever ate anything other than the things she made. It had been like that for a few years now, and yes they surely ate out, ordered in, and lived off of packaged food sometimes, both of them liked cooking and helping one another make special things for one another. "What do you take this town for, dummy. This is a different world. Of course there are things much better than the things that I make." She was confident about that, actually. In the time he wasn''t here, she had explored the town and looked around at the things that were famous and tried things that people all over the community recommended. She knew some of the places here at least provided some top class things that would be quite attractive to the new players of the town. There were also some must visit places around the town so, she wanted to visit them all with him. "Let me show you a good fried chicken place." she started dragging him before he even reacted to her suggestion. "They have fried chicken here?" "They even have italian, hehe. Don''t underestimate the cultural diversity of these starter towns." As someone who had gone all around this world and tried all kinds of things, she knew very well how there were things that were unfathomable to even individuals like Them when it came to food. There were things in this world that one could never even hope to reproduce in the real world. She had tried it herself but she could never do it. There was no way to do it actually since the kind of ingredients one can find in this place, the kind of techniques and cooking methods that one can use, as well as the kind of experiences one can have in thai virtual world was just too different from reality. It was close to reality and at the same time, it was not real¡­ No.15 in unified rankings was a chef. A chef that had no offensive skills and yet was at some of the highest positions any player of this world could possibly want to reach. "The fried chicken and the alcohol they serve here is just too amazing. You''ll like this place." She dragged him all the way to the high class district''s biggest restaurant, a six story building that one could see even from across two streets. It was a grand hotel, a place that also provided various other services on top of their great food. But, the chef here was a high class individual, someone who was one of the highest level people of this town, and someone who had learned from his long years of travels. They were famous among the players as well as the rich natives of this town. Many of the famous players of the town and those in big guilds frequented here often. They all recommended the taste of the fried food here, and since she had tried it herself, she knew this darling of hers would like it as well. "Hmmm? Aren''t you¡­" However, right when they were about to enter the place, a voice from behind stopped them in their tracks. "Right. I was right." S§×ar?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. It was a warm voice. One that contained decades of real world experience, one that was different from many voices that they had heard while walking around the streets earlier. They had to turn around and see the source of this voice. "Miss¡­ Aloha?" And when they did turn around, even Elio recognised this lady at a glance. "Oh, it''s an honor to be recognised by the savior of our town." A tall elder woman who seemed to be in her late fifties from the faint wrinkles on her face, but her still strong, mature physique and the way she was dressed made her seem like one of those old rich ladies who were just enjoying their days after retirement. "Oh no no, miss. The honor is all ours." Even Alex was surprised to see this individual and greeted her with a bow. She respected those she looked up to, and in this town, this person was one of the few that she could not help but respect with all her heart. "Huhuhu, what honor could an old lady like me bring to you who saved this home like town of mine." Wearing a lavish and finely crafted purple dress that was covered in rich embroidery, white gloves and comfortable yet attractive looking shoes¨C as well as a dull blue hat that strangely went well with her outfit, she was carrying a small expensive looking purse around. She wasn''t wearing any heels, but she was still as tall as both of them who were over six feet tall. Her dark brown hair still contained a glow that many ladies her age might start losing, and her skin devoid of any kind of makeup was as full of life as Alex''s. Her deep amber eyes were full of life for someone who actually was old, and the smile that she had as she looked at the two of them was not that of interest or surprise, but simply that of a deep gratitude. "Oh, looks like you two were going in. Would it be fine for me to join you two? I wanted to have a little chat, you see." "Oh! Yes. Please!" "We don''t mind, not at all!" Elio and Alex both did not expect she would directly ask to join them like that, but they would not deny the very representative of the players who also had been in this town for the longest. If anything, people had to wait for weeks to get a simple appointment with her. She was famous not just in this town, but throughout the entire northwest for her special skills. Perhaps in the entire viscounty, she was one of the most famous hair stylists that even the mayor and viscount who governed this entire land had to take appointments to meet. And if they were getting a chance to have food with her directly, both of them would be just dumb to reject this great opportunity. Chapter 65 - 65: Miss Aloha The inside of the lavish hotel exuded elegance and charm. The grand lobby had a high ceiling with sparkling magical chandeliers adorned with magical candles and glowing stones The polished marble floor with gold patterns along with red flowing finishing that perfectly settled with one another and gave a close, flowing feel to the entire floor. Cozy seating areas with plush sofas and dark wood tables holding fresh flowers filled the reception space, many guests were waiting for their turns, many of them being players. The walls had tapestries showing six unique mythical creatures, all representing an ancient tale that was famous throughout not just this town or part of the viscounty but throughout the entire empire. Large arched windows gave views of the live scenery of the town, the calmness inside the place giving a cozy yet rich vibe. A grand staircase with carved railings was present to the left of the main reception at the end of the hallway, red carpets on the stairs leading to the upper floors. All six of the floors were connected with the same staircase, so the space it provided for the rest of the places was quite vast. The polished reception desk made of red wood had friendly staff in the center who welcomed guests with warm smiles. The dining area a story above that was faintly visible from the ground had elegantly set tables and the delicious aroma of food filled the air. "Well, this place has some unique ambiance, I''d say that much." Elio was impressed. Even with his strictly high standards, this place was something he actually liked quite a bit. "You should make one like this in reality, hehe." He mainly owned cafes and small restaurants that weren''t as luxurious as this one, but it wasn''t a bad idea to try and build something like this. "It''s not impossible¡­" He actually considered this idea. He could try¡­ just that he will have to splash over half of his savings for that. "Huhu, looks like you like this place." Miss Aloha walked in front of them and directly reached the reception. The staff did not even ask her what she wanted or if she had a reservation and, one of the staff members directly came out of the reception area to greet her. "Please prepare two more tables for my guests." "Yes, ma''lady." The staff member respectfully guided all three of them to the third floor, a place that was relatively emptier than the rest of the floors below. And a place was already prepared for them there, in a certain empty corner with no disturbance around. "Being a VIP sure has its perks, hun?" "Just being a VIP can''t give this kind of treatment, dummy. She must be very close to the owner of this place." "Looks like the young miss actually is more experienced than her level." They were only whispering to one another and yet she heard both of them clearly. "That''s right though. The young boy that owns this place used to call me grandma while telling me how he was kicked out of another job. And he still does whenever he visits." [Candlelight] The merchant union that owned this place was one of the largest and wealthiest merchant unions in the kingdom. Not many knew it, but the master of this union was a young person, an ambitious young person. "That''s¡­ amazing." Alex had always been a wanderer. She did not stay in one place for long. She mostly fought and polished her skills. There weren''t many natives that she had any connection with and since she had not stayed in the same place for longer than the time required to finish all the quests that she could find, or to clear all the dungeons and hunting grounds in the area, she had not had a life like this person. "She respects you, miss Aloha. It is rare." "Oh, is that so?" They sat down in their seats, and just like the gentleman he was, Elio thanked Alex when she pulled out the chair for her princess. "Aren''t you two a unique couple?" She found it interesting how it was natural for them to make fun of each other while at the same time being respectful to one another. She could tell they loved one another, her age had at least taught her how to perceive love and affection as well as how to distinguish between lust and attachment. She did not expect it, but meeting them showed her a rare sight. "Huhuhu." Unlike Alex who had experienced the vastness of this world, Miss Aloha had been here for most of her life. She did not travel much, she loved the house she had in this town, and she loved everything that they had in this town. She was a simple person who was already tired of all the work of real life. She did not like the hustle and bustle of the real world, that''s why she had started playing this game which offered a unique kind of freedom. "Order whatever you want. Oh, if you were going to order fried chicken with the sparkling ale, I suggest you try their secret sauces along with them." Alex wanted to experience the vastness of this world so she traveled. But Miss Aloha found freedom in staying in one place, finding a home, and doing what she wanted. She respected this elder person exactly because was able to do what she loved for so long while staying in one place. "They have secret sauce? I didn''t know that¡­" "Huhu, then you will like it even more." She could never do it. Being tied to one place¨C it just wasn''t what she wanted to do in this fun world. "Oh, and while we wait for the food¡­ I will express my gratitude for saving my lovely home." She looked at both of them, and lightly bowed her head. "I know everything you did to defeat that evil mage. And for all your efforts, I want to express my gratitude." Their meeting this time was a coincidence but she was going to approach them soon to thank them both. Sear?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "I don''t know how much these two little ones helped, but they must have helped a lot as well. So, I want to thank all four of you." Az and Miu were looking around this place, and even though the other customers did not like a slime jumping around the place, they did not say anything about it since they were with the guests of Miss Aloha. She was pretty much the same as the owner of this place, as well as many other places in this town. It was just plain foolishness upsetting this person. So, they left the slime with the gecko inside of it alone. They were just jumping around the floor so they could ignore their presence. "I don''t have much to offer like Lan or Axar. As a simple barber, all I can offer to you is a simple haircut, so¡­ how about it? Are you two free anytime soon this week?" "..." "Wait, really?" Both of them had to take an appointment for a haircut from her anyway, but they did not think they would get the chance anytime soon. "Yes. That would be my thanks to both of you¡­ and as for the little ones, tell me what will make them happy. I''ll see if I can get it somehow." She was not just any normal barber if even a noble had to take appointments from her. All players knew how special her hair styling was. "Thank you~!" "We appreciate the gesture, miss Aloha." His grown hair was getting on her nerves anyway. Thankfully, they will go away soon now. Chapter 66 - 66: The amazing taste "Oh wow¡­ oh, shit this is better than last time I had it." "Does the sauce change it that much?" "You bet. How the hell did they prepare this chicken? What do they mix in this sauce? Drugs?" "Huhuhu, we can go ask the chef if you want." She wasn''t joking. The head chef that made the recipes of these things and looked after everything in this place also knew her well. He wouldn''t mind even if she asked him what the secrets to all the things in this place were. "Hmmm¡­ I''d like to take a look around the kitchen here. See how they make these things." He knew how cooking was done in a unique manner in this world. They did not always use the common appliances that the people of the real world used. They had special methods and special ways¨C as well as special ingredients. The chicken that they were eating right now was not the same kind of chicken that they ate in the real world. The thing that they were eating was called (Kukooro) a creature that, though closely resembled a chicken, was something that lived in forest areas, on trees. The overwhelming juiciness that was balanced perfectly with the crisp of the outer surface and the softness of the meat inside was just too unreal even to someone who had once lived on this particular food. "Wow¡­ this sauce¡­ Elio I''m telling you¡­ this is The shit." "Hey. mind your words." His hands were a little dirty so he hit her head with his own. They were with someone she respected and she was using curses? Now that wasn''t appropriate. "Didn''t you used to say you have tried all kinds of heavenly and divine dishes? How does simple fried food compare to those things?" "Divine dishes?" Elio''s words suddenly caught Miss Aloha''s attention but, when she looked up at the sauce stained face of the girl before her, she could only chuckle with a smile. "You have no manners, little lady." She wiped the sauce from her face with a napkin while smiling at her warmly. This was a pretty familiar sight to someone who had taken care of tens of little children of this town. She did not know what her background was or even What she was, but she kind of had a unique liking for this pretty girl. There was something special about her. "You.. ahem. Sorry. You didn''t have to do that." She got a blush of embarrassment when Miss Aloha did that. It was out of the blue. "It''s rare for her to be embarrassed as well, miss Aloha. She''s usually calm and stoic." Elio was having more fun than the smile-gecko duo who had found a strange looking green plant in a corner and were playing with it. She wasn''t an expressive person in reality so he had not seen her so openly expressed many times in the past. She was the most expressive when she was with his mom, or when they were with his family. Alone at their place, she was mainly just doing her stuff or was playing around with him. They talked, they helped one another with house work, and they went on dates. But still, this little lunch they were having was the first time she was being like this around someone they were meeting for the first time. "Your mind allows you to be vulnerable around the people you feel comfortable with. And¡­ well, let''s just say everyone becomes comfortable around me." She smiled lightly as she took a bite from her own unique dish¨C she liked chicken but fried food so early wasn''t good for her health. She avoided it inside the game as well until it was some special occasion. "Seems like it." Their meeting with her was something that happened by chance, but it must have been fate. S§×arch* The n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He liked this food, he liked how she was liking it even more. And perhaps if not for this chance encounter, they might not have had this unique experience together. "Miu!" "Muuuu~!" "Oh, you two are back." The little ones found the plant that was emitting Mana a fun thing. It was their first time seeing such a plant, and since it was a rare kind that one didn''t usually find in the beginner hunting grounds, their surprise was natural. Still¡­ "You can''t have it, Az. Can you even eat something like that?" He could tell his little friend also wanted to eat something, and the plant was a fun option. Miu also wanted to come out for some fresh Mana but they can''t have it out here or the people around us will get scared. It will have to wait for some time, but Az was still not getting that plant. "What an interesting creature¡­" She could tell what this creature was and how special the one inside it was as well. In her time here, she had seen all kinds of slimes, but none were as unique as this one. "I haven''t seen many that are as curious and energetic as this one." Since Az was back on their table, she caressed it gently. "Muuuuu~." And Az liked her touch as well, which was a rare sight for the two of them. "Miu!" Even Miu who was inside Az was happy after receiving her indirect affection. The way the gecko was smiling was so pretty, it put another smile on Miss Aloha''s face. "You have some unique friends, Elio." She called them friends¨C not creatures, not tamed beasts, not something the other players would call but friends. "I''m fortunate to have these special friends." They weren''t simply creatures. They were his friends, as she had said. "Then¡­ can you tell me how you three met?" Their lunch did not have any special objective that they needed to reach. They were simply having food together. They were going to pay for their portion and they knew they would get some discount thanks to her so, they were thankful for that. "You two know about the library''s grand event, right? I think you two should participate in it." "Oh, we are here for that exactly actually." Their lunch had concluded soon and they were enjoying their dessert. They would go and take a look at the kitchen before parting ways, and since it was still afternoon, the two of them still had a lot of time for their shopping. "Is that so? How nice¡­ we will get to watch something fun this time then." "Hmmm? You won''t be participating?" The event that all the players in Moongold were excited about was something that was only held on the night of the [Golden moon]. A unique natural phenomenon that this town and this reagan experienced every three to six years. "No. I''ve tried it last time, but I know that it isn''t for me. I will be a spectator, and since the Mayor invited me to watch it along with the representative of Lord Viscount who will arrive tonight, I won''t be standing in your way. Besides, this event was always for the new players. Not us oldies." Both of them were looking forward to that event already, but now that she knew they would be participating, even Miss Aloha was looking forward to it¡­ Chapter 67 - 67: Shopping "Then I will see you in three days." "Thank you very much for the meal." "It was fun chatting with you. We should do it again." They had added each other to their friends list. She did not have many friends added, since she mostly met the people she was acquainted with around the town. Sear?h the N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The two of them were going to leave when they were done with their business in this town, and she knew that much already. That''s why she requested to add them into her friends list. "Huhu, sure. But next time, I want to taste Alex''s cooking that you are so proud of in my house. How does that sound?" She quite liked the food that the head chef made in this place, but even though it was amazing, it could not catch Elio''s attention. He liked it, but he still thought there was something missing. Something that was necessary in food of such a high quality. Something small but significant. He liked it. The flavors were amazing. It was true that this dish was much different from greasy fried food that they had in the real world. But the fact that it was not something he desired remained the central point. "I''d love that much more, yes. Let''s do that." "You won''t even ask the person that will cook for you if she wants to do it or not?" "You just said you''ll cook for us, dummy. Why would we ask you something you obviously want to do?" She was funny sometimes as well. Why would she not cook for him when it was one of the few things she loved? "Anyway, miss Aloha. Thanks for the meal. We should leave you now, you seem busy." "Busy, yes. That I am." They said their goodbyes to one another and the two of them moved to a cross section filled with shops, vendors, and stalls on all sides. "So¡­" Now, it was finally shopping time. And since they had quite a bit of time left, they had a lot of options to start from. "Both of us reached (Level-30) after the quest, so we can at least leave this town after the Library event." She only needed one thing from the library so there wasn''t any reason for them to stay here any longer. She knew things will finish here soon in the following few days and they will be ready to depart. However, before they left the town, they had to get all the essentials that they would need. "Your inventory is still at a low rank so you can''t carry much stuff around either." But the inventory limit was a very crucial thing for the players. That''s why she wanted him to have a Maxed out inventory before they left this town as well. However, Maxing out the inventory was not an easy task. "Let''s go get some storage items first." "Aren''t they usually expensive though?" To increase the rank of the inventory, one needed a unique kind of crystal known as [Kan]. It was a natural resource that was considered even more valuable than gold, platinum, any kind of metal or any kind of gem. It was one of the costliest materials that one could either only obtain through luck or through big quests from the system. Just having an inventory was a big thing, but expanding it to the max like she had done over the past many years was not something one can do easily. "Who''s telling you to spend any money? Didn''t I say I would buy you things? Lemme be the sugar mommy this time. Act like a spoiled child. Ask for anything you find interesting." Thankfully, even though she had fallen to the low levels, even though there were restrictions on her and she could not use all the things she had on her, she still had all the money and resources that she had earned over her time in this world. She did not have any Kan on her since she had stored it all in her [Treasury] along with many other precious things and to access it, she would have to go all the way across the continent where it was located. They can''t do that right now, so they had to use other means. -Taaa-ring~! They entered one of the big and attractive looking shops around the street that looked lavish even from the outside. The glass covered walls on all sides made it look attractive, and the inside of the shop was even more attractive as it contained all kinds of tools, equipment ranging from accessories, weapons, magic wands, and armors, and items that all players would want to have. "Hello~. How may I help you today?" There were employees looking after all the customers present in the shop. Many of them were natives and not players. And even among the players that were present here, most of them were looking at the accessories and Skill Essences instead of something like weapons or armors. The quality of those things seemed pretty good, but an armor purchased directly from a blacksmith and an armor purchased from a pretty shop like this one was bound to have great differences. "We are looking for storage items. Please show us the ones with the most storage you have." "Oh, I see you are looking for the storage items. Please come with me. You might find what you are looking for on the third floor." Players had inventories naturally. It wasn''t a skill but a blessing that was bestowed upon them along with the curse of destiny. Not many other beings possessed this unique power in this world, however, magic existed here. "Very well." And though rare, spatial magic was one of the most useful and revered magic as it helped in the creation of special places as well as special items that contained a fourth dimensional storage space inside compact items that people could carry around in one hand. They were costly, yes, but having them made life quite easier. "Oh, wait a minute." They were about to follow the employee to the upper floor, but they stopped when Elio could not ignore Az anymore. "What happened, little one?" It was not shouting, but it was wiggling in a weird way since earlier, telling him to do something. But he did not know what he wanted from him so he was ignoring him, but since even Miu was confused by the slime''s actions, he had to stop and resolve this matter first. This was the first time he was seeing the little blob acting so worked up¡­ Chapter 68 - 68: A hairpin "Muuu." The little slime was pointing towards something so, he followed where it wanted him to go and ended up at the very left side of the shop, in the ornament sections where jewelry of various kinds and types was showcased. "You want jewelry?" Elio did not understand why the slime would bring him all the way here, but when they reached there, the slime started Wiggling even more violently. "Hmmm." Elio can tell this was some kind of an involuntary response that even Az did not have control over, so he did not pay too much attention to it. "Do you want this one?" He just started pointing at various things on the display and in the glass cases, asking the slime what it was making it act like that. "Muuu!" "Then this one?" "Muuu!" "This¡­?" Alex was confused at the back, and she could hear the other players who were badmouthing her clearly. They could not understand why a player was asking a slime what it wanted but unlike the employees who were also confused, they were talking shit about them. And she did not like it, she glared at them¨C and even used {Sword intent} very lightly to shut them all up. It was a special skill that only those who understood the sword to a certain degree could possess. And not only it passively increased her control over her weapon, it could act as a versatile skill. And it was useful to shut some people up as well. "Then, this one-." "Muuu~! Muuu!" He had pointed at a few things before his finger landed on a small glass box and the slime reacted positively to it. "Excuse me, can I see this?" There was a female employee looking after the ornament section and she was actually mesmerized by the cute slime in his hands. There was a cute lizard or something inside of the slime as well and it was smiling at her¨C it was so adorable that she wanted to hold the slime and hug the lizard but she was working right now. "Oh, yes!" They were customers and she was supposed to work instead of acting like that. "Here you go." The one holding the slime was an attractive person as well, but seeing as how he was with an even more attractive lady, she knew she would not stand a chance in this situation. "Thanks." She surely had a blush on her face when she received his thanks and that smile¨C her heart almost skipped a beat when she saw that smile, but she controlled herself and tried her best to maintain her expression. "Do you want this thing, Az?" "Muuuu~! Muuuuu!" The thing that they had taken out was a very attractive looking pin. Made of gold and covered in unique patterns all around it, there was a single blue stone embedded at the top of it. The sharp top of the ornament seemed dangerous, but from the looks of it, it was intentionally made that way. The decoration around the blue stone made it seem like the center of a flower, and, though not perfect or amazing, this was a pretty decent work according to Elio. "How much for this ornament?" Elio had no idea why a slime would be interested in a hair ornament, but since this was the first time Az was asking him something that he could actually give to his little friend, he did not hesitate to ask for the price. "O-oh. This piece would be one gold and ten silvers, sir." "One gold?" A whole gold coin for a simple ornament? "It sure is pricey¡­" He had that much money thanks to his sugar mommy''s generosity and the quest rewards, but spending it all on something so simple did not seem fine to him. "Muuu¡­" But, it looked like the slime really wanted the ornament for some reason, and he could feel it thanks to their connection. "Can you go down? Or are the prices fixed?" "No, sir. We can not. The hairpin belongs to the ''Imported'' section. All the items in this section come from trusted sources and are authentic. I don''t know the details, but the prices are strictly fixed." "Is that so¡­?" He did not have a ton of money to throw around and he knew how to handle his money. So, if he was going to invest in this item, he needed to at least know a little about what it was. "Can you tell me some more about this piece? Something that you might know?" "Apologies¡­ sir. The items in these sections are different from the others. They are already sealed when we receive them and we sell them directly so that the customers can be the first to have them." "It is an item at least, right?" "Yes, that much we are certain about." "Can I use an appraisal scroll on it?" "You¡­ can not, sir. You would have to purchase it before using any items on it." Now this made things complicated for him. "It looks good, why not just take it?" Even Alex liked this piece. She can tell it wasn''t just a simple hairpin even though she could not tell much about it. If this slime had any interest in it, there must be some reason behind it. She didn''t see it wrong to gamble some money and see what the slime does with its gift. But Elio was against it. "I can take it, sure, but then what? I''d like to give Az a gift as well but I at least need to know I''m not giving my friend something dangerous as a gift, right?" His main concern was if this pin was safe or not. "I can see it for a minute?" "Hmmm? Yes?" And if he can''t use an item on it, he had no other choice but to use the primitive method. "Dude, seriously?" Not having an appraisal skill was starting to become unfavorable, so he wanted to quickly fulfill the conditions to get the skill so that he doesn''t have to waste so much of his time on small things like these. "..." The employee did not understand why the pretty man was looking at the simple hair pin so intently when it was just a hairpin with some kind of effects, but instead of him, she paid more attention to the slime that seemed to be cheering his master. She had no idea what was happening here, and the rest of the employees and players in the shop were the same. The one who had been guiding them to the upper floor had even gone back to his position after instructing the one they were talking to right now to take care of them. "...sir?" And though she wanted to show them what they wanted aside from the pin, she did not understand what the attractive man was doing with the pin. "Umm¡­" As more time passed and he just kept staring at the pin, she got a little worried and was just about to speak up once again¡ª when he blinked his eyes for the first time in a while and placed the glass box containing the pin down. "We will take this one." sea??h th§× N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. His eyes had almost become red, and she thought it was concerning so she offered him her own handkerchief. But he rejected it, saying there was no need for that. "Now, will you be showing us the storage devices as well?" "Hmmm? Oh, yes!" Observation was not as good as the appraisal since it merely revealed some very basic information about the targets of observation. But, what he got from his observations was more than enough to convince him to buy this object. In fact, he wanted to quickly go back to their place and confirm his suspicions now. The one liner info that he obtained from his observation was much more unique than any of his past observation targets until now. Chapter 69 - 69: Spoiled brats. "The hairpin: 1 Gold, 10 silver. The storage ring for essentials: 1 gold. Storage box for monster bodies: 3 gold. A box of twelve (Basic) Mana potions: 60 silver. A box of twelve (Basic) heath potions: 48 Silver. Two pairs of enchanted clothes and boots: 6 gold. A box of thirty scrolls with various kinds of magic: 9 gold. And if that wasn''t enough¡­ we even spent: 3 more gold on lunch, food essentials and ingredients. AND, of all that money, I only spent on the hairpin." In total, they spent over 23 gold and 118 silver while not counting the amount of copper they had splashed over in less than a day. According to their original world market standards, if silver was over 1800V and a single gold coin was around 25 times its price, around 45,000V, then they had just wasted around 1.2 million V. "We could have very well invested all that money in good assets, you know?" After everything was said and done, now that he was realizing just how much she had spent on his things today, he could not stop cursing himself. "It''s my mistake¡­ I shouldn''t have agreed to go shopping in the first place¡­" She just ran around and bought a bunch of things that she thought he would need going forward. She didn''t ask him for most of the things and even the clothes¡­ she bought specially enchanted costly clothes instead of some light armor. The kind of money they spent in the last few hours was just absurd. They could have lived off of that much money for weeks if not months¡­ and now all of that was gone. Just like that. Gone. "Hump. Bastard. I bought all that for you and you''re still crying like a baby?" "You spoiled brat. Don''t you even understand how costly these things are?!" He couldn''t help but shout at her at this moment since she was making it sound so simple he couldn''t help but get angry at her. Simple people of their world barely make this kind of money after months of work and here they were, spending all that like it was no big deal¡­ "Hey! Do you think I bought all those things for myself?! Do you think I wasted money?! Just tell me, damn it and I''ll never buy you anything in the future!" She had been happy until they were out, but as soon as they came back to their inn room and he took out everything to do the math, he became sad. It was as if some kind of post nut clarity had hit him hard, enlightening him to the truths of the world. "Yes! That would be better than spending another million! Money doesn''t grow on trees, Alex!" "What do you know, bastard!? Money does grow on trees! A lot of it mostly grows under the trees as well!" On an important note¡ª both of them were serious right now. It wasn''t like one was half heartedly arguing back with the other since the one was doing it, that was certainly not the case here. Both of them were serious about everything they were saying. "Of course, right? How can I forget this is a virtual world~?! Hahaha!" Well, he understood the importance of money more than her, and he could not stand it when the person he was closest to took such financial decisions. "Yes! This is a virtual world! And yet the money of this world is as important as the crisp fresh banknotes that you cherish so much!" Ummm¡­ they were arguing right now, and it was a common occasion. They will stop anytime now and start doing¡­ stuff, so the little slime and gecko shook their heads at them and ignored their dumb game. They weren''t human but one understood emotions well, while the other had good enough life experience to know what affection was. "Hump! Spoiled brat!" "Oh my god~? Spoiled brat? Me~?!" The gecko could tell what they were doing right now was their way to show their unique affection to one another. Something that was beyond their simple understanding¡­ so, they both ignored them. There was something more interesting for them here. "Muuu." "Miu!" Among the pile of things that were placed on the ground, there was a glass box containing a unique golden pin that looked pretty attractive. This pin, though something unknown, had caught the attention of Az''s {Curiosity}. It was a special skill that allowed it to find the creature who used to live in that small hole in the cave of the red hob. The first time they met was when the skill led the curious slime inside the cave and then all the way to where the gecko was living. When they met, the gecko''s condition was not as bad as it became after it accidentally ''almost'' fell into the pool of waste and got poisoned. Miu was fine and they played around the cave while the two of their human friends were fighting the ugly creature. They somewhat understood one another and Miu was pretty friendly so they became friends quickly. In this new place where Az did not have its old slime friends, Miu was the first that played with it. Had he lost its first first because of its own mistake, it might never have forgiven itself. However, its human friends saved its friends. And thanks to them, as well as thanks to its {Curiocity}, they were now together. "Miu?" "Muuu¡­" The same skill that led the slime to his gecko friend had led it to this certain unknown golden stick. And, even though the slime had no idea what exactly this strange object was¡­ it found the pin attractive. "Muu?" "Miu." They weren''t certain if they should take it out of the glass case, but since the humans were busy loving one another, they somehow opened the glass box and Az sat down in the golden pin. Then, the slime passed the pin through its mucus body and raised it on top of the surface of its body, accidentally infusing its Mana. -spark! -Ooooooooooooooooong! It was out of the blue but, when the mana of the slime got into contact with the pin, it started glowing as a new golden Mana sprung out of it. "Hmmm?" S~ea??h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "What the?" A golden light exploded from the wand not long after, and both of them who were now busy winning against the other''s lips were momentarily blinded by this bright explosion of light. They did not understand what was going on there, but the presence of the strong Mana confirmed the suspicion that Elio had. The hairpin¡­ in fact, wasn''t a hairpin. It was something that any mage would lust after. Something that now coincidentally belonged to a little slime. Chapter 70 - 70: To be a mage In the world of the mages can cast their magic through various different means. To firstly cast a spell there was a magic chant, a specific set of words that invokes some unique spells that one might or might not need to cast the spell associated with it. There was chant less magic that worked the same as how Elio casts magic, through sheer imagination of the spell and the precise mental drowning of the spell. There was another method that people called mixed casting method in which the spells were cast with the help of chants as well as the imagined spell structure, and on the higher levels, this method was more effective. Aside from that, there might also be personal spell casting methods that might be unique to the individual caster. There is a chance the caster might or might not be able to cast all spells the same way as they do some certain spells, but that was a natural limitation of human abilities. "Is that really a wand?" "Seems like it." sea??h th§× N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He got off of her and both of them sat down on their bed and looked at the now glowing hair pin which still was in the same form as before. Nothing had changed about it, but as Elio could feel, the Mana that was bound in the item was released and it was now circulating Mana from the atmosphere. "Damn¡­" To cast spells easily, magies developed their own casting methods and in addition to that, they used various catalysts. Usually, orbs, magic canes, or staff were used as catalysts. Some of them were items that contained spells inside them and the non mages could use them if they could channel the Mana that it contained. However, the mages of high society or what were called battle mages in this world used a unique kind of catalyst¡ª a magic wand that was different from a staff, or a cane. The wand were magical objects that contained high concentrations of Mana, were made with the finest materials, and were so unique that only the individuals that resonate with these objects could use them properly. They came in all kinds of sizes and shapes, and though few Wandcrafters were known to the world, everyone knew there existed people who crafted these wands and scattered them throughout the world. It was said that a wand would naturally find their masters, that their masters would naturally find these unique objects that their bodies and souls resonate with¡­ The meeting of a wand and its master was a fateful event, something that one can recognise instantly as they witness it. "Congratulations, Az." To be recognised as a true magician, one had to possess a magic wand of their own. That was also one of the official criteria to become a mage of the mages'' tower without going through the long, boring tests that most of the mages go through. "He became a proper mage earlier than you, lol." Finding a wand that is right for you is a difficult task since just finding a wand is a challenge in itself. But their little slime friend now had a wand that belonged to them. A wand that looked pretty as well. "Muuu¡­?" "Miu~!" Az had no idea what this thing was but Miu found this pretty looking thing cute. Az was keeping the pointy part inside him, so the blue gemstone on top of it was glowing, illuminating the golden flower along with it. "Oh, right." "Are you thinking what I''m thinking?" "I''m sure we are thinking the same thing." They both smirked at one another out of the blue and looked at their slime friend. "Az, try casting the water spell." "Muuuu?" The slime was still confused since the only good thing it found about this thing (in its hands) was how its friend liked it. The little gecko was jumping at the light so Az moved it around and the two played with it. It was pretty fun watching them, but if they had someone who had obtained their wand, then there was one thing they had to try asap. "Simply cast magic that you use. The water one. Don''t put too much Mana in it, and just use the spell as you normally do." "Muuu?" The slime did understand what they wanted it to do, but it did not understand why they would want to see magic out of the blue. It did not mind showing them magic since it was suddenly feeling full of energy, but it still found their behavior confusing. The magic it can use was very basic and simple. It did not even have as much strength as the normal support spells or Elio and they knew it will take some time before the spell it uses gets any stronger. "Mu¡­" Still, at their request, it jumped ahead and channeled its Mana. -Oooooooooooooooooong! A magic circle materialized underneath its blob body, just like how it usually does, and along with it, this time, a similar magic circle also appeared on the tip of the magic wand, before the blue gem. "Aim at the window just to be cautious." "Muuu." Az did not feel as tired as it usually felt while casting a spell. The spell actually manifested even smoothly than it usually did until now. It had not been since it started learning magic, but it surely could feel the difference. -Ooooooong! It could tell the spell that was manifesting would be different from the usual spells as well, so it used as little Mana as possible- something a normal slime would not have ever done- and released the spell while aiming at the window in front of it. "Muuuuuuu!" The spell release was commanded, and the Mana that had gathered and materialized in the form of a spell circle started condensing water drops. In the blink of an eye, the spell circle had collected enough of the droplets that the condensed force of the gathered water became too strong. -Shrrrrrrrrrr! All do the gathered water condensed into a ball form, a ball no bigger than a baseball, and just the moment after that¡­ -Bang! Like a bullet, the ball was shot from the tip of the wand at a speed so fast that even the two of them could not perceive it. "Holy¡­" The ball of water had passed right between the two of them, so they felt the force that this spell carried on the side of their faces. "¡­shit." And even after having been familiar with the magic of this little creature, neither of them could believe how there was blood coming out of the two scratches that they got from the micro droplets that were released from the ball of water as it flew away from between them. "Muuu?" There was quite some distance between both of them and still, the force of the spell itself dealt that kind of damage¡­ Alex couldn''t help wondering how much damage that same kind of force would do to a high level creature- perhaps to a red Hob. Chapter 71 - 71: A strategic assault unit [{ "Elio, speed boost, then slow on the target." }] [{ "Gocha." }] Moving with her unique movement technique, using precise footwork to sneak up on her target, she used one of her daggers that Elio had already enchanted with sharpness and toughness enhancement magic, and dug it deep inside the opponent''s neck. "Gruuuuuuuu!" The sneak attack was a success, so she used {Blink} and vanished from her previous position. "Grrrr¡­?" "Grrrrrr! Gurrrr!" The opponents were the same green goblins that they had fought in the battle against the dark mage, however, this time, they were in their natural form, and the bunch that she had ambushed was patrolling not far from their village. -Ooooooooooooong! There were three at some distance from one another and she had targeted the one in the middle so that when it screamed before falling to the ground with a bleeding neck, it would distract the two others. And this distraction would give her the opportunity that she needed. "Gurrrr¨C." -Swish. -Thud. To deal with the second one, she used a sword with enhanced sharpness to behead the second one. It was going to run back to their village to inform the rest of the villagers about the ambush so taking care of this one first was important. "Gurrrrr!" Later, she took care of the last one in a clean manner as well and cut the ugly creature in half. [{ "Change of position. Take a high ground." }] They had deliberately waited after killing just one of them so that the strong screams of the remaining two could reach the guard archers at the gates of the goblin village. -Swish. Swish. Swish. She knew the ones in the position of archers among the goblins were always good at hearing. Their eyesight might not be as good as their hearing, but they were still great archers thanks to their unique way to perceive things through the sounds. It was similar to Echolocation but here, they just draw a mental map of their surroundings with the sounds coming from around them¨C not that she cared about that." -Swish. -Click. She used a quick sword drawing movement to cut the two guards in half horizontally. She avoided the dirty blood of the creatures by using another {Blink} but since she knew well how this was just the start, she used another {Blink} to vanish from her place. "Gurrrr¡­?!" The sudden commotion had already caught the attention of many monsters in the area, the goblins in the surroundings inside of the village had already sensed something was wrong. The death of the guard archers will be made known to the rest of the warriors shortly, and as they usually do, they will form a party of their elites to go after the enemy that attacked them. The chief and rest of the elites of the families will guard the town and protect the children and females of the town. But their main targets weren''t them. Today, they were here to not kill¨C but to test. "Alright listen. When they come out of the town and reach that rock I''ve marked, we will test the light attribute {Blind} spell to take away their vision. Sear?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. They will scatter with that, and then we will test the destruction series magic one by one." There were only three offensive spells that Az could use right now, and the goal was to test all three of them on these practice monsters. "You got that?" "Muuuu~!" He had just got his magic wand, so testing on the real targets was a must. Goblins were usually above (Level-25), and some of them were even (Level-40) but, with the kind of power they had experienced yesterday, they knew they could kill even those (Level-40) bosses. "Alright they are coming." Elio was not fine with how they were killing creatures right now, but she was holding back his urge to stop her. As she said, this was just a test and they were only doing this to test the new power that Az''s magic wand brought. Having a magic wand did not just mean a faster magic casting and easier spell deployment. All magic wands had their unique characteristics, and the one that Az had allowed it to use spells to their maximum power despite Az''s weak and immature self. They did not understand the complete functions of the item since the appraisal scrolls did not reveal everything about it aside from the basic stuff, so they did not know what abilities the wand had exactly. Thankfully, they at least knew how this wand made the simple spells that Az cast into something very, very dangerous. [{ "Get ready, both of you." }] Az knew what it had to do from now on. There were some targets and it just had to practice some magic on them. "Muuuu~!" The little slime creature was excited so it took out the magic wand that it now kept inside of it with Miu. -Oooooooooong! It first conjured the light magic circle and aimed at the group of nine elite goblins who had walked out of their village fences. -Swish! The spell contained a great amount of power this time as well and the speed at which this light attribute spell was released alone gave Elio chills. -Boooom! "Gurrrrrrr!" "Grrrr¡­!" "Gurrrrr?! Gurrrr!" That spell also contained power, even though it was not an offensive spell. And it did what they wanted from it¡­ "Good. now the water ball spells first." This would be the same spell that they experienced last night. "Release it with more Mana than last time." She wanted Az to actually use that spell without restrictions, so the little slime did as she suggested and used a third of the Mana that it had to cast the same spell it had cast last time. -Oooooooooooong¡­! It did not imagine or chant anything to cast spells. It just recreated what it had associated with the emotion that it felt when it first ate the magic scroll containing this spell. This was a unique kind of casting that the slime could use thanks to the unique skill it possessed. However¡­ -Zaaaaaaaa! -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiish! -BOOOOOOOM! When the big ball of water was released from the tip of the wand, despite the bigger size, it was the same in speed. The destructive power had increased due to the increased Mana, and when it hit the target, as if a bullet hitting a water balloon, the bodies of four of the creatures that were just about to go their way to search for the intruder enemies, were blasted away under the force of the water ball. And, the spell did not just stop at the four creatures, it went beyond and reached the place village doors, destroyed them, and crushed half the town in its wake along with every single thing that came in its way, and¡­ the spell only ended when it had crashed in two trees behind the goblin village. "Az oh Az¡­" She was speechless but Elio had lost all the voice he had thanks to this little scene. He was not expecting this level of destruction from just one spell. And, if just one spell was so destructive¡­ "Let''s try the other two as well." He did not come here to do some massacre or destroy a settlement. Az was his friend so Elio only accompanied them to see the new powers of his friend¨C NOT THIS MASSACRE. Chapter 72 - 72: Future decisions "So¡­" Some time had passed since the little slime unknowingly destroyed all those green gobs. The kind of destruction that one spell caused was on par with the destruction that the spells of (tier-4) are capable of. And the spell itself was unique¨C different from the conventional spells that the normal mages cast. "I don''t think it''s a bad thing, you know?" Seeing all those dead bodies, the blood splashing with the forceful sphere of water, the kind of destruction it brought, the way it killed even the head of this village¡­ Elio couldn''t handle it. The kind of power that one spell displayed was so great that they were shocked already, but the kind of power the other two offensive spells contained, how they actually destroyed the rest of the settlement was just beyond him. "This is good. Az can cast powerful spells that are different from the normal spells. Among the players, its also called (Original spell casting) where the players cast a spell according to their own understanding of the spell with their own methods and the spell results in something unique from the same version of that spell." Az could only cast three spells before its Mana was almost bottomed out. She had to feed it another Mana stone but she did not mind it. If the power that they are getting at the cost of just some simple Mana stones, she did not mind any of it. Thanks to Az, both of them were able to gain a lot of experience in such a short time. The slime and the gecko both had also leveled up to (Level-15) with this. And it was good. Their leveling was different but the Exp that they shared with them was the same. They obtained the same kind of experience as the rest of them, just that their leveling system was different from the players, or the natives. They were natural creatures and both of them were now Elio''s tamed beasts. They belonged to him, so it wasn''t really a bad thing that they were so strong. In fact, even Miu had special senses as they had recently found out. It also possessed three skills like Az currently did, but all three of its skills were something Alex recognised well. "Having a strong friend is good, dummy. Why mourn over some mobs that were going to die sooner or later anyway." At those words, he looked at her, directly in her blue eyes. "So, if they were going to die one day anyway, did their lives not amount to anything?" He did not like those words from her, even though they were true¡­ "Haaa. Alex it''s not like I care about the lives of these mobs." His concerns, the thing that made him sit down there and be in such deep thoughts was not something related to the things that they had killed. After being killed, their existence had surely become meaningless to this world. They were now dead, but¡­ what if there was someone else in their place that was not supposed to die? "Az cannot control that power yet." His main concern was how this little creature who was playing around with its little gecko friend, that strangely powerful object would learn to control that great power. "At the end of the day, Az is still a slime." Sure it can cast those powerful spells but, great powers without control over them was the same as a broken rifle. One does not know when the rifle will backfire and kill the one to pull the trigger, or the bullet that was coming out of it would hit the family of the one pulling the trigger instead of the villain. "It is young in nature, it''s new to this world filled with people who would want the power that it has, and you and I both know we will not be there for them in every moment of our lives here." They weren''t natives and there would be times when they would have to go back to their world for hours, perhaps days sometimes. Due to the quest, they had managed to stay around with only a few hours of time outside of the game. They mostly slept inside the game but, they will have to go and take an actual nap after today. They could not neglect their health. "With that kind of power, without us around them, what will happen to them and the ones around them? What if they just curiously try something and something bad happens?" There were always consequences of everything. And with power this great involved, there is no telling just what kind of things could go wrong. "With great powers comes great responsibilities¡­" Alex looked at the little creatures that were happily playing around without even knowing much about what kind of strength they actually possessed. "And they aren''t ready for that responsibility." As their friends, as their tamer and their family, they were the ones responsible for everything that these creatures do. Sure they are smart and understand a lot more than some normal slime or some normal lizard, but they still do not have the maturity of a proper adult human being that they need to understand the kind of responsibilities they would have with the kind of power they possess. "Alex¡­ what will they do when we aren''t around?" Had they been summoned creatures, familiars even, things would have been simple for them. Those creatures could stay in their own realms or in a unique space that belongs to them in the absence of their masters, but tamed beasts were creatures of the same world as their masters. They weren''t something that they could send away or put in some place. With the kind of strength they had, there weren''t many people or beings around them that would be able to take care of these special creatures. "Will they be as happy as they are with us?" That was his biggest concern. "..." And though Alex had thought about this, had some idea of what they could do in their absence, and was planning something¡­ it was not confirmed just yet. S~ea??h the N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Don''t worry about it." The only thing she could tell him was to not worry about those things. She had something in her mind, but she still needed some time to think it through. There were some things that she needed to confirm before she can answer his question with certainty, but until then¡­ "I''ll take care of it." That much was all that she could tell him. He will just have to believe in her words this time. Chapter 73 - 73: Preparation of the events In the Moongold town, the Town Hall was not the place where people¨C players and natives frequented the most. Magies'' tower was the place that recorded the most traffic, and after that came the grand library. Town hall came after that even though it was always filled with people that needed the help of the town officials for all kinds of paperwork. The registration office and the guards'' hall came after that in public traffic as they also were filled with people all day long. There weren''t many things that interested the players in this town so the few places where they could learn skills, get essential items, and sell their hunts were frequented by them the most. "I can''t wait for the library to open up again~." "Do you know about the event? They say you can get Five star items if you get in top ranks!" "Huhahahaha! Not many people know, but you can even get the items that are displayed all around the library if you do well!" "I''ll be aiming for that Thundersword. I''ve had my eyes on it for months now." The town was filling up with cheerful voices of the players as the Library event closed in. An event that was held on the night of the golden moon, the event that opened the doors of secret storage of the great library of Moongold to the players and natives of the town¨C the event that all players wished to experience at least once in their lifetime, one of the most fun event of this special town was now approaching. "You got the helper quest?! How!?" "Man I''m so jealous of those bookworms¡­ they got quests directly from the librarian. They say they are getting an Achievement as a reward just to help them in the preparations." And coincidentally, along with the special event, a festival was also being organized in moongold to celebrate the sacrifice of the brave fallen heroes. "The Mayor had to organize a festival on the same day¡­ haa¡­ I have the library event preparation quest already but I was forced into the festival preparation event as well." "Man¡­ I should have learned carpentry as well. You''re suffering from success." S§×ar?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "You think I like that¡­?" The players were mostly excited for the festival and the new quests that were appearing all around them. They were also happy to see the rare token system that allowed them to get all kinds of exciting rewards. The more fun part was how the gloomy atmosphere that was present not long ago had pretty much returned to normal. The players certainly liked this fresh and festive vibe much more than the gloomy one, so even the old players of the town were happy to see this. The normal players who enjoyed lifestyle activities more than hunting were now receiving more attention from the natives. Not only the festival but also the library event required all kinds of things, the preparations also required a lot of manpower so starting with the older players who had good affinity with the natives, even the newer players who were recognised for their skills were getting some work. Overall, everyone was contributing to this whole festival and atmosphere. And the two of Them were no exceptions. "Oh? Have you done the wood cutting work before, miss?" "You can say that, yes." They needed wood for the decoration and many preparations. And as an experienced swordsman who also had a smashing skill of the Red Hob, work that required strength and precise force was pretty easy to Alex. She was helping out with all kinds of work like wood cutting, transportations, and with her sharp senses and many experiences, she also knew how most of the things were done. She was helping with the management work, the organization work, and was even preparing the work schedules that the other workers were following for the smooth sailing of the work. On the other hand, Elio was gaining popularity among the natives for his unique skills¡­ "Wow¡­" "Someone drew that? Really?" "Apparently, the person who clicked the banner photos and the one who drew this are the same. What more, a little birdie told me the person who designed the hall that we are making, the one who wrote the songs that are playing all around the town, and the one who decided on the whole color theme are all the same." Drawing wasn''t his cup of tea but he knew a little bit of painting. Aside from that, he was pretty good at a lot of things. He loved clicking photos but since he did not have a camera here, he had to work with the screenshot mechanism. Videography was also his strength¡­ and so were digital design, script writing, music, resource management, and choreography. He was good at a lot of things, but since he had learned most of it on his own, he did not get many chances to showcase his skills in the real world. In here though, he was having a blast going around doing things that would help the others. His views were artistic, different from her practical and scientific perspective so though there was sometimes a clash between their ideas, they did not let that get in the middle of the other''s work. They understood one another enough to resolve their conflicts by themselves. So, with their addition, the preparations for the event in the library as well as the festival preparations were going on smoothly. Three days had passed somehow in this whole work, and on a fine afternoon, they had reached one of the most famous boutiques of the town that was owned by the oldest player here. They needed a haircut and some hairstyling. They also needed some more hair treatment¨C and though unnecessary, they needed to get a proper pedicure as well. It was surely a game, but things like these were also necessary to maintain their pretty bodies. "Welcome, you two~. I''ve been waiting~." Miss Aloha was a professional, just like the two of them so she knew exactly what they wanted with their hair, as well as what they needed. "Let''s get you prepped up before going to the main thing~." A haircut from a professional like her was not something simple like what they experience in the real world. At the end of the day, this was a game¡­ and since it was a game, even the most common things could be made a little different here. Chapter 74 - 74: Blissful treatments First of all¡­ since Madam Aloha''s special boutique welcomed guests of even the nobility, there were some special services that she provided to the important guests. "Oh yeah¡­" "This is unexpectedly comforting." "Holy¡­ yeah it is." They were having a foot massage that was much better than any pedicure they had had together. This was going to be followed by a special spa session, after which, Miss Aloha will personally wash their hair, do a head massage and then, the main course¨C hairs. For now though, the two were having the best time of their week in this town. "We should do this often." Elio was a little surprised by how his legs were inside a tub full of small slimes that were even smaller than Miu. It was a unique experience and the professionals that were using various tools and lotions in their unique treatment knew exactly what they were doing. "Totally¡­ we should totally do something like this¡­ every once in a while¡­" Her voice sounded like she was moaning but she was just enjoying this blissful experience. Wearing those heavy boots every day was not good for her feet and toes, even in the game. Her feet had gotten used to such footwear over the years, but it was still uncomfortable sometimes. But, having such a blissful experience was worth all the time and effort she spent in this game. "Do you accept tips, miss?" Alex wanted to at least reward them for such great work even if Miss Aloha was not going to take any fees from them today, giving tips for these professionals was at least something she wouldn''t mind. "Oh¡­ we don''t get tips¡­ but, it''s not like we can''t have it." There were two pretty ladies looking after her and two looking after her darling beside her. And when she brought up tips, all four of them were a little confused. "We don''t have a tipping culture in this town, Alex." Miss Aloha commented while preparing their next course with her other assistants. She knew Alex was still new to this town even though she had been here for a while now, so she did not know everything about this place. Tips were pretty common things in some of the cities and main cities, and even in their real world. But, Moongold was one of the places where the ''tips'' were not a thing. The professionals here were assistants to Miss Aloha and most of them were natives. They worked here and they got paid for their work and, since the prices of her services were already pretty high, giving money to the workers was not common in this relatively small town. If anything the workers were more than happy with what they were making just from working in this small but special establishment and learning from a renowned person like Miss Aloha. She was one of the few famous professionals in the beauty field and just getting recognised by her might get them a chance to work for some from a big house, or even some nobles that she had connections with. Her letter of recommendation held even more value in their line of work than the letter of recommendation from the town mayor or the head of the mages'' tower. "You don''t have to, but you can give tips if you want. It would be the money they have earned themselves." Besides, Miss Aloha wanted to see how much she would give to someone who had looked after her like that. Sear?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Oh~. Alright then~!" The treatment was done soon and before thanking the ladies and moving to the next step, she handed all of the pretty young ladies a shimmering silver coin. Which surprised them quite a bit. As simple beauticians working under someone famous like Miss Aloha earned them a few silver coins every month. They were paid according to their performance in the month directly by Miss Aloha so they earned around thirty to fifty silver coins each month. It was no small sum as any normal person in this town could tell, so¡­ they were happy with what they were doing already. Earning an extra silver coin just for doing what they do? Now that was quite a new experience for these simple common ladies. "Thank you!" They all thanked her as the two of them moved to the next room for the new thing¨C which turned out to be just as relaxing. "You''re going to tip them as well?" Elio knew she had a lot of game money¡­ a lot of it. But she can''t just give it to everyone just because she wants to. "Of course I am." She knew the value of money as well, but right now, she was happy. And as he knew, when she is happy, she doesn''t really care about money, or the abundant resources she has. "If you give all of them a silver coin, Alex, you will be spending more than what these treatments cost." "Hmm? I don''t mind though. I''m just giving them something I see fit." "No point telling her something she obviously knows, miss Aloha. If that girl really wanted, she would be giving them gold coins¡­ but then she knows we will have another argument like a few days ago." She spent over a million V worth of gold and silver coins just to get him some necessary things. He had no doubt she would spend ten or so more for such fun experience if she wanted to. "Oh? Is that so?" She was spending an acceptable amount. That was the only reason he was not stopping her or arguing with her about it. "Well, then give me some tips as well, rich young miss. How did you get such a unique boyfriend?" It was only an hour, but all the things that they did before finally reaching the haircut stage was something¡­ they enjoyed very much. Alex gave all of Miss Aloha''s assistants a silver tip, so¡­ the masters of these assistants should also receive something, right? "You wanna know how I got him¡­?" It wasn''t that fun of a story, as both of them remembered it. "I''d love to." But while she was doing their hair, the story of such a unique couple surely was not something she could possibly miss, you know. "Well¡­" They came across one another due to their work three years ago, and then¡­ one thing led to another, resulting in their first date, first kiss, first night, first trip, first holiday, and many such firsts. It has been three years now, but they still remembered the day she first sent that Email to one of the most famous Freelancers among many communities that, she was coincidentally part of. Chapter 75 - 75: Some backstory "He was pretty famous in the editing industry, I mean among us players who used to play various games, were used to the YT game videos, and the VR games around three years ago." Miss Aloha first covered their faces with a warm towel and wetted their hair before applying some special oils and a unique shampoo to their hair. Her long, strong black hair was one of her favorite kinds of hair. She can tell they had faced a lot of turbulence in their long life and though they were not maintained, she can tell they were trimmed from time to time with good sharp objects. Not a scissor though. The cuts were too sharp and too unprofessional for them to be something from a professional. "He was new, but he got famous with his work for various famous players. Among the many games of that time, as well as the older games that were still famous back then, the players who saw the kind of transitions he could make, the choreography of the whole product and of course the precise on point editing that even the creators of the video could not fathom, were all instantly mesmerized by his work." Miss Aloha wasn''t quite active in the player community since, well, she was old. All her interest was in this town and her work. She enjoyed all that she did here more than enough so, she wasn''t really that interested in these player matters. She can surely understand what Alex was talking about, but her knowledge was limited to just that. "I shall show you some of his works later." "I''d be happy to see them." As Miss Aloha combed through her thick black hair, she was reminded of her younger days. Her hair right now were still pretty attractive, but they did not have the kind of shine that they used to have. Looking at Alex''s pretty, strong, and thick hair made her a little envious as well. But she liked these hair more than she envied them. There was a lot that she could do with them so, right now, many ideas were filling her head as she listened to their story. "Back then, I was just starting out so, don''t take her words seriously Miss Aloha. The old ones are too flashy. If anything, you should see the later ones-." "Shuddup you dumbass. The older ones had a kind of rawness-." "Don''t move please." "Oh, sorry." Miss Aloha was still not done prepping her wet hair. "The older ones had a kind of rawness that''s just too good. Something that one can tell is pure work of art. Yes your later works got better with time and experience, but they became more refined and serene. The imperfections the earlier ones, and some unique ones have are just too good." Those early ones were exactly the reason that she sent him her first Email as not a creator, but as a fan. She expressed her awe at his work¡­ but she was ignored. He never saw that Email of hers until much later. "I''ll show you the old ones and the new ones. You will understand what I mean as well, miss Aloha." "Sure. I''ll be happy with anything you believe will be better." Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She was finally done preparing her hair for the cutting, but before moving on to the cutting, she first pulled a unique looking machine that had a special kind of energy emitting jewels embedded on a ring. They resembled a ring light, but they were a lot more unique than simple LEDs. "Now, Elio, relax your shoulders." She moved to the side and sprinkled some water on Elio''s shiny light brown hair. Though not long like hers, they surely looked longer than they should. They were even, so she can tell they were maintained properly. But, since she could also tell they were never cut until now, she was going to work with a raw specimen. And these hairs were pretty strong and thick as well. She liked these quite a bit as well¡­ they were a rare kind among the men these days. "So, I sent him an Email expressing my fangirl admiration and was thoroughly ignored. Later, when came and I started playing, I sent him a video of one of my plays-." "You started playing when the game launched?" "...there are some circumstances, but yes. I was one of the beta-testers as well." "Oh wow¡­ I knew you were special, Alex. But a Beta-tester? My niece calls those special people Extraordinary on par with top rankers." She did not dwell deep into why someone so extraordinary was in a starter town. In fact, now that she knew Alex was an old player that had been around even before the normal players, the fact that she was so good and knew so much made perfect sense to her. Everything that she was confused about until now clicked at this moment. And a new smile appeared on her face. "Please keep this to yourself." "Of course, silly." Alex didn''t mind telling all these to her only since she believed she could keep secrets. She was Their barber now, so it was her duty to keep their secrets. "Alright~. So, as I was saying¡­" Their first meeting did not happen until three months after she sent her second Email with her first video. "Huhu, you two have quite a unique start." "Right~?" What happened in these months was some of the best days of their Friendship. They exchanged many Mails in the era of short messages and emojis and stickers after that. Many of them were related to their work, but many of them were just casual chats that friends have. "When we worked on our first project, I didn''t even know she was such a pretty lady." "Oh right! Hahaha! For three months he thought I was the agent of the person that he was editing the videos of. On our first date, he was looking for a man and I was enjoying his confusion in a cafe full of lesbians." She wanted to laugh out loud as they remembered those old days. She teased him a lot¡­ but then when they actually got to know one another, many things changed. "I still get chills thinking back to that day¡­" He was attractive. And he was dressed as he usually does¨C attractively. The way those ladies were looking at him with various emotions was one hell of an experience for him. He also owned shops like that cafe, but this one¡­ it was different. He never went near that place after that day. Some things were just... not for him. Chapter 76 - 76: Special haircut -Phrrrrrrr¡­ Some blows of warm air from not a hairdryer but from the magic of one of her assistants dried their hair, she added some finishing touches to their hairstyle with a scissor and a black comb, and finally removed the cloth wrapped around her neck. "Wow¡­" Her long hair was straight and she had them tied in a ponytail when she was fighting. Open hair was a bother and since her hair was long, she also braided them when she was fighting long battles or was going to travel on foot for a long time. She didn''t get much time to look after her hair, but she loved her hair a little too much to completely ignore them, so, whenever she got some time, she trimmed them down as best as she could. She was no professional so, in the real world, there were people that she trusted her hair with. In this world though, she never had the luxury or motivation to get such treatments that often. Most of her time was spent in places that were far from civilizations¨C when she was in forests, she had to camp and hunt day and night, when she was on mountains, she had to make strong camps that could withstand the harsh weather. When she was in deserts, she had to endure the heat and sandstorms. When she was in cold stormy areas, she had to fight against the cold and keep herself warm. When she was deep within some ancient dungeon or labyrinth, she had no time to look after herself since her life was always on the line in those kinds of places. In all her life in this world, she had gone to many places, traveled much more than most players have, gone to places that only she knew about, and she loved every adventure she had by herself, with her Partner, with her occasional acquaintances, and with the ones she coincidentally crossed paths with. She rarely had done any activities like these. A proper haircut was something she had only gotten a handful of times in all her life in this world. But, now that she was looking at her pretty, her glowing, her fluffy and sexy hair, she couldn''t help but feel¡­ full. "They are so pretty¡­" she touched her new hair gently, and caressed the thin brides Miss Aloha had twisted them in. They were still flowing down her west, but they weren''t messed up and unorganized anymore. They were well organized, moved as she moved and even when she moved around the room, moved using {Blink}, or performed some quick movements, they weren''t hindering her anymore. Only a few of her hair were braided in long pretty braids, many of them were making an attractive pattern independently as well as when seen as one, and they had a special shine now¨C a shine that they did not have often. "Thanks, miss Aloha." She almost got emotional seeing her pretty hair, and thanked the one who had made them like that. This was genuinely much more than she was expecting. Much more than she wanted. And perhaps much more than she deserved. "Huhu. Come back anytime you want. I still want to try a bunch of other things with that pretty hair." "Hehe, I''ll try my best." She could not promise her, since she did not even know where this journey of hers will take her or when she will get the chance to come back to this pretty place. But she still said she would try. So, she was definitely at least going to try her best to come back this time around. "Oh, and thanks for that one as well." Miss Aloha was done with both their haircuts. And though unlike her long hair, Elio''s styling was much simpler and plain, he somehow looked much more attractive than he did before they entered this place. His natural light brown hair was not a mess anymore. They were properly short now. Their raw ends were trimmed and set just the way they should, and looking at them now, she did not feel annoyed anymore. Now, his pretty green eyes were showing more brightly. The face that they extracted the dirt and oil from was as clear as it was outside the game, with the sophisticated lines of his clean face back to the game. "They are perfect." "Just as they should, huhu." He did not expect her to be so good with this. She was even better than his usual stylist that he had been going to for the past five years. The way she had carefully cut the unwanted long strands, then set the front, side, and upper sections one by one, not hindering the roots of the hair too much was just¡­ perfect. There was nothing for him to complain about. And there was nothing for him to criticize. From his standards or from the standards of any artist, this was good. Great perhaps. "Thanks for this, miss Aloha." He bowed to her just like she had a moment ago, and expressed his thanks for not just the haircut. [Ding] [You have received a special haircut for the first time! Rewarding Exp.] [You have received a special haircut from a [Master] for the first time! Rewarding Exp.] [Ding.] [Resonance effect of the special haircut had resulted in unique effects.] [Experience accumulation by hunting (+10%).] [Experience accumulation by quests (+10%).] [Charm +12.] [Attraction of opposite genders to you will be increased.] [Mana accumulation rate and spell potency will be increased by an additional (12%).] "These are some of my best works, actually. But it''s all thanks to the amazing hair you two have." She liked their hair and she liked their story as well. She was not going to earn money from them, but getting this amazing couple as her friends was nothing less than a fortune. Their story was quite touching to her as well¨C they were good children. "Right. You still have to look after a lot of preparations, right? You should take your leave now that we are done." However much she wanted them to stay and have another long chat with her young friends, she had already taken a lot of their hours today. There was an event and a festival being held in her little town and they were looking after a lot of people, a lot of work, and a lot of preparations. "Right. We still have to eat dinner." "We had a wonderful time here, miss Aloha. Thanks again for everything." She knows she will get her chance someday and when that time comes, she will have them all for herself for hours¡­ "I had a blast as well, huhuhu~." But for now, they had more important things they needed to look after. S~ea??h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 77 - 77: The Library event Streets filled with laughing children. Parents who hid the sadness deep within their hearts as they traveled the streets, telling their children to stop running. A bright clear blue sky, refreshing air filled with joy and laughter, a festive smell in the atmosphere, and voices of vendors announcing their discounted goods to the world. An unseasonal festival had arrived in Moongold. And the townsfolk had welcomed it with open arms. "Woh! Let''s go there next!" "Have you tried the town''s speciality? The white creamy skewers?" "Damn, even the blacksmith is giving a big discount today! I should have saved some funds for a new sword!" There was joy in the air. Natives weren''t in their houses today like they had been until a few days ago. They walked the streets with their families, offered their condolences to the ones who had lost someone in the battle, and throughout the town, there were events being held in the memories of the fallen heroes; without whom, this town might not have been present as it is right now. The main streets as well as the important places in the town were all decorated not with the simple decorations that would be removed, thrown out, or destroyed after this festival, but with solid wood, rock, and metal¨C things that might not disappear even after a decade of natural corrosion. The names of the fallen heroes were engraved on these various structures that were now part of the important places like the mages'' tower, the knight''s hall, the guard''s office, or of the main townhall. These decorations, carved from the wood in the form of an archway, from the stone in the form of effigies, and molded in various objects like gates, fences, post boxes present in some locations, and decoratives of high quality when made from the metals, were now part of this town. The loved ones and family members as well as acquaintances of the fallen heroes had worked hard in the creation of these things and their acquainted players had supported them immensely thanks to either their connection with these natives, or to get the tokens that were being distributed for all kinds of help they provided. "Muhahahah! I got a hundred tokens already! Hahaha!" "Man¡­ being a woodcutter or fisherman is better. Ughh. I regret not learning anything now." "Even the mages are doing well¡­" The token could be exchanged for various things. Swords with good boosted options, armours with great defense, weapons with various skills, magic scrolls, potions, as the best things, the mayor was even personally offering a small property, a house in this town for the one who managed to collect more than three thousand tokens¨C but, technically, there was only going to be one, or two maximum individuals who will be able to achieve that goal. "Miss Rin? Won''t you go out and have some fun as well?" Thanks to Alex''s impeccable plans and documents that she provided to the mayor, they were able to form a kind of reward system that usually takes weeks to create for an event of this scale in just a few days. And for her help, they were even more grateful to them both. "Oh no dear. There''s too many people outside today and there''s not really anything we have to do outside either. We might come to the library later, but not right now. For now, I will be staying here." Misha was looking after Az and Miu, playing with them around the streets outside and Miss Rin was just looking after them from the balcony. She was enjoying the view outside today, and there was a smile on her face. Just seeing her child running around happily down there was fun for her, and she wanted to do that instead of going out for today. "Oh¡­ if that''s the case, we will be going ahead." Alex was waiting for him downstairs already so he said his polite greeting and walked down as well. The Library event was today as well so there was already a festive atmosphere around the town. People were all going to gather around the library to see the players and the natives who participate in the event that will be broadcasted to the outside for the spectators. Not many will get the chance to witness the event directly since the library cannot accommodate everyone while the event is going on, so, many of those interested would be gathering all around the plaza surrounding the grand library. However, since both of them were going to participate, they will be inside. "Took you long enough." Today, she was dressed not like a swordsman, or a knight but, as a proper lady. "You look pretty as well. I''m sure there will be a few that will come to confess their eternal love to you today." "I know right? Huuu¡­ being so hot is so exhausting~." She was wearing a dark purple dress. A very expensive dark purple dress. It resembled the finely made dresses of those noble ladies of high society and, if one did not know enough, they would think that the jewels, gold, and platinum this dress was adorned with was all just fake. Only the eyes that were familiar with luxury could tell this thing was made with the finest materials and even fewer would be able to tell that this dress was made with the hands of many experienced [Masters] of their fields. "Haaa. But look at you, Elio. No elegance, no style, just the same old fashioned stuff." He was a picky person that did not just wear anything that he got his hands on. There weren''t many options for male clothes in this small town and even the dress that Alex was wearing was something one would only find in a big city. They did go around looking for anything that he found interesting, and even asked Miss Aloha for some suggestions. But nothing passed his picky style. "You like me plain and pretty, so I don''t really mind." At the end, he settled with a plain white shirt that he found in an antique shop- a one star item that increases stamina and energy regeneration rate. A plain black trousers that fitted his fine legs fairly tightly, looking not too big and not too tight¨C it was a perfect fit. The trousers weren''t an item but they were bought from one of the most luxurious stores so, he got some Exp for the experience. Then, he chose a pair of black shoes from the Many pairs of special shoes she had, which were an item with the skill {Sidestep} engraved on them. To add to that, he was wearing his pretty bracelet with a healing skill, a ring that Alex gave him with a necessary (Spell Slot) ability- a rare consumable item where one could save Three spells of (tier-2) or six spells or (tier-1). He looked quite simple in that plain outfit. The white-black went perfectly with his light skin tone, his light hair, and those deep green eyes were a strawberry on the cake. "You do look hot, yup. I don''t mind that either." She actually learned how to dress from him so he was the one with more fashion sense between them. If they had the chance, he would have dressed even better to match her flashy dress, but sadly, they couldn''t do it this time. "Then my great lovely lady¡­ shall we?" He gracefully asked for her hand. sea??h th§× nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Of course not~." And she gracefully refused his romantic gesture. "Hehe, don''t do those funny things lol." After laughing at his funny gesture, she simply shook her head and grabbed his hand as he interlocked their fingers. "Oh, wait, should we remove them-." "It''s fine with me. I don''t mind them wrapped in these silky things." They were also wearing matching gloves to their outfit, so she thought Elio, who adores her hands a little too much, would want them unclothed. "You really are one messed up pervert, aren''t ya baby?" Sadly, she underestimated her partner''s ''preferences'' this time as well. Chapter 78 - 78: The Librarian "She was happy." "You don''t need them for this one. We aren''t going to fight anything anyway." "Is that so?" Elio did his research on the event that was being held in the library today. He did not know how big a deal it was for the players, but now that he knew about it, he wasn''t surprised after seeing so many players around the library today. "The event is all about knowledge and talent." The great library of Moongold did not exist until just over a few decades ago. The town itself was not that old, it barely had a hundred years of history. "In the past, the Southwestern lands were home to the [Beasts of Bronze Age]. it was a grassland that extended from the border to the empire''s western gateway to the edge of the western continent." "But a few centuries ago, a [Mythical creature] burned that eternal grassland to ashes." "It was something unprecedented. History books record it as [Lamentation of crimson flames]." Not much is known about that incident, but overall, the flames burned over half of the grasslands and the creatures that lived here. "The rest of the creatures moved down to the south and settled in the area that is now known as [Valley of bronze]." One of the highest ranking hunting grounds that few players in the entire game dares to approach. "Well¡­ that must have been some amazing event." As they traveled to the library''s entrance for the registration of the event and stood in the long line, Elio was lost in his own thoughts. He was chatting with her, replying to her words, but he did not even know that the line was moving forward. She was behind him so she was pushing him forward whenever the line moved forward. "Wow¡­" "He''s so handsome, oh holy lord~!" "Are they together? ¡­of course they would be together. Haaa." "These are times when you believe the saying ''world is fair to all'' actually makes some sense." "The Beauty¡­ truly is eternal, hun?" They were receiving all the attention any well dressed attractive people standing in a line with common players would. He was pretty, and in that dress, with that hair, there was no way anyone would not be attracted to these people. Most of them were still new players so they must not be familiar with the actual beauty standards of this world by which, even with that dress and those looks, she would only be called fairly good looking. There were people in this world who were a sky and sea more attractive and charming than either of them. She knew they all will see it themselves when they move on to their first city and see the noble society there so, she did not pay much attention to the gazes. She knew she was pretty and that her boyfriend was a hottie, so she just pushed him forward and enjoyed his absent expression. He was thinking of the glorious past of this world¨C but, what he knew and what one could find in the community was not even a tenth of what those high level players who had done countless quests and had been through countless experiences over these past years knew about this world. She, especially as a special player, knew a lot more about this world than even most of the other players. Still, just like many other high rankers, even she could never even hope to achieve the kind of understanding of this world as THEY did. The players did not call them the only true for nothing. "The Empire claimed the burned lands of Southwest and after assigning many areas under various regional lords, the crown assigned this particular area to the Viscount family." "Moongold was established, and then, one day, an old man came to this not so famous town." Moongold was not as popular as it is right now before the arrival of the players, or a hundred years ago. But the first time it started changing was when a library unlike any other the town''s people had seen in their lifetime appeared in the middle of their town out of nowhere. "The Librarian, the sole maintainer of this library, was apparently someone that was recently starting to gain popularity in those times." "Didn''t you say he received a trial from some god?" "No, he must be just a crazy bastard that ''thought'' he received a revelation from the heavens." According to her perspective, the only reason he would ever spend everything he had and build an empty library to fill it with books would be because he had gone senile. "He was almost like a Saint in the wars. He could have built his own nation if he wanted." When a human evolves into a higher species, they either become a [Saint] who had received the revelation of the world, or a [High Human] who had surpassed the inherent limitations of the world and gone beyond the mortal capabilities¨C as myths says. "But instead, he made this Small library." No one knew if either of them were true or not, but the players were always looking out for the authenticity of these myths. The event was announced right when she got to this town right after she came back to the inn after checking up the library. She did not get to read much, but she knew the library surely was filled with some good things. Some of those things were so good they deserved to be showcased in a bigger place where people could see it, not in this small town. Not many people would understand the value some of those items held, but she did. And the fact that they were in this small beginner town instead of some good city just infuriated her. "The librarian is just an old crazy bastard." Gods existed in this world, sure. She did believe that. The operating AIs were the same as gods here as well. S§×ar?h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. But, she did not like how this amazing person¨C someone who had played a great role in many of the past ''main scenarios'' had tied himself down to this damned place. She did not know what kind of ''trial'' he might have received, but it surely was a different kind of ''trial'' than what she was following. "Is he though? Then, why does he look so majestic?" "Hmm?" [Ding!] All the people in the surrounding area of the library including the players and natives received a system notification as soon as Elio said that. And then, a [Familiar] manifested atop the Great Library of Moongold, the archive of forgotten records¨C the Treasury of a Hidden Saint. Chapter 79 - 79: The Familiars Reaching (Level-100) was a big thing even after so many years of the game''s release. Those of (Level-100) and beyond were called the elites of the smaller guilds and someone that was eligible to become a member of the bigger guilds. The rankers were all people who had received a second awakening, meaning those who had crossed (Level-200). And there were only around two hundred or so such ''known'' people. Those who had crossed that level and were not officially on the [Unified ranking] were called ''Hidden rankers''. And, only the top thirty of those in the unified rankings were called a high ranker, those who had crossed (Level-300) and received the recognition of the world and third third awakening. Those were the Legends that had achieved a Legendary achievement and were known throughout the world. The players did not know about the existence of any hidden High ranker, however, it was said that they existed in this world. Just like the many natives that had also received a third awakening, these special individuals were also more experienced, more knowledgeable, and more special than the known Players of the unified rankings. Still, they were merely players¡­ S~ea??h the N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [You have been affected with status abnormality: Reverence.] [You have encountered a [Spirit beast] for the first time. Rewarding Exp.] [All other status abnormalities will be subdued in the presence of Reverence.] [In the presence of the Spirit Beast, you witness the profound unity of nature''s raw power and ethereal grace¨C a reminder that the most extraordinary wonders are often born from the most mysterious depths of existence.] Familiars are the creatures that a few fortunate ones meet after receiving their very first awakening. These unique beings, different from the beasts and creatures of nature, are unique existences that the world recognizes as one''s ''Partner'' a part of one''s soul and existence. They are simple beings of nature before meeting their fated partners, but the moment they meet, they evolve and with the blessing of nature, become something unique. "A Physical existence that is also a spirit. A rare being born on the boundary of the Spirit world and the physical world." Some players find their familiars in nature, some meet them through fated encounters, some use established methods to meet them, and some¡­ similar to a magic wand, just coincidentally come to one another. Some players take days to find their partners while some take years. But they meet. When the time arrives for their meeting, they do meet. "For me, it was three years." For three years of in-game time, Alex wandered all over the world in the search of her partner. She met many beings, many creatures on her journey, but she only found her partner when she was least expecting it. "Let''s quickly reach (Level-100) so that I can finally call my cutie back." On the towering library, a bird so big it covered the entire plaza under its fantastical wings resembling a starry night sky had manifested along with¡­ a man. A young looking man with bright fair skin, No beard, deep blue- almost purple hair, and star-like obsidian eyes, behind his round spectacles. His sharp face was so handsome that the ladies who had all come here just to see him could not help but admire his beauty even under the effect of the strong debuff from the librarian''s familiar Spirit beast. The shining silver coat he was wearing along with the matching pants, and those black gloves upon which he was wearing those rings and jewelries seemed so attractive that neither Alex nor Elio were anywhere close to his standards. He was also wearing a blue shirt under his coat¨C and it attracted even more attention. "Being a sorcerer in this world comes with quite some privileges, Elio. This world is sometimes just as unfair as the outside one." The Librarian of the grand Library and his familiar. Both of them were over a century old and still, the one that they were seeing right now looked in his late twenties. He was pretty and the clothes and stuff that he was wearing made her jelly. And the familiar¨C she could not summon her little cutie due to the restrictions so that poor little one was just stuck in the special dimension that every familiar goes to in the absence of the players in this world. Familiars become part of the players, so when the players aren''t in this world the familiars are not either. But, her situation was a little different. "You and your complicated stuff, haaa¡­" Elio was back to the present and he had moved away from the line to get a good angle for a screen shot. Almost everything had become frozen after the appearance of the two of them, and the scene right now¨C the majestic Sorcerer wizard, the librarian of the grand library floating above them before his unique partner that Elio could only admire¨C was so amazing that just one angle was not going to quench his excitement. He wanted to record it from different angles and click some live screenshots from a higher angle. But it was just not possible with the current state of the things around him. "I wish I could fly¡­" If that was possible, he would have clicked an amazing photo from high ground. "Learn flying magic then, dummy. It''s only a (tier-4) spell so you should be able to cast it by the time you get to (Level-100)." "Well¡­" Flying magic was a thing, yes he knew. But that was not the kind of flying he was talking about. And she knew that as well. { "I appreciate your presence in this place, everyone." } A voice resonated all across the plaza and was heard by every single player and natives. { "It seems like we have more participants this time than what we had expected. The older methods would not work this time." } This was inherently different from the authoritative but trustworthy voice of the Mayor. The Librarian was not supposed to come out until the end of the event, and summoning his familiar was something even Alex or the other older players like Miss Aloha were expecting to see. The voice that they were hearing right now was purely a voice that indicated deep wisdom and power as well, so new flowers of admiration were blooming across the plaza. All the players present here could at least tell that the being that they were facing right now was no normal thing. Both the bird and the librarian were the same individuals that they had all wanted to meet at least once in this town, and now that they were before these two, they could tell even the exaggerated rumors and stories about the two were severely downplayed. The old librarian did not look old at all, and his amazing familiar¨C the special creature that had captivated the hearts and minds of most of the individuals present¨C was nothing but a being of admiration. { "I''d like to make things a little easier." } The plaza was filled with people right now and all of them were here to participate in the event. If they were to stand in this line all day, they would only finish the registration by the end of the day, and they cannot have it. They had to wrap up the things by the end of dusk. The Treasury would only stay open in the first few moments when the golden moon is shining down on them. The librarian cannot have things going out of their schedule, so he used his powers. [Ding.] [Do you wish to register for the unique event quest: (Conqueror of mind maze)?] [Accepting the quest would transfer you to the event location directly.] He was the strongest individual in this town as well as someone so strong that he was once the centerpoint of a Main scenario. He was no simple being either¡­ "At least he still has his smart ass." But Alex still did not like him all that much. Chapter 80 - 80: A mind maze { "We shall start early so that we get some moments to spare before the arrival of the golden moon." } Many players did not even think about anything anymore and just accepted the quest as soon as the golden quest window appeared before them. They were excited already, and if they were to skip the line and start directly, wasting time would only make them fall behind the others. "Wow. Look at these excited people." It did not even take five minutes for the plaza to clear up. Only the players that were still admiring the pretty librarian and his pretty partner were left there along with the two of them. The spectators who were finding a place to sit around the plaza just rejected the quest and found a nice place now that the plaza was empty. And, since they knew the event started earlier than it should have, they knew this was their chance to secure the best seats before the others arrived there after hearing the news of the event. They were lucky, but unlike them, the ones who still had the quest window open before them were thinking what to do. "We will have to do this alone, right?" "Some will get together in groups and will have to do things in groups, but it''s mostly random. We might not meet till the end." Standing in the line was tiring and the crowd made them sweaty in their pretty clothes, so they first cooled down and drank some water before helping one another tidy up their clothes and hair. "What if we do meet?" "It would be fun, I guess? It''s not like we will have to fight or anything so if we do meet, we will compete for the better score." The event was going to be simple. They will be placed inside the library that will temporarily be spatially modified into a highly complex maze. The spectators will see the library as a normal place, but inside the minds of the participants, it will be a whole different world¨C of course though, the spectators will see what the players are seeing as well through the display screens. The Mind maze, as the players call it, was a special technique of the Librarian¡ª the arcane weaver. He was born a sorcerer and he studied magic, the world, the truths, and the past into detail, gaining control over the world altering powers of [Arcanum]¡ª the special energy that was like Mana, but more ancient and Natural. S~ea??h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He created this special energy world for the participants that was as real as any reality for the ones participating in the event. "Then, shall we?" They would be dropped in random locations throughout the library that had now turned into a giant maze, and they would have to come out of it. The system will assign them ''stars'' according to their performance and since its system is supported, there''s no need for them to worry about anything like cheating or miscalculations. The librarian used the quest method exactly because he also understood basic human nature better than the others. He was a human at the end of the day as well, so there wasn''t much that he had left to understand about these simple beings. "Yeah. Let''s go." The two of them knew how players would have reacted had this not been supported by the system as well. "Then, good luck I guess." She was smirking right now, and he understood that provocative smirk very well. "I''ll do my best, remember that." "It depends on the starts you get, darling. And there are more than one kind of star." Above them, the librarian was looking down at the ground, at this particular couple dressed in attractive clothes. He could tell the boy was a curious one right after he saw him moving freely even in the presence of his familiar. And the girl¡­ he had a feeling that he had seen that girl somewhere. But he could not remember for certain so he was contemplating as he looked at her black hair, those familiar blue eyes, and especially¡­ that white sword she was carrying as an accessory at the back of her dress. The attractive sword had somehow become the part of her dress from the way it was set on the dress, it was unique and though one could not tell that it was a weapon with their simple eyes, as the bearer of those unique eyes, he could certainly tell that it was no simple sword. But, he could not tell anything more about that weapon. It was a sword and that was it. Even his special eyes could not tell how precious or worthless that unique sword was¡­ which confused him even more than his distant memory of the owner of that weapon. "Let''s see who gets more than." The event was called [Appreciation of blessed talents]. The venue for the event was going to the mind maze that the Librarian created inside of the library. Those who performed well and earn good stars will obtain something that they ''needed the most'' in their current state to move forward depending on their contributions. The criteria was unknown, but they knew if they performed well enough, aside from the things that they could obtain from the treasury, they might also get to choose something from the library. "Good luck to you too, Miss Alexandra." They both pressed the accept quest button and vanished from the plaza, vanishing from the eyes of the Librarian and the Spirit beast as well. "How amusing¡­" The librarian was confused but there was a smile on his face right now. He looked beside him at his partner before closing his eyes and looking at the situation inside of the library. There were hundreds of people participating this time around. More than half of the total player population of the Moongold and a sixth of natives were participating this time. If it wasn''t for his continuously expanding spatial magic, they might not have been able to accommodate so many people into that relatively small place. There weren''t many people this time around, just like he knew there would be. But, he was only interested in the results that these individuals show to them, to the world, and to the people watching them. Last time the event was held, the player did not have much information about it or knew the actual importance of it, but this time, they knew. And since they knew there were amazing rewards waiting for them, without knowing what actually they are walking into, they started the trial that was presented to them, and appeared inside the mage where they will face quests, quizzes, puzzles, and most importantly¡ª trials of the (Forgotten enigmas). Chapter 81 - 81: Trials of wisdom and talent The Library was quite a large place from the inside, enough to fill the players that were in there. It could freely accommodate hundreds of people daily, and since there were three floors of the grand structure, the place was certainly one of the most attractive places in the entire Moongold. Most players that came to this town were interested in books. There were certainly libraries in the cities but to have a library in a small town like this one was a rare thing. "Looks like I''m alone." Participants were scattered all across the Maze that created the magic of the Librarian, and even though they were technically still inside of the library, what they were seeing before them varied greatly from a simple library structure. [Ding.] [Quest Objective: Escape the Maze.] A simple message appeared before Elio as he found himself standing in the middle of a wide road with empty bookshelves on both sides. The bookshelves on both sides were tall and though he could see the glass ceiling of the library, there was something more that he could ''perceive'' thanks to his {Mana senses}. "Is this what they call Arcanum?" As he could feel with his special senses, there was a unique energy surrounding this entire place. The ground beneath him, the bookshelves that looked empty, even the ceiling. Everything was somehow covered in this special energy and he could tell this was no simple Mana. He looked around and tried using some magic, but there was nothing wrong with anything. He could cast his magic just as normally as he could outside of the library, he could also circulate his Mana normally so, there really wasn''t anything special going on. Aside from this unique dense energy surrounding everything around him, there was nothing wrong with anything here. "Well then¡­" He folded the sleeves of his white shirt one more time, revealing his muscular forearms, and carefully couched down to the ground, placing his ear to the carpet covered floor. "Hmmm¡­" There were two ways he could go: forward or backward to where he was right now. This was an endless looking straight road so, he had to make a choice, and he had his own ways of doing that. "There are no movements around it seems." Thanks to Mana, his senses had heightened so he could perceive even the small sounds and vibrations in his surroundings if he focused well. He could not see anything or anyone here anyway, so he was going with the traditional method. Sear?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Hmmm." The first trick did not work, everything around him was normal, so he took out a normal twig from his inventory, something that Alex used during her demonstration when she was showing them the magic series, and placed it on the ground while holding it from one end. "Going forward is usually the most common thing¡­" But as he released the twig and it fell to the ground pointing not frontwards but to the back, he had made his choice. "Let''s go." Instead of the path that was placed right before him, he walked back without hesitation. Catching the attention of many of the spectators who had been watching him and the other participants of the trial. They were surprised how he was going in a direction after making a conscious choice instead of others who were walking as they liked or saw appropriate. He knew the path forward would be the path that was taken most of the time, but that was not where he wanted to go. "Hmm? Looks like I was right." He chose a path, he made a decision, and that decision of his led him to a book. "The article said the books will give tests." There were three ways to earn a star in this event. First was to complete the trails that one comes across, second was to showcase their talents¨C be it anything, writing, singing, simping, sculpting, woodcarving, hunting, weapon techniques, magic. There was no ''border'' to these talents. Anyone can do anything that they want in the designated places that they would find on their paths. The main objective was to get out of the maze, and passing the trials of the books and getting recognition from the audience for their talent showcase will give them clues. The maze was not like the normal mazes since it was made with a special kind of magic, so to get out of there, they would need certain kinds of special methods. Everyone was going to have a unique way they get out of this place, and they will get stars based on how they do it, but the clues were going to play a big role if anyone wanted to follow the traditional method like Elio did. "Let''s see¡­" He picked up the book, and a bright blue light blasted from it as soon as he did that. -Oooooooooooooooong¡­! The light soon died down, and when he opened his eyes once again, the book in his hand was gone. [Q: What does Dawn look like?] A message window was now present before him, and in his hand, there was a feather pen. "?" There was no paper or even inkpot but there was a feather pen in his hands now. And, from how the message window was showing a Question, he could tell he would have to answer that question. But, to answer¡­ was he supposed to write on the message window? "..." He tried it, but that was not the case. This was just a normal message window and the tip of his feather pen just passed right through it. "Where am I supposed to write then?" He was confused about what he was supposed to do. There was no quill, there was no paper. All he could see around him was wood and though he had paper in his inventory, he did not think he was supposed to use what he had for this test. There was something else. The answer to his question was going to be somewhere around him as well. He just had to find it, so he searched the empty shelf where he found the book, but, even after a few minutes of searching, he did not find either paper or any ink. And it confused him¡­ "That''s not it." He was given a feathered pen with a sharp and strong looking tip. This was not a quill or a pencil but a specific kind of pen that was used in the older times. It was specifically used to write important things on parchment or costly paper. There was something he was missing¡­ So he looked around once again. "The book is not here anymore." The window only had a question so it was not related to the system directly either. "The shelves are empty." The carpet beneath his feet was not something one can write anything on even if they had a magical nail that worked as good as a pen. He could use magic-. "Oh. That''s right!" He could use magic. And grace series: toughness enhancement spells as well as sharpness enhancement spells were one of them. If he paired them with this already sturdy looking feather pen, he could just write on these shelves! There was practically an endless paper before him if that was the case. "Let''s try it." It was a dumb idea, but he at least tried it. There was a question that the book left for him, and he just had to answer the simple question. That much was not going to be too difficult. Chapter 82 - 82: Different objective Different from the others participating in the event, Alex found herself surrounded by shelves filled with hundreds of books. -Swish. There was only enough space for her to move in a square as she was surrounded by wall like shelves full of books on all four sides. They were too tall so just jumping up and crossing them was not an option and there was a barrier covering the above part anyway, so climbing was not yet an option. -Swish. Swish. However, she was not stuck in this place. Many of the books around here were task books that gave out trials and she just had to find those books. It was a simple task and she had time. She was smart as well so she had already read a lot of books present around her right now. All that she needed to do, thus, was find the books that did not have any title or did not belong in the categories they were organized on the shelves. One of the trials will be about the barrier and about getting out of there, so, it was not that difficult of a task at all. At least for someone like her this was not that big a deal. She knew how to get out of this test, but that was not what she had come here to do. -Swish! Swish! Swish! She was here to get the most stars- to get the best possible reward and the opportunity to get something that this bastard librarian had. She needed that thing for their future. Their future expeditions all depended on it. Things would be a little too complex and difficult if she fails to get her hands on that thing and the only way she could get it from this library, from this place protected by someone she could not defeat as she had in the past, was through this competition. She surely would be fighting against some of the most talented people present in this town, and the trials, by their inherent nature, favored those who had unique talent, someone that was smart and was learning new things through these trials. Not many people knew it, but these trails were aimed at the growth of the individuals participating in this event. The main goal of this competition was to help these new players, these stars who were just starting their journey in this new world, these stars who were hot and full of potential grow past their current limitations. The trails were not random. They were assigned to one after the system analyzed their past achievements, their current talents, and their ''nature''. She knew how these trails and quests worked, so she knew they were not going to be any helpful to someone who had gone past the level of a ''normal'' player already. She was not the same as the rest of the players. If anything, she was closer to the librarian, perhaps even beyond that person. -Oooooooooooooooooooooooong! The only thing she wanted from this place was a certain item that was not in the insignificant treasury of the librarian but on the main display of his very desk¨C something that everyone saw but none, not even the best players, not even the librarian himself knew the true value of. She wanted that thing, and the only thing she could get it, was through doing something crazy. -Crrrr¡­! -Krrrak¨Ckrrak¡­! Since the moment she arrived in this enclosed space, she had started gathering the energy in her body and channeling that energy through a normal sword that her darling bought her yesterday. She had become unfathomably weaker after falling down to the normal level, but she had not forgotten a thing she had larnet with her hundreds of hours of effort. She had put her heart, sweat, blood, tears, even soul into learning those things. She might not have her Aura, she might not access her familiar, she might not have the kind of skills she had until just recently, but she was still someone that every single high ranker of this world recognised. [Ding!] [You have successfully integrated three skills and created a new skill!] [You have earned a great achievement!] [Granting total accumulated Exp!] [Granting achievement: Weaver of skills (Rare).] [Granting achievement: Flawless creator of superior skill (Rare).] [Achievement boxes will be added to your inventory.] "{Energy Smash} is effective, as I expected. I should thank him for giving me the skill." If he had not given her the {Smash} skill, she would not have been able to create this new skill by integrating her Sword intent, Energy infusion, and the Smash. The simple sounding task of skill combination was one of the hardest tasks in the game and not many players could do it even if they wanted to because of the limitations of their will, concentration, and incompatibility. Skill combination was not as simple as Skill creation. Creating something and combining something existing into one and creating a new thing altogether were totally different things. Even when it came to skills, it was not easy¡­ at least until you had already done it before. Then it becomes as simple as using that skill. "Sadly, it consumes an awful lot of energy." Her energy level almost bottomed out after using just one skill. Which was bad. She had supplements to replenish her lost energy but spending all that energy for just one use of a skill was not effective. Consumables were a temporary solution, as she knew the best. She needed to become stronger and improve her energy levels. Reaching (Level-50) and obtaining {Aura} was her next goal, but for now, she was going to obtain the most starts in this event. "The barrier is gone now." She took her time, but at the end, she obtained a skill that could shatter even the strong (tier-3) barrier that was blocking her. "Let''s get going." When she destroyed the barrier, all the books that contained the trials, as she confirmed, vanished from the shelves. "{Blink}." The reason she chose to destroy the powerful barrier instead of finishing all the trails present was because of how this place worked. The system and the librarian helped them get better, but if there was someone that was so good that they could destroy even the barrier that even the guard captain might find difficult to breach, then there was no need to block them there anymore. She knew the librarian personally so she knew just what kind of person he was, so she knew how he and the designed system would give out stars. -Swish. She was the smart one between them. She was not going to slave away and do as the trials and He wanted them to. She was going to get what she wanted even if she had to do some Unconventional things for it. On that note¡­ Sear?h the N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Done. Finally." Elio was finally done writing his answer to the question that the book of trial had left for him. "Haaaa." Writing on Fifteen shelves with the feather pen was not easy, but he finished it in less than an hour. And, though he did not know how they were going to judge it, he was done with his task. So he moved forward to the next location on the path of his choice as well¡­ Chapter 83 - 83: Understanding Art His long essay began with the description of what Dawn is, what do we mean when we say dawn, and after explaining the basics, the word, the science, and the symbolic meaning of the word Dawn, he expressed what the word Dawn meant to him. He described how dawn meant a new beginning, how it meant the end of a perilous time, something personal and something that captivated even the Librarian who had read countless books, knew a lot of things¡ª someone with the most experience of this world in this place. He liked the topic, so he poured his heart into the writing that was carved on the empty wooden shelves. He had written no more than three six thousand or so words. It wasn''t much compared to the millions of words he had written in his lifetime. And this time, unlike how he would usually do, he had also not written the answer in the way that he usually does. He was a good writer, but more than that, he was someone who loved art. Someone who appreciated the existence of this world more than any individuals out there. "What do you think?" "Hruuu?" The Librarian was still looking at the compiled copy of the text that was now present on the desk that was created with his own magic. "Hruuuu." "That''s right. This test did not need one to write on the wood." They just had to answer the question, so writing on a paper of his own or something similar that one could write on was going to be acceptable. The reason there was no ink or paper there in the first place, was because the feather pen that he was using did not need something like that. It was special so even if he tried writing on the carpet, he would have been able to write with it. But, he found a different method that the librarian did not expect he would see. "Hruuuu." "That''s right. His magic was pretty good." S§×arch* The N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He had seen countless mages in his life, so he could tell the casting method that he was using, though it relied on his amazing memory, was something different from simple memorizing. "Do you think he will do something similar in this trial as well?" As the afternoon approached in the Moongold, the town was becoming a little quieter. Spectators in a large number had gathered in the plaza around the Library. Magical screen a little different from the system screen was broadcasting things that were happening with those who had participated in the event. Even inside the library, the special guests like the Mayor and his family, some special guests from the Viscount noble family, some important Foreigners who had established a special connection with the librarian over the years, were seeing everything through the magical vision of the librarian. They were at the top floor of the library, looking down at the various things happening in the various parts of the unique Mind maze. Getting the opportunity to watch all this from so close was nothing less than an honor. The Librarian was a special person that did not have any extraordinary connection with anyone. He was a simple person, a strict follower of his own rules. These people who had been invited here might know that person a little, but he was still not someone any of them could have any kind of close connection with. Even a private meeting with him was just as difficult to them as it was for the rest of the people. "Hruuuuu." The Librarian was also looking at everything happening with his special bird from the top of the library. And, though just like the rest of them he was also seeing every participant almost simultaneously with his unique vision, he was paying attention to two particular individuals. "I don''t think getting that topic was just luck though." Elio was now faced with the second trial that was a little more difficult than the previous one where he had to choose a certain ''caterpillar'' from the dozen that was presented before him. The trial this time was about a choice, and there were no additional details of it. He just had to choose, and that would be enough. But the Stars that he will get will completely depend on the reasoning by which he chooses the one. "Think about it. What if he had some other kind of question?" The question that was asked to him first was very simple, yet he answered it in so detail that it did not make any sense from a normal player''s point of view. He did not receive the hint that he was supposed to since the librarian was immersed in reading his answer until now, it was postponed until he clears his second trial. "Hruuuu¡­" His familiar believed that the answer that he presented was just a stroke of luck. He could write well about something and understood something good enough. He was lucky to have that topic as his first question so, the unique being did not give him as much credit as the Librarian. And since it was a wrong way of thinking, his master was trying to show his friend what it was missing. "Look what he''s doing." The Caterpillars that he had to choose from were all of different kinds, colors, race, and they also had a unique power. One could not choose one of them until they knew the power that they contained¨C at least to make this kind of decision, they needed a little more information. And, trying to gather this information was nothing less than a form of art. "Do you remember when I told you about the meaning of art?" People would usually try and see what kind of powers the caterpillars had by provoking them into using those powers. Some would try established methods that would not harm the individuals, while some would just recklessly choose the one that They found attractive. This trial was not about that. "Art is not how well you can perform something, how well you can write, or how well you can create something." The young man was not provoking the little creatures or was treating them like the repulsive creatures they were. He had taken out some snacks from his inventory, and he was chatting with them. Someone who could write so well that it could even captivate someone like the librarian had a warm smile on his face, and he was chatting with the creatures that humans otherwise would not even spare a glance to before crushing them under their feet. "Art is the humbleness to accept the existence of insignificant creatures. The ability to appreciate the inevitability of change and decay. Art, as I understand Heliox, is the ability to let go." Letting go of the conventional thinking, erasing the borders and boundaries that were never imposed on mankind by nature, having the intense desire to not become an element of this ill, twisted society. "To embrace the present, to admire the past, and to wait for a new moment in our lives while contributing something, anything to this present flow¨C that is art." Every being had this inherent right to contribute something to the present, even the beasts that are killed at the hands of hunters every day. "Those who know how to contribute to this flow in the right way, in their own way, with what they consciously knew was right¨C those who understood what their creations would mean to the world even after the present becomes past in that unseen, known future¡­ these individuals, Heliox, are Artists." He wasn''t one of them. He did not have the ability to create anything that would contribute to this perpetual flow. That''s why he had made this library. That was the sole reason he was cherishing this world more than most others, and helping those who had the ability to contribute something to this world with their arduous task. He admired art. And he admired Artists like Him who saw beauty even in the most unintelligent, small, insignificant looking creatures. Chapter 84 - 84: Effects of the titles [Task: Choose one of the beings.] Twelve caterpillars were summoned before me and, well¡­ they were caterpillars. "How do I have to choose one of them? On what basis?" There was no answer when he asked the question, only silence. They were not answering and the task window was frozen in place unlike the previous one that had disappeared. "At least tell me something about them? Is this just a test of confidence? Courage? Decision making? And what do you mean by being? Do these caterpillars represent something else? Is this a choice of some certain thing?" The Trial window had only wanted him to choose one of the creatures, and he could not do it unless he knew what exactly this choice of his would mean. "Well¡­" He needed more information, and if he was not going to get it from the trial, he would have to figure things out himself. "So, what are you, little ones?" He sat down before the twelve insects that were moving on the green carpet, crawling like any normal caterpillar. These creatures were at least not some simple thing that many people might find disgusting or dangerous. They were colorful, all twelve of them had their unique color and there was a strange symbol on their foreheads. Six of them were as big as his palm, while three were a little bigger. The rest of the three were pretty small, but they were the most attractive ones among them. "I should do the observation first¡­" He needed to know something about them and wasting an appraisal scroll on them was neither appropriate nor suitable. He still did not know what this trial wanted from him so he needed to avoid using items as much as he could. "Hmmm." sea??h th§× Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He decided on what he needed to do, admired the cute caterpillars a little, and then started observing them, what they were doing, trying to look at them from different sides, and while he was doing it¡­ [Effects of the title will be applied.] The caterpillars who were only crawling aimlessly around the carpet started showing some interest in him. They started crawling in his direction and in no time, all twelve of them had gathered before him, looking up at this unique yet approachable big human with interest. "Oh?" This was not the first time the effects of the title were triggered for him. Every time he met any creature that was friendly towards humans, was someone else''s pet, or were something that could be tamed, the effects were triggered. He could use this opportunity to tame these creatures if he wanted to, but he did not want to take advantage of the creatures that were only attracted to him because of some unique power that made them interested in him. They did not need to be forced to do something just because of some title''s effect, so, even though he could, he avoided taking advantage of the interests of the creatures. "Hello there." Just like him or any other being, they also deserved their freedom. "How are you all?" He gently petted the little creatures with his gloved hands and smiled at them warmly. "Looks like they aren''t very sensitive to touch." He can tell they could not understand what he was saying either so ultimately, they were not as intelligent as Az or Miu. They were caterpillars and they might soon evolve into a unique lifeform like some butterfly, bee, or something else. He did not know what they were, but at least, they did not seem harmful. "Can you tell me more about yourself?" He placed his palm before them and asked them something that he knew they would not understand anyway. Still, as if to have understood his intentions, one of the big caterpillars with white body and spiky blue fibers covering its body walked on top of his palm. "Hello." He greeted the little creature happily. He did not know what he should do with them, but he at least knew they weren''t harmful to him, so he continued his observation while he showed various edible things he had to the creatures in search of something that they might like. [Ding!] ============ [White Caterpillar]: (Level:12) ============ "Oh? Aren''t you a high level caterpillar?" At least, he was sure they weren''t normal creatures with this. "You''re like a snow leopard." The white one was white like snow and the blue spike seemed like the white leopards that the players could find in the mountain regions around the north of the kingdom. Then there was a red one that seemed like a bright red fish that they can find in the great central lake near one of the most popular main cities. The three smallest ones resembled jewels of various kinds: A dimon, a blue topaz, and an Aquamarine. They were the prettiest of them all and strangely, Elio found them to be especially attractive. Surely they were unattractive caterpillars in some normal eyes, but they were a special natural element in his eyes. They were special, he could tell just that much from his observations. "Oh? Looks like you do eat something after all." And, after a while of showing them various things, all twelve of them strangely reacted to something that he was expecting the least. "Are you like Az then?" The thing that they had reacted to was a Mana crystal, a rare and costly mineral that contained dense Mana inside of them. "Hey wait wait. I have more. Don''t be too exci-." They got a little too excited when he took out that Mana crystal and jumped the human as he fell backwards. It was more costly and special than the Mana stones that Az eats, but he did not mind them having these costly things. He was saving them for sometime later, but he will get some more from Alex later if he needed. "Hahaha, you all are funny." They shared the Mana crystals and it did not take long for them to finish their meals. Watching the little insects eat an important material like these was a unique experience to him, and especially seeing how each of them glowed and produced a unique effect while they were eating. "All of you are (Arcane Silkworms) I see." He was not certain yet, but the unique nature of these creatures was something that was studied extensively by the [Researchers]. They could eat Mana crystals, something that contained dense Mana. While eating, the fibers around their body glowed, indicating a successful instantaneous digestion process. He had not seen them produce the extremely rare kind of silks with unique properties that they were famous for, but he knew they Might be the same creatures that do produce it. And if that was the case¡­ "I cannot choose just one of them. Not even if I wanted to." The test wanted him to choose one of them, but they were so precious that just choosing one of them would be unfair to the rest of these pretty and gentle creatures in every manner possible. [Task: Choose one of the beings.] But the task window was still in the same place it froze as soon as it appeared before him. "Doesn''t seem like I can choose all of them when they specifically mentioned one." This was a problem then. But, he had a solution to this problem. "I''ve made my choice." He did not know what would happen to these precious creatures after his choice, so, did not gamble their lives. And just made a choice¡­ Chapter 85 - 85: Among the spectators "Hehehehe~. There are so many people around here~!" "Muuuu~!" "Miu!" A young girl with short red hair, pretty looks, and a slime in her hand did not get many chances to be around so many people. "Slow down sweetie. You will get hurt." Her mother smiled at her young daughter as she found a good spot for them among the many people around library plaza. There were many people here right now. A big part of the townsfolk were here right now. There were all kinds of noises, cheerful shouts, screams, and shouts of those who saw this as an opportunity and were selling their goods- mostly food and drinks. It was not every day that they got to watch such things in this town. The two of them moved a lot so they were still comparatively new to this town. "Mom! Mom! Look at that! That''s magic, isn''t it!?" Her pretty daughter was looking at the big screens present in the air before the library. Many scenes of things happening inside were showing on these screens as they changed continuously. sea??h th§× ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. A section of the screen was dedicated to some more fun things that many people were watching with great interest. Aside from the bigger screens showing the scenes inside, they were also looking at the isolated screens that were relatively shorter but were showing some special individuals who were showcasing their unique talents. "Yes, that''s magic. Magic of Mr. Librarian to be more precise." "Oh! Mister Librarian! It''s been days since we last saw him~!" "Of course, darling. He was busy with all the preparations." She patted her head when she came back with her new slime and gecko friends, and made her sit down first. Running around so much was not good either. She had been running all around since the morning anyway. Now was the time to rest a little. "Where''s sister and brother? I don''t see either of them~." She squinted her eyes, focused a little to see all the things and people on the big screen and when she did not find the ones she was looking for even on the isolated screens, she looked at her mom with a worried look. "There are a lot of participants, dear. You see how the ones on the screens are changing right? They should also appear soon if you can''t find them right now." "Miu!" "Muuuu~." The slime and the gecko inside the slime agreed with her mom. They were smart and knew when to take her side, so she liked these little ones even more lately. "Sit down. Let''s watch." "Yes Misha~! Sit down~!" "Here! Have some of these potatoes~." "Do you want some sweets, Misha~?" "Misha! I''ve made this bread just for you~." Their neighbors had saved them some places so they did not have to worry about being late. They had been here since the participants went inside, so they had a lot of space. Besides, the lovely neighbors who also had their own shops in the town and adored her daughter could not miss this special chance. It was not everyday an event like this was held in this small town, and it certainly was not everyday that this shy girl came out of her house and smiled so much. She was adorable, as well as polite and kind. So many people all around the town loved her. "Umm¡­ ah¡­ em¡­" Even the girl did not understand what to do when all of the people smiling at her started fighting to give her the gifts. She looked at them, their smiles, and could tell this was a show of their kindness. But she was still not used to this kind of situation. "Aww¡­" So, she just got embarrassed and hid her red face. She did not know how to deal with these kinds of situations, so she just left it to her mom. "She is thankful for your kindness everyone." Everyone found this behavior of hers adorable as well so they smiled at her warmly, just like her mom, and after passing their gifts to her mom, they went back to watching the fun things on the screen. "Misha? Look, it''s your big brother Elio." "Hmm? Where?" She was still not looking up even though they had gone back to watching the event, but as soon as her mom mentioned that name, she looked up excitedly and started searching for Elio in the various screens. "There. Look a little down there in the right corner." She did not find it before, but after her mom pointed it out for her, she instantly noticed the young man in a white shirt. "Az! Miu! Look! Brother Elio!" She lifted up the slime so that the two of them could see him as well¡­ but she forgot for a moment that the two of their senses did not work like the rest of them. Az did not have eyes and Miu did not see with its eyes. One completely relied on emotions, environmental Mana signals, and things that were directly in contact with its slime body, while the other relied on fluctuations of Mana in the surroundings and its {Sixth senses}. Both of them could not ''see'' something that was too far away, especially the magic screens that Misha was showing them. "Miu!" "Muuuuu~." But even though they could not see it, they still cheered on when Misha tried showing it to them. They enjoyed her excitement, and were happy to see their new friend happy. "Is he playing with those cool things by himself? How mean!" As she could see, Elio was with some unique caterpillars that, to someone like her who did not have the same kind of thinking as the usual young teenagers, was something purely amazing. She was happy and excited to see those colorful things. And she wanted to play with them as well, but sadly, he was there all by himself. He was having all the fun alone, and there was only one thing she could do as a spectator. "And that right there, I think, is your big sister." She was bound to this place, to her seat, with her mom. Cheering for them like the others were doing and watching them do all those fun things was all that she could do. "She''s having fun as well, it seems." She was envious of someone for the first time in her life perhaps. She also wanted to have fun like them... Chapter 86 - 86: Following trials The trials for all the participants were different. And, it was not like everyone had received a trial. This event focused on the individual growth and evaluation of the talent and wisdom that one possessed. One was not limited to anything when they were inside that place. So all the players who found an appropriate place to showcase everything that they had, were showing what they could do. The Stars were the end goal here. And showing the best they can do, might just be the way to the most stars. Many of them weren''t even trying to get out of the Maze. But that was fine as well. One of the reasons Alex was able to destroy the barrier blocking her and Elio was able to finish his second trial without harming any of the Caterpillars was through the freedom of ''choice'' that one makes in that unique space. Contribution was not calculated based on how much they traveled and how many trials they finished. The whole event was about an individual, not their position among the rest of them. "Everyone possesses talent." After parting ways from the small caterpillars, Elio had moved forward and now he was facing the sixth trial on the path that he had deducted from the various clues that he received in the form of a ''chit''. When he received these special pieces of paper, they were blank. However, when he used one as suggested by the window that appeared after he obtained them, he received a clue to his next destination. And after passing through many of these destinations, he had reached the place where the following trials took place. "Talent is not something that one can quantify, or something that one could measure with a set method. It is not a scientific amount that one could measure. It can be graded on a set, well defined scale, however one could not measure it." In his third trial, he was faced with a unique predicament. The first trial that he faced was a simple question, second about a choice, and third one was about his knowledge. He had to explain what a creature that resembled a bunny, a simple black bunny actually was. He also had to justify why something so simple looking was considered so unique in the ''environment'' that they live in. The third trial was pretty easy looking with the presence of the [Forum] that all the players had access to. There was already a lot of information available there. If he could get some information about this creature, he would have obtained whatever information he needed from it. However, without even some simple knowledge about this creature, that would not be possible. Thankfully, he was good with [Observation] and [Identification] so he was able to get good enough info on it to finish his third trial¡­ only to face the next trial that was similar yet a little different. He did not have to tell information about any creature in the next trial, but he had to answer a philosophical question. [What would you do if the (Creature) you had encountered in the last trail ever harmed someone precious to you.] He understood this question as the ''Trial'' wanting to recheck his knowledge about this creature as well as an attempt to make him question the answer that he had given. "Talent and potential are not interlinked. It does not matter if someone has talent for magic, for sword, for art, or for complex coding. Every living being has an inherent potential to them. And this potential itself¡­ is a beautiful thing." He had found out the simple looking black rabbit was actually a demonic beast that was very famous in the high level hunting zones as one of the apex predators of the corrupted land. They were very dangerous creatures that even the players of (Level-150) and above could not handle easily. They possessed great strength and these creatures were considered so dangerous that they were one of the most avoided beings among the players as well as the natives. Infamous for killing anything that came into their set territory, they were one of the top ten creatures with the most deaths to their name. Some even called these ''bunnies'' a natural catastrophe. Chances of a precious someone being harmed by these creatures was high, and one''s natural response would be hate towards these creatures. They would want to get their revenge, kill these creatures, and even perhaps want them obliterated. But realistically, there was no way to completely eliminate their kind. And that would just bring despair to the ones who want nothing more than the deaths of these creatures. "Finding one''s talent is something highly based on luck and fate¨C on the other hand, realizing the potential one''s body, mind, and soul hold is what actually births strength at the end of the day." Elio was a simple person. When he was asked a question like what he would do to a creature who has harmed a loved one of his, his natural response certainly was to express his emotions. However, instead of harming that creature as much as they had harmed his loved ones, he would want to tend to his harmed people first. Forgiving the creature would not be possible, but he would not want to kill them if the creature was acting entirely as it was supposed to do. Weakness was an inevitability. If someone close to him was harmed by a creature whose pure nature was to harm something that ''only'' intruded into their territory, then there would not be much that he could do. The matter would surely be different if someone he is close with is killed by these creatures¨C then he would have no choice but to eliminate their entire kind. But those extreme measures would not be needed. Realistically, he did not want harm to any of the beings close to him. But even he knew he would need a great kind of strength for that that was enough to protect what was his. He did not have that strength, but he wanted it. He wanted to be strong. Stronger than he was right now. But, he did not want that strength at the cost of a beautiful being''s fair life. "I do not wish for more talent, I don''t even know what talent I hold right now. All I want if I am given the chance to ''realistically'' have anything I want, would be the opportunity to realize the potential I hold." In the fifth trial, he faced a new being. A sphinx. Yes, the creature from the myths. They existed in this world as well¨C just that the one he was facing was merely a two meter tall replica made with magic. Though, for his fifth trial, instead of receiving the puzzle or riddle like it is in the myths, he was asked to convince the creature that he was worth their Trial. Thus, he did all kinds of things from casting magic, to singing, playing some music with some strings that he had, reading some poems, to even asking the creatures riddles that he might find fun. He took a while, but he was able to somehow catch the attention of the creature. He did not know what convinced it, but he received the attention of the creature and along with it, his final trial¨C another question. { "So, you want to realize your potential?" } The voice of this being was close to the voice of the librarian. Something different, but something that had the same kind of power and wisdom as the librarian did. { "Admirable¡­" } The question that he received was simple. Very simple. [Q: If you are given the chance to have anything that you want, what would you want? Would you want more talent?] The connective question was something that indicated that this being before him wanted to hear the answer with some connection to the ''talent'' so, he answered it like that. And, he was right for doing it this way. -Oooooooooooooong. "Oh." S~ea??h the N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. { "May you receive what you desire, oh merciful foreigner." } He did not realize it, but he had crossed the maze as well. Chapter 87 - 87: Achievement Stars The place that he had ended up in for his fifth and sixth trial looked a little different from the places that he had been to until now. Instead of a road, this seemed like a dead end. There were no shelves on the sides, the floor was made of stones instead of the carpet one, and he was facing a being that had a unique air to them for the first time. He cleared his two trials. And now, the being that had asked him his last question, was vanishing into unique particles of colorful light. It did not happen in the previous trials, so he was a little confused. And the look on the Sphinx was even more flattering to him. [Ding.] "Let''s skip these for now." He just said what he thought was right, so did not think much of the answer. There was nothing to think actually, all that he said was the truth that just came from his heart. But, that answer opened a unique gate to him that was hidden behind the sphinx''s large body. "Looks like this will take me to the next place?" He did not know yet, so he just crossed the simple wooden door, and was blinded by the light that fell on his eyes. "Hmmm?" When the light cleared up, he found himself in a new place. "Didn''t say I''d win?" A voice greeted him the moment he looked around the open area that seemed to be somewhere inside a library. There were walls filled with books on all sides below him, glass walls were filtering the evening sunlight while illuminating the attractive stories contained in them. There was a different atmosphere on this bridge situated above all the bookshelves, and the scene before him was something he could only sigh at. "You said nothing like that." Alex was here already. And, she was sitting on a round table with someone everyone present around the library outside knew closely. Sear?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "You are a unique person as well, mister." She was sipping on some tea along with the Librarian, the very person who had perhaps created this entire place and the event that they were holding. "Come, sit." He was a little amused by this scene, since seeing his girlfriend with an attractive looking man with that kind of pretty clothes was a new kind of scene for him. She was oblivious to fashion, but right now she was wearing a pretty dress. Her hair looked nice, and though she seemed to have run around and did some things that she should not have in a dress like that, she still looked nice. And the Librarian was already pretty looking. "Don''t click photos, idiot." She knew when he had stopped like that and was just looking at them with those eyes, it meant he was setting a good angle for the screen shot. She did not like this, but he was already done with his work by the time she said that. "So, does this mean I passed?" "Yup." He did not understand how he was already out when it was only late afternoon, but now that he was not in the maze anymore, he knew the event had ended for him. "Look there. That''s the scoreboard." Alex placed her cup down, kissed his cheeks and shifted his head to the left of the room where his eyes fell on a unique magical window. It was different from the status windows, that much he can tell with the color and the similar kind of energy around it that he had felt in the maze. There were many scenes of various areas of the maze playing on this window, along with a certain section to a side that had a scoreboard. "The last answer of yours was unexpected to us, just like your first answer to that simple simple question." The librarian lifted his finger and a cup was lifted from the many that were placed on one corner of the table, then the kettle poured some tea in the cup, and the cup flew to Elio. "Are those the stars?" "Yup." There were some stars beside the names of the various people, and he could see some familiar names in that list. Many of them were from the contribution list of the town quest, however, what surprised them was the three distinct kinds of stars and the top two names on this list. "The normal white stars represent the simple achievements that one makes through their natural actions and decisions, the golden ones are for the trials, while the unique tricolor stars you see there are from the Tests of the Forgotten enigmas." Alex did not know all this stuff since this was also her first time participating in this event, but she had understood what these stars stand for when she crossed the Maze and reached this place just a few moments before Elio. She did not do things the way they were conventionally supposed to be done. Just like how she destroyed the first test''s barrier, when she came across the other trials that were related to intelligence, wisdom, knowledge, and so on, she also just brute forced her way through all of them. She did not stop and ignored the information chits that she received after clearing these trials so that she could clear as many obstacles in the path as she could. "As you can see¡­ I''m going to win by a landslide." She was proud of her achievements right now. "I think you will, yes." and he was proud of her as well, so he patted her head. He had obtained a total of fifteen normal white stars for the natural actions- which he had no idea about- then there were not six but nine golden ones from the trials, and there was a red-blue-yellow star with six pointed ends in front of the rest of them. It was a very impressive number that put him on second place of this list, however, it was nothing compared to the thirty white ones, fifteen gold, and six tri-color stars that Alex had. The third place on this list barely had three gold stars with not even ten normal ones so the two of them were certainly extraordinary. "It isn''t everyday that someone clears a trial of the¨C Forgotten enigma. Especially the trial of the sphinx. You not only satisfied them with the answer, you even received their blessing." Elio knew what Forgotten enigmas were. But he did not know the magic replica sphinx that he met a while ago was a Spirit manifestation of the world''s myths. Meeting those being in the town or common places like a library was a very rare occurrence, but if what the librarian and Alex were saying was true then, he knew at this moment that skipping the messages that he got after the sphinx vanished, was not a good idea. Chapter 88 - 88: Talkative librarian [Ding!] [You have been recognised by a Forgotten enigma for the first time! Rewarding Exp.] [You have received the approval of a Forgotten enigma for the first time! Rewarding Exp.] [You have completed the trial of a forgotten enigma for the first time! Rewarding Exp.] [Ding!] [For completing the trial of a forgotten enigma, you will be rewarded.] [Intelligence +3] [Mana +10] [You have earned an achievement!] [Recognition by Forgotten enigmas (Rare) has been achieved!] [Ding!] [You have received a [Blessing] from the Forgotten enigma of Riddle and Protection.] [Ding!] [You have received a blessing for the first time! Rewarding Exp.] [Achievement: Blessed Individual (Common) has been achieved.] [Ding!] ============ [Blessing: Fulfillment of a genuine desire.] Type: Conditional trigger. Effects: The blessing will aid the individual in fulfillment of a certain genuine desire that could ultimately lead to potential growth. ============ "..." Sear?h the N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Elio was shocked how he just casually skipped all these notifications. If it wasn''t for them, he might not even have seen these things until this entire event was over or until he received another bunch of notifications. "A blessing that aids in individual growth is quite rare." The librarian took a sip from his teacup and smiled at him with an impressed look. "And seeing as how this was your first blessing, you sure are one of the special ones as well." He could not understand why the librarian that held so much power and so much knowledge would be interested in him when he had not even done anything special. But, his experienced partner knew the reason behind the interest of this sly person. "He''s mine, mister." She glared at him, warning him not to get any weird ideas about her boyfriend. And she was serious about it. "Keep your talons away from him." A [Blessing] in this game was a unique kind of Buff. It was different from a Grace series spell that granted a momentary fixed kind of effect. It did not particularly enhance or buff something, but a [Blessing] was close to a non-permanent skill of either active or passive type. As long as one had that blessing, they could grow stronger in a new way, accept special quests that would give special rewards, and encounter unique things in their journey. Blessings varied, however, there were only three kinds of beings that could bless someone or something. And the common factor among all these three beings¨C [{(Divinity)}]. "I did not recognize you at first, however, seeing that unique swordplay was enough to rekindle my not-so-distant memories¡­ . Or should I call you¡­ the ?" The librarian wasn''t just interested in him, now that he had recognized her as well, he was even more excited about something. "Don''t call me either of that, bastard. Hmph." The gods could bless someone, and that was a normal fact everyone knew since they could do it through their proxies as well. In there were high ranking classes like [< Saintess >], [< Pope >] or classes representing a certain God. As the proxies and closest followers of those higher powers, these beings could either manifest their authority into the physical world, or were able to become the vessel that temporarily supports their [Descent]. The beings who gain power through their mythical significance gain divinity through the shared belief of the other lower beings (Humans), and as a fragment of their power, Forgotten enigmas manifest in the physical world. The third kind of creatures or beings who could bless someone are the ones who possess Divinity at their birth, or obtain it after their [Ascension]. The power of divinity is the power of [Divine realm] that only the [{(Deities)}] could possess. And either through a direct contact, or through a fragmented manifestation of power like ''Forgotten Enigma'' or ''Substitutes'' the blessings are bestowed. "To think a ''truth seeker'' would accept even a trial like this and give up everything that they had gained with such efforts-." "Wait right there dude." One of the reasons she did not like this bastard was because he spoke a little too much sometimes. He was nice when he did not speak much. That calm and quiet self of his was much better in her opinion. But when he starts speaking a little too much like this¡­ he starts saying nonsensical stuff and, she just does not like it. "First of all, I''ve only temporarily lost what I had. Not permanently. Second of all, I''m not doing this shit because of some ''truth'' or forced trial." She did not say she just wanted to be with him and that was the reason she accepted this trial in the first place. He was smart enough to realize that from the way she looked at Elio after saying that. "Oh?" And he did realize it. Just that when he did, the smile and interest on his face turned into a smirk and joy. "So, the one who brought down the heavens also had a foolish slide to them, hun?" He was happy for some reason. And, not only Elio, it was even Alex''s first time seeing this person like this. She wanted to hit this bastard with her sword. From the rage in her eyes alone, it was clear she wanted to cut him into pieces or something. But, Elio just grabbed her hand since, well, he knew neither of them were anywhere strong enough to face this person. Hurting him in any way was not going to be possible anyway. "I see¡­" The librarian could see things that normal eyes could not. "There was someone who could possess even the impossible." He shook his head with a helpless sigh as He could see the two of them were just as close to one another as the (Golden Barn Owl) couples. He could see the cohesive, intimate bond that these two had. And, also the unshakable foundations of a relationship that was not grown, but forged in a scorching furnace. "Haaa¡­" He seemed to be reminiscing about something, but that only lasted for a moment as he looked back at the two of them. "Do you want some snacks? There''s still some time left for the conclusion so would you like to stay with me and chat a little more?" Now that he knew who Alex was, he knew why she did not like him so much. It was obvious actually, given their unique past. But, he also knew she was a reasonable person. "What do you say?" She knew Elio was confused about a lot of things and still was not asking her, so she did not bother him too much. "Sure." She would tell him everything when he wants to know about it, as well as when she is able to tell. Until then, things were fine as they are. "I want some cake." She demanded with a new comfortable look on her face, though she still wanted to at least punch this bastard. "I''ll share whatever she''s having so it''s-." "No! What do you mean you will share with mine! Get your own!" "We will share, so it''s fine." Elio did not pay any attention to her since he knew she wasn''t going to finish whatever sweets she was asking for. Sweets weren''t her thing anyway even though the ones she made were world-class. So, if she was asking for the sweets, he knew the one to finish it would be him. There were a few things all three of them wanted to talk about with one another. So, with the sudden appearance of new sweets, they started a new, more casual talk. Chapter 89 - 89: Presence of Evil "You know did not help with the town quest." "I am not obligated to, you know that better than anyone else." As the event neared its conclusion, the spectators outside of the library were getting excited to see who would get the highest scores and who would get the chance to take something away from the library. All the town''s people knew about the things that were present in the library. There were all kinds of items of the past and things that were related to the various civilizations of the past. The library was not just a simple place where the books were sold, it was the main attraction of the Moongold because there were so many unique things here for everyone to see. "Still, you could have given out quests at least." "And why would I do that? A single low level Dark magician is something the foreigners and town''s people can handle very well on their own. Thanks to your presence, actually, the losses were minimized and the positive effects maximized. The peace in the town was getting a little too much. A crisis like this will only lead them towards growth and ultimately they will be much better than they are right now." They were all watching the players and the natives showcase their talents. Some were painting while some were playing music. There were some disputes where a group was present, but they were little things that were resolved quickly. The players all knew how important the Trials were and for the trials, they at least had to move around. So as they showcased their talent, they also moved across the library in the search of a way out of the maze, following the clues they received at the end of each of the trials. It was not that difficult for any of them to find a trial, almost everyone had received at least one trial even if they had not moved from the place they were transported to. However, the real challenge was following and deciphering the clues that they received and reaching either the next location or to the place that had the next trial that they would have to cross for more clues. Every action of the ones participating in the trail was counted and the unique ones were given a star. Finishing a trial did not give a golden star, the way the trial was completed was the real factor that decided the kind of stars that one would receive from the trails. "You are the same bastard that you were the last time I saw you, hun?" "Well, what can I say? I''m too old for change or something like growth." "I don''t think you-." "Suddup, El. Elders are talking here." she was the one to say that, but she was also blushing as if she had just done something very thrilling. "Is that so?" and the surprised smirk he had somewhat explained what kind of roles they had in their personal lives. "Anyway¡­" Elio had received a total of nine stars after finishing six of his trials so it was at least clear that he completed each of his quests in a way that was worth a golden star. But, some parts of his trials were so extraordinary that just one gold star was not enough for them. Two stars was the maximum that one could receive from a trial, so he had received two stars in his second, fourth, and sixth trial. Additionally, for crossing the trial of a Forgotten enigma, he also received a tri-colour star. S§×arch* The Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "The unexpected Presence of Evil in this town was a good thing from many points of view. One can just see how positively it affected the town from the way the natives are celebrating this festival." Unlike Elio, even though Alex had broken through six of the trials of the Forgotten Enigmas, since she actually speed ran everything and passed with the most optimum answers and actions to the trials that she knew already, she only received a star and not a blessing. She knew blessings were a rare thing already so getting one was uncommon even on the higher levels. Even she had not received that many blessings in all her time as a player. And getting one before reaching (Level-100) from Fragment of a Divinity, and from some bastard of the [Temple] after spending a shit ton of money was a rare thing. She was happy for him, but the words of the librarian did not sit that well with her. "Why are you like this, Connie?" No one knew the Librarian''s given name, but those like her called him . And since she was one of the few people close to him, he did not mind it when she called him by that¡­ unique, name. "You can help people, but you chose to stay in this place. You have the strength but you only come out and use it when the world is ending. You can do some good crazy stuff but instead of doing something like many others, going around the world, why is it that even after having so many options, you just stay in this¡­ in this, cold place?" People come and go in this library. It is almost always open to the public day and night and those who like books sometimes spend days and weeks in this place. As a librarian, he is great at what he does. He did things that not would want to do when they have as much power as he did. "Hmm." She was not too close to him. They just had some bad history together. She did not come to Moongold to meet him or have tea with him. She was here for something and she was going to get it. This chat was a coincidence, but since things had come down to this anyway, she wanted the answers to the questions that she had always wanted to ask this person. "There isn''t any particular reason, actually." Elio was eating the cake that she could not finish. And even without hearing the answer of this unique person to that complicated sounding question, he knew what he was going to say. "I''m just doing what I find right." "Yeah." He knew it, and it was pretty simple to guess actually. Chapter 90 - 90: Conclusion "Whatever his initial reason might have been, this library, not this town or this world, has now become his home." He thanked the librarian first for the cake and nodded at him with a familiar understanding before looking at his twinkle. "There''s no deep reason for what he does." As someone who had gone through a similar stage in his life, he knew what [Stangnency] or a complete blockage felt like. "You seem to have experienced something similar." The librarian agreed with his words as well. "Not quite, actually." But Elio shook his head negatively at his comment. He was a creator, while on the other hand, the librarian was a consumer. Elio could tell that much from his observations until now. This person¡­ this attractive looking person who certainly had wisdom beyond anyone he had met in this world, someone who knew a lot, someone who understood a lot as well, and someone who had a great lot of strengths¡­ instead of being someone who judges the creations and talents of others, he merely appreciated it like a spectator. He understood it, but for whatever reason, he could not create something like they do. "I''m not good at many things." He could not understand math like she does, create artificial intelligence, modify technology, create new things from wires and small things and machines, stuff that look all the same to him. He was not that good at sports even though it was one thing he admired greatly. He might be a graduate, but when it comes to real academics, he was nowhere near her level. And she was not the only one. There were many in this world like her. Someone who could do many things that he wanted to be good at much better than he could. But even though he could not do what they do, he loved to appreciate what they do. "Perhaps one of the reasons I like this pretty human so much is because of my lack of abilities." The loving look he had as he looked at her while saying that out of the blue almost made her blush, and she tried hiding this embarrassment by pretending to sip on her empty teacup. "Is that so?" The librarian was smirking at her. This side of this person¡­ this utterly ruthless, destructive, catastrophic person was more than just unexpected to him. He was more surprised right now than when he was almost killed by her sword. He liked this unexpected talk, and he would have loved to continue it further. But¡­ "Looks like the time to conclude the event has arrived." They had to finish things now. He knew this one event had been much more eventful than any others they have had in these past few decades. And he was happy with that much alone. "Thank you both for the amazing chat." -Ooooooooooooong! They had finished with their tea and snacks and it was time as well, so with the bitter look in his eyes, the librarian proceeded with the closing ceremony. "You two were the only ones to escape the maze this time it seems." In the maze, the ones who were done with their performances or with their trials were starting to vanish from their places. The ones who were not finished with their trials were given the last five minutes before they would be transported outside. In the plaza, as the sun went down and the dusk greeted Moongold, the townsfolk prepared for a unique phenomenon that would soon occur. They had enjoyed the event this time as well, the festival would reach its peak at night, however, before they greet the night, they would witness something that not everyone gets to see. "In that case, it seems like there will be two things I will be parting ways with." he smiled at both of them happily as he vanished alongside the table. -Ooooooooooong. The two of them were also transported to the ground floor of the library from the highest top. And, along with them, the rest of the players and natives who had taken part in the event were also popping up in this place. There were a lot of people, the two of them were there first but it did not take even a minute for the ground floor to fill up with the participants and the rest of them started shifting to the upper floors. On the highest floors- not the highest place where the three of them had been until a moment ago but the highest floors with books- the special guests like miss Aloha, town Mayor and the Viscount''s people who had seen the entire event and especially the two of them were looking down at all the participants with a joyful expression. The participants who were coming back to reality, out of the Mind Maze of the librarian that they had been in until now, showed various unique expressions. Some were happy, some were sad, some were upset about their performance, some were angry while some were feeling unique expressions altogether. For most of them, this was their first time experiencing an artificial space. They were technically present inside this library all this time, and at the same time, they were not here. It was logically somewhat strange, but from the magical perspective and from the angle of the [Arcane theory], this entire phenomenon was quite explainable. But knowing something like that without foundational knowledge will only mess things up. { "Looks like everyone had a great time." } Many people had learned many things thanks to the trials, many people had also broken through the limitations or walls that were previously blocking them. Many had not expected it, but they had gained more than just some physical rewards from this one experience. { "And the moment is approaching as well¡­" } Their efforts and their performances¡­ their talents, their wisdom, and their potential was going to be rewarded soon as well. Sear?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. However, before that, they were going to greet a unique natural occurrence. Something so rare and precious that only these lucky individuals present around the Moongold, and perhaps a few more regions of southwest would be able to experience it. Chapter 91 - 91: The treasury As dusk settled over the Moongold, a golden glow spread over the cobblestone streets and old buildings. Excitement buzzed as people gathered around the grand library looked up at the dark¨C or now gold sky. The library''s ceiling, once made of colorful stained glass holding the stories of a forgotten era, began to turn transparent. "Wow¡­" "So, this is it?" "Look over there. How beautiful¡­" The ones who had just finished the event, the ones who were watching from inside the library, as well as those watching from the plaza outside all looked up at the sky¡­ "There is a story about this phenomenon." With the sun setting, the sky above the library became visible. Slowly, a golden moon emerged, its light filling the night after years of absence. The moon''s glow bathed the town in a mystical, golden light. "[Lamentation of crimson flames] was not only about a mythical creature destroying the valley. It happened because the child of the creature was taken away from her." Children pointed at the bright gold in wonder, while the elders watched in quiet reverence a sight they had witnessed before as well. The library, now open to the sky, connected the town''s history, history of the books stored within the old wooden shelves, with the celestial magic above. "She destroyed all the valley because she could not find the child, and only stopped when a [Hero] brought her child back to her." The townspeople, the players, Alex and Elio, Miss Rin and Misha, Az and Miu stood with their friends and family, faces lit by the moon''s golden light. They had seen the bright white and yellow of the moon, sometimes crimson and a milky moon. But, to witness a celestial body covered in bright golden light was a breathtaking experience for many of them. "The mother calmed down when she was reunited with her child, and then she thanked the hero." The grand library, a proud symbol of Moongold, seemed to open up to the universe. The return of the golden moon filled everyone with a sense of hope and renewal. Moongold felt more enchanted than ever, with the night promising endless possibilities, it''s unique warmth appreciating the efforts of everyone present, its mystical presence somewhat appreciating all the efforts made by all the natives and players. "A [Phoenix] is a creature that reborns from its ashes." Alex looked up at the sky, at a scene that she once was fortunate to witness from up close. "And in their last moments, they release all the energy left in their unique bodies." What one saw as a natural phenomenon was much more unique than one could imagine. The moon of this world, just like the moon of the real world, did not have a light of its own. The sun of this world was a completely different entity than the sun that they have in the real world as well, since it did not merely convert hydrogen into helium. The sun of this world burned a primordial energy of stars and converted it into various natural energies that are present in the nature around them. It holds a very special place in the [{(Prakriti)}]. And though not as significant as the sun, the celestial moon also holds a special position in both nature and human lives. "I was not sure before, but I can tell the story of the golden moon being a reflection of the death of a [Phoenix] is true. Death of a young one, at that." Just like Dragons, Phoenix were also creatures of myths. There were not many ways to confirm their hidden existence, but events like these, the events that one sees as a natural phenomenon or a natural disaster gave an undeniable proof of their existence. She was fortunate enough to meet a few of these mythical creatures in her lifetime in this world, and she was looking forward to meeting more of them as she goes to various new and old places along with her partner¡­ who was currently lost in the beauty of the moment. "Death of an older one is even more beautiful, especially from up close." If she could, she could have recorded it and showed it to him, but she was not able to. She had experienced a lot of things in her life in this world, but she wanted to experience a lot more along with her darling. { "Congratulates on finishing the event and experiencing something new." } On the ground floor, a void was materializing on the floor beneath their feet. But they couldn''t feel it. { "The two people who had obtained the extraordinary results will be given the chance to obtain one item from the library." } There were rare books, there were records, there were skill stores and precious things, and there were things that everyone, even the high ranking players desired in this place. But, Alex already knew what she wanted and Elio had no idea what he should get out of all the things present in this place. { "The [Treasury] contains all that I have gathered over the years. Treasures, items, knowledge, and things that cannot simply be defined as a tool." } The leaderboard appeared before everyone and the top achievement holders, people who had managed to get two or more golden stars were highlighted in the grand list that had appeared before everyone present here. -Oooooooooooong! The list was long, but their own ranks were the first thing that they saw when it appeared before them. The stars were listed beside their names, and before the rest of them, high up in the air, before the special guests that were at the top floor, as well as before the biggest magical screens outside of the library, the performance highlights of the ones with the most stars were displayed openly. { "The contribution you have made and according to your needs¡­ may you get what helps you with your journey ahead." } The darkness beneath their feet exploded and covered the rest of them inside the library. Their eyes got momentarily blinded¡­ [Ding.] [Rewards from the achievements made during the library event will now be granted.] [Additional rewards will be granted individually upon claiming of rewards.] Sear?h the N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And in the next moment, they saw a unique pouch in their hands. A colorful pouch that was of a different color for all of them. There was a unique shine and glitter to these pouches, and though they were light, everyone could tell there was something hidden inside of these unique pouches with an expanded inside space. This was their reward from the treasury¡­ Obtaining it was not as eventful as they might have thought, but now that they had obtained this object, they all wanted nothing more than to open these pouches in their houses or inns or in safe spaces outside somewhere, and check what they had obtained. { "Let us all admire the wonder of gold as we welcome a new tomorrow¡­" } Phoenix. The symbol of Life, Glory, and a new beginning born from the brightest flames and ashes. "Beautiful¡­" As the people of Moongold and players who had obtained their rightful rewards watched the moon covered in the golden light, some shed tears of sorrow. After the catastrophe that had hit the town, the town covered in the golden light had lost a lot, suffered even more, and had parted ways with many. They had been through darkness¡­ "So beautiful¡­" But, with the new golden moonlight wrath of the new tomorrow, with shedding tears and joyful smiles, the players and natives alike, greeted a new tomorrow. The festivals would go on and the seasons would change. They had suffered a great loss, but life goes on¡­ and the ones who are left behind, still had to contribute their verse. Chapter 92 - 92: Night of festivities The golden moon was a unique phenomenon that only lasted for a few minutes. People of the Moongold witnessed it, bathed in its warmth, and when it was gone- and when the library event had concluded- the main festival began. The town was covered in lights, streets were filled with people, and along with isolated mourning, joy enclosed the town. They had just lost a lot, but they were not falling to the darkness anymore. The people were with those who had lost someone, not leaving out of the festivities. The monument that was made in the center of the town was covered in the mementos, flowers, and gifts of the children. Streets were filled with young and old as they walked around the illuminated town, there was happiness in the air, the shops were earning from those excited, happy customers. The night was young, and yet the inns and bars were full. Those who did not or could not handle themselves alone were drowning themselves in alcohol. Those who had someone to rely on were spending the night and those who did not get to experience a festival''s unique atmosphere were enjoying their time with their loved ones¡­ or by themselves. "Misha! That''s enough running now¡­" "Hehe, let''s go there next~!" Elio and Alex were looking after the young child who ran around with the little slime in her hand. Her mother had retired home and they were soon going back as well, but before that, the little girl wanted to taste a few more things. "How does she have so much energy, haaa¡­" Elio was tired after running after the girl for an hour, but since Alex was having fun as well, she did not mind going on a little more. There were a lot of things in the market, many vendors were practically giving away some stuff at base price, and even big shops were giving things at a discounted price. They were leaving the town soon now that she had obtained what she wanted, but if she had the chance to stock up on a few more things before that, she was definitely not going to miss it. "I''ll be back in five. Take her to the toyshop while you are at it as well." "What? Where-." She had already vanished from his side by the time he looked back up at her. The streets were full of people. There were noises all around and it was not easy keeping track of everything even with his heightened Mana senses. All he could do was accompany them, but if they were going to just run around like that, he did not know what he was supposed to either. "Haaa¡­" After the golden moon, they had stayed back at the library to collect their rewards. He was going to give them anything he wanted from his collection, and despite that, someone like her who understood the actual values of the things that he had, chose a simple world Map that had the power to find whatever one wanted it to. It was one of the oldest items he had and no appraisal scroll worked on it so he never knew just how valuable it was. He could tell if she wanted something like that, then there must be something to it that even he did not know about. But, now that he has given it away, perhaps, he will never know its true value. "Misha¡­" Elio was tired running around with her, but he knew her pocket money would end soon and she would have to go back. She was spending her money carefully, tasting things where she can actually buy what she liked, but that would end soon. She had only received twelve copper coins from her mom, which was a lot for a child like her, and even that was going to end. Alex told him to take her to the toy store¡­ and by that, she wanted him to take the little girl and the two little creatures to the item store. There won''t be many things that she could buy with the remaining three copper coins that she had, so he believed she might finish her funds on some silly things. He wanted her to end this anyway. The hustle and bustle of the town right now wasn''t that fun for her anymore. He was tired already, and after spending an hour pondering what he should get from the library, he was tired even more. "Muuuu~!" "Miu!" "Oh! That looks fun as well~! Brother Elio~. Where did sister go~?" "She will join us-." "Oh! Look at that! What are those shiny things~?" She only stopped momentarily before vanishing once again. She was like a bumblebee, an excited bee high on pollen. It was cute, especially with the slime and the excited gecko inside of it. She was enjoying, which was a rare sight that her mother would have loved¨C but she had seen her happy enough times today. Now, she was gone and had placed her girl in their capable hands for this night. She knew when she came back home, she would be tired. So, she had gone back after enjoying this rare night festival. She had her acquaintances that had lost someone close to them that she needed to meet as well, so she was not around. The two of them were looking after her daughter, and she knew they would treat her well. "Haaa¡­" But with Alex running around doing her own thing, he was looking after the children alone. And he was getting tired of it now. "What do you children eat to have so much energy!" He ran behind her, again. Cursing his partner in his head for leaving him alone to deal with these active children. The special object that he finally obtained from the librarian was not going to be helpful for him anytime soon. At least though, he was happy that the street food here was decent enough. His stamina was decreasing with each shop Misha jumped to, but since his fatigue was not increasing in proportion to that, he was doing fine. It was difficult, but he knew he could manage the children at least until they got back to the inn¡­ S§×arch* The novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 93 - 93: So, how about it? Alex told him she would join him in five, but she did not specify five minutes or five hours. So, even though ten minutes passed and Misha finally finished her pocket money, Alex had not come back. [{ "I''m sorry. This sudden work came up¡­ haaa¡­ I will be back as soon as I can. Don''t worry about me." }] She said she was going to buy something, but she had actually returned back to their inn. [{ "You are hiding something from me, again." }] [{ "I''m just working, lol. Don''t be like that. I might be back before you even get back to the inn so don''t worry." }] She cut the call, and entered the wooden doors of the (Woodleg inn). "We are closed-... oh. You''re back~? Where''s Misha and Elio~." Madam Rin was waiting for the three, especially her little baby. Seeing her so happy and excited all day had been a rare but joyous experience for her. This event, this whole day had been very special for her, and her child obviously enjoyed it all. She was a shy one, but being with that little Slime and Gecko had been a completely new experience for her. They were her friends, and seeing the three of them playing, shouting, running around had been a heartwarming experience for her. And she was extremely thankful for the two of them who brought such joy to her little girl. "Can we talk for a moment, Miss Rin?" Alex closed the door behind her, locked it with a wooden plank, and took out a unique object from her inventory. "Hmm?" It was a barrier item, one that blocked sound of any kind. -Ooooooooooong. It was rare, so not many could recognize it. Someone who had just started the game or were commoners from a small town like this would not even know what that object was¡­ but not her. "Why are you using that, Alex dear?" There was a table with four chairs, and Miss Rin sat down right before hers when she saw the item activating. The look this girl had did not seem right to her, so she did not ask any unnecessary questions and just sat down beside her. She knew the matter was serious from that new kind of look she had. "You know Miss Rin¡­" Alex placed her sheathed white sword on the table beside her. S§×arch* The Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "This sword is special." With calm but extremely serious eyes, afterwards, she caressed the sheathed weapon with one of her hands, and looked at the person before her. "It cries with excitement when it senses individuals who are at a level I cannot defeat them." Her level had fallen but she still had all her experience, and techniques from her past. Her power was limited in many ways, but just like how she was able to stall for time even when going against something like that dark mage, she knew she could defeat most of the individuals in this town if she fought seriously. She could even defeat the guard captain if he does not use that special skill of hers. She was strong, even if she did not have even a fraction of her power at the moment. So, whenever her sword had cried after she entered this town, it was when she was facing someone like the guardian spirit that manifested through the guard captain or when facing the dark magician. The librarian made her sword the most excited, after which came the guardian spirit, and after that¡­ it was not the dark magician. "You defeated six of the dark minions that entered the town, weren''t you?" As soon as she mentioned that, the expression on Miss Rin''s face changed as well. "The ''special'' person that was mentioned in the Town quest¡­ it was Misha, right?" "..." As soon as her name was brought up, the worried expression on the mother''s face changed completely. "There were fifteen minions that entered the town, three were dealt with by the underworld organization''s people. Two were dealt with by the guards, three by the players, and one died because of the mages from mages'' tower. The rest that were spotted by the Mayor vanished without a trace and were not found even with the later investigation¡­" Where could these creatures have gone? She wondered about it for a while. She thought long and hard about it instead of just accepting they might have vanished with the dark mage that summoned them, she investigated. And still, she did not find anything. Anything except subtle trances of a very familiar energy in a dark corner of the town. "You''re a remnant of the fallen Holy Kingdom of Archlore, aren''t you?" Miss Rin looked at her¡­ her eyes hollow, the calm and worried expression changed into a serious and poisonous one. The way she was looking at Alex now told her how she wanted to kill her right on the spot. But, she also knew that she knew that was not going to be effective. Alex was not a native. She was a foreigner and they are cursed to be reborn after their death. "You found out an awful lot of things in the few days you have been here, hun?" The always cheerful, attractive, and positive aura around her transformed into that of the aura of a wounded tiger¨C cold, and deadly. She was not sitting before the strong girl that had saved her inn from some thugs. She was now standing before an enemy that she knew she could not kill. "You made a mistake, Miss Rin." And she knew that as well. "The head of the mage tower¡­ he will find you." Using her unique power was not the best idea if she wanted to stay in this town for a little longer. Alex knew just what kind of troublesome position she was in. And, she was going to leave the town because of it anyway as well. "I know he will. That is why we will-." "Let me blunt, miss Rin." Existence of someone who can protect them and be good with them. Someone who was strong enough to help them out of situations that would require her presence, and someone who was already experienced with war. She was the perfect guard that they could have found for the following part of their journey and since she had a ''special'' daughter to protect, Alex knew the two of them will be present when the two of them are not around. "Join us." Miss Rin had strength but that strength was nothing compared to what they might need when they go out of this town. "I will give you the strength you need to protect that child." She was a single mother who could use a rare power that was sought after by the mages all around the world. After her investigation and a little deeper digging into the assistant of the Dark magician that died because of his own foolishness, she knew the entire situation now. "Let''s use each other, at least." Alex knew Miss Rin would not understand her position with the kind of anger she had right now, but she knew this person¨C the mother who was in a unique position right now was at least smart enough to know what was best for her and for her child. "So, how about it?" Elio needed someone to look after Miu and Az in their absence anyway, and she knew there would be more special creatures joining them. They needed someone here that they could trust, as well someone who could actually look after those special creatures. "...you are not really some normal person either, hun?" Alex could not think of anyone better for this job other than a Soldier who could partially use the unique energy- Holy power and a being born with the blessing of nature. She wanted the two of them¡­ and, the person before her knew this young, fearsome woman was not going to take a no for an answer. Chapter 94 - 94: Next destination "Haaa¡­" Misha ended up falling asleep while they were coming back, so Elio carried her back on his back. And when got back, Alex was already waiting for him on the ground floor. "See. Didn''t I say I''d get back before you." She was talking with Miss Rin with her sword on the table, and he could tell there was something strange going on here. But he was too tired to think about something like that, so he looked at Miss Rin and she came up to him and carefully took the sleeping girl from him. "Thank you for looking after her." Miss Rin smiled warmly at him as she usually does and after bowing to him and to Alex, she went back to put her pretty sleeping daughter in her room. "Hun?" And then, without even looking at Alex, he walked up the stairs. "Hey¡­" He was too tired to deal with her. He could already tell she lied to him when she said she had some work to do. There was also something going on between her and Miss Rin before he came here. "Haaa¡­" He wanted to ask what she was up to, but he was just too tired for that right now so he at least got back to their room first and fell down on his bed. "You can''t even handle a teen child. How will you handle a baby?" With a smirk, she came and sat beside him. "Let alone a baby, how will you handle the little friends you make going forward?" She placed Az and Miu, who he left on the ground floor, in their basket. These two were smart so they knew at least a little about how to look after one another, but what will he do when he gets a friend that has no worldly knowledge? How will he be a father in the future if just handling an older child like her made him so exhausted? "Haaa¡­ Misha is different, Alex." She was caressing his hair, he loved it. They had been together for a while, but neither of them really believed in the ceremonial marriage. They lived together, did everything that a married couple would do, and perhaps much more than that. They surely were more than a couple living together, and since they even thought about their future occasionally, they knew what they wanted from one another. "She had that¡­ bright energy to her. I don''t know how to explain it." With his head now placed on her lap, he sighed while staring up at the ceiling. She was his bliss. He did not need a potion or any items to feel refreshed when she was around. "I agree on that point. She sure is special." She smiled at him warmly. And the hidden mysterious feeling hidden behind that smile told him how she knew more about this than what she was letting out. "You¡­ hide a lot of things in here, you know? Completely different from your ''self'' in the outside world." "You''re new here, dear. Telling you everything at once will be no fun." She ruffled his hair while laughing and¡­ then placed her head on his forehead. "We will be leaving the town soon." "Yeah¡­" Thanks to all the quests, they had earned a lot of experience and were both (Level-35). Sear?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. They could leave the town any time they wanted now that they were done with everything that they needed to do in this place. She already obtained what she needed and he had obtained something that he will be able to use in the future. He had some unique talents so that thing will be great for him, but before he could use it, he will have to deal with some things with the dagger that he received from the guard captain. "It was a fun experience, Alex." When he finished his tutorial quest and came to this town, he did not think it would be so much fun. Things here were completely different from what he had expected. The hunting was a special experience, seeing all those cool creatures, seeing this unique town, seeing the various things in this town, meeting so many people, so many good people¡­ meeting a new friend that will accompany them, even staying at a place that he might never forget. And the town quest and library event¡­ "It was unforgettable¡­" He did not know how it had been if they had gone to some other town, but the fact that they fatefully ended up in this specific place where they not only experienced so many amazing things, met so many amazing people, and had such unique experiences, was something that he was thankful for. "Elio oh my darling Elio¡­" She shook head with a smile on her face that was making fun of him. "If you are like that after just this much, you have no idea what awaits you outside this town." Forest vaster than deserts, deserts hotter than volcanoes, volcanoes colder than glaciers, and glaciers house entire civilizations. There were so many things in this world that they will need another half a decade just to see all the good things that she had seen in her time here, and more that they were going to see as they traveled the world in search of objects that will give her powers back to her. "Didn''t I say we will have a looooot of fun?" Their next main destination will be a vast Jungle even bigger than the small ''forest'' that they had in Moongold. It was strange how a jungle was going to be bigger than a forest, but while the Great forest of Moongold was called the great forest by the people, their next destination was given the title of one of the vastest greenlands on the western continent. However, before they reached the forest, they were going to stop at a city. Get a little stronger, and prepare to go to a place that is filled with all kinds of dangerous creatures. "Anyway¡­" How about we open those pouches we received from the librarian''s treasury. I wanna see what it has. "Must we do it right now¡­?" She turned his head around and buried it in her firm thighs. "Yes we have to do it right now. So come on. Don''t be lazy." It would not take longer than a few moments anyway. He could do at least that much even if he was being lovably lazy right now. Chapter 95 - 95: Stellar pouches The one she had received was of bright crimson color with some unique jewels embedded in the pouch. "You know what? These pouches won''t vanish even after we obtain the rewards inside of it." The one he had received was obsidian with golden glitter all around it. The glitter did not have a texture. The punch seemed to be made from a high quality fabric that itself had this glitter like shine to it. "These pouches will start selling at high prices on the Otherworld market as . And the demand for the pouches belonging to the people who had more stars in the event would be quite higher as well." These pouches were an item as well, however, they only had a little bigger expanded space inside of them. They were only used to store the rightful rewards of the participants but, while the natives kept it as a token of honor, the players treated it as a valuable collectible. Unified Rank 10 , one of the richest people of the two worlds and someone that perhaps had the most items, things, valuables, [Relics] and [[Artifacts]] in the entire world would definitely want a specially valuable piece like the two of their pouches. Alex had not seen such pouches on the market so she at least knew the ones that the two of them had, had something special about them. "Let''s open them together." "As you wish, my lazy." "My Lady, not lazy." "Oh right¡­ I''m lazy, not you." She smacked his head when he made that shit joke and pushed him off the bed. "We will open it together." "Aww... that hurt." He did not like falling off of the bed. This has happened more than a few times since he arrived in this town. "Why do you keep pushing me, woman? I''m not some rock on the street that you can just kick as you want." He got up and smacked her head- got slapped in return- then they fought for five minutes and when they were done- they finally got back to what they were actually doing. "Hmph." His face was red from the slaps and she was angry. It wasn''t her fault that he was acting like that. None of it might have happened had he not acted like that. For hitting a pretty lady like her He was a bastard indeed! "Open it now. I don''t even wanna do a countdown." She opened her crimson pouch and a golden light blasted from it. -Oooooooooooong! A unique sword slowly floated out of the pouch that had a glow of its own. There was a gem as bright blue as her eyes embedded on the handle of this sword. The blade of the sword seemed to be made from some kind of blue metal instead of steel. The edge of the blade was so sharp looking that as Elio looked at it, he could directly feel its unfathomable sharpness on his eyes. The sword was one handed, not a great sword or a two handed sword. It was just the perfect weapon for hers. The sword was not covered in any sheath, so they could see all of its magical beauty. "Wow¡­" The sword seemed like one of those mythical weapons talked about in the stories, the weapon of the Hero. Elio could also feel the vast energy contained within this weapon with his {Mana senses}. As soon as the sword came out of the pouch and fell into her hands, he could also tell how unique this weapon was. It was unlike any other sword that he had seen after coming to this place. It is almost on par with the strange white sword that Alex carried around. "What kind of sword is that?" This weapon was a unique item, that much one could tell just from the blue body of the blade. The unique handle that seemed to have been carved by the hands of a Master was also something that attracted his attention. This one weapon¡­ he could tell she might have been able to defeat even that dark magician if she had it at that time. "Oh? Isn''t this good?" A smile appeared on her face¡­ And then, she took out her white sword, and placed the tip of the new blue sword that she had just obtained on the sheath of her pretty white sword. -Oooooooooong. The sword that she had just obtained and the sword that she carried around all the time reacted, a red energy then slid out of the sheath covered sword, and wrapped all around the blue blade. The sword that seemed precious and highly valuable, something that Elio knew was worth more than a few gold coins, vanished along with the red energy that slid back inside the sheath. "..." Elio had no idea what just happened, but what he had just seen logically meant that the precious sword that she had just obtained was devoured by the sword that she carried around all the time. "What the hell?" He was confused. But Alex just shook her head without saying anything as she placed the sword back into the corner that she usually puts it in. "You are not going to tell me what just happened either, are you?" "There will come a time, hehe." She was smiling happily. There was a unique playfulness in her eyes, one that said she was waiting for a good moment to tell him about what had just happened. She wanted to have fun with this oblivious side of him, so she just smiled happily at him. And, he sighed deeply after seeing that smile. "Haaa¡­ I''m too tired for all this." He just wanted to get this over with, so, he opened his purplish black pouch with golden shine as well¡­ -Ooooooooooong! Instead of a golden light, this time, a silver light blasted from the pouch and what came out of it surprised the two of them¡­ "Woah." It was not a sword, yet it surprised Alex. It was an item. This was a very rare item. It was so rare that Elio, who was tired of anything and would not have been affected by even a dragon at the moment, got surprised by this object as well. "These are precious, Elio." "I know¡­" Even in her long journey, she had only come across twelve of these. And of those twelve, six had protected her in critical situations at the cost of their own lives. "What¡­ should I do with this?" The thing that he obtained from the pouch was a card. A precious item that was called by the players, and by the natives of this world. S~ea??h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The object he was holding right now was not something simple. Not many existed in this world and all that were known to exist, were already owned by various individuals. They were precious. Extremely precious. "What do you want to do with it?" And now that he had obtained one as well, it was entirely up to him if he wanted to put it up for auction and get hundreds or perhaps thousands of gold for it, or accept it as his own and add a new member to their growing party. Chapter 96 - 96: A servant card The same room in the inn, the same bed, the morning after the festival and event, with the sunlight shining in through the windows, the couple who should have woken up by now were still asleep. With her one leg upon his and his hand on her back, with the blanket thrown away below somewhere, his other hand holding hers, they were sleeping peacefully. -Chirp. Chirp~. The morning sounds of a lively town filled the atmosphere. Their room that was normal last night was a mess once again. Things were a little more chaotic around here for some reason, but one can ignore it thanks to the peaceful atmosphere of the fine morning. The table beside their bed was still in a good condition, though there were strange marks of claws, or nails, or something all over it. -Swiiiiiiiish~. A unique metallic card rested on this table. There was an illustration engraved on the metallic surface of the card. A unique illustration depicting a feathered being with hair covering their face, as well as going all the way to the base below. An angelic halo floated on the head of this being, and from what one could understand, the being in the depiction was wearing an ethereal thin cardigan. One could not tell if the depiction on the card was of an angel or a fallen angelic creature. One could not confirm the gender of the being either. There were no specific characteristics that confirmed if this being even had any gender¡­ All one could say when seeing this illustration was the fact that whatever this unique ethereal being was, was something very unique. The silver that it was carved on was different from the silver that was used to make the coins, it had something one could only understand as¡­ ancient. Just by looking at this unique card, one could get mesmerized by its presence. There was no unique energy exuding from it, there was no Mana around it either, and yet, the uniqueness of this object was so special that anyone seeing it would want to possess it for themselves. It had a devilish attraction¡­ Yet, when he obtained it, instead of using it right away, he placed it aside, and decided to think what to do with it later in the morning¡­ But even though the morning had arrived already, he was still asleep. -Crrrr¡­ There was a unique calm on both their faces. They were sleeping, and the intimate connection and the special understanding the two of them had of one another was pretty much reflected in how they were sleeping. It was a unique sight, so¡­ "Miu?" "Muuu¡­" When the door to their room crack opened and a little slime jumped in with a little gecko, and a young girl, as they saw this unique sight, they did not disturb their friends and just closed the door behind them. They ignored the messy room since they already knew the two cleaned things up as they should on their own, and went down to play. There was no need to wake them up like she had been doing for the last few days. The festival and the event had ended, so they did not have any work left. They had also worked hard all this time, so they deserved some rest. They left them like that¡­ but perhaps they should have made some noise while going out so that at least one of them wakes up and sees the time. "Hmmm¡­" They had slept late but it was still not like them to stay asleep for too long. "Ugh¡­" Perhaps because of the kind of things that they tried or perhaps it was because of the fatigue from the event and festival, but by the time they woke up, it was already late evening. "We¡­ should stick to the normal things for a while." "Ugh, yeah¡­" Both of them were in pain, and, since he woke up before her, he got to see her sleeping face and hear these groaning voices. She did not like him seeing her like that, but sadly, there was nothing she could do here either since she was the one to suggest a lot of things that resulted in the pain and soreness that They were feeling. "Some of that was fun, regardless." "Hehe, right?" Sear?h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He helped her wake up and sit down on the bed and though his body ached as well, he used one of the potions that she had bought for him when they went shopping a few days ago, and got out of the bed. "You want something?" Drinking some water and giving her a glass as well with a forehead kiss, he first got into his clothes and looked around the messy place with a complicated expression. He was at fault this time since he couldn''t take her provocations anymore and went a little overboard. He knew fixing things here this time will not be that easy, perhaps they would spend the rest of the day on it. "I''m hungry¡­" She used a potion as well but she knew she was not going to feel well with just these potions this time. She needed to rest a little longer, and he understood that as well. "Anything special you want? Or should I just throw some stuff together?" "Well¡­ surprise me." With a new smile, a happy smile, she rested her head on the wall, and thought back to the wild but fun night that they had. "Alright then. I''ll be back in a bit." If she could somehow infuse worldly taste in her cooking her partner could present even the simplest things like a cabbage as attractively as a three star dish. She liked eating her cooking more, but occasionally, they didn''t mind having him make something special for them. In times when she could not make anything for them or does not want to, he knows what he has to do. "That bastard¡­" The Servant card was still beside her on the table so she picked the unique thing up and caressed the cool surface of the card. She could tell the card was made from a material called [Primordial silver]. She had never seen a card that was made from something that was only found in the highest difficulty runes of the past. She had only seen something made from this material twice before this card. The first was a Sword that had been said to be stained with the blood of a God, and the other was a normal ring in the personal collection of . Just the value of this card was astronomical. But to think a being was trapped inside of this small piece of metal¡­ "What could you be?" She did not know what the being inside this card was, or how it will be, or what it will grow up into. She had been with only a few Servants, and all of them were unique. They did not have many memories of their past, but they served anyone that summoned them as their eternally loyal servants. "Haaa¡­" She was looking forward to what the being coming from this card would look like, so, she was now excited. As she waited for him to come back, she thought about the many possibilities of how this new individual would become a part of their lives in the world outside this lovely town. Chapter 97 - 97: Appearance of the first Throne "Pretty as ever." "Here." A special smoothie after their first late meal of the day, just the way she liked it. "Thanks." The food was amazing, even though they were simple things. It was not about flavors when he made something for her, but more about the emotions and aesthetics. He was damn good at it. "Alright then, now that we are done with things¡­" Miss Rin did not ask them much about anything since she could tell they were tired and were taking their well needed rest, and since she had checked up on them earlier this morning, she knew what might have transpired in that place¡­ At least she knew a little about their plays. When he went down, he asked Misha to look after the two little creatures as she did last night, and the three were happy to play around as well. They were happy and Miss Rin did not tell him anything about what Alex had talked with her about. She needed some time to think about it as well, so she left the two of them for the day. "Here." And now that the time had come for the big thing, she handed him the silver card that had just been left on the table all this time. "You want this." "Yes¡­" He was thinking about what to do with the card all night after she told him the true meaning of having this servant that will do everything in their power to ensure the safety of their master. They would kill and they would die if it meant the safety of their masters. The masters can restrain them through orders, but the servants would inherently want to protect their masters and things would become complicated in the situation where things are a little too complicated. The death of the masters meant a great deal to the servants. For them, they aren''t just going to be reborn, but their death directly affects them in various manners. They lose a part of their memories with their masters, they lose some of their powers, they even lose the levels that they had gained with their masters. Having a servant was the same as having a child that one will first have to look after and when they grow up a little with the levels and achievements, they would protect their masters as if they are their everything. "Haaaa. Alright." For Elio who did not want to see someone he cherished put into harm''s way, the existence of someone who would willingly choose death even above the orders of their master in certain cases, this servant was more of a problem than a strength. He would need to resolve himself a lot if he wanted them on this journey, but there are always things that one could not control. "Place it on your head." If there were some downsides of having a servant, they were one of the closest friends one would ever meet in this world as well. They were unique beings that were only a fragment of their true forgotten selves of the past. They were different from the Familiars, or any physical being of this world¨C or even spirits, for that matter. No one knew how they came into being, but there were some cards like these scattered all throughout the world and occasionally, some got their hands on them. When they choose to accept them as their servants, they are committing to a lot of things, and it isn''t good all the time. He knew how difficult it might be, so he wanted to think a little more about this, but¡­ she convinced him how it will be good for him and for them going forward. "Alex-." "No point in overthinking anymore. You are doing it." He did not want to kill. But, he still needed strength. And this servant would be his answer to that predicament. This was what he needed the most right now. A weapon that would fight for him. "Haaa¡­" She might not be around all the time, so, in times like that, he would need someone to be his sword. And, all servants, according to what she had known through her experiences, were capable of that much. "It''s good. You need this." Holding it with two fingers and his thumb, he touched the silver card to his forehead. S§×arch* The ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Call it¡­ your first servant." There was a name, a unique identity attached to all the Servant cards. And this one had a unique one as well. "Oh, Sera Heru Phanim." -OOOOOOOOOONG¡­! As soon as he called out that name, a blinding bright silver-white light exploded from the card and covered everything around them. "Answer my call¡­" Words, Runes written in an ancient language flowed out of the card and started circling around Elio, and Alex knew this whole phenomenon must be attracting a lot of attention by now. "Join me on my journey¡­ not as a servant, but a friend, a companion, as an individual." The ancient runes gathered and circulated around Elio''s arm, and then got engraved on his right wrist like a tattoo. Later, a unique voice spoke up¡­ [{( "As you wish¡­ my master." )}] She had experienced it several times, so she could tell he must have seen a vision at that moment. Something only he would see, something he would only see again when the servant that he has just accepted would reach their true potential. The card in his hand shattered into particles of serene silver light, and this silver light melted inside the Rune markings that had been engraved on his wrist. The calling was complete. His first servant had arrived at the calling of his master. Elio had seen an ethereal sea of silver in his vision. On the surface of these silver waters, a being¨C a person with wings as white as the purest first smile of a newborn child that births a fairy, with sun like golden hair so long that they were endlessly stretched to the silver horizon at the back¨C was expressing their lament as they sat there with their delicate yet mystical fair hands wrapped around their knees. Even though that moment had only lasted for a few seconds, He felt the greatest sorrow he had ever felt at that moment. It was weird. He did not understand how a being could express so much sorrow¡­ He instinctively wanted to help that being, share some of that weight with them. But, he did not stay in that silver sea for long. Right when that lamenting being looked up at him with their¡­ indescribable golden eyes, he came back to reality, to their messed up inn room. { "Greetings, master." } And, what he saw as soon as he opened his eyes, what stood before him was the being that would be known as the of an individual who will hold a unique position in this grand Junction of Origins¡­ Chapter 98 - 98: Sera Heru Phanim Standing before him on its two legs was a magical bird, and just being in front of this being made them feel a sense of awe wash over them. This bird, this being that had called him master just a moment ago was now looking up at him, and he was looking back into its golden, mesmerizing eyes, filled with a mysterious wisdom that seemed to hold the secrets of the heavens. The bird''s white feathers shimmered with a soft, radiant glow, creating an almost otherworldly light around it. "Wow¡­" Among the pure white feathers, a few golden ones stood out, catching the light in a way that made them look like threads of sunlight woven into its wings. As the soft feathers moved gracefully, each flutter of those soft, almost unreal wings added to its enchanting presence, making it clear that this was no ordinary bird. It felt like a creature from a fairy tale, a messenger from a magical realm¡­ an angel in the form of a bird. { "I see you, for the first time, my master." } Elio couldn''t help but feel a deep sense of wonder and peace, as if he was in the presence of something truly divine. The bird''s beauty and grace were so captivating that it seemed to bring a touch of magic into the very air around them, making the moment feel timeless and almost unforgettable. "Hello to you too¡­" He was frozen in his place, so Alex had to give him a pat on her back to bring him out of that state as she greeted the small creature. This one had a long blue tail that seemed to be an extension of its own body, like braided hair. The white and gold on its tail were separate yet intertwined, making them seem exactly like some intertwined ribbons. They were attractive, and she liked them quite a lot. She liked the first appearance this being had taken as well, and since the bird was no bigger than a pigeon, she would not have to worry about carrying it around. It was a pretty creature, and pretty things made him go into his own zone sometimes. "Hun, oh, oh sorry." But she brought him back, and he finally greeted the amazing creature. "Hello, Sera." The bird¨C the unique servant of his had a neutral name, but, since the voice that they had heard just now was a more feminine one, they had decided to use the feminine pronouns for her for now. They were unique beings that were not human or mortal, so things like genders of pronouns did not matter to them in the first place. { "Using Mana is still difficult for me, so I will not be able to speak like this for too long, master." } Sera flew up and sat down on his hand. Her claws looked sharp, but they did not hurt him at all. He could tell she was strong from what he was feeling as he caressed her feathers and looked at them from up close. The strength of her grip on his hand was quite firm as well so, she certainly seemed to be a strong being. And, that fact was reflected in her status window as well. ============ ID: Sera Heru Phanim (Level-0) Race: Servant (Master: ID: Elio.) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 12 Agility: 12 Endurance: 12 Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. T-T (System stats) Intelligence: 30 Luck: 21 Charm: 22 T-T (Functional stats) Energy: 10/10 Stamina: 10/10 Fatigue: 3/10 Mana: 12/30 (Stat points: 0) {Skills: Mana Senses, Magic comprehension, Energy Infusion, Elemental Attack, Light of Grace, IX Longinus.} [Titles: .] ============ "Aren''t you a strong one, miss." He caressed her feathers carefully, and with a gentle touch, he patted her little head. "It''s fine. You don''t have to waste your energy unnecessarily." "Chirp~!" [{ Thanks for your understanding, master. }] The Master and Servant were connected with a unique connection. They did not need to use words to understand one another. They could talk through this special connection, just like the masters and a Familiar. The connection was not as deep and unique as the connection between a Familiar and their master, but on a scale of cohesiveness, this was the sixth strongest bond that Alex knew the existence of. "She''s a cutie alright. You struck big this time as well." Alex was envious. She has also had some Servants in her life, but they were not like this one. The strength of the Servants greatly depended on their masters. And she had only obtained her first Servant card after she was over Level-100. None of them were as weak as this one when she met them. She never got to see a cute side of theirs like this one. "This is Alex, Sera. My significant other, and the most important individual in my life." "Chirp!" [{ I will keep that in mind, master. }] She hopped on Alex''s hand and Alex caressed her as well. She was adorable¡­ "I think we should leave soon now." Her feathers, her deep golden eyes, the light body that was stronger than most (Level-0) that she had ever seen, the power to sense and use Mana and even spells. Intelligence stat that was higher than most beings that she had seen was the proof that this little bird was not some normal ''bird''. She was in fact a unique existence that might just be as smart as any average human adult. And, she was still at the weakest stage of her life right now. "Oh, right¡­" Right after Alex reminded him how they would be leaving this town soon, she remembered something important that she had almost forgotten about. "I didn''t tell you Miss Rin and Misha will be joining us, did I?" He was playing with his new friend, but as soon as she said that, a surprised expression appeared on his face and he looked at her with wide eyes. "What did you just say?" He had heard her loud and clear, but he still could not understand what she meant by that. "Just as I said. Miss Rin and Misha will be joining us. Didn''t we need someone to take care of Miu and Az in our absence? The two of them will be perfect for that, don''t you think?" She answered him again, and with a new smile this time. "Alex¡­" This was another unexpected thing. "Haaa. Please tell me why they would leave their perfectly happy lives here, their home, and come with us?" It did not make any sense to him at all. But, she had prepared the explanation that he was asking for right now. It contained facts, as they both liked. So, it was going to be pretty easy explaining stuff this time around. Chapter 99 - 99: Fallen Holy Kingdom "Holy Kingdom of Archlore¡­" S~ea??h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Her explanation started with the history of a kingdom that perished two decades ago. "You know what ''Holy'' energy means in this world, right?" "Of course¡­" Holy energy was the third prominent kind of power in this world, something that was used on a smaller scale in the eastern and northern continents of the world, however, in the west where the influence of religion, magic, and the influence of the powers that followed divinities was vast, the holy energy was seen as a special privilege by the big powers like the [Empire] and [Temple]. Holy energy was essentially the power of priests and believers, those who had faith and earned a unique power through that faith. This power was stronger than Mana, was on par with Aura, but was practically a unique power from either of them. "So, do you know about the fall of Arklore?" Two decades ago, a kingdom was completely demolished by the Empire and Temple''s combined efforts and almost all traces of them were erased from the continent. The reason? The kingdom did not follow any particular god or divinity even though it was called a ''holy'' kingdom. It was a kingdom established by a Wise individual that though did not have great strength, was wise beyond their age. They were a king, and they made a large inhabitable land into a completely new, functioning nation that had hundreds of thousands of citizens at its peak. It did not have a long history, the king was a Half-elf and was only around a hundred and fifty years old when they established the kingdom with their friends and made it into the prosperous nation it became. Under the great leadership of the king, they rose to a powerful position and made treaties with the surrounding powers. They had power, the subjects and followers of the king gained Holy power through the worship of not some god, but their king that they followed. They had faith in the abilities of their leader, so much so that they gained the power of the unique origin that only the faithful could have. It was a worship of not a divine being but just the worship of a human, and yet since they gained this power, they were proving the point that any kind of belief, and sincere faith in anything was able to birth the the unique Holy power¡­ however, the mainstream religion and the strongest power who also followed divinities of their own could not accept that some human had become what only those divine beings should be. "The Holy kingdom was born on the blood, sweat and laughs of the kind people who only wanted a home, a paradise where anyone who wanted peace could escape to. It was a unique place, governed by perhaps one of the smartest people ever born¡­ yet, before the might of absolute power, even the smartest fail sometimes." The war was waged and the war was lost. The remnants of the kingdom''s army, the soldiers who had obtained the holy power of an ''impure'' origin, were hunted down even to this day. "The wise and kind king made sure that the most of his people survive at the end of his life, and so, there still remain many individuals who had once fought for that brave king and still owe their lives to him." But Miss Rin was not one of them. She was simply a mother that met someone that she loved, a wonderful man that she accompanied till his last breath, and when he was gone, she had no ''home'' that she could stay in. "She is being hunted, just like the rest of them, Elio." She was constantly moving, not staying in one place for more than a year or two. Moongold had somehow grown up on her, and she ended up staying here for long, making it a home that she thought she might rest in forever. "But then¡­ that dark mage came." Traces of the Holy power that she used to defeat those minions must have been sensed by the head of the mage tower, the greedy person who, unlike the librarian, saw no profit in helping the town''s people. He was even more materialistic than the players, and unlike them, small things could not satisfy him. "They would have had to leave the town anyway, so I asked them to come along with us." She explained to him how the kingdom fell, what had happened, who were the Soldiers that fought in that war, and how the Empire was still offering huge rewards to the individuals who would bring these remnants to them. "You know how much she likes us, don''t you~? She was happy to come along with us when I told her we would protect Misha and make both of them stronger~." Mages are greedy, especially the upper ranker of the mage towers who need expensive and some very specific materials and ingredients for their experiments. Magic is not cheap. And research in any field requires tons of funds. And, a simple weak wandering soldier could earn them much more than what they could earn by working their normal jobs. "So, isn''t this good? We will have one more proper party member with experience, and someone that Miu and Az like~." She promised him she would take care of the matter regarding the two little creatures. And, she did come up with the solution. But¡­ "Will Misha be okay?" She had so many people in the town that she is close with. Perhaps she doesn''t have any friends and is shy, but will she be alright leaving her home? Did they even tell her that they would be going with them? "Miss Rin said it would be alright." Even Alex did not know how she was going to tell the young girl. But, since her mom said not to worry about it, Alex knew that there would be nothing to worry about for the two of them. "Really?" "Chirp??" Yet, even if she understood that, she forgot that her unique bastard would not just sit still and let the mother handle her child. As the big brother and the one at the center of this whole thing, he also needed to talk with the child, as well as the mother who was now in a difficult position. Chapter 100 - 100: Famous people Elio walked downstairs and there was already some commotion. "Did you see that light just now?" "Didn''t it come from the upper floor?" "Everyone''s here exactly because of that, dumbass." "Someone must have obtained a special item. That kind of light is very rare¡­" "It was silver as well." S§×ar?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. There were a lot of people crowding the hall on the ground floor. Miss Rin was trying to explain to them how they did not know anything about the light either. Some were plainly curious about the light, but as Alex and he could see, some were not here with pure intentions. "What''s going on here?" She spoke up with a loud voice that everyone present here heard clearly. After the battle and the contribution as well as after they saw her destroy pretty much everything in the Library event, she had become well known in this town. Her voice was also famous now, so everyone present in the hall including the players and natives heard instantly knew who this voice belonged to. "Why are there so many people here?" She knew the answer to that, but she still looked at everyone present with an annoyed look, especially those who came in here with impure intentions. Some people instantly left the hall and some who were surprised by her sudden presence also prepared to walk out of the inn. Those who had food and drinks on their tables tried avoiding her gaze by focusing on their food. While Miss Rin who understood the situation took up the chance. "Oh. Alex, good timing. Some of these people saw some kind of light coming out of your room and were wondering what it was. Do you know anything about it?" As soon as Miss Rin mentioned that the room that the light had originated from belonged to her, a lot of people either choked on their food or almost three whatever fluid was in their mouth. They knew how she had beat up some of the higher level players as a mere (Level-20) a while back, and they knew how strong she was after her performance in the battle and the library event. She was the highest contributor in both places, so it was obviously no coincidence. Even the dumbest of them would know what would come out of messing with her. "Chirp~?" Sera was still in Elio''s hands, and everyone could see this unique looking bird. The smarter ones could tell the light must have had something to do with this special looking creature, but they did not try to look at it for too long. The person holding the bird was already famous as someone who had a slime and a strange lizard. He was also famous as her lover, and someone who was just as special as her. Messing with either of them was not going to be good, and both of them had a good relationship with the guard captain and the mayor. So, none of them wanted to go to jail and spend the following few days there for doing anything stupid in this stupid game. "I see. People saw a light from our room? What about it?" She looked at the people who must be here to ask about the light with an annoyed look. She was practically telling them to piss off with those eyes. And, afraid, some of them did leave the inn without saying anything anymore. If the light was connected to her, there was nothing they even wanted to do with it anymore. Most of them left, and the room was cleared up. Those who were too afraid to move or catch her attention just continued with their food and started playing with the system interface without paying any attention to the two of them¨C or the special bird. "Miss Rin? Can we have a moment please? Is Misha in her room?" Elio asked her with a little concerned look as they walked down. "Oh, yes. She''s in the back." Miss Rin could tell he wanted to talk about something. And from the look Alex had, she could also tell it must be about something related to their departure. "Go ahead. I''ll be there in a minute." Now that the festival and event were over, the inn was open once again. She was going to leave soon, so she was going to entrust this place to someone she trusted, so she also had to look after that. "Alright." She will be bust for a few days, and when they leave, she might not even get to tell the others about her circumstances. But, she was familiar with this kind of sudden departure. "Chirp." Sera greeted Miss Rin and she could tell this new little bird she was seeing for the first time was something unique. There was something about this one that caught disturbed something deep within her soul, but they could do their introductions later. "It won''t take long, so please join us soon." The two of them went in after he said that, and after crossing the kitchen, they reached the back area where they mostly stored things. "Miu!" "Muuuuuu~." "Hey! No! That''s cheating!" This storage room had become their playground since a few days ago. They mostly played either in the hall, or in the kitchen, or in this room. This was a pretty spacious place so there was quite a bit of room to play various games. "What are you three playing this time? Hide and seek?" When the two of them entered the room, the girl was running behind the slime while Miu was laughing at them from the top of a high shelf. The two had no idea what they were playing, but it seemed like just like most of the time, their human friend was losing once again. "Brother Elio! Sister!" They were lost in their own fun, but as soon as they saw Elio and Alex, they came running to them¨C and while she was running at them, her eyes met the golden eyes of the unique bird in Elio''s hands. "Woh!" Misha stopped right in her tracks and shouted as soon as she saw the pretty looking bird. "Who''s this, brother Elio!" Then she ran back to him once again and looked up at the bird with stars in her eyes. Her excitement was obvious. Seeing this unique being sparked a new excitement in her pure heart, and the first thing she thought when she looked at her was how she might have a new friend to play with. { "Oh? An Ichorborn?" } But then the bird talked, and the stars in her eyes transformed into a kind of sudden fear that neither of them had ever seen on her until now. Chapter 101 - 101: A special girl "Misha?" The sudden look of fear was somewhat shocking to both of them. "Th-the bird¡­ it talked!" She stepped back as she shouted that, and hid behind Alex. She was shaking, as if she was genuinely terrified of a talking bird. { "Her senses are good." } And when Sera spoke again, the shaking she was feeling intensified again. "What¡­?" Elio did not understand what was happening with her, but Alex had an idea about what might be happening with the young girl. "She doesn''t know much about herself, Sera." { "I can tell that." } "...hun?" This time, when the bird spoke, Misha stopped shaking and instead, looked up at the bird with a confused expression. "The bird¡­ talked?" She wasn''t afraid because the bird was talking, it was an involuntary response of her unique body to the special kind of Mana that the bird was using for her speech. "Chirp." [{ For a young child, her perception is quite formidable. }] Sera was complimenting her, but Elio was confused about what she was talking about. Alex understood her, but since both of them could tell Elio was still lost here, they explained the situation to them as he placed Sera down to the ground. "You know how there are blessed individuals and people who could naturally control magic- the sorcerers?" "Yes? What about them?" The bird approached the young girl. [{ There are a unique kind of individuals that are born with a little unique power among these special kind of people, master. }] The girl was afraid of a talking bird a moment ago, but, when the bird approached her this time, Misha looked at it, in its golden eyes, and crouched down before the bird when it stood before her. "Misha is an Ichorborn." Beings born with the blessing of nature, beings born with a unique connection with the world, and beings who are inhuman in many ways even while being physical beings like the rest of the mortals. [{ Since ancient times, they have been called the . Creatures not humans or part of their own race who receive more attention, more grace, more privileges and freedom from nature than the rest of its children. }] Misha was not afraid of Sera anymore, and even Miu and Az approached them when she had finally gathered some courage to touch the pretty bird. The soft feathers caught her attention quickly, and then, the understanding and intelligent nature of the bird washed away all her fear she had towards this unique being. "Do you remember the town quest and how it asked us to protect an important person?" Alex searched far and wide for any clues regarding this important person. All the people that she had listed as the protected individuals were taken care of by the strong groups and at the end, even with the trolling attempts, no one was harmed. She did not think much about it later, but after she dug deeper into the identity of the helper that was assisting the dark magician, the one that dies with the magic circle, new suspicions arose for her. sea??h th§× N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "That person was also a mage and a magic researcher who was researching natural magic and the origins." According to her findings, she was able to get some information on how the research of this person was somehow connected to the Ichorborns, the unique beings that are more powerful, privileged, and talented than the other beings of the same kind. "I still don''t know what that person obtained the information that there was one such being that he was looking for in this town and convinced a dark mage to destroy it in the name of the dark powers." She had no idea what he was even up to after he suddenly vanished from the magic tower that he was part of, but at the end, she was able to guess how the whole quest might be referring to Misha. "She does not experience Mana poisoning when touching Miu directly, can sense Mana even though she doesn''t have her Mana channels opened, and even though she is young, she has this unique potential to her that even Az finds interesting." The slime was a little too friendly with her for some reason and Miu was the most comfortable when it was around her. Misha was special, Alex had guessed that much already. But when the angle of an Ichorborn was raised, she connected the dots and came to the conclusion. "Hehe, hello there~." "Chirp~." Sera was a unique being of the past so even though she might not know much about her past self, she had all the basic knowledge of the world that she needed. [{ The reason she was afraid of my voice at first was because of the purity and refinement of Mana that I use to speak. }] Sera explained to him how she used her own Mana to directly process the environmental Mana and turn it into a voice that one could understand. She did not use the direct Mana voice of her own like the librarian had during the announcement of the library event. The way she used Mana was much more unique and personal than what one could imagine. And, to the senses of someone like Misha, an Ichorborn, that highly refined voice was like the bloodthirst of a creature tens or levels higher than them. "How can you speak~? Are you really a bird, Miss~?" { "Not really, dear. I just look like this for now." } "Wohhhh! But your voice is so pretty~!" When she stopped using her refined technique and used her Mana directly, her voice became something her senses accepted and liked much better. "It''s quite unique, actually." The senses that she has worked quite differently when it comes to Mana, Aura, her mom''s Holy power, the demonic energy, or something else. She was especially sensitive to those things, perhaps that was the reason she mostly stayed inside the house with her mom when the dark mage invaded. She was in a constant fear of that dark power, and both of them knew how bad it was for her back then. So¡­ "Oh, looks like you have already made a new friend, Misha darling." Elio was here to ask her how she would like to come with us. And, he could only ask that sensitive question when her mom, the real guardian of this little one, was present with them. "Misha." She was playing with Sera''s pretty feathers when he crouched down before her. Az and Miu had arrived there as well and were now standing beside him, looking at him with new curious expressions. They would like it if their fun friend comes with them as well, so he looked at Alex, then at her mother who understood what was going on here, and after receiving a nod of permission from her, he asked the special young girl. "How would you like to join us on our journey?" Their time in this town and their time together had been fun. But, now that they were about to leave, he wanted these two special individuals to come along with him as well. But, he would not force them. Neither the mom, nor her child. Everyone had their freedom of choice. So, unless she wanted to, he was not going to force either of them to follow them on this certainly dangerous journey¡­ Chapter 102 - 102: To the next destination "Miu! Don''t run around on your own!" "Muuuu~!" "And you! How can you play around with her when you''re supposed to stop her!" "Chirp¡­" "Haaa. That''s right Miss Sera. They are a headache!" It was difficult for her to understand what he was asking when he asked her if she wanted to come with them. But, then she looked at her mom, and the look she had was a familiar look that she had seen before. She could tell it was time for them to leave as well. "She''s working hard." "I''ve never seen her that happy at the moment of departure." They had not stayed in the same place for as long as they had stayed in this town. They had always traveled¡­ from one town to another, from one village to the other, from one city to the next and from one kingdom to the other state. As long as she could remember, in her fifteen years of life, she had moved places more than twenty times. They did not stay in the same state for more than a few months, sometimes, if the place they were staying at was small, they only stayed there for a fortnight or a month. She knew they did not have a set home for some reason, and her mother had always told her how it had something to do with her past. She never said too much, but the smart daughter knew it was not easy for her to talk about her past, about her father, about why they don''t stay in the same place, and why she was so different from the other children. "Madam Rin. Do not worry at all. We will maintain this place for you so that you can come back here whenever you want to." "I''m thankful for your help, Lord Mayor, guard captain." Growing up, she had accepted the fact that they might never stay in the same place for long enough to call it a home, so the young girl never made any friends. She was a soft hearted, friendly child, yet she did not make any friends and stayed detached from most of the things. She lived by herself, helping her mom who was doing everything for their sake, and found happiness in things that weren''t for the children. She grew up learning a lot of things from her and the people around her. But then¡­ when they came to this town, they met a person that somehow understood the specialness of the young child. "Take care of her." "Fancy coming from you, Connie." Librarian knew at a glance how special this child was more than the rest of the children. And he also knew the circumstances of the mother of this pitiful child. "Since when do you care about children? Or is it because she is special?" He could not offer them much, but he offered to teach the young girl whenever he had the chance if she stayed here. He was also someone well known for his neutrality so Miss Rin knew she would not have to worry about this person. If he was offering them something that she had never been able to provide to her child, she would have been cruel to reject that genuine offer. She had already become a bad mother to her child, so she did not want to rob that child of this special opportunity as well. "Rinny! I know you were planning to sneak away without telling us! How could you do that!" "People come and go in our lives. But those who we have been with at least deserve a proper send off." "You will have people you can be with going forward, we can see that, but you should at least thank us for looking after you two all these years!" Elders of the town, her neighbors, the people that had become her regulars¡­ all the people that she was going to leave behind in the Moongold, even the mayor and the guard captain that she had not been close with¡­ she did not tell any of them, but as they were leaving, all of them had gathered to send her off. And she did not know what to feel about this. "Yes¡­ I''m sorry¡­ I don''t know how to-." "You ungrateful woman. Don''t be all emotional now." They all knew the two that they were going with. And, they already knew the two will leave one day. She had told them how she liked to move around, they had heard from the young girl multiple times how they had been to many places all this time. She was not Nomadic through her choice. She had her circumstances, they all knew that much. Yet, somehow, they spent years together. She became a part of their lives, and they became a little part of their lives. For them, she was more than a good neighbor. She was a good person that rarely came around. All of them including the child and her mother thought they could make this place a home, but that was never an option. Even with all these people looking after her, even with the Librarian being there, now that she had exposed her powers, it was not possible to stay in this place anymore. She would only put the people around her in danger. And she did not want that. "Haaa¡­ sister! They are teasing me!" "They are just playing dear~. Wait for your big brother~. When he is done with his prayers, they will stop on their own~!" They were on the edge of the town, in the graveyard, to offer their last prayers to the people who departed before them, people that the four of them somehow knew as well. Elio was still offering his prayers and his thanks to all those that he had met and lost in this town, including the family of his little gecko friend. They were waiting for him, and when he was done, they would depart. "Miu~!" "Muuuuu!" "Chirp¡­" "Yes¡­ they are a headache." Misha was leaving the place that had almost made home in her heart. She did not know if she would ever come back, or if these people and this place that she knew would still be here when she does come back in the future. But, she was not leaving this house alone this time. "Did you teach her anything useful Connie?" "Sadly, no. All she knows is how to erase her presence. Her Mana channels aren''t open yet so most of her powers haven''t bloomed yet. I was hoping it naturally happens and so that I can officially take her in as a disciple. But, it seems like that won''t be possible anymore." There were people here sending them off. There was a house of hers that might still be here when she comes back. She was not alone this time either. She was leaving with her special friends and big brother and sister. "Alex, Miss Rin. I''m done." There were people here that would remember her, remember them. She did not want anything more than that, actually. Just this much was more than enough for her. "That''s why¡­ Please look after her when she understands the kind of powers she possesses." He did not want this child to suffer more than she already had. Not because of her amazing powers. Especially not because of her beautiful potential. "Both of them deserve happiness." They were taking them on a difficult journey. Both of them will be Elio and Alex''s responsibilities going forward. So, at least as someone who had crossed paths with these two unique people, he wanted them to find happiness wherever they go. "Don''t worry." And Elio wanted the same. "We will look after them." So, Alex will have to do her best to keep all her companions safe going forward. sea??h th§× Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 103 - 103: Travel to the next junction After saying their goodbyes to the people around them, they left the town in the carriage that they received at a discounted price thanks to Miss Aloha. She wanted to give it to them for free but they did not accept it, she knew they would not accept it even if she insisted. She knew them well, and now that they were going, she knew they were going to meet someday in the future as well. This was not the goodbye but simply a see you soon. Things were not anything complicated here, they were players and they were simply going to their next destination. The world was vast and they were going out to see all that was present in this vast world. There were a lot of things that they needed to see as a couple as well and she knew that very well. This was a game and a vast world for all of them to see and embrace, so¡­ she said her warm goodbyes as they parted ways with her in the carriage. This carriage was going to be their support and the horses driving the carriage were going to be their winds. "You know how to ride a carriage as well?" S~ea??h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "I know a lot of things, hehe." Alex was riding the carriage and the horses were friendly. They were fast, but for now, they were going slowly. The children had fallen asleep, it was evening time, and they were going to rest in the closest village to the Moongold. There were a lot of villages in Cromwell Viscounty, but there was only one big city in the entire region. The whole viscounty was made up of one main city, three towns, and eleven villages three of which were located around the Moongold. The one that they were going to stay in for tonight had a path directly connecting to the next town on their destination, and the town would be connected to the city with a highway so they were going to reach the city from that town with only a few night''s travel. The travel from the village to the next town would take them around two days, which was relatively faster thanks to the good horses that were carrying them. And then from the city of Cromwell Viscounty, they would move up to the central city of the western region, one of the main cities that are destinations of many of the players who choose any town of Kingdom of Viv as their first destination. { "I think we will reach the village in half an hour." } "Should I wake the children up?" "Oh, it''s fine. Let them rest." The carriage was small but it was enough for three people and a young girl. Alex and Miss Rin took turns riding the carriage while Elio looked after the children along with Sera. She had a good understanding of the environment around them thanks to her highly developed senses and her detection abilities, so whenever there was any kind of danger nearby, she informed them ahead of time. She preferred to fly instead of being with them so that things are more visible to her, and thanks to her, they avoided a lot of unnecessary confrontations as they approached the village. "Alright¡­ are we really going to the Jungle of Nozama? Isn''t that too dangerous at your level?" The creatures in the jungle were no joke. It was not recommended to go to that place before at least receiving the first enlightenment. "It''s fine. We will power level in the City and the next city we move to." There were hunting grounds, and the Viscount had personally invited them after hearing about all that they did in Moongold, so they were going to receive some kind of big quest from him as well. "The Cromwell viscounty is big but it does not have any place where you could face creatures of high enough level to quickly progress in a small time though. We would at least have to stay there for a month-." "A week in this city and a month in the next. That is all we need." The Kingdom of Viv was divided into nine sections according to the eight prominent directions and the center being the core of the kingdom. The North, East, West, and south were powers that were either governed by a Duke or a Marques. And then there were various feudal lords of various ranks. The southwestern region where Viscounty of Cromwell was located was mainly under a Count''s rule, but the southwestern plains that were reclaimed by the kingdom were all mainly under the western duke and southern marques. They protected the region from two sides, and the feudal lords looked after the various cities and towns located in the various regions of this place. The kingdom was one of the only four places on the western continent that the players could go to anyway, but it was still special. "Really? If you two really achieve your first awakening in a mere two months'' time, I will be genuinely surprised." "Oh you can look forward to that, hehe." Alex was sure that Miss Rin would be quite surprised when she sees the kind of things that they were going to do. She knew what they had to do to quickly increase their levels. Gaining skills and recovering her lost strength would be easy for her, and knowing Elio, she knew he would be strong enough to match up to her in no time at all. He was studying magic while they traveled as well, so he was not wasting any of his time. He was smart and after seeing the magic of the Librarian, he was even more interested in the various kinds of magic one could command. "Oh, I see the village." The rest at the village will be brief and they will start their travels early in the morning. The next town that they were headed to was called [Yuta] named after a swordmaster that established it, and similar to Moongold, it also had its unique history and attractions. But, their stay in that town will be brief as well. Their main destination was the City of Cromwell, the [Kalp]. Just like all cities, this one also had the [Gate] that was connected to various cities throughout the kingdom, pretty much like a teleportation gate. And, they were going to use it to connect with the main city of the western region, the central city of Luthor Dukedom. The place where they would start their next exploration would be the great jungle located between the [Empire] and the kingdom of Viv. It was a high level hunting ground that not that many people go to, but they needed to go there. The second Key was there, and she needed to retrieve it to regain the next set of her new powers. Chapter 104 - 104: A new village "Excuse me." Miss Rin had been to this village and she knew an inn owner so they directly went there. "Oh~. Customer-... Rin? Is that you~!?" It was an old man with a friendly face. And, as soon as he saw her, a bright smile bloomed on his face. "Hey there, Bill gramps." "It really is you~!" He was so happy to see her that he left the customer that he was attending to and came running to greet her. "How long has it been, my god. The last time I saw you, you were leaving for Moongold." "It was only six months ago, not that long." She said she used to live here before she moved to Moongold. Since this village was connected to the Town of Yuta, the travelers who went there through the road stopped here often and the trade in this village was quite good as well, so she had also frequented here in the past. She knew this old man that used to be an adventurer in his younger days. And, she was close with him as well as his wife who ran this inn. "Hahaha, six months is like eternity to us old folks, you child. You know what, Warma was just talking about you a few days ago. Wait here, let me get her from the back." The old man seemed to be in his sixties but he had a good build and still looked quite vigorous. The way he ran to the back of the inn by passing through the tables also indicated his joints were still strong. "Haaa¡­" Elio found this old man fun. Even Alex, who was experienced with this world, could tell that unlike many normal natives, this old person had experienced the vastness of this world himself. She knew this person used to be an adventurer, and the adventurers were free spirits. They traveled throughout the world in search of various new adventures and she liked him for that much as well. sea??h th§× N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Come quick! Look who''s here~!" The old man brought an elderly lady who seemed to be covered in flour. She must be in the kitchen working from her messy clothing, and from how there was a handprint of flour on the grandpa''s face, they could tell what might have transpired in that back in this short time. "There better be a good reason for¡­ hmm? Is that¡­ Rin?" The old woman had blue eyes on her brown hair, while the white haired old man had pretty black eyes. They seemed to be a pretty couple, and when the old lady saw Miss Rin, she also came running to greet her¨C showing how even her joints were still strong at that age. "It''s you! Rin! Oh my god, how have you been~!" The old lady greeted her with a hug, and unlike the grandpa, she also greeted the rest of them. "Oh, are these people with you¡­ oh! Is that Misha?" Misha had woken up a while back but she was still sleepy so she was just holding Alex''s hand as she walked with drowsy eyes. "She''s sleepy, Warma granny." "She''s grown up so much since the last time I saw her¡­ she''s even prettier now." The warm smile she had when she looked at the little girl was the signature old smiles that the grannies look at their grandchildren with. It seemed like she wanted to give the young girl a cookie as well, perhaps a chocolate, but she understood how tired they all might be from her sleepy look. "Oh, right. You''re here to stay for the night? For longer? Please tell me you will stay for longer." "Ah¡­ no. Just the night." With a bitter smile, Miss Rin shook her head and the happiness on the granny''s face turned into sadness. "Oh¡­ I would have loved to have a chat if we had time¡­" It seemed like she really wanted to talk with her old daughter like an acquaintance, but Miss Rin shook her head once again. "We are going on a long journey, granny. We even have a carriage outside-." "You left your carriage unattended?! You children¡­" Grandpa was looking after the customers while the granny was talking with them, but as soon as he heard that they had a carriage, he quickly ran out to take care of it. Leaving carriages out on the road was no good idea, so he will first take it to the back where in the stables. "That old man¡­" Even the granny shook her head at how fast the grandpa ran. And then looked up at the rest of them with a sigh. "Come, let me give you the keys to your rooms. How many do you need again? Three? These two look like a couple so they will share one. Do you want a separate one for the child?" "Oh, no need. We will share one as well." Misha did not like sleeping alone anyway. So, Miss Rin shook her head and then bowed to the granny. "I want to talk as well, Granny Warma, but we must depart tomorrow. Though, if you would like, we can talk at night like old times." They could not stay here for long since they needed to reach the next town and then move to the city. They were invited by the Viscount and there was going to be a big party, so they could not be late for that. "You know what, dear? We would love that even more~." Granny could tell there were some circumstances from her expressions. She could also tell the people she was with, the Girl that looked much more experienced than her age, and the boy who was holding a Slime that possessed a Wand, a Mana beast, and a bird that most definitely was not a bird, were special people, just like her. From the looks of it, the two seemed to be her companions, and¡­ the fact that this pitiful one had found companions that she could trust actually was something that the granny could not possibly ignore. "Then, come here. You should freshen up and eat something before we wrap things around here." The granny was a talkative one. And the grandpa was the loud one. Both of them used to be adventurers in their time, but now they ran an inn in a village. "Thanks granny Warma." "Huhu, why are you thanking me~. Silly child." Apparently, both of them had been together for over thirty years now. And both of them used to be adventurers so, there were a lot of fun stories that they had for these young people. Now that they had the chance, they could not possibly miss this fun opportunity to once again talk with this unique mother, and her new unique companions as well. Chapter 105 - 105: Stories of past adventures The village was much smaller than the Moongold town. There were only a few houses, and there were hardly any big establishments in the entire village. One of the few big places was the inn that they were staying in, a place that was also one of the oldest in this place. The old man and woman that operated this inn were famous people and they provided fairly good services to the people that come there at a reasonable price. This was a village so the prices here were not the same as the town prices or the city prices. Things were cheaper here, and they especially offered quite affordable services. The inn that they operated was their house, a three story structure that was a fairly attractive place in this small village. There was a place for the horses, the food here was good, they had unique magic enchantment rooms that stayed warm on cold nights, and there was also warm water here¨C a rare service that was not common even in the towns. There were not many rooms so they were mostly full on business days, but, for an old acquaintance, they had made special space, and given the Miss and her companions the most special rooms on the third floor. They only used these rooms for important guests, and she was an important guest to them right now. "Your hair is so pretty¡­" Grandma was combing Alex''s hair, Alex was combing Misha''s hair, and Misha was playing with Sera''s feathers. "It''s actually thanks to Miss Aloha and El. He mostly takes care of them." "I am the only one that takes care of those hairs. You are a wild animal that has no sense of responsibility when it comes to those pretty hair." They were long, they were strong, and thanks to Miss Aloha, they were also prettier than they usually are. "Oh? Are you two acquainted with Miss Aloha as well? She''s quite famous around this village, you know?" "Hmm? Really?" They were going to talk for a little longer now, and since Misha had finished her nap as well, she was going to join in on their talk along with Az and Miu. Elio was already by the fireplace with Grandpa and the two of them were spreading a blanket on the floor for the rest of them. "You two seem to be quite close¡­ are you two married already? Or just engaged?" The grandpa smirked at him as he asked that with his relatively loud voice that the rest of them heard quite clearly. "Whaaaat~? Brother Elio and Sister are married~?" She turned around to look at her big sister with a new surprised expression. "No, silly. We are just¡­ partners. You know, more than friends. For now." But Alex just smiled at her and turned her head around as she continued combing her pretty red hair. She glanced at him, smirked for a moment, and shook her head as she continued with what she was doing. "We don''t really believe in the traditional engagement and marriage thing. Well, you can say that we are more than friends, perhaps something similar to a married couple. But, no. Officially, we are just a little more than friends." Engagement and marriage was something that did not really matter to either of them. They both understood one another, and they had been living together for years now. Giving one another rings and doing the traditional marriage thing was still pending, but they were thinking of exploring those things as well. His mom wanted them to do a grand wedding with all the traditional things and stuff anyway, but neither of them were ready for those things. They were happy with their lives, and even in this world, being together was more than enough. "Oh? Aren''t you an unorthodox couple~?" The two of them liked their thinking since the two were also somewhat like them. They were married for years, yes, but when they were their age and were exploring the world, they were also doing various things that weren''t fit for friends. They were pretty open minded back in those days, so both of them had a lot of acquaintances outside this village. "Tell me more about yourself." They were done combing and braiding each other''s hair and Miss Rin was here with some snacks for everyone as well. So, they all sat down before the fire and started the conversation with Elio and Alex''s story. "Well¡­ there''s not much to tell about ourselves." There were a lot of things that they could have told them about themselves, but there really wasn''t really anything from their home world that they would like to know. They were a simple couple, so she just told them a few things about themselves, Elio added a few things and corrected a few things that she said, and then they told them about what things they had done until now in Moongold and how they were going to Kalp to meet the Viscount. They also told them how they would be going to the Jungle of Nozama. And both of the old ones were surprised when she mentioned that. "You are going to the Dark Jungle? Will you be joining some expedition?" "Nah, just us." Alex said that casually but both the old ones got a look of shock at her carefree attitude. "How can you say that with that carefree look when you are taking a child in that dangerous place?" Grandma was upset, but she did not shout at them. She just asked a question with a louder voice, and Alex answered her just as simply as she had replied to her earlier. "We won''t be putting either of them in harm''s way. I know my way through that forest path." She gave them a reliable smile¡­ and hidden behind that smile was a deep determination to protect what belonged to her. "We will make sure they are safe. You don''t have to worry about them." And, Elio added in her word with a determined expression of his own that was much more serious than hers. He was clearly showing how he would do anything within his power to keep his companions safe. And, the old couple who were familiar with the kind of eyes these two young individuals had, understood their desires. "I see." They had roamed the world as well. They had met people and though they did not chase strength like many of their acquaintances did, they had experience. And their experiences told them how capable these two individuals were despite their low levels. S§×ar?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Well, if they are with someone like you two, I believe they will be fine." Granny smiled at them, and the grandpa nodded vigorously with a smile of his own. "Enough about them. Rin, tell me about how you have been~." The night was young. And the stories were abundant. Elio was meeting experienced natives who had explored the world as adventurers for the first time like this¡­ he had many questions for them as well. And with the flowing gray clouds in the fine night sky, they were going to see how many of these questions of one another they could satisfy in this limited time they had¡­ Chapter 106 - 106: Stories of past adventures (2) "Then, granny, tell us a few things about yourself as well." Now that Alex and Elio had told them about themselves and a short bit about how Miss Rin''s life had been in Moongold, they wanted to know more about the adventures of this old couple. "You were adventurers¡­ How much have you traveled? How many towns, cities, dungeons have you been to? The Grandpa seems to be a greatsword user and granny must have been at least a (tier-4) master, right?" Alex could tell the two of them were quite strong despite their old age. Their levels were not too high, but they were still higher than the guards of the Moongold. Levels don''t drop with age, but the strength of the human body is finite. And old age for the normal humans is an eternal truth that brings them down from their former glorious peaks. Still, the experience that one gains through the growing age is priceless. Even if they might not have the kind of strength that they might have used to, they undoubtedly had much more experience than any of them did. "I wasn''t a master, missy. But yes, I know a little bit of magic." The grandma called up her Mana and made a few strings out of it, weaved them together into something new, and made a thread that then vanished into thin air. "Wow¡­" Her control over Mana was amazing. Elio had seen some mages in the town while they were still there after the library event, but he had not seen them do something like this directly with Mana so this surprised him quite a bit. "Oh you will be able to do this as well, pretty boy. This is just the basics." To create original spells, one needed to have an understanding of magic and the elemental properties. And he was studying that already. But the mastery of Mana manipulation and the kind of precision that she had just shown just now were something pretty complicated. One needed experience. As well as a lot of practice to handle Mana the way she just did. "But you know what? I was quite surprised to see a Slime with a wand. It''s not every day you see creatures who cast magic, and ones that have a wand of their own are even more rare." "Hmmm?" The way she phrased it implied that this was not a one of a kind case. "Have you met other creatures who had wands, granny?" Not just Elio but even Alex was confused right now. As the granny said, the creatures that could cast magic were rare already, but the ones who also had a wand of their own? "How did you know it was a magic wand though? That''s the bigger question." A wand was a special object that surely contained Mana but it was not something that one could distinguish from the normal objects unless they check it with an appraisal skill and find something peculiar within the information that they obtain. "Oh, right. I didn''t tell you, right? Granny has {Eyes of Vas} the skill that-." "The special skill that (Blue great apes) possess?" Alex suddenly looked at the granny with a surprised expression. "Why is someone possessing such a skill here? You could very well be a royal subject or have a noble title if you want." She did not know how she had it, but the skill that they were talking about was one of the high ranking skills in the Appraisal skill category. The (Blue great apes) are on average (Level-150) creatures that are found on the eastern continent''s high mountain peaks. Their famous skill is something so special that not many people in the world possess something like that, and they don''t drop the Skill essence with this particular skill that often either. To see this skill in the Kingdom and not in the empire was pretty surprising to her, but for a granny of some village to possess a skill that only rankers have¡­ this was quite unusual. S§×ar?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Well¡­" Granny did not have an answer for her. Why wasn''t she a noble and just an innkeeper in some village? Well, she wanted this. Not some life of luxury. "I like being here. That kind of life¡­ it''s not for me." She smiled warmly at Rein. But, Rein could only shake her head at this absurd revelation. "Haha, there are some unique things in this world, as well as some unique people. I''m a simple old woman that likes working with her husband in this small village¡­ but we used to be part of a fun group of people as well." Granny caressed the little slime, and looked at the funny gecko with a warm expression. "We used to travel together, throughout the world, see places, live in some, go around helping others, fighting, playing¡­ those were fun times." She told them how they were part of a big adventurers group that used to be famous back in their times. "Yes, we had met a creature who possessed a wand as well." But unlike this little slime, that being was an old Ent. Something that was much older than the combined age of the people of their group back in the days. "I can tell this slime is special through my eyes, I can tell that little gecko is special through my experience, and one does not need experience or a skill to tell this adorable looking bird is, in fact, something unfathomable." She started her story with them going into a deep forest and stumbling upon an old looking tree. There, one of their group members suddenly vanished so they started searching for them and they found the entrance to a hidden dungeon hidden under the roots of the giant tree. They went in, and there, they encountered a single creature guarding doors to a great treasure chest. "We were young back then, so we challenged the creature." "However¡­" A bitter look clouded their faces and tears almost slid out on the granny''s eyes. "It was a foolish decision¡­ but thankfully¡­ all of us survived." She lost her own magic wand that day, the grandpa suffered a great injury as well. They all could have died, but thanks to their leader, they managed to come out of that place alive. "We reported that dungeon, but it took the sacrifice of Thirty knights, twenty mages, and ten archers to subjugate that creature. Its magic was beyond human. And¡­ it was fulfilling a duty." "It was quite a famous incident back in the days, but with time, people forgot about it. Our friends went their own way, and we settled down in this peaceful place." Both of them could tell neither of them regret settling down here. They could even tell the two of them were happy here. So, Alex just nodded with a helpless smile, shook her head while looking at Elio expressing her understanding, and then, seeing how Misha was sleepy once again, Alex suggested something that would cheer up their mood as well. "How about you tell us more about your time together with grandma?" The question was directed to grandpa, but they knew it was for both of them. And from the inappropriate smile on her pretty face illuminated by the orange warmth of the fire, the adults knew what kind of ''time together'' she was talking about¡­ Chapter 107 - 107: Departure from the village "When will you come back then?" Before Miss Rin boarded the carriage with Misha and Elio, she hugged her pretty granny warmly. "Who knows?" And with a rather happy smile, she said her goodbyes to this kind couple. "Weee-hyehyehye~!" The horses were ready to depart. The night that they spent with this old couple was a new kind of experience for Alex and Elio. They were quite different from a normal couple. They were even different from his parents. The life that they had lived was different, the things that they did in their lives were different, the things that they had experienced in their lives were different, even the way they had grown up was different. The old couple did not have any children, they could not¡­ sadly. But they had been together. And they were happy. They had a home, and they had helped many that they had come across in their lives. They did not have their own children, but many players who lived in this village, as well as the children that the villagers had all knew this couple, and were quite close to them. They were famous in their village, and they were loved by many. Even though they did not have the kind of strength they had in their prime, even though they could not have the kind of adventures that they used to have, they were happy in this small place. "Alex?" Elio had learned a thing or two from the old granny, and he had obtained a unique book from her as a gift. "Yes, gimme a minute please." A red diary that belonged to her in her younger days. It was a diary that contained a lot of things that she had learned as a mage, notes, her life experiences, stories¡­ it was a special item that had magical pages so that one could write three times more in those pages. Additionally, one could add more pages to this diary by materializing their own Mana¨C a difficult process, but something possible. "I don''t think it will have any meaning at this age, dear." While granny helped the young boy, the young girl, his partner, helped the older man. "I''m not saying you should have children¡­ well, you can if you want to. Granny is still in great shape, but it is up to you. This works. It is possible. And it is up to you." They deserved happiness, as well as pleasure. She knew they were happy. They were genuinely happy, she knew that. But if they wanted, there could be more happiness, more bliss in their life. An injury of the past did not have to necessarily be a full stop in their personal lives. She did not know the kind of agony they might have felt in their younger days, just how much they might have suffered together to become indifferent to those feelings. "Our happiness is our right. No one can take it from us, and we do not have to give in to any external factor either." She said her goodbye to the old man, she received a bitter smile from the granny as she said her goodbyes as well, and then, she bowed and thanked both of them before boarding the carriage. She was the only one who had stayed behind after saying their goodbyes. And now that she had told him all that she wanted, she climbed the carriage. And before they departed, from the driver''s seat at the front of the carriage, she gave them a last warm smile. "You deserve that bliss." It was just sad that they could not express their affection, their love in the most simple way, connect their bodies, and experience the most basic mortal bliss through the act of lovemaking. They were amazing people. And she genuinely wanted them to be happier together. "Hiayaa!" Their time in this village was short, but they had a fun night with these fun people. "Ba-byeee grandma Warma! Grandpa Bill!" Misha also liked these people. She was shy around people and took a while to get used to them, but she knew them from her past, so it did not take her long to get used to them. She was also not sad that they were leaving so early. Last night was fun for her. "Miu!" "Muuuu!" "Take care of those little ones~." Granny had strangely gotten attached to the slime and little Gecko. One was as curious as a one year old child, while the other smiled so happily that it seemed like sadness, or any kind of negative emotions did not even exist for it. "Chirp~!" [{ They are nice people. }] "Aren''t they?" Even Sera found these two unique among the hundreds of people she had seen since she became his servant. "They are fun." Elio was leaving another fun bunch, and once again, he was carrying with him something that would remind him of them. This diary contained what she had experienced and learned. She was not able to complete this magical diary¡­ but, now that it belonged to him, he was going to do what she could not. ... -Tab-dak. Tab-dak. ... [{ Master, I see some abnormal activities ahead. }] "Abnormal activities?" The horses were fast, it was early morning, and the road to the next destination, the town of Yuta, was pretty much straight. There was no forest and the solid path was well built. There weren''t any monster habitats around the village so, there should not have been any abnormal activities for a few more hours now. But, if Sera detected something ahead on an open road, they surely were going to encounter something up ahead. S§×ar?h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Alex¡­" "I know. I can tell something isn''t right either." The road was quite quiet. There should have been more sounds around¡­ but the straight road seemed like it was experiencing the silence right after some kind of incident. "Halt." As they traveled a little more, they saw the abnormal activities that the bird had informed them of. "Kekeke, another bunny~? Aren''t we lucky today~?" And, this was quite a classic situation¡­ Chapter 108 - 108: Classic bandits The rising sun peeked over the horizon, casting a golden glow on the dusty, solid road. Alex, her black hair pulled back in many braids, steered the rickety carriage with a confident hand. Fear, worry, concern, anxiety¡­ all that was a stranger to those heavenly blue eyes. "Ahem. We''ve got company, everyone." Behind her, amongst the worn cushions, her companions shifted. Elio looked from the open front, and Sera came back inside from the open back. A comical cough escaped from one, a curious glance exchanged between the young girl and her mother. Up ahead, a ramshackle barricade of scrap wood, metal, and stones blocked the path. Around ten figures, bandits by the looks of them, lounged with haughty looks, their faces covered in pleased smirks. Alex, unfazed, pulled the carriage to a halt just a few feet from the barricade. Anyone else would have stopped a mile away from this barricade after noticing it, but not her. Right now, just like how the classic bandits had pleased smirks on their faces, she had a smile of excitement on hers. "Can I have them?" "They look fun, though. Can I try out some magic on them?" "Nah. There doesn''t seem to be any mages among them. Lemme have them, hehe." The bandits stirred, eyeing the carriage with suspicion. One, a hulking brute with a wickedly curved blade strapped to his thigh, lumbered towards them. Even to them, this was strange. A carriage was almost stopping in front of their faces, and instead of trying to turn and run away, they were chatting among themselves? They found it quite funny, actually. "Well, well," he rasped, his voice gravelly from years of smoking. "What do we have here?" He approached them, his height almost two meters, with arms as big as her thighs, his bicep veins pulsing with vigor as if they had been pumped already. He was bald, his skin bronze. The sword was now in his hands, and the aura exuding from him was threatening. But, as he stood before the attractive female driver, a rather faint blush bloomed on his clean face. "Well¡­" Alex''s lips curved into a wider smirk, a glint of comedy in her eyes. "Not today," she said, her voice ringing with a confidence that belied the outnumbered situation. The bandits exchanged surprised glances. This wasn''t the usual scared traveler they preyed on. This was not like the group that they had just captured. This was different. -Dhum! They suddenly heard a strange sound, and the towering giant of their group, their shield and protector giant, was suddenly thrown all the way to the back. -Dherrrrr! "Hello there, fun people." She started with the first one, and then she vanished from her driver''s seat. -Dhum! The giant had crashed a few meters before them, but in a blink of an eye, he started flying once again and was thrown right into their barricade! -Bhum! Three individuals of the group were hit by the giant body and crashed into the barricade along with him, and this was the moment when the bandits realized¡­ "We fucked up." -Dhum! -Dhank! -Boom! "Wow~. Is that how you fight, mommy~?" The young girl enjoyed the show, even though it had only lasted for a few moments. "Miu!" The gecko liked the fight, while the little slime also wanted to join in on this fun thing. But Elio kept it in his first grasp. "No, little one. We don''t have to kill them." "Muuuu~." "No. You are too strong. Perhaps next time, ok?" Alex used her {Blink} and her hands. She did not need to use any other skill, or even her sword or dagger, or even a twig to deal with these little, adorable bandits. They were nothing in front of her anyway, so, this little meeting they had was only going to be a negative thing for them. "Huuu~." Alex finished them in no time, and then she tied them up with a string rope. "That was some good exercise." The sun was rising on the horizon. This was early morning. The bandits that were just smirking at them and were somehow blocking this road with a strong looking barricade were now bruised and bleeding. Some had also fallen unconscious from her beating. S§×ar?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. All of them were alive, and handing them to the authorities would earn them rewards. The soldiers that maintain this road should be here anytime now, the time was approaching as well, so they would arrive soon, and with that, the bandits would be dealt with. "Just how weak were the people before us that you dealt with, hun?" These bandits weren''t that big a deal. They were pretty high level, but they neither had any special skills or even abilities to take down someone that had any kind of protection with them. It was actually strange how they were able to deal with someone else¡­ "Who was it¡­?" There should not be that many people traveling on this road this early in the morning. People mostly left the village to go to the town when they took this road. It was also a one way that was rarely used so there were also not that many people around, so¡­ who was it that they dealt with in this place? And, why were they barricading this place in the first place? How did the soldiers that should be patrolling this place not see it? Actually, if they had barricaded this place not long ago and had captured someone as they were saying earlier, where was the person, loot, and the carriage that they looted? "..." {Blink} Why were the bandits that should be screaming with high and mighty curses like the peacock before the rain not even saying anything at all? This should not have been like this. [{ "Elio, get ready with Miss Rin." }] This wasn''t right. If anything, why did the bandits look so clean if they were bandits? [{ "It''s magic. Sera just noticed as well." }] They should be disgusting, they should be wearing alcohol stained clothing, they should be smelling like bandits should. { "It is commendable you noticed this." } This was not right. And she knew it. -Ooooooooooooong! Natural magic, wind element, Preservation series, (tier-4) spell: (Illusion barrier). Since the moment they started feeling that weird sensation, they had entered the magic barrier of a mage. To be more specific¡­ "Greetings, friends from the other world." Magic of a greedy mage tower master. Chapter 109 - 109: Mage tower master "You might have heard of me already, but allow me to introduce myself." The bandits that she had beaten up vanished into thin air along with the barricade that was created by them. The atmosphere around them changed, the window flow shifted, the calmness of the winds also became unstable for a moment, but that only lasted for three seconds. -Crrr¡ªek! With a shattering sound of glass, they felt the air pressure around them shifting. And when they blinked, someone they had never seen before personally was standing right in front of them. "I''m the master of Moongold town''s magic tower, Ryan Von Luliby. A (tier-4) Advanced magician, studying the magic of nature, blessed by the winds, and treading on the path of Preservation." Long green hair that seemed to contain a magical glow, White mage clothing that at a glance could be apprised as a high value item, a face that was no less attractive than Elio''s, surrounding air that gave off a magical, almost fantastical feel¨C this person before them, this noble looking man holding a tall magic staff, this strong individual of over the hundredth level¡­ "The hell are you doing here, you jerk?" He was the materialistic bastard that she wanted to avoid and the person that she disliked even more than the librarian. "Oho? Seems like you are one of those sharp tongued foreigners." He smirked at her, and started approaching them with a unique but calm attitude. "Anyway¡­" He was walking with calm, slow steps. But, none of them noticed how or when he crossed over six meters in a blink of an eye, and appeared right beside Alex. "There seems to be more interesting things here than I expected." He looked inside the carriage, at Elio, at Misha, at Miss Rin, at the Slime, gecko, and the pretty bird. His deep green eyes were sparking, glowing with a unique light, indicating he was looking at them with his unique appraisal skill. "Who would have thought-." She could not react when he suddenly appeared beside her, but he made a mistake if he was thinking they were anything easy to deal with. -Swish! She instinctively swung her hand and a blade appeared in her hands out of her inventory. "Woah." It was no simple blade, it was coated with a lethal poison that could be fatal even to someone like him if it had even so much as touched his skin. But it did not. He vanished just like he had appeared beside her, and gained some distance from them. "Aren''t you a wild one?" He smirked once again at them from a distance, but now, he knew he would not be able to deal with them. "Stay here with Miu, Misha." Elio came out of the carriage along with Az and Miss Rin. Alex also took out a unique looking sword from her inventory that most definitely was an enchanted item. Az knew the time for him to show his skills had arrived, so it also took out the magical staff that the mage tower master found the most fun. "Is that a wand? Damn¡­ just how much more fun is this going to be?" "Sera." [{ Yes, master. }] This person, the mage tower master, someone who was said to be over (Level-100) did not come out of his sweet lab when the town where his tower was, was being attacked by a dark magician. He was famous for being a materialistic bastard, actually he was infamous. It was said that there was a time when he wiped out a village saying the commoners who lived there had disrespected him and were working with demons to tarnish the image of the nobility. He was from a baron family, the lowest order nobles, and yet he had managed to climb to the position of a tower master in his late forties. It was said that he did all kinds of experiments to look attractive and young like the actual mages from the dark novels do. And it was said that if it was for his research, for the Preservation of his own self, he would go to any length, even accepting assisination tasks from the higher ranking lords. "Kehehehe. When I sensed that distinct holy power, I did think some remnant of that wicked kingdom had crawled into my darling town. But it was surprising even to me how that person was in fact not someone new, but someone who had been living right under my nose for so damn long~~." The winds changed once again, and this time, they were much more violent and sharp than they had previously been. "After knowing how my prize money was going away with the ''saviors'' of the town, I felt extremely bad, you know? Sear?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. I was heartbroken. That bastard librarian was a hindrance, but thanks to some distraction, I was able to slip away from him, hehe." Elio cast a magic barrier around them with a scroll, a Preservation spell of water element. Then, while that mage was blabbering, he cast all the buffs that he could on the sword wielding Alex, and the longsword wielding Miss Rin. "Do you know why I did not just kill all of you extras when I had the chance?" Alex moved, used her sword and aimed at the point that she knew the mage will appear after using his wind magic. But, even though she was on point, he was covered by a swirling wind that blocked her attack. "I saw a pretty looking bird, and was momentarily awestruck~." Miss Rin conjured her Holy power, wrapped it around her sword, and also used her movement technique to close the distance between him and the mage. "Then, when you came inside of my illusion, I saw a unique looking sword with a strange girl that I could not figure out the strength of." Elio used restriction spells, but they were pretty much useless against a mage that understood his magic on a deep level and could [Dismantle] it with just a drop of his Mana. -Ooooooooooooong! Even Az and Sera used their magic, their powerful magic, but even that was useless against someone who knew more magic than any of them combined. "Then, I got curious." He was not using any offensive spells. He was just toying with all of them. "How could a girl be anything normal when she is surrounded by all these people?" -Oooooooooooong! He was not showing it until now, but since the start, he was not aiming for any of them. "You know what I noticed after that?" "No!" "Alex!" "...!" "A simple young girl was holding a Mana beast with her bare hands." -Swiiiiiiiiiish¡­! A sphere of wind flew to the carriage with downed horses, an afraid young girl, as well as a gecko that was not smiling anymore. It was offensive magic, and it was aimed not to harm the girl, but to destroy everything else that was present around this girl. "Miu." Everything¡­ including the little gecko friend that she was hugging with all the strength of her delicate life. Chapter 110 - 110: Winds against anger Miu had three skills. One was called {Sixth sense}, a unique skill that very few Mana beasts possess. It was a rare skill that gave the little gecko extremely precious ''intuition'' and perception powers beyond the normal senses. This skill was the reason it was able to navigate through the dungeon and sense many things even during their travels. It was a great skill with immense potential so, with good enough time and right training, she knew she could teach the little creature how it could use this skill in a better manner. The other two skills that it had were even more precious. They were highly rare, almost unique skills that were found in a few mutants. One of them was called {Spontaneous growth}, a skill that helped the creature in extreme situations where it would need to quickly adapt itself to the environment and the nature around it. One of the reasons it was able to survive for so long even after being poisoned like that was most probably due to that skill. It was a special skill as well, but it was not as special as the third skill it had. -Oooooooooooong! When the sphere of deadly winds came to them¨C ready to destroy the carriage, the horses, and even her friend¨C the golden spots and the crystal eyes of the little gecko started glowing with a unique light. "Hmm?" The spell that was flying towards them at a speed that not even Alex was able to react to was strangely stopped in its wake, a golden energy now circulating around it. "Miu." "...?" Misha was afraid of everything that was going on already, but, when she looked up at the friend that she was trying to protect in her embrace after perceiving that strange feeling, she was stunned. The gecko that she had only ever seen smiling, playing, cheerful and devoid of any negativity was now seriously glaring at the strange person in the front. Miu''s eyes were glowing as well. And, Misha could feel there was something more to these glowing eyes. "Fascinating¡­" The Mage stopped for a moment, admiration present in his eyes. "A creature capable of commanding nature!" His eyes sparkled at this marvelous sight. Sear?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The spell that he had used just now was a natural spell, not an elemental spell. He was controlling the very winds that exist in this nature, not the elemental powers of the wind element itself. Even someone who understood this spell that he had crafted himself were to use their powers to [Dismantle] this spell, they would need to be a genius on the level of high mages. But, a creature had just stopped his spell. And that too, with not the understanding of the spell or with brute force. "Hahahaha! This is truly a jackpot!" The creature used its skill, {Fragment of natural will}, and controlled the very nature in which the spell winds were traveling through. [{ "Miu can''t do it consecutively." }] What it did was the same as controlling a spell that was cast by someone else. It was not something simple, a spell was an execution¨C it was a result of a cause. [{ "I''ll take the right. Alex, take the left, leave the front to Elio and the others." }] It was not even an elemental spell but a natural spell, so one could just guess how fascinating this instance would have been for a natural magic user like this bastard. [{ "Move." }] -Swish! Miu used the power that consumed a great amount of its own energy to save Misha. Something Misha did not understand yet. She did not know what was going on, why this strange person was laughing like that. She knew if her mom and big brother and sister were fighting this person and if he was trying to harm them, it most certainly was a dangerous person. It was trying to harm them, and she could not do anything to help them. She was afraid right now, and there was nothing she could help them with. -Swash! "Aren''t you bunch persistent~!" Elio and Az helped them with buffs. Sera was attacking with light elemental attacks, but her powers were limited as well. Miss Rin was a war soldier and could use Holy energy, but even she was only a (Level-108) soldier. She was not a knight, she was not even a proper swordsman who had learned the ways of a sword or practiced with it for years. She was a soldier, and all she knew was how to kill, and how to survive. Yet, right now, she was fighting like a knight to protect what she cherished more than her own life. [{ "Miss Rin." }] Alex coordinated with the rest of them and used her unique daggers covered in lethal poison as well as the sword that could harm this person. -Swish! Swish! Swish! Her sword techniques were not complete since she did not have her complete strengths, she was merely a (Level-35) player at the moment. She was not someone that could use complex techniques, but even still, she used her years of fighting experience and with the help of the rest of them, she blocked the mage from casting any more spells at the carriage. The horses might die, the only way of transportation they had right now might get destroyed, or the girl in the carriage might get badly hurt¡­ This bastard mage, he was trying to capture them now that he knew their true value. Even if he did not catch the remnant of the Holy kingdom, he will be able to progress his research to a great degree with the help of the little girl and the little gecko alone. If he gets the slime that could cast magic, he could earn some great funds as well. And that bird¡­ he wasn''t that interested in the bird anymore. It was not that special compared to the rest of them. "Kekekeke!" Alex had used a high tier magic scroll of the Preservation series to cover the carriage so Misha was safe for now¡­ Breaking that barrier will not be easy even for him, and he knew that as well. -Swish! Swish! Swish! With them blocking him, he was not going to get to the carriage anytime soon. "Bastard!" "It is futile~!" -Oooooooooooooong! But if the opponents were merely two baby foreigners, a fragile mother, a slime, and a white bird¡­ "Shit." ============ Ryan Von Luliby (Level-132 Advanced magician) ============ -Swiiiiiiiiiiiish~! "Hahaha! Just die~." He was not going to have any problems taking out the useless trash. Chapter 111 - 111: Helplessness -Swish! "Ugh!" Alex barely avoided the blades of wind that flew at her from three different directions. -Dhum! Miss Rin blocked the attack of the wind sphere with a shield that she got from Alex, but that threw her away. The impact almost made her lose her footing. But she somehow managed to stay still and block another attack. -Oooooooong! Sera had already exhausted all her Mana so Elio ordered her to go inside the barrier with Misha and Miu. She was not doing well, and she was over exerting herself. He could not see her like that anymore, but she could not leave her master in this situation. The opponent they were facing was too strong. The magic that he was using was not something they could block with steel weapons and their low grade magic. She stayed behind, and looked out for an opportunity where she could use what she had right now. "Muuuuu!" Az was somehow effective, but even the little slime had its limits. The Mana volume that it had as a low level creature was low. So, the spells that it can cast were very limited. But, since these spells were at least effective, they were able to use them strategically. [{ "Elio! Give me a speed boost!" }] [{ "I cannot! Wind spells aren''t working! I can''t use any wind spells!" }] [{ "Focus on the winds! You don''t have to use the winds that are present in the surroundings! Create your own winds!" }] Az was reaching its limits. They brought Miss Rin along with them thinking she would be helpful in most situations, but none of them had expected they would have to fight the mage tower master right after they left the town! -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiiish! The bastard wanted all their people now! He was using powerful spells! There was a whirlwind covering him that had winds so sharp just a touch of them felt like it was a deep cut from some sword! S~ea??h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Just the touch of the strong winds ripped open their bare skin, it destroyed the normal clothes that they were wearing, and if it wasn''t for the protective spells from the magic scrolls that they had used, they would not even be wearing any gears anymore. "Kugh!" "Miss Rin!" She was hit with another wind sphere, but this time, when the sphere of winds collided with the shield, it broke down and became sharp blades of winds that exploded and cut her at multiple points! "Don''t worry about me!" She had her holy powers, so she was healing herself while also buffing herself with it. She was not a mage, so she could not use magic or use the power to buff the others of her party, but she could heal others if needed. But, that took a lot more energy than healing herself, so Elio was handling the task of healing as well. -Boooooooooom! Alex was doing something. He could feel it. She was not just swinging her sword around getting beaten by the strong magic winds of the tower master. She knew they were not nearly strong enough to defeat this opponent even though there were four more helping her. "Damnit." Alex was bleeding from multiple wounds now, but since they cannot stop for the healing like they were able to until a moment ago, he could only helplessly watch her go against the damned mage. -Swiiiiiiish~! The opponent was strong, almost a hundred levels higher than the two of them. And, even though Miss Rin was also above (Level-100) she was not as strong as a mage that knew his craft. She used to be a soldier, she knew how to kill, but that was limited to those who used weapons and swords. She had almost never fought a mage, so she knew nothing of how to deal with them. They were different from normal humans, the power to use Mana was something that gave them strength incomparable to normal humans. And, the holy power surely also made one a superhuman, but that was not enough. Against a mage covered in a protective barrier, getting past him and dealing any kind of damage was not simple. -Clank! Clank! Clank! She used the enchanted weapons of Alex that somehow went past the winds, but the mage was still powerful. They were not getting many openings. Most of the damage being done to the shield or the mage himself came from Alex who systematically swung her sword and exploited all the opening the mage was unconsciously creating. He was strong, but she had experience dealing with strong opponents. -Swish! Swish! Swish! Even in the face of absolute power, she did not feel any despair or helplessness like Elio did at the moment. He was not just a mage, yet he was supporting her like those rankers supported their party members. He was just as weak as hers, yet while she had years of prior experience, he was just a new player starting his journey in this world. He had not seen dragons, he had not fought demons and angels. He was still doing well matching up to them, yet he was feeling helpless right now. But she did not have any time to lecture him right now. "Huuuuu¡­" She has been doing something since a while back. And now, she had almost created the opening she had been searching for. {Blink} She created some distance from the mage, and just then, the mage knew she was going to appear from the left while trying to misdirect him. She had played the same game a few times now, but it was not going to work. "Fool!" -Ooooooooooong! He had received some wounds, but he also had some potions so healing these things was no big deal to him. He knew this ''savior'' of Moongold would be a formidable opponent and she would grow up to be someone dangerous as well, but he could do little about a near immortal foreigner so, he was not after the two. He just wanted to deal with the rest of them and go back, and now that she was walking right into-. "Old habits don''t die easily, they say." Instead of appearing on his left, or right even, she reappeared right in front of him, and, there was a strange crimson sword in her hands this time. -Swish¡­ -Click. The way she moved in that simple instance was so fast that even the mage did not perceive her. But when he looked down after hearing that distinct clicking sound of a sword being put back into a metallic sheath, he found himself momentarily powerless. [{ "El, Miss Rin." }] A strange crimson slash was present on his body, but it did not hurt. It was simply a dark red slash of blade, something strange, but at the same time, something that seemed to be sucking in all the Mana in him to momentarily make him useless. He could not use his magic, the winds were gone, the atmosphere around them had returned to normal, and this was the last chance they were going to have. -Thud. [{ "Pour¡­ everything you have¡­" }] She fell to the ground, the sword vanished from her hands, the white sword hanging around her body started glowing with an abnormal white light, and¡­ this was their chance. "What did you do to me?!!" -Oooooooooong! She gave them the one moment that they needed. Miss Rin or Elio were not going to waste it¡­ Chapter 112 - 112: Strength of a (tier-4) Elio did not have any offensive magic but, now that the mage could not use his powers, the rest of his spells were going to work. -Oooooooooong! He conjured three magic circles of restriction and debuff spells, cast it on the mage, and then froze him in his place. -Swish! In the very next moment, Miss Rin closed in on him and gathered most of the Holy power she had left in her at the moment and slashed the mage''s neck, body, and legs! -Zaaaaaaa! He was wearing protective gear so he was not decapitated, but he still received substantial damage from her attacks this time. "Kugh!" He coughed up blood, the sword slashes on his check and neck triggered a different item that started healing the wounds, but before the healing had reached any important point, Az gathered the last bit of Mana left in it. "Muuuuuu¡­!" The aim was the total destruction of the mage, so the slime that was already enraged did not feel any remorse over what it was doing. It manifested the elemental powers, mixed the light element along with the water element, created three spikes twice as big as Miss Rin''s longsword, and launched them towards the mage who, for the first time, was in a panic! -Oooooooooooong! His eyes widened. His mistakes flashed before his green eyes. The pain of the wounds he had just received overwhelmed him. "..." Death approached. His heart was beating out of his chest. Sweat mixed with the blood slid down his back and neck¡­ The wide eyes did not blink as they observed the pointed water spears approaching him. -Crac¨Ckle. The green eyes glowed. -Crackle¡­! Green sparks manifested in those green eyes. -Oooooooooooong! The magic that was approaching¨C it was elemental magic. Something that resembled the magic coded into the magic scrolls that he also created in his free time. It was not complex. So, even without his own Mana¡­ -Crrrr¡ªreeeeek! -Boooooooooooom! With a green spark of lightning surrounding them, the spikes of water were destroyed midair! "Muuu?!" The magic that held enough power to kill even a mage like him did not reach him, but that was just the beginning! -Oooooooooooong! The very next moment, the mage also destroyed the spell restrictions that were covering him! "Tsk!" He could still not use the Mana and his spells, but the skills were not something even they could prevent the use of. -Oooooooong! So, he condensed the surrounding air around his fingertip, and shot a bullet of wind at the woman that was already on her way to deal the next big blow! -Bang! The condensed bullet of winds were so strong that they knocked the shieldless Miss Rin all the way to beyond Alex''s downed body. "Disgusting slime." Then, pointing his palm at the slime, he created a slash of similar condensed air and released it without any other thought. -Swiiiiiiiiish! "Muuuuu!" "Az¡­!" Elio watched his slime friend, the being that had been with him ever since he came to this world beyond his tutorial, get sliced in half by the powerful slash of wind! "And you." The crimson slash on his body started vanishing as he locked his enraged green eyes with, the ones shrouded in helplessness. "You''re a nuisance." Mana in his body started moving again as sharp winds manifested around him once again. "You have no experience, no special power, no uniqueness and no skills." -Oooooooong! Elio did his best to create a barrier around himself, to slow down the opponent, to do something¡­ anything. But he could not. "Ughh." He felt the very air around him decreasing. He could not breathe properly anymore. The Mana that he had was almost emptied as well¡­ He had no energy left after simultaneously casting all those weak yet useful spells. The fatigue was overwhelming him now¡­ "You may be smart and creative¡­" -Swish! A blade of wind flew to him, and cut down Elio''s left leg. "But you are nothing special compared to the people around you." { "Master¡­!" } -Swish! Another blade, and his right arm was chopped off as blood splashed everywhere. -Ooooooooooong! "Even this servant of yours." -Zaaaaaaa¡­! Sera was going to block the next attack with her own body since even her Mana and energy had dried up, but the spell that came next did not harm her. "Someone who does not have the will to kill in order to protect something precious to them." Sera was surrounded by winds, caged in a sphere. She did not have any energy to use her skills nor any strength to break out of this imprisonment. All she could do now¡­ was to watch everything she had, crumble down right in front of her eyes. "You do not deserve any of this." Another blade of wind materialized before his hand. -Swiiiiiish! He did not want to waste any more time here. This was enough playing around. He almost got himself killed this time, so things were not funny for him anymore. "Maggots." If he wanted, he would have killed both of them the moment they came into his barrier. But things became fun when he saw that Mana beast in the hands of that girl. -Ooooooooong! He wanted to have some fun after a long time, but his opponents ended up being much more than what he had anticipated at the start. "This could have been dangerous." He released the spell, and turned around as he saw the spell hitting the boy who had already fallen to the ground. "What the hell did that bitch do to me?" Looking at Alex who was still laying on the ground almost unconscious, he shook his head as he thought back to that strange crimson slash. He had not felt anything like that in the past¡­ so this made him even more curious about that sword, as well as her. "I should take her as well." In the distance, Misha was still hugging Miu, her eyes still closed with fear overwhelming her. She did not know what was happening there, and because of the barrier, the gecko also did not know what was going on with them. But, it had a bad feeling¡­ Sear?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Miss Rin was on the ground, unconscious. Az was cut down in half, its wand thrown away to the side. Sera was captured in a sphere, Alex was also almost unconscious. Elio had lost his arm and leg, his unconscious body laying in a pool of blood. His eyes were still open as they gazed up at the clear sky, tears mixed with blood sliding down his blood covered face. The mage, his long green hair now uneven and messed, downed a potion as he observed the mess that they had created. His own torn clothes and dirty body disgusted him. And most of it had happened because of that black haired bitch. "Damned foreigners." He hated her the most right now. But he was going to squeeze out all the honey from her body and cursed soul when he takes her, that young girl, that amazing Mana beast, this half dead slime, and that disgusting remnant to his lab. He will have his fun with them. He had suffered more than enough to deserve that much. Chapter 113 - 113: In a distant land Mages in this game were graded in two stages: first was through the highest tier of magic they can create themselves. It was not about casting magic, but creating a spell from scratch. The highest tier they can create before the right individuals affiliated with mages'' association, was their official mage rank graded with the same tier of spells they can cast. The other stage was the consecutive casting of spells of either a lower tier, or casting of spells that are of higher level than their earned ranks. A normal mage affiliated with magic tower has to be at least of (tier-2), as in they are at least able to create their own magic of (tier-2) if they wanted an official mage rank. It was a complicated process, so not many of the players go after it since just being recognised by the system was pretty much enough for them. There were privileges for being affiliated with a magic tower or with the association, but for players, it was not really that important unless they wanted to academically study magic on a higher level and aim for the higher stages. If they are (tier-3), mages were welcomed in any magic tower and reaching the (tier-4) stage was considered a great milestone among the mages. As each stage was divided into Beginner, Advanced, and Master, to become an advanced mage of any respective tier was considered a great honor, one could become the master of magic tower with that level with enough achievements. Ryan Von Luliby was an advanced (tier-4) magician of a high level. Yet, if we compare him to someone like the mages of (tier-6) or higher, he was pretty much a nobody. "Oh? What brings you here?" in a distant land, in a cave filled with ancient scriptures, an elder voice resonated. "Greetings, Lord Sage." And greeting this old voice was a voice that the world, mainly the entirety of Moongold, was already familiar with. "What brings the great busy Librarian to my humble abode today~?" sea??h th§× N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The voice the librarian was greeting was old, and filled with a more profound wisdom than his own voice. "It is about the , so I believed you would be the best individual to ask." "About that child?" There was a kind of respect in the Librarian''s voice that one could not understand with simple logic. He not only looked up to this old person covered in an old looking yet lavish purple cardigan, he was one of the few people in this world that he genuinely respected. "Yes¡­ you recognize this, right?" The Librarian went inside the illuminated cave and created an image that he had seen himself with his magic. "Oh?" The magical screen contained multiple images of a single object that the old person in the lavish rugs, a pure white beard that went down his torso, recognised instantly as he saw it with his deep blue eyes. "The white sword of great trial?" This sword¡­ this unique white sword covered in a unique white sheath was something most individuals like him in the world would recognize instantly. "So¡­ you do recognize this object." Even the librarian who had been around for over a hundred years, one of the few (tier-7) mages of this world, knew nothing about this strange object. And, no records that he held contained any knowledge or mention of this unique object. "Hrmm¡­" The sage looked up at the librarian with a concerned gaze. "You mentioned her title earlier¡­ could it be that¡­" "Yes. She was in possession of that object when I last parted ways with her in moongold." The sage looked at him with a sudden look of deep sorrow, before sighing with a sigh and shaking his head. "Indeed. She won''t stop surprising this old man even after so many years." The moved his hand, and from earth, two chairs and a table manifested for them. "You''re here to know more about that sword, are you?" "If possible, yes." Ever since he saw that sword in her possession, even though it had somehow integrated into her dress, he could tell it was no simple object. He could feel something unique from that sword. Something that he had been searching for decades and had given up on before creating that library. His relationship with her was not the best, and he had an innate feeling that even if he were to ask her, he would not get the answer that he was looking for. Thus, when he suddenly obtained the fortunate information of this person''s current whereabouts, he could not help leaving his library momentarily to quench his great curiosity. He knew he was being reckless leaving the town when the mage tower master of the town was aiming for the people that had just left the town with the person they were talking about. It could be dangerous, and knowing the mage tower master''s greed, he knew that person might go straight after those people. "Have a seat first." "Thanks." But, he also knew that because of his greed, he would not at least kill any of them. He was a great barrier mage, so even if things go wrong, he would only harm them enough to knock them down. His greed would not let him harm the ''things'' that were going to earn them great research materials and some unique subjects, so the librarian had faith in His greed. "Before I tell you anything about that white sword, know that all that you will know is a taboo." "...?!" The librarian was not worried about them but hearing those simple words of the old sage before him caused a ripple in his serene heart. "Just knowing about that sword is a taboo?" he asked with a concerned look, his eyes clearly showing distress. "There are things in this world that not even gods are allowed to talk about, young librarian. Much less us mortals." The sage lifted his hand, and from some corner of the cave, an ancient parchment few in those old, wrinkled hands. "That sword is one such object." The sage opened the scripture before the librarian. And a colorful light blasting from it filled the entire cave around them. "All those who reach the pinnacle of their art are approached by a unique object that has existed since the dawn of this world." In the scripture, there was a record of the objects written in primordial language. Something that almost made the librarian dizzy after just a glance at them. "They are presented with a trial, and clearing this trial gives them an opportunity." The opportunity varies. But, there have been multiple records stating the appearance of certain unique objects that seldom gives these triumphant individuals a chance. "WE call these objects ." They are locks. And hidden behind these locks¡­ is something even individuals like them do not know about. "No one knows what happens to those who accept the trials of these objects, no one even knows what they have to do and what they achieve at the end of their task. It is unknown what powers these objects contain as well¡­ but, at least, from what is known¡­" From the scriptures, a three dimensional image scene came out, shocking the librarian who had seen his fair share of absurdity in his time in this world. "These primordial objects hold immense power." A power so great that achieving a ''legendary'' feat with them becomes a simple task. "Their trial is different from any divine trial that exists in this world, young librarian." The scene vanished, and along with it, the scripture retired to its original place. "And the fact that she is now following that trial means something has finally changed." The old man looked up at the librarian with a pleased, excited smile. "Would you like some tea, young one? I want to know what she has been up to in your town." The librarian''s relationship with her was a complex one. While bittersweet on a personal level, everyone entrusted with maintaining this world''s peace and stability recognized the unique nature of her connection with the Six, and especially with this particular member before him. "Yes, tea would be nice." He could not possibly decline an opportunity like this one¡­ They were called the Great Sage for a reason. And beside, someone like him who was also a record keeper could not possibly decline an invitation from this particular individual. Chapter 114 - 114: The white sword The guard''s captain in Moongold gifted the two of them two special things after their help in defeating the dark mage. They were personal gifts, two unique objects that had been pretty close to him all his life. They had saved his life in the past on many occasions, so he wanted them to have them as well. "Hmmm~. Hm-hmm~." The dagger that he gave to Elio had the ability to save him from any one lethal attack that would kill him, a skill called {Undying hope}. It only activated once a month, but it saved his life many times. And this time as well, though the mage did know it, it had saved Elio from dying from that last attack. "Let''s get that girl and lizard first. They should see what has become of their companions, kekeke." Still alive, Elio lay on the blood covered ground, his body still devoid of any energy, the little Mana that he had recovered going straight to the bracelet on his hand that healed the wounds, and somehow chained together his severed limbs. S~ea??h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The mage knew what was happening with the boy''s body, but he did not pay much attention to him. He knew the boy was nearly dead so even what was happening with him did not matter at the moment. Just like the almost unconscious girl, he could not do anything anymore. "That girl must be at least blessed by Mana if she can touch the Mana beast." He had won the battle, so the mage was not worrying about the cleanup. Instead, he focused on the rewards that he had earned with his hard work. -Oooooooooooong! He ignored the woman with holy energy, he ignored the boy surrounded by light elements, he ignored the slime that was trying to regain its shape, he also ignored the servant in the form of a bird that could not even break a (tier-3) barrier of his. He did think back to how these weak individuals almost killed him, but he believed that it was all because of his own foolishness. "What should I have as my reward fiest~?" He was lost in his own world, arrogant and mighty. He did not even pay attention to the white glowing sword of the girl that had been Almost unconscious since a while ago. And that¡­ was his biggest mistake. -Ooooooooooooong¡­! Though not as amazing as the dagger, the necklace that was present in the box that she received from the guard''s captain was an item that instantly recovered the energy and stamina of the wearer once a month. "...?" He had been feeling it since a while ago, but the strange feeling that someone was observing him on his back suddenly intensified and he looked back at the mess that was created by the fallen individuals. There, for the first time, he noticed the strange energy that surrounded the black haired girl, a white light that was not Mana or anything that he somehow did not notice earlier. "What''s that now?" They were strange foreigners. Even though they could come back to life, they were trying desperately to survive and to do something. She even went as far as using that strange attack that somehow consumed all the energy she had, almost making her fall unconscious. She was not moving at all until now and the sword she had, the strange white sword, was also under her fallen body so he did not pay much attention to it until now. "Haaa¡­ how many times do you have to say?" He was tired as well, so he did not care anymore. "It''s useless." He just called up his Mana, made a few lethal blades of winds, and shot them towards her and just turned back and started walking back to the carriage. -Swish. But, no sound indicating pain or struggle was heard, making him turn back to see what was going on. "Hmm?" But when he turned around, the girl that had been laying on the ground until now, had stood back up on her feet¡­ He found this strange, especially with that glowing white sword in her hand. -Ooooooooooong! He first covered himself in a protective wind barrier and then, he shot another round of wind blades at the zombie-like bitch. -Swish. But the winds strangely vanished as soon as they reached her. "What the?" He did not understand what kind of tricks she was using now. -Ooooooooooooong! But, he just continued attacking her knowing full well how she was still, at the end of the day, a low level foreigner. -Ooooooooooooooong! -Oooooooooong¡­! -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiiish! -Swish. Swish. Swish. He used all kinds of spells, lethal spells that could have killed any of them ten times. But, they did not work. None of the spells that he used even reached her for some reason. "What¡­ what''s going on?!" She was just standing there, looking down, still, with the white sword that was still glowing. -Ooooooooooooooong¡­! This was strange, a little too strange. And dangerous. His spells were not working at her, so he aimed for the rest of them. But¡­ -Swish. The spells somehow did not touch them either. "Do you know how much I hate bastards like you?" "Hmm?" -Swish! For the first time, she spoke up. And the moment she did, the mage felt a strange sensation around his hand that he had used to aim his spells at them. "You bitches think you are all that just because you have gained a little power or authority." The sensation on his hand intensified right after he blinked his eyes and heard her voice for the second time. "...?" She had vanished from his field of vision, so he looked around. Missing the moment where the strange sensation filled hand he was aiming all his spells with, gently fell to the ground. "I absolutely loathe bastards like you who think they can do whatever the fuck they want just because they have that shit little power or piss little authority." He turned around to see where the voice was coming from, only to finally realize he had lost all the sensation of his right hand. "...!" When his eyes found her, she was looking down at the boy whose pure green eyes were looking up at her sad look, as well as her infuriated eyes. His pretty eyes¡­ they were crying, and bleeding. And the cause to all of that, was this one tiny fucking little bastard. "You think everything belongs to you just because you can take it?" She looked back at him with her infuriated eyes. An absolutely terrifying aura exuding from her. "You¡­! How can you-." "Shut the fuck up." He did not understand how someone as weak as her could possess such horrifying Aura. his heart paused for a moment when those enraged blue eyes looked at him. And, his soul almost came out of his ass when she suddenly appeared right in front of his face. "How dare you do this to my darlings." -Swish. He did not have his right hand, and now, he did not have his left one either. "Aghhhhhh!" There was no blood coming out of the severed limbs. The cuts were made so precisely that not a single drop of blood came out of his body. There was only the pain of a severed limb. "How dare you¡­" -Swish. Swish. There were tears of anger and frustration in her eyes. Her blood was boiling. Her very soul was screaming at the things that she allowed to happen. "How dare you do this to my gummy bear you cocksucking, motherfucking, titles, piss of shit fucking cunt?" His legs were severed as well. And now, the limbless body that was all left of the mighty mage fell to the dusty ground. "Don''t¡­ don''t kill¡­ me!" Overwhelmed with a primal fear, saturated with absurd pain, with a limbless body, and powerless soul¡­ he looked up at the terrifying individual that had been the target of his lust until just a moment ago. "Would you have spared anyone just because they begged?" -Swish. First horizontally. -Swish. "I bet you wouldn''t have." And then, with a horizontal cut right to the neck, she severed the remaining body of the mage into four parts. "Hypocrite¡­" For bastards like them, she did not even need a sword or a blade. Her Will was more than enough for these weaklings. Chapter 115 - 115: Aftermath of a struggle After finishing the mage, before the temporarily recovered portion of her power was lost once again, she healed the severed limbs of her gummy bear and helped both Az and Miss Rin. After the mage''s death, Sera was freed from the wind barrier, and though unconscious, Alex knew Miss Rin was alright. She just helped her a little with a potion before she lost her temporary powers completely and sat down beside the conscious body of her partner. "Does it hurt more than the tutorial?" He did not see what she did, but he heard everything that was happening. And that much was enough for him to know what had transpired there even with the mage''s body gone. "Yes¡­" He was in pain now. But, after she healed him, she also helped him get back up and sit down beside her. "Here, this will help." If not for the bracelet and the dagger''s skills, he would have been long dead¡­ he might have died without her help as well. "Thanks." He did not like how things went, what that mage tower master said to him, to them, what was happening here just a while ago¡­ he did not like the utter powerlessness he felt at that moment. It was bitter, it was hot, and at the same time, it was a freezing cold feeling¡­ His entire body was cold like ice right now. His eyes were looking at their messed up surroundings. The cold in his body and soul as he saw the shivering slime and the bird hugging his leg, clinging to him with tears wetting the dusty ground intensified even more. There was a blockage in his throat, something that was not caused by blood from his internal injuries. The bitter feeling was almost overwhelming¡­ But the high recovery potion helped warm him up a little. "How''s Misha and Miu?" He asked with a concerned look as he glanced at the barrier that was still standing in its place. "I''ll check up on them later¡­ first tell me, does it still hurt anywhere?" Everyone aside, she was the most worried about him at the moment. She knew he knew what she did even though he did not have any idea how she did that. He did not know about the white sword, about her powers, about what kind of trial she had obtained from it, or how this sword even worked. It was obvious he did not know much since not even some of the highest ranking individuals in the world, even the high rankers, and even those who keep the records of the worldly happenings did not know much about it. It was a strange and absurd trial, but trial was also the only way she could be with him¡­ or at least, that was the only way until now. "I''m ok¡­ please go and see if the two of them are alright." There was sadness in his eyes, bitterness on his face. He was trying not to bite his lips off any more than he was doing already¡­ his complexion after that traumatic experience was not paler. His color did not look good, he was still covered in blood like the rest of them, and yet, he was worried about the two young ones instead of his own wounded self. "I''ll check up on them¡­ you should¡­ try and calm down a little." "Yes, don''t worry about me." He gave her a helplessly warm smile. A smile that was asking her to go away for now. "..." She knew what might be going through his head right now, how he was feeling and the pain in his heart¡­ and she knew he wanted to be alone for the moment, so she kissed his forehead, picked up the little slime and its wand, as well as the bird stuck to his calf and walked to the barrier that was now vanishing. The time the three of them and the two creatures fought with the mage was much longer than a few minutes. He was a mage following the path of preservation so, they had engaged in a battle of attrition for over fifteen minutes alone. He played around with them, underestimating all of them from the beginning to the end, and he paid with his life for his disgusting actions. "Misha. Miu." The young girl was still hugging the gecko, but as soon as she heard her big sister''s voice, she ran right to her and hugged her just as desperately. This was her first time experiencing something like this, and she hadn''t even seen what had transpired out there. She was here, in this relatively safer space, so she was fine this time. But¡­ "Ughhhhhhh!" Elio, who could not hold it in him and threw up after thinking back to how worse things could have turned out had she not used those strange hidden powers of hers, knew very well how bad things could have been. Az almost died, even Sera was taken away from him¡­ Miss Rin was still unconscious, and the young girl who had done nothing wrong to deserve any of this was now crying in the embrace of the person who saved all of them. "Aghhhhhhh!" He was powerless. Even against a mage tower master of a beginner town, merely a (tier-4) mage that wasn''t even a Master level, he was powerless. He knew he was weak until now but he never even considered the fact that they would have to fight something like this all by themselves. And, a mage of his level was practically the weakest existence in the forest that they were heading to¡­ -Dhum! Dhum! He fell back to his knees and smashed the dusty ground. Tears were not present on his face anymore. There was just anger. And frustration. -Dhum! He could not do anything, again. Everything was almost taken away from him. Az almost died¡­ he did not even know how horrible things could have been had Alex died or something other than what had transpired already might have become the variable to this whole scenario. Sear?h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. -Dhum! Dhum! Dhum! As anger and frustration overwhelmed him, the smashing hands started bleeding¡­ As the rising sun made its way to the high sky above, what was left on this road now, was a carriage with fallen horses. A woman laying beside a blood stained shield. Voice of a crying young girl¡­ and agonizing screams of a weak man. One that once again failed to protect what was precious to him¡­ Chapter 116 - 116: First camp "So, the sword you got from the library event was something like a key?" "You can say that¡­ there are many kinds of swords in this world, and some are special. This white sword is perhaps the most special of them all. But, I can''t use it. And as long as I have this, the only special sword that I can use are the ones like that crimson sword that you have seen already." They are the actual keys. And she was searching for the rest of them. "The downsides are many. When I got it, I lost all my levels and most of my unique stats were sealed along with my servants, skills, and powers. Obtaining the original keys, the sword like that red one grants me back a certain portion of my powers¨C but with the ones like I got from the steller pouch, I can unlock a portion of those powers once. Some common things will become available with level up as well. That''s why I am so focused on leveling and hunting." Elio knew just how precious that sword was, and if something that amazing was used as mere consumables, he did not want to imagine just how powerful the actual swords would be. "I can''t even tell you a lot of things because of the restrictions from the trial of this sword." The restrictions were many. But, it allowed her to be with him. And she did not want anything more than that. "Getting the sword was really a good thing. But, I did not expect that bastard to actually go that far." They traveled a little further after calming down and resting and set up a campsite when it was evening. They were all tired and there was still a complicated air around them, so the mother and daughter had fallen asleep. Az and Miu were chatting by themselves- or so it seemed- and Sera had gone away to survey the area. The two of them were sitting by the fire, under the night sky, chatting about their first experience even worse than the dark magician. "That bastard librarian¡­ wasn''t he supposed to hold that tower master until we went to the next town?" Alex was furious, but she was not feeling the same complicated emotions as he did. Unlike he who did not have any power to do anything, she was fortunate enough to have that one chance to do something. She was able to save them, but as she said, most of it was thanks to the circumstances. "Let''s forget about him for now. He''s gone¡­ nothing will come out of cursing the dead." He had calmed down a little. He cried, he mourned, and he cursed himself for a long time away from their eyes. And, he was fine now. "Perhaps this was for the better." Had the librarian blocked him for now and he had appeared later on when they were leaving some other town or were going to the jungle, they would have been in big trouble. And, things would have been even more complicated if she did not have that special power at that time. "Haaa¡­" An obstacle that could have been a hindrance to them later on was dealt with early in their journey. And, thanks to her finishing him off, all of them had obtained a lot of EXP as well. They got all the items he had, all the precious materials and things, and his magic staff was also in their possession now. All three of them who fought against him obtained two rare achievements: [Mage killer (Rare)] for killing an officially recognised mage of great significance, and [Nature''s gratitude (Rare)] for some reason that they did not understand either. "There''s a long road ahead." Alex killed him but she did not get any special achievement or rewards since she used the power of the sword. Instead of receiving anything, she received a penalty where her stats would be reduced by half for the following few days. The price to use a great power with her now weakened body was great as well, but that did not matter to her. All that she cared about was the life of her partner as well as the ones that he cherished. As he said, killing the mage was a good thing. She did not regret it. However, since he was a mage''s tower master, his death would be noticed by the magic association soon and an investigation would start. "I will say it again even though you know it already¡­ none of this was your fault." "Of course." "Don''t smile like that then. It''s getting on my nerves now. Hmph." In case the association finds out that they were the ones to do it and comes after them, Alex will have to take care of them by herself. But she thankfully would not have to fight with them or go through the long and uncomfortable procedures. Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She would be alright. Life of a single (tier-4) mage was not that great to those association people. "Haha, yes yes. I will start smiling." He was laughing. And, it wasn''t a fake laugh. "Good." He did not like that he was powerless, but one thing that dead mage said had remained on his mind. ''I''m nothing special compared to people around me¡­'' It was a fact. He was not skilled and experienced like Alex or Miss Rin, he was not special like Az and Miu, he was also not a unique existence like Misha and Sera. He was a good mage perhaps, he might also be a good person. But, when it comes to combat¡­ he was useless. He did not want to kill. If it were up to him, he would have spared even the mage that caused them such trouble¡­ he was greedy, he was arrogant, but the fact that he did not kill them outright also indicated that he was not an evil existence like the dark magician. He was doing what he wanted because he was strong enough to do it all. And, being strong was not a bad thing. ''Strength¡­'' What he needed, what he must obtain was strength unlike anything anyone else possesses. If he wanted to protect Them in extreme and unexpected situations like this one in the future¡­ He needed to find his strengths. "Thanks for saving them." "I''ll do it again, and again until I cannot. They are as much as mine as they are yours." She kissed the hand that he had not let go of ever since they sat here¡­ It was late at night already, and they needed some sleep. But until Miss Rin finishes her nap, they need to stay awake and keep watch over the rest of them who were done with their little sleep. Camping was not that simple, especially when it was done in areas famous for monster attacks. Chapter 117 - 117: Travel to Yuta "What''s that~? Woh! It looks pretty~!" Thankfully, Misha had recovered from the shock of the incident pretty quickly. "It''s a tree creature, dear. It''s called (Pink flower tree). It''s quite dangerous, but they don''t attack anyone unless they are provoked." They were still passing through the forest area but the town was nearing. Just one more night''s travel and they would reach their destination. "Look at those flowers~! So prettttttty~!" Misha was having fun looking at the things around here and there. The creatures of the forest weren''t all dangerous. Some were quite friendly. And thanks to Elio, there were a lot that were much friendlier to them. S§×arch* The n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. These creatures were pretty fun, but traveling without fights with beasts and creatures was pretty uncommon. There were a great lot of beings here and there that caught the attention of both Elio and Alex. Sera was doing much better as well so with her informing them, they did not have to worry about any great threats. They were trying to make it easy to fight creatures of comparatively lower levels as the target, but now that Elio was (Level-39), the Leveling up was going to be a difficult task. Defeating the mage was a great thing for them. Alex was now (Level-42) as well, and though the Exp that Miss Rin got was comparatively higher than Elio''s portion, she did not advance even one level. She was already high level so the divided Exp she got according to her contribution was much lower, but she was happy with what she got. "Oh, look! There''s a pretty bird!" "It''s a Red Nightingale dear. They are pretty sweet." "And shy as well." They are rarely tamable, but some people, usually nobles, did have their kind as pets. "We should prepare to stop now, right?" "Hmm?" They all had leveled up quite a bit, and they were going to travel at night now that they were almost out of the forest area. It would be a smooth journey once they were outside the forest, so they could sleep later if they wanted. Resting now and having some food was more important. "Are we camping again?" "Yes, a short rest." Misha was having fun looking around the things even though it wasn''t her first time traveling in a carriage through the forest. She had seen her fair share of things, but she was having fun since for the first time, she was not by herself. Az and Miu were with her as well and they were also having fun together with their friend. They were happy now, but they had also suffered as much as the rest of them. Az did its best and it protected her by fighting the mage with everything it had. And Miu did what it could¡­ Misha could not do anything since she had no experience with such incidents. She had not seen her mom fight and she had never been in a situation where someone would be after her. She did not yet understand how special she was, but now that they have had this experience, questions have bloomed in her heart. And, it would be up to her mother to answer those personal questions. "That seems to be a good place." "No. Sera says there''s a bee nest near that area." "Oh?" They were inside a forest but this place was relatively safer than the forest around the Moongold. It was also maintained regularly by the forces of Yuta, so the travelers did not always have to worry about the sudden ambush. Still, being careful was always much better than engaging in a fight unprepared. "We will camp there then." "Hmmm. That one''s fine." They had learned how important it was to stay alert even in the safest places, so they weren''t going to face the kind of situation they did earlier. "Miss Rin. Can you please look after them this time?" "Of course. You haven''t slept in a while, so have some rest." "I''ll help-." "I can look after them. Besides, Misha wanted to learn how to set up a camp." "Yei~! Both of you should sleep! You look tired!" "Muuu!" "Miu!" "Chirp!" Even Sera suggested they go to sleep since she knew they were going to mostly stay awake tonight as well. It was still bright and the sun was still there. They wouldn''t have to worry about them for a while at least. "Alright then¡­" The town of Yuta was not that far anymore. They should reach the place by the time the next dawn breaks out. The journey that should not have taken too long was prolonged due to a greedy mage. They almost faced a tragedy on their way to this town. But that was all in the past. "I''ll make something to eat for everyone before we depart." She was tired, and he was sleepy. They did not get much sleep after their first camp, and they had been traveling for a while now. They needed to be careful while traveling since they were with creatures that had the tendency to run around occasionally, and someone had to watch over them all the time. "El." "Don''t worry about me¡­ I''m just¡­ sleepy." He was not just sleepy. He was still contemplating over the big question haunting him. Everyone around him, especially Miss Rin was doing her best even though there wasn''t really any need for her to do so. She was traveling with us but it wasn''t like she was our knight. She was free to do anything she wanted¡­ and yet, even after being wounded and experiencing an incident like that, she did not blame them for it. She knew she was to blame for a lot that happened, if it weren''t for her being unable to control her powers well, none of this would have happened in the first place. She also blamed herself for all of this. But at the end of the day, it happened because the greedy mage found an opportunity. "Az~! Miu~! Let''s play~." "Miu!" "Muuuu~!" One thing that at least soothed their burning hearts and souls was this happy smile of the young girl. She knew what everyone was going through right now. She knew how they were feeling as well. That was perhaps the main reason she thought acting happy and fine like this would make them all happy. "Don''t make too much noise! You will attract big and scary monsters~!" They knew she had still not recovered from that incident completely, but her tricks still worked on them. "That girl¡­" "Hahaha." They were a little more cheerful thanks to her. And perhaps, it was also thanks to these cheerful bright children that they were able to have a good night''s sleep without any breathing problems or hypnic jerks. Chapter 118 - 118: Home of a swordmaster "There it is¡­" Dawn had broken out a while ago but they were only seeing the gates of the new town right now. "Wow¡­" And, the gates that were just as grand as the gates of Moongold actually surprised a few of them. "This is different somehow, right?" Unlike the normal black stone walls, the walls of Yuta seemed to be made from some kind of grayish rocks that were also shiny like some metal. There was a unique shine to them, so under the rising sunshine, they were shining like some newly polished shield on a deadly battlefield. There were more guards visible on the town walls as well, and there were also much more armored soldiers than what they had in Moongold. "That''s the home of a Swordmaster for you." Unlike Moongold, Yuta was a normal town that did not have that many unique facilities. There was no magic tower here since the knight association here was a prominent organization, and, there was also no grand library here so not that many players stayed here. It was also a town made for beginners, but not that many players came to this place. But still, when one talks about the beginner towns that followed a certain niche in the Kingdom of Viv, Yuta was one of the names that came up. "I think we will have some fun here, at least." Alex was smirking as she stopped the carriage at the end of a long line of players, individuals, carriages, and those who were traveling on their unique mounts. They weren''t going to stay here for long, but there were some very fun things that they were going to do here. "Have you been here before, Alex?" Miss Rin was curious why she was so excited since unlike Misha who was generally looking forward to most of the things that they were doing every day, Alex was not usually as excited as she was right now. There was perhaps a certain reason behind her happiness, but Miss Rin was not expecting an answer like the one she got from her. "Hehe, this is my first time here, but you know what? I''ve defeated that arrogant old ''swordfish'' from here many times in the past. He is a fun guy, hehe. And I have some business I have to take care of here." Elio was still focused on the castle walls, the guards, the knights on top of their armored horses¡­ This was a unique town, even though it was not the same as Moongold. It was just the early morning, and yet there was a long line of individuals, merchants, trainees, guests, and prospects who wanted to join the various Knight halls under the knight association in the line before them. Yuta was pretty much like a training town for those who wanted to become a knight or wanted to solidify their foundations. "You''ve defeated the swordmaster as well¡­?" When someone said ''Swordfish'' in Yuta, every native and most players would know who they were talking about, and Miss Rin did as well. "Yup~." Miss Rin had not seen it directly but from what she understood, Alex saved them from the mage tower master. Even though he was a strong mage and she was not even half of his level at the moment, she somehow killed a person that even a soldier like her could not defeat. She was weak and she knew that already, but different from her, Alex defeated someone like that with no significant injuries. "You''re¡­ quite something, you know?" If she was right, then it might also be true that the one who actually healed them was also her¡­ and, she was thankful for that much. Still, the fact that someone like her had defeated the Swordmaster in the past was a new thing to her¡­ "Hehe, of course~. I''ve defeated Connie as well. That old man was not even that difficult back in the days~." She had always found it surprising how Alex seemed to be quite close with the librarian even though she was just a new player. They did not tell her much about themselves or their past yet, but since Miss Rin had not told them much either, she did not think too much about it until now. But still¡­ a swordmaster was a unique existence that was famous all throughout the world. Just like the Swordmaster Yuta Shogun Kazuha, these people were Masters of their art as well as people who had achieved second awakening and obtained a unique power from the world, an authority that was a combination of their various achievements. S§×ar?h the N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. They were different from the other Masters. In a kingdom setting, a Swordmaster would be treated the same as a royalty and even in the empire that had over a dozen swordmasters, these people were of a high social rank. They not only had the power of Mana, but also an absolute control over their weapon, as well as their own unique styles that they had honed with countless hours of dedicated training. The Swordmaster of Yuta especially had a unique style that was said to be quite captivating. They were strong people that most citizens and even the fellow nobles looked up to. "Connie and all are fun people most of the time. They aren''t really as serious as you might think them to be even with their usual attitude." The castle gates were reached and the knights checked their IDs before they entered the town and looked at the new wonderful scenery that was quite different from their previous home. "If you are free later today, how about we go and check out the knight''s hall together?" Miss Rin needed strength, and for those who wielded weapons, fought on the battlefield for the things precious to them, and people who could not wield Mana, this town was nothing less than a mentor. She needed strength, and Alex had promised she would help her get that strength so that nothing like last time happens once again. "For now though, do you know any inns here?" "Oh, yes. I do, actually." The Swordmaster was a position and a title granted by the world and not by some particular individual or nation. These people were called as such because they had obtained something that not all mortals could, and they had surpassed their limitations to achieve that. They were just like a normal person¡­ and yet, they possessed the power to express their own Truth, and materialize the ''Path'' in their unique manner. Chapter 119 - 119: Town of Knights Moongold was famous for its great library as one of the few towns that had a library of that scale. It was maintained by a person that had played a significant role in many of the battles that had happened throughout the era of players, and most of the time, he only did it because there was a great crisis that involved the fate of the world. He was not the only individual that joined these battles, there were many that do not come out of their ''dwellings'' usually but he still played a significant role in them. He was famous among players, female players especially. Some of them were crazy about him and though the natives might not know, there was a Cult following of the Librarian. He was famous, and thanks to him, Moongold was also famous for more than just the great library. And the mage tower was there as well, so among the many beginner towns around the world, Moongold was pretty popular in general. Yuta however, was a different story¡­ "Did you say we will be going to the Archer hall first instead of the Sword hall?" "There''s something I need to pick up there. It shouldn''t take long though." The Town of knights¡ª not many towns in the kingdom held such a unique title. There were few cities that were dedicated to the knights, but not many towns. Knight as a path was a diverse and difficult route for the players. It wasn''t limited to the knights that used a sword¡­ a knight of was a symbol of chivalry, honor, strength, and their own Codes. Even if the paths that they follow might be different, even if the Truth that they believe in is different, a True knight was a Class that was a Symbol above anything else. To become a true knight one had to overcome numerous trials, earn the achievements and acknowledgments of the authorities, people, and the world, and only after one proved themselves Worthy of this honor, is when the System granted them the unique position of a Knight. "Sword made from the highest quality steel! Grab the once in a lifetime opportunity to wield the sword made by an advanced blacksmith!" "Look here! Madam! Sir! Have you ever seen a shield as shiny as this one~? Surely it resembles the one that the hero used to defeat the great serpent headed witch!" "And here comes the shield hero! Betrayed! Forsaken by the world! See for yourself the rise of the great hero of shields!" "A spear for the windriders! A spear for the great heavenly spearman!" If there is a civilization, there is bound to be a market present there. Trade was one of the primordial arts that originated when the mortals understood the eternal and unquenching needs for various resources that they possessed. This need never quenched, and till this day, a market was what those who understood it called the face representing the entirety of the civilization, Culture, or society. And in the town that was filled with knight prospects, those who willingly wanted to walk down the difficult path of the knights, it was obvious that most of the vendors and the shops would sell things that they either needed or would need in their journey towards chivalry. "Mom! Mom! Look over there! There''s a pretty looking monkey!" "Muuu!" "Miu~!" The children were having fun looking down at the various things present in the market. And the elders who were seeing the slime, the little girl and the pretty bird were all quite happy. This was not a normal sight in the town of the knights. There weren''t many children walking down the streets here since most of those who were born here or were raised here inherently either wanted to become a knight or wanted to become someone that could be respected even more than the knights. At the age of Misha, they would leave the town on their own or would join the knight hall that they wanted to follow and start learning more about what was the main use of the weapons that they wanted to use in their following life. This was something very unique to this town and the towns like this one so the people who saw the happy girl that in fact was acting like the children her age should, they couldn''t help but smile unknowingly. Of course, unless one was a jerk or a tsun tsun, they would surely smile at the girl and the little creatures that were with her. "Oooh! Mommy, look!" Misha squealed, her finger poking excitedly towards the building. "A castle!" Her mom smiled, a gentle warmth in her eyes. "Not quite a castle, sweetheart," she explained. "That grand building there is actually the main hall for all the knights who protect Yuta." Misha''s eyes widened even further with a new spark when she heard it. Right in the heart of Yuta, a magnificent structure dominated the landscape. It looked just like the fantastical castles she''d seen in picture books, with pointed towers reaching for the clouds. The walls were built from a unique kind of brick, and balconies and grand windows adorned its sides. Instead of the city of Kalp that was the center of the viscounty and the entire southwestern region, Yuta was known as the central base of all the knights. Moongold, on the other hand, was not the central hub for the mages. sea??h th§× Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. That position belonged to a completely different town that was not part of the viscounty. "We have to go this way, come." "Yei~!" They were going to the archer''s hall for now, but they were going to go to the many other halls that the main association was divided into to see, and observe the knights. Alex did not want Miss Rin to specifically become a knight, but seeing these people will surely help her decide on the path that she wanted to walk on going forward. Of course though, she had her own unique agenda for bringing all of them to this place. "Elio, wanna do an archery competition?" "...?" They were nearing their destination, so when she said that, Elio instantly figured out why she had brought all of them to this place even though ''picking'' something up could have been done at any different time. "You were after this all along, hun?" They did not know it yet, but Elio had learned some archery in his younger days. And this partner of his had exploited every single chance she got to force him into showing his Amazing skills. "It will be fun~. Please say yes~." "Brother Elio is an archer~? Wow~!" The new stars in her eyes showed how even this little girl wanted to see him holding a bow and arrow. "Muuu!" "Miu~!" She set him up by bringing all of them there before she revealed her true intentions. "You''re evil, Alexandra." And now that they were standing before the hall already¡­ he had no choice but to show all of them his great, almost unbelievable skills that he was not proud of. Chapter 120 - 120: The archery hall With the grand castle as the center, the entire central zone of the town of Yuta was divided into six main Knight halls. The first one was the sword hall on the north side, the shield hall on the south, the spear hall on the west, and the archery hall on the east. The two other halls that were located nearest to the central halls were called the unique halls where either the knights who were training with a unique weapon went or were places for the people who did not know any of their talents. This places were not the same as the other four knight halls as there were a little more than just a few kind of weapons here, but these are the places that gabe the knights the freedom to choose the weapons that they found the most comfortable with the people who knew how to wield these weapons being there to teach them,. "This is the archery hall, the shrine of the archers." The archery hall on the eastern side to the main association hall was the place that housed most of the archers and had the biggest training ground for the archers that was occasionally also used by the other knight halls. "Oh! Ohh! Look mommy! They even have birds here~!" The inside of the main hall was just like most of the halls. There was a reception, there were people here in appropriate armor that was of their class, and they were carrying around various weapons- mostly different kinds of bows and various kinds of arrow carrying units. In the air above, there were various birds flying or were accompanying these archers or the people that were in charge of the various things in this place. These birds were very important to the people who were professional archers¡­ they were not their familiars or tamed beasts but partners that were nothing less than a part of their body. They were their eyes, they were their ears, and they were the main individuals that saved them in many situations on the battlefields or in the hunting grounds. "They are called Misha. They are trained beasts that help the archers and various individuals as messenger birds, as signal birds, as well as the warning birds that save their lives in many situations." Miss Rin thought back to the time when she used to have a creature like this one as well. But, no good would come out of reminiscing about a lost life. "Do you want one of them as well Misha?" "Hmm? I can have one as well?" These birds were highly trained beasts that not just anyone could have, but it wasn''t difficult for someone like Alex to get one if she wanted. "Of course you can~. Though, you will have to take a very good care of it. They are a very useful being, so having one with us will be effective in the forest." Sera was there of course, but she wasn''t going to stay in the bird form forever. She was not a bird in the first place, so she will revert back to a more appropriate form once Elio gets to a higher and more appropriate level for her to manifest a better form. "Ohh~! I will take good care of it! I want one as well! Please sister Alex!" Sear?h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She wanted a cute little bird of her own as well. All she had around her were her friends, these creatures that she was carrying around did not belong to her or anything. They were merely her friends. But having a bird of her own will be a completely different thing. "Alright then. Let''s go look for a good one the day after tomorrow." They already had plans for tomorrow so they weren''t going to have any time for shopping tomorrow. But, the day after that was quite free. "Yeiiiiii~!" "Be careful, Misha." She was excited, but she shouldn''t jump around in a place like this. There were a lot of people around and if she crashed into someone, then they might get angry or there could be some unnecessary commotion later on. "Alright then, let''s go to the training ground first." She was going to compete with Elio inside the game for the first time, but they had done thi in reality a few times. She knew just how ''good'' he was when it came to handling a bow and arrows. He was just too good actually, and even if he did not like it, she did not want to miss any chance to see him holding a bow and any kind of arrows. "Excuse me." "Oh. How may I help you today~?" They all went to the reception and seeing the group, the receptionist lady greeted them with a smile like they should in a place like this one. "I have this letter for the hall master. Can you pass it on to her?" Alex took out a unique looking purple envelope from her inventory with a unique golden seal on it and just seeing this seal was enough for the employee as well as many other employees around her to recognize it. "Miss!" The receptionist took the envelope from her hands and hid it under her desk. "You aren''t supposed to show it around in public!" she was shouting in a quiet voice, her eyes wide, and it seemed like just seeing that envelope had almost given her a minor heart attack. "Oh? Apologies. I did not know that." Alex had a smirk on her face, so it was obviously a lie that she did not know just what this envelope actually was. She was just trying to tease the receptionist, and it was certainly effective. "..." Receptionist quickly took another look at the envelope after seeing the girl''s careless expression, and when she confirmed the authenticity of the letter, a complicated expression appeared on her face. "You can just pass it on to her. She will know what to do with it. Oh, and can you also show us to the practice area? We would like to spend some time practicing until she is done reading this." "..." The receptionist still had that complicated look, but there was nothing that she could do here. This envelope and this seal¡­ every worker here and even many of the players here knew that they belonged to the Swordfish Swordmaster, the person that this town was named after. For all of them, he was an ideal, and those who were taught directly by him in the past like the nine hallmasters currently living in this town were all the same as well¡­ Chapter 121 - 121: Battle of arrows The training halls and practice areas were divided into many sections in the Archer hall. There were indoor ones and there were outdoor ones that were in the open area that was used by many of the archery practitioners. For safety''s sake, it was divided into many parts and there were a lot of people practicing there all the time. Elio and his group had also just got into one of the training areas outside of the hall, in the backyard area that was pretty empty right now. They were people but the place that they just got to was separated by the barriers that the mages who also live in this town had created. They were special barriers so the arrows did not cross them but if one wanted, they could go through these barriers with proper authority. But for that they needed proper authority and that was only something that they could get from someone that was in a high position in the association or the hall. "Get ready¡­" Unlike the modern archery that they do in the real world, the archery of this game was not that complicated of a thing. There were a few things that one needed to look after for their safety. There was a shoulder-chest guard, gloves, arm guard, and the other equipment were part of the armors that they use. "I''m ready." "Are you now?" They did not need long to get into the equipment that they needed for this competition that they were going to9 have now. They just needed a few things and they got those few things for the practice for free in the hall. They were now holding a bow and a quiver full of arrows. "Let''s finish this quickly now." Elio was sighing as he looked at her excited smile. He did not like how she set him up like this. He could have declined her request had Misha not been there but before that little girl who wanted to see his mediocre skills, he could not help but give in to this obvious trap. "Hehe, then, what will it be~?" "What? You wanted to have the competition! You should be the one deciding how we are going to do it!" Alex was a sword wielder and she had learned sword handling in the real world as well. She was good at many of the traditional as well as newer sword forms and she was even able to do things that people did not usually do in the real world. He knew her the best so he knew she was amazing already, but when it comes to other kinds of sports especially Archery that she was not that good at, both of them knew who was better at those things between them. "Oh? Hahaha! I thought you would want to set the terms since I suggested this~! Well, I don''t really mind it~." She was fine with this anyway. It would give her a better chance to see some more of him. "Haaa¡­" "Then~! How about we do moving target shooting~? The one with more points wins." "Sure¡­ whatever you want." He was tired of her new side already¡­ Well, he found it fun, but she was not the same serious, stoic and calm girl anymore. She was more cheerful, noisy, and annoying for some reason. Every chance she got, she bullied him. Every chance she got, she did things that he obviously did not like, every chance she got¡­ she did things that she usually did not. He was fine with it for most parts, having the strength to endure this complicated girl was one of the reasons he was still able to stay this close to her. But this kind of trick was one thing he did not like. "Alright! Let''s start right away~!" There was a special device that systematically sent out certain light balls that they needed to pierce with their arrows to get the points in this kind of training. The archers used this device to increase their shooting time and to get more familiar with the moving targets and, though difficult, this was a very useful device for many of the archers who wanted to be on the field in the battles and not in the back. "Miss~? Can you set the disk device?" "Yeah. Right away." The receptionist was still with them after she had passed the letter on to someone else since, well, a letter like that was beyond even her authority. She was a normal worker so she was with them right now, looking after them all as per the orders of her superiors. And, since they wanted to practice, she just needed to do what they wanted her to do. "On your marks." "Mommy! They are starting!" "Yes, dear. Watch them carefully¡­" "Miu!" "Muuuu~!" "Chirp!" They were unique individuals. sea??h th§× n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. One was very good with swords, while the other was quite proficient with magic already even though he had only recently started learning it. Thai was going to be her first time seeing them use the bows and arrows, but she had a feeling that they were going to see something that was definitely beyond the level of a beginner. They were foreigners, so when it comes to skills that weren''t specifically limited to this world, things like magic and the various magical arts, then they were much better than the natives of this world like them. "Prepare the bows!" They got into their positions. Fifteen wooden arrows in their quiver were still like the still waters of a dead lake¡­ There was a sharp look in their eyes. A competitive spirit was oozing out of them, and the rest looking at them could tell this little competition was much more than just a fun activity to pass their time. Even the employee knew that the two of them were not archers, and yet, the aura that they were exuding as they locked their eyes to the open sky, was nothing less than the aura of the seasoned archers. Even their stance, the bows in their hands, and the arrows on those bows had their uniqueness. "Start!" -Paaaaaam! -Swish! The rest of them were going to see them using a long ranged weapon for the first time, but they were going to be fascinated soon now¡­ Chapter 122 - 122: Force of strings Holding the arrow between the gap of her thumb and index finger, Alex shot the first glowing disk that flew out from the magical device that created it with the unique elemental magic enchantments. -Tang! This one was green, and as they knew, the whole training process was divided into six phases. The green disks were the easiest, and following them were orange, yellow, blue, purple, and lastly the red a disk that flew at a speed that was not easy for even the expert archers to hit. This device was a very valuable piece of equipment, so when the match began and the first arrow was shot, the audience did not think very highly of their archery skills. Alex even used a non-traditional holding style to release the arrow, so the employee that was helping them here was not impressed or anything. S§×ar?h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. They weren''t beginners. The way Elio was holding his bow and arrow even suggested he had experience with the weapon. But that was not all there was to the two of them¡­ -Swiiiiiish. Both their first arrows hit the target, and so the following arrows were set on the bow¡ª and released instantly as the following green disk was shot from the device. -Tang! -Clink! The sound that was produced by the hit of the arrow were both different, something Misha found unique. But, her mom and the employee who had seen this kind of training in the past as well, knew well how the more sharp sound was the indication of a more perfect hit. This was not a still target, there were no traditional red-white sections that could indicate how perfect a shot was. They were just hitting targets with arrows, but as archers, the most important aspect of their job was to hit the target as precisely as possible. -Swiiiiiiiiiish! -Tang! -Clink! The third disk flew and the arrows that were shot from both sides hit the target. And following them, numbers started appearing on the individual machines that were shooting this disk for the two of them. "Wow¡­" -Swiiiiiiiiiish! -Tang! -Clink! The following stage of Orange disks arrived which were much faster than the previous one. Keeping track of these disks was not easy and shooting the arrows so that it would hit them in the sky was even more difficult even though the disks that were merely being shot up at the sky were falling down with the gravitational force as well. If they shot the disks when it was at its full speed at the highest distance, they got a better score, while even if they shot it when it was falling down, they got a somewhat lower score. But it was still good. They were doing it without missing a single shot, using just one arrow at a time, timing their shots perfectly with the winds and the distance of the shot. -Swiiiiiiiiiish! -Tang! -Clink! Since each one of the disks were released from the device at least twice, they were able to adjust to the flow of the disks. There was a brief break between each section of the disk stage so they were able to adjust to the change in that brief time, however, some of the stages had a third disk that followed right after the section which might have thrown off most of the people using this device for the first time. -Swiiiiiiiiiish! -Tang! -Clink! But that did not happen with the two of them. They were somehow able to deal with most of the unexpected disks, as their eyes were always focused on not the disks, but on something that they were better at focusing on. "They are amazing, mom¡­" "Yes, dear¡­" -Swiiiiiiiiiish! -Tang! -Clink! Elio was focusing on the color of the disks against the blue sky above while Alex was focusing solely on the sound that they made, the sound of the disks slicing through the winds. Their techniques were different, but the two of them knew what they were doing. Elio had experience with a similar kind of training, so he did not find this one that difficult. And Alex was one of the people that contributed to the creation of this technology, so this was not something that could pose any great difficulty to her either. -Swiiiiiiiiiish! -Tang! -Clink! They faced off against each other, gathering point after point, carefully observing the disks and aligning their arrows. -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiish~! When they released their arrows in almost unison on their individual targets, it produced a unique kind of symphony. -Swiiiiiiiiiish¡­! -Tang! -Clink! There were emotions behind these wind slicing arrows. The force that was stored behind these arrows was so great that it seemed to be enough to pierce even metallic armours, -Swiiiiiiiiiish! Using a bow was not a simple thing. One needed a great strength just to perfectly pull the string all the way back with the arrow perfectly aligned on it. This was a fantasy game so things were pretty different here, but a bow was a body and the arrow were their bones. The wood and steel making them were forged in the fires, crafted by the hands of a craftsman with their sweat and blood. They were nothing less than a blade, a shield, or a spear. Those who held them were called archers, but those who knew how to use these unique weapons were called Knights, the individuals that decided the fate of the soldiers from the battlefield. -Swiiiiiiiiiish¡­! -Tang! -Clink! The points were tied at 90 points. There was no arrow left in their quivers. Only one arrow on their bows. "Huuuu¡­" This was the brief moment before the last of the dicks, the red one that would be released at a speed unlike anything they had faced until now. "¡­" Everything including the very air around them had frozen. Now, there were only two people left on this practice ground¡­ "Haaaa." And for both of them, the few moments before the release of the disk were stretched to an eternity¡­ -Oooooooooooooong! One had calculated every single thing that she needed to as she stretched the arrow in her hand to the furthest possible point. While Elio was still holding the arrow in his hand, his bow pointing downward, his eyes squinted and focused on the blue sky above. "¡­" Their hearts had calmed down, their minds, senses, eyes focused on only one thing. The arrows made of wood with their sharp tips were their swords, and the disk was their target. -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiish¡­! What they needed to do was simple. Hit the sword with their targets. -Swish! And, in the moment that the disk that flew up at a speed almost invisible to the eyes was released from the device, she also released her arrow holding a disastrous force that blew winds to all sides. -Shaaaaa¡­! But¡­ "I win." When it came to archery, calculations were not as important as pure instincts. -Clink¡­! The one who shoots first and perfectly is not always the winner. She knew that, and yet¡­ she made that silly little mistake. Chapter 123 - 123: Cheater Elio Though Misha, Miu, Az, or Sera did not see it, Miss Rin and the employee lady saw it clearly. Alex''s shot was perfect. The completely calculated shot was going to hit the target that was moving so fast even they could not see it completely. Yet, right at the moment the shot was going to hit the disk, an arrow that was infused with the power of winds flew up at an even greater speed and hit the arrow that had almost reached the target. The moment this arrow hit the other arrow, its direction changed, and after throwing the other arrow off, the arrow hit the target at a perfect angle and destroyed the disk. "You''re a cheater!" Alex saw it as well, so she could not help but shout at him with a completely frustrated look. She knew he was a bastard that would do anything to win, but cheating like that, using a spell to enhance the speed, and to go as far as blocking her own arrow with his was complete cheating! sea??h th§× N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "How can you do that!" "With my hands?" She smacked his back, then started punching his hand saying it was unfair. She had almost won! "Well, you lose. That''s the result~." At the end of the day, his tricks aside, there was no way she was going to win against him in this particular competition anyway. Even if she did hit this last disk, there was no way she would have hit it better than him. And she knew that already. "Hmph! You even missed three arrows on purpose!" "That''s what I''m saying. You had no chance in the first place." Unlike her who had hit all the arrows, he intentionally missed three of them and yet at the end, he had the same score as hers. And it was only possible because of the way his arrows had hit those targets. "Brother Elio! Sister Alex~!" Misha came running when they were done with their little competition and along with her, the little friends came as well. "Miu!" "Muuuuuuu!" It seemed like they liked what the two of them did. Az even made arrows of water with its magic. Even Miu was smiling joyfully after seeing her master win the battle. [{ You are amazing, master. }] Sera was amazed. Genuinely amazed. [{ Your control over the winds and arrows from the start, the stance, the way you used the sky to your advantage¡­ I''m amazed how you managed to ''see'' that color difference and use the contrast as a reference. That''s not something one can learn¡­ }] "Of course it is something one can learn. One can learn anything Sera. Learning is a contentious process that goes on from inception to the decay of our mind. It''s something I can do a little more easily because of the way I see things, but it does not mean no one can learn what I just did." [{ I shall remember that¡­ }] Sera was lost for words since among the rest of them, aside from Alex, she was the only person that understood what Elio did to understand the speed, and trajectory of the disks in a much better way than Alex''s experienced sensory recognition. Instead of just seeing or hearing and calculating the velocity and direction of the disks, he used the background, the sky as a contract and ''saw'' every every moment of the disk before calculating the way it was going to move. It was not simple, it was not something just anyone can do. One needed a complete understanding of their surroundings, a sense of movement and directions- ''flow'' in simple terms- and a unique mind that could slow down the naturally moving objects. "You two¡­ are amazing." Miss Rin wanted to say something more than that, but she could not say anymore. She was mesmerized when she saw the two of them. She knew the others had not noticed it, but the way the two of them were smiling, the way the two were enjoying this little competition of theirs was exactly something that could be defined as a competition. They were genuinely competing against one another for the better score while still enjoying themselves. Which was rare. Pretty rare as she knew. "Misha¡­ your brother cheated¡­" Elio was worried since he was doing this in the game for the first time, but he found this quite doable. The real archery practice that he had done with his mother- his teacher- was pretty difficult as well. So, this was a fun activity¡­ Still, even with this level, he considered his skills mediocre. "Hmm? Brother Elio cheated?" Alex was crying, at least she was acting as if she was crying. And her effective acting worked in the innocent girl. "Brother Elio?!" She shouted at him with an angry expression, something she did not want herself. But she had no choice since he made his big sister cry like that. "Misha¡­ She''s just acting. And it''s not like I cheated. The last disk was a deciding factor. That''s why there was only one of them." If there was only one red disk to begin with, how could he cheat when he was the one to hit it ultimately? "Hmm?" Misha was confused. She looked up at Alex who was still acting with that broken look, and then she looked up at Elio who seemed to be the one saying the truth. She looked at her mom who was enjoying her confused look, and she knew she was not going to get any hints or answers from the little slime and gecko who were already running around the exciting hall. "Misha¡­" Alex was taking things too far. The little girl genuinely seemed to be facing a crisis. The way she was looking up at everyone there for answers or hints on what to do in this situation was an adorable thing¡­ "Ptfff." And, even the one who had hidden her presence all this while could not help but chuckle at her miserable, adorable expression. "Hmm?" "Who¡­?" But, since she made that unwanted noise, she had ended up revealing herself to the rest of them. "¡­?! Hall master?!" Elio and others had not seen her before so they did not recognise her even though they were surprised by her sudden appearance in that place. But, even if they did not know who she was, one of her characteristics was something every single one of them recognised instantly. "Wow¡­" "Mommy! Look! An elf!" She had long pointed ears. Distinct ears that only three species possessed in the junction of Origins. Chapter 124 - 124: Hall master A half-elf with pointed ears that chuckled like a harmless kitten emerged out of nowhere. They were looking in the direction she was standing just a moment before, but it was only now that they had noticed her. "Hello there, dear guests." Dressed in worn leather armor the color of sunbaked earth, she put down a quiver full of arrows slung from her back. Her smile was as sharp as the arrows she carried, arrows with a metallic point unlike the wooden arrows they were using for the training. Her hazel green eyes gleamed with a competitive glint. The way her eyes looked at the rest of them were different. She found the expression of the young Misha amusing, she found the two creatures running around the hall adorable, and she found the white bird quite unique. "Welcome to the humble hall of the archers." Still though, what she found the most unique were the three people gathered around the young girl. "I''m Elara, the Hall master here?" her strong voice was different from the strong and unique voices that they had heard until now. It was not the same as the strong voice of the guard captain, it was not filled with unmatched experience like the voice of the Librarian, and it was also not an arrogant voice of power like that of the mage tower master. This was a pretty simple voice, yet there was a uniqueness to this voice, a special crisp that not all normal individuals possessed. "Sorry to disturb your little ''game'' but it was quite funny to see her like this." she adjusted her long earth brown hair around her pointed ears poking out from the side as she walked up them with soundless steps. "Hello there, young miss." And when she crouched down before Misha, the young girl looked up at her with new stars in her eyes that were focused on her unique ears. "H-hello!" She was not hiding away from her, which meant she did not find her unapproachable even though this was their first time meeting. There was a unique air around her, an earthly freshness that most humans did not have. "A-are you an elf?" and, her pointed ears were something that Misha was finding the most unique thing she has seen in a long while. "Oh? Am I an elf?" Hall master Elara looked at the mother for permission before she picked up the little girl. She was a little taller than the rest of them, but she was also pretty. "My dad is an elf, but my mom was a human so you can say I''m a half-elf? You know, the uncommon ones?" "Woh! A half-elf~?" They were quite rare around the world, but all those who were born between different species carried unique talents and skills unlike what was shown in many of the popular mainstream media. Just like this person here, they were so unique and special that they held a special position in the world and in world societies. They were not human yet they lived among humans without any great problems. And, even among their own kind, they were regarded as a special lifeform that had come to be at the will of this world and nature. Sear?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Not only half elves, half-dwarves, half-beastmen, half-demons, half-angels, descendants of divinities, and many unique existences like them were quite a unique lifeform in the world of NO. "Huhu, you''re the cool one here, you know?" And, since the Hall master was a half elf, she carried the bloodline of the elves, one of the closest beings to nature. "I''m cool?" "Yup, and cute." she kissed her cheeks before putting her down, knowing well how she found her ears fascinating. She did not like it when someone touched them. Much like her father''s side, her ears were pretty sensitive as well. But if this little girl asked her, she would not mind her touching them. Besides¡­ She looked up at the rest of them, asking a certain question, and all three of them shook their heads in denial. "Oh? I see¡­" As a lifeform close to nature, she could tell Misha was an Ichorborn naturally. But, the little girl did not know what she was yet, and, actually, it was for the better. "You''re the one master mentioned in the letter, I presume?" After giving the little girl another warm smile, she finally looked up at the one that had passed the letter from her teacher to her. "You can call me Alex." She presented her hand to her and the Hall master gently kissed it, following the normal elvan traditions. But it almost shocked Miss Rin and the employee who knew this tradition was only followed when someone of a great importance was to be greeted by someone much lower in position. And, before one of the Hall masters of Yuta, one of the strongest knights of the nation, someone much stronger than the Mage tower master¡­ they did not understand how a low level player like her held a higher position here. "I''ve heard about you from master before as well, but I did not think you would be accompanied by such unique individuals." A slime that had spirits following it around, a Mana beast that seemed to have escaped death, an Ichorborn, a holy power wielder¡­ as well as a unique archer. "Hello, hey. He''s mine." Hall master was looking at him with a unique interest in her eyes, something Alex obviously found delightful. "Oh, I didn''t mean to¡­" She went to Elio and presented her hand to him. "I was just surprised by that rare sight." And, since he By chance knew the traditions and greetings of most races in this world, he did not disrespect her greeting and kissed it just as gently as he should. "I''m Elio, Hall master Elara. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." "The pleasure is all mine, mister Elio." She was quite young for someone with elvan blood, but she was still old enough to be older than her master. "How about we go back to my office? There seems to be a little more we might need to talk about?" In her life as an archer, in her life as a weapon wielder, in her entire life as someone who followed the Path of Justice, she had not seen someone who used the bow as uniquely as he did. "Sure. That would be better actually~." Alex herself did not think he would be so compatible with a bow. She had some ideas of her own, but even if she knew he was not going to agree to any of it, she had to try. Before someone that was an avid follower of commandments, perhaps he might just change his stubborn, dumb mind. Chapter 125 - 125: An archer "Here. He entrusted this to me a long time ago hoping someone else would need it one day." "He''s at least smart for an old man." Hall master Elara passed a certain wooden box with a golden crest carved on it to her. "What''s this?" Elio was obviously curious about this unique box on the table before them. It was a pretty box, the crest on the box obviously belonged to Swordmaster of Yuta, but this box was quite lavish. And, from how the hall master said she received it from him a long time ago, it was not like they knew Alex would come to get it one day. Which meant this was a keepsake from her master, and not something she wanted to pass it on to someone that merely brought her a letter. "This?" She opened the wooden box, and resting inside the box was¡­ a sword. "...?" A sword made from a purple metal, a rapier to be more precise. "Well, this is a payment for something I taught that old man." The sword was amazing. Looking at it was enough for him to know just how amazing it was. There were magical enchantments cast on it, there were stones and crystals that seemed to be much more precious than the sword itself, and resting on the red cushion inside the box, this sword seemed just as precious as the sword that she received from the Librarian-. "...! Wait. Is this-." "Shuuu. Don''t shout like that dude." Elio remembered what she told him about the certain special kind of swords that allowed her to use a portion of her power once. And, from the looks of it, this amazing looking rapier was also one such unique sword. "Yeah. It''s like that one." He did not know why the swordmaster had left something like this to an archer, but he knew now that she had it, she could use her powers in a dangerous situation once again. And, it was going to help them when they were in that great jungle¡­ -Click. Alex closed the box for now, and thankfully Misha was out looking at the archery hall with her mom and the little ones. Sera was with them as well, so they could talk about business freely. "Well, that was all from my side." Not that there was much left to talk though. The letter she received explained a lot and she just had to follow her master''s instructions this time and not ask many questions to this lady that even he looked up to. She was not some low level foreigner as she seemed. As a unique being, she could tell this special person also had her unique circumstances. "So¡­" She was not going to ask her any questions about herself, about the special people she was with, or what she was going to do with that special sword. Still, she was not going to miss this chance to talk with her partner. "Your archery." She looked at the attractive man she was with. He was not like those nobles she had seen, or even those like her father. But there was something unique to this man. She could at least feel that much. "You used the sky and the color, I presume?" "You watched us, hall master?" They did not even sense her until she chuckled, so hearing she was present in that place ever since they started their little competition was quite unexpected to him. "I did, and it was quite a sight." Her office was a normal place. It was just like any normal office with a desk full of paper and documents, some pictures here and there, some awards she might have received, a wall full of unique looking bows and arrows, and a window behind her chair. There was nothing much in this small room, but thanks to the unique bows and those unique looking arrows that seemed more magical than a magic wand, this was no normal place. And, as the person this special place belonged to, she was also no normal individual. "I''ve heard Miss Alex was one of the creators of the device that you were using, so I expected that level of experience from her. However, seeing you use that unique method was a different story." She had used a bow ever since she was as young as the young girl they were with. She was not as amazing as her teacher, the Swordmaster, but she could still see the difference in experience and raw talent. "You can see the path¡­ right?" When it comes to archery, or any type of art that requires one to aim at something specific, eyes are one of the most basic senses that one needs. A professional archer needed to aim at a target, specifically their certain weak points to get the best results. While on the other hand, even wild hunters could use a bow to shoot their prey recklessly while using their other senses. They just needed to hunt the target, while on the other hand, archery was an art that used experienced fingers, a special eyesight, as well as instincts that one might not be able to develop with just life experiences. "A path?" Elio did not know what she was talking about, but Alex had an expression of surprise. "Wait? You can do that?" A path was a line, a strong, a path, or an imaginary direction that someone who was highly experienced at something sees or naturally visualizes when performing their certain art. "Do you mean the trajectory?" He had no idea what she was talking about. But, if they were talking about whether he could see where the disks were going or not, Alex already knew the answer to that. "Damn man¡­" It wasn''t that strange for him to see certain things. He had experience in various fields and he was mainly a creator. He could see the golden ratio when he was taking pictures, he could see the golden lines he was drawing a design, he could see the drawing lines and colors when he was painting, and he could see musical notes when he was composing something. He could see numbers, he could see lines, he could see things that were hidden inside something else¡­ [Patterns of the world] as he called it. This was not something special to him. But for the people around him¡­ for the people who had worked hard for what they have right now¡­ "Seeing paths is not something just anyone can do, mister." He had a lot to learn about this world. And one of those things was how this simple ability of his was something almost every single individual aiming for a specific Goal, or walking on a specific path wanted in their lives. sea??h th§× N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 126 - 126: His stubbornness -Ptsssssssss¡­ -Sch-rick! [Playtime: 50:04:10 Clock hours. 150:12:30 System hours.] [Welcome back, second master, master. This playtime is quite ironic.] The doors of both of the chariot capsules opened as the mechanical voice greeted the two of them. "Shuddup Sunday." But it was instantly scolded by his master as she walked out of her Chariot and looked beside her¡­ at him. "You''re one stubborn bastard, Elio." The archer hall master was impressed by his archery, so much so that she offered to teach him a few things until they were there. It was an amazing offer. That person knew much more about the bow and arrows than her, so even she wanted him to learn a little from her. But he refused. "Hmph. Bastard." She looked at him for a while, mainly with a disgusted look, and then shook her head, and walked out of their gaming room. "Alex." He also walked out of the room while calling her name, but she was upset. She did not want to listen to this bastard anymore. "Alex, wait a minute at least." He was stubborn. The two of them tried pursuing him, telling him how that was the game world and not the real world. There was no need for him to be that stubborn when these two worlds were completely different places and when the whole subject of archery was a different thing there. He was refusing to learn from her since he had already learned all that he wanted to learn about archery from his ''Teacher'' and he knew his archery was mediocre compared to hers. "Alex." "What?! Do you want to continue the argument that the game and reality doesn''t matter?! How the hell can you be so stubborn! Ughh!" She walked in circles around their hallroom before going up to the fridge, taking out a bottle, and taking a sip from it. "You did not want to learn archery from her then fine! Just tell her you don''t want to and walk out of the place saying nothing will change your mind! Why sit there the entire time and then deny once again after hearing us out?!" She handed him the water bottle when she had her fill, and he thanked her for that. "I can''t just walk out when you are trying so hard to convince me, dear. I at least needed to give you a chance¡­ but you two couldn''t change my mind. I still think archery isn''t for me. Perhaps you will have to try harder or take some different approach-." "Shut up!" He handed her the bottle back after kissing her, something she liked but did not want to at the moment, and she finished the bottle before throwing it in the recycle bin. "You''re unbelievable Elio." She was frustrated, the AC was blasting all around the house and yet she was sweating bullets, so He suggested they should take a bath as he was also all sticky after all that gaming. They had been in the chariot for almost three days now. It was almost the same time as his first run. They had been traveling in the game all this while, and after taking a short break after that Mage tower master incident, but then they had finished their travel until they reached Yuta. And now that they were in the city, they were going to have some real rest, some real food, and some real fighting. Some real kissing, cuddling and f-... family time, perhaps. Or perhaps not. "You really are a bastard, you know El?" "Of course I know. I am a bastard. I am a dog, cat, monkey, dumbass, piece of shit as well. You can curse me all you want. I deserve that." From his perspective, hearing some curses from her was better than actually getting into any arguments against her. She was good when it came to debates since she was more knowledgeable than him and she used all of that to her advantage. He had never won against her when it came to arguments or debates, so he had given up on it a long time ago. In this reality, most of the things she says are correct and almost all of the facts that she states are eternal truths carved on the monoliths by the Sadhus themselves. "Cold?" "Put some ice in the bathtub as well. I need an ice bath¡­ Do you know how bad I felt when Elara looked at me with that broken expression?! How can you so bluntly reject her like that? Twice, at that!" She was angry, she was frustrated, she was feeling bad, and she wanted to punch him. But she could not do that. If she did punch him and he dodges, she might end up smashing a glass or breaking something around the bathroom. Their bathroom was one of their most cherished places in this apartment so they had banned any kind of fighting in here. There was a place for fighting, so they would deal with one another when they got there. Sear?h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Here''s the ice. Step aside and place your clothes in the basket please. Oh, and you look hot without them." "Of course I do~. But¡­ don''t change the subject!" They had a big bathtub that both of them loved so, while he filled it with the ice water, she prepared their bath essentials. There was a big mirror on one of the walls of the big bathroom, so she looked at herself with a pleased expression¡­ "Yup. Definitely hot." ¡­but when he stood beside her, in the same ''state'' as her, a blush popped up on her pretty face. "H-hey. Don''t sneak up on me like that!" The bathtub was full, the water was ready, the soft light in the bathroom was setting a perfect mood as well, so her flustered face looked even more adorable. "I don''t have to sneak up on someone that''s already mine, now do I?" He wrapped his arms around her from behind, and with closed eyes, sniffed her sweaty neck. "Yup¡­ you need a proper wash." The pink turned into a red when he did that out of the blue and she tried to get away from him with new alerted eyes, but his grip around her was firm. "Want me to wash you up, Miss Twinkle?" "...hey!" Using that name was the worst he could have done in this perfect situation, he knew that as well. She was also getting into the mood, but thanks to that one name¡­ "Hmph. Bastard." He was punched and left on the cold floor¡­ just the way he deserved. As well as exactly the way he wanted it to be. Chapter 127 - 127: Missed calls and unread messages "Bastard." She wanted to hit him again, but she could not do it anymore. "You broke the rule, now you can''t hit me for the rest of the day." They had rules in this house, and breaking rules had punishments. "You cheater!" -Splash! "You made me do it!" -Splash! Splash! "Don''t splash the water like a little kid." "Let me go and I won''t!" They weren''t supposed to throw punches in the bathroom, but she did, and as a punishment for breaking the rule, he gets to hold her for the entire time they were in the bathtub. She also can''t hit him for the rest of the day in the house or outside so, he at least dealt with the physical things. He always found it difficult to defeat her in a direct fight anyway so he did not want to waste time when they could do so many more fun things. "Just stay still dude." He rested his head against her back, and closed his eyes. The cold water was not that cold to their hot bodies. With them sticking together, it was even less cold. In fact, this was the best temperature that they needed right now. It was perfect, and she knew it as well. "Hmph¡­" She wanted to be the one to hold him this time, but he unfairly stole that chance from her. He was a cheater, and he was a bastard. And on top of that, he was also a hot piece of hotness. "Don''t sleep." She kissed his shoulder and picked up the smartphone sitting on the side. "I won''t." And he kissed her back, sending another unexpected shiver down her spine. "Hey¡­" "Yes?" He placed his chin on her shoulder and looked at her with a smirk knowing full well just how much she liked this. "You''re a baby, you know?" "Am I now, hmm?" He wanted to do it again, but there was no point in doing it when she was on guard. So, he watched the phone screen that she was booting up. The phone she picked up was a special phone that she called her bathroom phone, something she only used when she was in here. There was no need to use phones in the house most of the time since both of them mostly used their [Cyberwatches] and PCs. But these thin bricks of tech were still a fun thing to use even in this day and age. -Ding. "Hmm¡­ let''s see." The smartphones were something of an technology of the older generation, but many people, many old ones still used them instead of the better C.watches. "Hmm?" "Did we have any messages? There weren''t any the last time I checked." The phone was connected with their other accounts so this piece was a convenient tech. "I don''t think I have any important messages but¡­" His account had around twelve missed calls and around sixty messages. And from a single person as well¡­ "Olive?" There were only two people who would call him so many times, and only one that would leave so many messages for him. "I remember you still haven''t told her you started playing NO, right?" "...?!" Suddenly, an expression of shock popped up on his face. -Splash! "You didn''t tell her?!" He shouted, splashing some water out of the bathtub as well. "Did you tell me to tell her? I don''t seem to remember you doing it though." -Splash! Splash! "But! Shouldn''t you at least-." "Hey. Calm your horses man. You''re gonna empty the bathtub." This was bad news for him. He did not mean to, but ever since he started playing the sense of time had become a blur for him. In the last few weeks they had been playing this game, he had not come out of his Chariot that many times. After his tutorial and after meeting her in Moongold, they almost only came out for some refreshments and a break. With all the things going on in Moongold, that dark mage thing and the Library event and even the incident with that mage tower master almost left him with no time to be in touch with the others in here. He surely talked with his mom a while back so she knew how he was finally doing something he wanted to try for a long time now. But, even though he had just talked with her a while back, even sent her a message like he usually does the last time he was out¡­ he completely forgot to tell one of the most important people of his life about his retirement and . "Alex¡­ I thought you told her." His head dropped on her back once again, she thought about how this is going to be a complicated matter now. "She''s your girl friend, mister. If you''re retiring, why would I tell her?" there was a smirk on her face, and he knew that without even seeing it. She did that intentionally. She wanted to see some drama between these childhood friends. But even she did not think this dumb bastard of hers would forget about it completely for more than three weeks. "Haaa¡­" S~ea??h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She did condition him to think she was going to tell that ''friend'' of theirs, but it wasn''t so effective to the point things would come down to this. 12 missed calls and 69 unread messages. That was too much, even from her perspective. "Let''s go down. And reply to her third message first. Tell her I''m not dead yet with that :tearful: emoji." He did not need to read all those DMs to know what they might be. He could already guess the first and last few of them. "Gotcha." Olivea, his dear childhood friend and one of the closest people he had in his life. She was family, and she owned a bakery on the third floor of their building so thankfully, they would not have to fly two states across to apologize to her. "It''s on you if she cries, hehe." She did not expect things would go this far, but this was only going to be better entertainment for her. The Drama was going to be even more fun. "..." But, Elio did not like how she was thinking it so freely when he was having a mental crisis. "You''re a bad, bad girl, Alex." He moved his hand up her back¡­ "...!" And then, with his nails, he scratched her back down in a sharp movement. "Ugh~." "Even if it was unintentional, you went too far." She was going to be punished for that. Of course though¡­ that would be after they get out of this bathtub. Chapter 128 - 128: Bakery downstairs The building that they lived in was a tall modern skyscraper, a state of the art place that not just anyone could afford to live in situated in the heart of their city. It was a popular place, in a popular area, where many celebrities and even high ranking individuals of the city lived. -Ding. [Third. Floor.] Every apartment space was costly here, especially the ones above the tenth floor like theirs. The building had a great complex on the ground floor filled with many shops of branded goods, on the higher floors were individual shops owned by people who had money to afford spaces like these, and going up were houses or offices of various companies or individuals. Overall, it was a nice building. And, now that they were down to the third floor, their current destination, Elio braced himself. "I don''t think she will be that angry, you know?" Alex was wearing a sloppy outfit as always. Loose cargo jeans over an oversized top. Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. It would have looked pretty good if she was wearing a shorter top with better shoes instead of those crocs, but she liked it this way. They were only going downstairs to visit their friend, so dressing up did not make any sense. "It''s not about her being angry, Alex. You know I just feel bad after worrying her like that. It''s my fault." Unlike her, he was styled up. With proper shoes, pants, and shirt as well as his unique scent, he was the reason for quite a few of the girl''s and ladies'' attention towards them. He was pretty attractive, and thanks to his professional experiences until now, dressing up properly when going out had become a habit for him. "Welp, it''s your matter~. I''m just here for the drama~." She was going to enjoy this. Perhaps even more than she had expected when she formulated this little prank. "You¡­ damn woman." With a sigh and a tired look, he shook his head as the two of them stopped before a unique shop with a grand entrance¡­ "Pretty as ever." "Right~? I love this place~." Artificial sunlight streamed through the giant windows of [The Sweetest Sin] bathing Elio and Alex in a warm glow. The bakery itself was a showstopper on the entire floor. People pressed their noses against the glass, oohing and aahing at the display¡­ at least in a decent manner. Inside, a wonderland awaited the two. "Let''s go in." "I''m already ahead of you~." Gleaming floors reflected sparkling custom made chandeliers, and pastries behind the counter shimmered like jewels¨C not just as a metaphor. Cakes boasted fantastical decorations, cookies sported playful colors, and glistening tarts with sugary delights tempted all brats of rich backgrounds. The air also buzzed with the delicious aroma of chocolate and vanilla and strawberry and much, much more. When inside and standing before the ordering counter, Alex nudged Elio. "Ready to face a sugar coma~? Or are you just here to hold my hand?" she teased with a grin. "Alex¡­ not right now, babe." he firmed up his grip around her hand and looked at one of the employees present behind the counter. He recognised the two of them so, Elio asked him where his ''friend'' and the owner of this place was through eye contact, and the employee answered that she was in the back with the same. Then, since he already knew what Elio would be asking next, he tapped one of the other employees beside him, asked him to look after the two of them, and walked to the back through the door present at the left side of the counter. "The place is crowded, as usual." every single thing that they were seeing around them cost thousands of V, and yet there were many people every single day that visited the shop. Though, since there was a pre-reservation system in place, the competition to get even a single seat for even a few desserts was fierce. People even used to buy some of the pre-booked spots illegally before the owner of this place, Olivea, took strict actions against such illegal activities. This was her shop, these were her sweets, and they were an experience that one had to wait for if they wanted to enjoy it as best as a human could. She was a strict person when it came to these kinds of things. Thankfully, those things did not apply to family and friends. "Would you like anything, sir, ma''am?" The employee in a professional chef outfit asked politely, knowing full well just who these people were. "Yes~! We would-." Alex was being a little too playful now. It was getting out of hand, so he looked at her in a certain way, almost glared at her seriously, and seeing this ''look'' was enough to silence her. "You don''t have to worry about it. She knows what we will have." With a smile, Elio pulled a chair for Alex and she sat down without saying anything. "Very well, sir." He also sat down after nodding at the employee with a smile on his face. And then¡­ the two of them waited for a moment. The fine place and sitting in an isolated corner on special VIP seats were two individuals. There was an empty seat beside them, but people present there did not pay much attention to that. Most of them were from a rich household or were people who worked very hard to get this chance, so while most were busy enjoying and taking pictures of their sweets and bread, the rest who recognised the two were shocked to see these two individuals present there. -Step. Step. Step. "You''re unbelievable, Elio." Their surprise only increased further when they recognised the person who sat down on the empty third chair after placing a tray full of unique looking small things on their table. "Where were you?!" A cute face and short brown hair, wearing a black chef outfit distinct from the others'' present in this grand shop, and the certain special golden star on her defined chest. Most of the people might not recognize her since she did not make many public appearances, but she was certainly not someone those from a high social class could overlook. "Explain yourself, Mister Elio." She had very unique purple eyes that she inherited from her mother, but for now, she was wearing glasses so they were hidden behind them. She was also pouting like an upset kid, so¡­ Elio knew this was going to be a hell of a difficult matter to explain and apologize for. Chapter 129 - 129: Olivea "So¡­ you''re retired now?" she plated the special sweet that he loved for him while thinking about all that he had just told her with a confused look. He was saying he was retired now and that he had also started playing that weird game everyone including her dad plays these days. She understood the retirement part, it pretty much meant he wasn''t going to work anymore, but even after all these years, she could not understand their liking for games. "What do you even do in those games? Haaa¡­" She knew very well how her bestie Alex could not eat too many sweets even though she loved it, so she had made her something special as she usually does. Along with her black coffee without any sugar. "First it was Alex, then dad, then my big brother and now you as well, El? Why do you all play that game, geez. I don''t understand it at all." Olivea, or Olive as they all called her was a simple person that had lived a simple life even with her extraordinary background. She wasn''t interested in grand things, she liked baking so she learned it from the best places around the world, and now she was doing what she loved. She was recognised for all her work and people loved what she made. And, she was happy with just that much. "You should have at least told me about it, you know? I was so worried¡­" "I know. I thought Alex would tell you-." "Why would she tell me about it if it was about you?" "Exactly her thoughts as well, but she did this thing-." "I didn''t do anything, Olive~. He''s just making excuses." With a sneaky smirk, Alex took a spoonful of the pretty dessert her cute friend had made for her. sea??h th§× N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. It was heavenly, as always. "Right? I can tell you''re making excuses El!" She was angry right now¡­ which was a cute sight. Her pretty and cute face was all red from anger, her red nose pointed at him, and her eyes glaring at him with that upset look¡­ if anyone from either of their family saw her like this, Elio would be lectured for hours until this little gem of theirs calmed down. "I¡­" He looked at his darling partner with a little anger in his eyes, before shifting that anger into genuine sadness and looking down at his plate. "Yes. I''m making excuses." Even if this was her prank, he was the one that forgot about this important thing. He did not tell her, he was unreachable for a few days, there were no replies, and he did not pick the calls either. Olive did not know he had started playing games again, and that too the same one that her father was obsessed with since a while back, so she did not try to contact him through the [Common] communication ID. If he did not reply back to her today, she was most definitely going to ask Alex if he was alright or not through the CCI. "I''m sorry. It was my fault." looking up straight in her eyes, her sad eyes, he apologized. And since the apology was genuine enough, she accepted it and shook her head. "You will have to treat me if you are sorry, mister. And tell me everything you did after you started playing that game." There was a helpless smile on her face now. The anger had all melted away, and she had forgiven her dear friend. "What the hell¡­?" This was a little too anticlimactic though. Alex did not like it. This was not fun! "Aren''t you going to shout at him some more, Olive?! Cry perhaps and make fuss like you should? He did something so horrible!" She was trying to provoke her¡­ even while knowing such obvious provocations were not going to work on someone like her. "I''m fine, Alex dear. He apologized, that''s all I need~." She smiled at her warmly, and patted her head with her gentle and soft hands. She liked her and she liked him. Both were her friends, and both were amazing people. One was her childhood friend, someone that was the same as her brother to her. While the other was the partner that he met by fate, someone just as amazing as him that she adored just like a big sister. "He''s at least better than my dad and brother, you know? He apologizes for ignoring my messages and calls. Those two dummies are always busy with god knows what in that game." She sighed lightly, took a sip from her teacup, and shook her head. "You two at least talk properly about that ''other'' world of yours. Those dummies don''t even know how to explain what they do there to me." She wasn''t really interested in the games. She was happy baking and making these pretty things so she had not even tried this that most of the people around her play nowadays. "And, unlike you two, those two have a job and people to look after every day. They should understand that the ''other'' world of theirs isn''t reality. It''s just a game at the end of the day." She was the one of the rare few that thought like that. And she was not wrong either. This game was most certainly just a game, but calling it anything less than a reality was not right. "Olive, I thought the same, you know?" Until Elio started playing this ''game'' even with his long experience in the field and as someone who knew a great lot about this game, he had also considered this game as nothing more than a very well developed game. "But is much more than just a simple game." His experiences in that world, the friends he met, the pain he felt to the happiness¡­ it wasn''t real but it was nothing less than reality. "This game may not be reality that we know, but it most certainly is a reality." A unique reality with its own laws and functions. It was a world different from this one, a world that actually existed independently. was not just a game, it was much more than that. He wanted his best friend to know that as well¡­ "Do you know what I did after I started?" And now that he had this chance, he was going to try and convince her to play this ''game'' as well. Chapter 130 - 130: A world of wonders "You have this thing~?" Stars appeared in her eyes as soon as he showed Olive the pictures of Az, Miu, and Sera. "Yup. They are my friends." He knew her much better than she knew herself, and the same was true the other way around. They had been together for a long time, so they knew a great lot about one another. "Wow~! Look at them~." Elio had a talent for taking pictures, and when they were inside the game, he had taken hundreds of pictures- screenshots- of various things. Some of them were of his cute friends. And, he knew of all the people in this world, this friend of theirs would love those adorable creatures unconditionally. Especially the gecko. "That smiling one is Miu, the round one is Az, my first friend in that world, and Sera is the most recent one. She hasn''t been around for that long, but she is a nice person." He already told her how his adventures until now have been. How his tutorial went, how he met those slimes, how he met Alex in the new town, and how the town was. He had photos of all the occasions. He showed her all kinds of things. From small things to the pretty things to the creatures that he met in that world. He showed her videos as well. And, since all of this was [Cloud data] that he was showing her through his cyber watch''s holographic screen, the quality was the same as the quality of his in-game vision. The technology in this era was very convenient. Especially some of the things that have evolved into something that was only concepts a few decades back. He liked this whole development of science, but he did not understand most of the things. The tech was her field, so he preferred to stay out of all of that. "Her name is Miu~? She''s so cute~!" Olive had a unique liking for reptiles. Back at her house, she had made a special greenhouse where twelve different kinds of reptile species lived together. And, she loved shiny crystal things as well¨C combining both of them, and giving it a forever happy bright smile, Miu was someone she could not possibly not like. "If you start playing, you can meet them, you know?" He knew merely telling her about the world, the cool things there, the things that she can do over there, and all various kinds of things would be ineffective. Unlike normal people their age, she was of an older mindset like her mom. Her dad was one cool person that Alex was best buddies with, but that was mainly because of how similar those two were. "Elio¡­ you know I have no time to play games. I have to manage the shop." She looked at him with an upset face. Her love for baking, this shop and seeing the satisfied smiles on her customers was one of the reasons she was not playing those games. She did not find them boring, but there was nothing there that she cannot have here. Plus, if she wastes her precious time playing games like the rest of them, who would look after the shop? "You have plenty of time, Olive. We play for too long, but since time goes on three times faster in that place, even if you just play for three or four hours, that would be three times in that world." Elio scrolled through the images and showed her one of the cuter one of Miu''s smiling photos¡­ which was certainly effective. "You know what? You can cook as you like in that place, and if you open a shop in a big city there, you can attract even more people. Plus, you can fulfill your wish of making a reptile cafe there." A place where snakes serve tea, iguanas pass on sugar, and a place where crocodiles are helpers. She wanted a place where people and these reptiles could live together without the state laws preventing something like that. Sear?h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She obviously cannot do that absurd thing in reality, but things would be different inside this particular game. "I know you have tried it in games before, but this one is different. I don''t think there is something specific like a reptile cafe in but I remember there is a unique cafe belonging to one of the famous tamers." He showed her Miu''s picture when she was looking at the unique Mana plant in the restaurant where they met Miss Aloha for the first time. The amazed look of the little gecko was even more attractive to her since the reptiles that she had in reality were not as expressive as this one. This was her first time seeing such a unique creature. "Alex, tell her." "Nah. You''re doing a nice job convincing her." She did not get to see any drama, so she was enjoying this new soap before her while chewing on her bread. It was fun seeing these two. Especially when she was switching between her cute side and her professional side like that. "You''re something else, Alex¡­" Elio really did not know what to do with this girl. He wanted to spank her or something, but he could only glare at her in this place. Still¡­ "Hey. Don''t look at her like that!" Olive hit his resting hand with a spoon while looking at him with an angry look. He was talking with her and if she did not want to interfere in their matters, she had all the right to just sit there and watch. She was doing the right thing in the first place. Unlike this friend of hers, she was at least not doing anything to force her into playing that game. Olive wasn''t interested in it since she knew if she likes that too much then she wouldn''t be able to focus on what she was doing right now. And she did not want that. "Olive¡­" He looked at Alex''s smirking face with another angry glare, but he could not continue it when Olive was here. So he just shook his head, ignored her, and looked back at his friend while showing her a photo of Misha and Miu. Something that instantly caught her attention¡­ Chapter 131 - 131: New anticipation "Woh! Didn''t you say something about not being able to hold this cute one? Who''s she~? How''s she holding her~?" Seeing the happy Misha holding the happier gecko excited his friend. "This is Misha. The miserable child I was talking about earlier." He had already told her about the mother and daughter that were now taking care of his friends in the game. They were looking after them in their absence, and thanks to them, he did not have to worry about those curious little troublemakers. "Oh¡­ so, she''s the special child you were talking about?" Olive knew about Misha''s condition and though she did not know much about the concepts of this game, she knew this one was special. Still, she was holding the little gecko. "Then, it isn''t impossible to hold this little one, right? There are just some conditions that one has to fulfill or something." "You can say that¡­ Nothing is impossible in this game, Olive." He looked right in her eyes, sincerely. She could tell he really wanted her to at least try this out. Her father and brother had tried convincing her many times now as well, but she did not play those games. Her dearest friend was abstaining from all kinds of games that he used to love back in the days just for his career and for his work. He was working hard so she had always followed his example and given her best in her work as well. She was already following what she wanted to do, and unlike him, she could not leave all of this behind and retire. She loved this¡­ "Haaa¡­ alright." But at the very least, she can give this one a shot. "I will try it." A smile bloomed on his face, while at the same time, the expression of enjoyment Alex had until now turned into boredom once again. "Tsk." She did not like how the two of them did not have any drama when the matter was serious. They were always going at one another over the smallest things, fighting, laughing, playing with even the most simple things, but when things become serious, they left the drama behind and became adults. "Yes. Just try it." She did not like this aspect of these two serious dummies. "Don''t expect too much though. If I find anything wrong with these ''quests'' or whatever, I will stop playing. Then you will have to make that reptile cafe for me so that I can see the cute photos at the very least." "I promise I will do it." He smiled at her, knowing full well how this person was not going to leave something that she starts and gets interested in that easily. She did not stop until she obtained that world level golden star, so there was no way she was going to stop after seeing the uniqueness of that world. "Hmph." Alex still did not like this¡­ these two dummies of hers were too cute to hate. "You''re a bastard-." "Alex." Olive instantly cut her off when she was about to curse. "We have rules, don''t we?" And then she smiled at her Warmly. "Right. Sorry about that." Olivea was a Cinnamonroll most of the time, but not Alex, not Elio, not anyone from either of their families would want to go on her bad side. "As long as you understand, hehe~." Whoever said the sweetest people are the scariest was right. This one right here was the living example of that. "Do you want anything else? I''m sure you still have a lot of things to tell me about this ''game'' right?" Well, as a professional baker, her tolerance level was quite high overall. And she did not get angry that easily either so they did not have to worry about anything at least right now. "Well, there sure are a few things." They would have loved to chat a little more. "But we can talk about them later." Sadly, her break time was over. And he did not want to keep her here when there were still so many people around. The rest of her ''students'' that work here were surely talented and could manage without her, but she still was the one that liked to look after most of the things. She liked it, so he did not want to stop her right now. When she starts playing, he knew there will be a time when she herself adjusts to things, but until then, this much was fine. "Get us the bill please. And go do your things now." The chat they had was good, he loved chatting with her like this, especially when Alex or the rest of their family members were around. Messages and calls were good and all, but this rare face to face chat was much better. "Well, if that''s what you want¡­" Olive smiled at him helplessly, and stood up from her chair. "You can just treat me when I come down to your apartment, how about that?" She took out a pen and paper book from her coat pocket and wrote something down before placing the torn paper on their table. "You will have to bring the groceries if you want that though, Miss Weil." He said his thanks for the sweets as he hugged her. "Hey, don''t play bargaining with me. I know you are good at it and I''ll lose anyway." And she complained as she usually does at that comment of his while hugging him back. "That''s right! Don''t take advantage of my Olive!" Alex hugged her tightly as usual, claiming her as her own, even kissing her soft cheeks¨C something very normal between them. "Don''t shout, Alex." Olive just shook her head, kissed her back, and picked up the tray full of things. "I''ll call you when my Chariot arrives. Dad will be excited that someone finally convinced me to play." "Haha, Sean definitely will~." Just like how Alex had modified their Chariots, her dad had modified the ones that they use. But the one that he had prepared for her was back at their house, and it would take a while for it to get here even through their special high speed transfer vehicles. "Dad will personally come, I think. But if he doesn''t, set it up for me please." But if there isn''t anything important going on, she knew he would come to meet her and set things up for her, pushing all the work on her brother and his secretaries. "We will deduct the pay from the grocery money-." "Hey, you aren''t even gonna do anything!" Elio wanted to joke one last time before they went back, and it certainly worked. "Ptfff." Alex laughed first, then Olive, and then he also laughed with them. "Hahaha." Things were fun when the three of them were together. And he knew¡­ things would be even more fun when the three of them plays in that unique world together. "Alright then, see you later Olive." S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Don''t ignore me again, hehe." "I''ll make sure he doesn''t~." She had work here and they also had work in that world. So, to rest some more and go back refreshed, they parted ways with their friend. And with a new anticipation in their hearts this time¡­ Chapter 132 - 132: Back in game ============ ID: #### (Level-42) Race: Human (####) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 53 Agility: 55 Endurance: 39 T-T (System stats) Intelligence: 6 Luck: 0 Charm: 2 T-T (Functional stats) Energy:50/50 Stamina: 50/50 Fatigue: 0/50 (Stat points: 0) {Skills: Sword intent, Energy infusion, Blink, Smash, Energy smash.} [Titles: <####>, .] ============ "Pretty good, I''d say." They were back in the room of their inn in Yuta. And, it was evening already. "Only we can see the achievement list in our status windows?" They moved around a little, and before doing anything else, both of them had called up their status windows. ============ ID: Elio (Level-39) Race: Human (Commoner) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 41 Agility: 45 Endurance: 43 T-T (System stats) Intelligence: 13 Luck: 2 Charm: 4 T-T (Functional stats) Energy: 50/50 Stamina: 50/50 Fatigue: 0/50 Mana: 60/60 (Stat points: 0) {Skills: Mana sense.} [Titles: .] =Achievement List: Tutorial tamer (Rare), Special Rookie (Common), Combat teacher (Common), Caring master (Rare), Titled special rookie (Rare), Treading the path of Mana (Common), Hunter Duo (Common), Defenders of town (Common), Judge of evil (Rare), Ancient magic caster (Common), Master of a mutant (Common), Recognition by Forgotten enigmas (Rare), Blessed Individual (Common), Mage killer (Rare), Nature''s gratitude (Rare), Hallmaster''s recognition (Common). ============ "Not really. We can see the others'' achievement list, but not mine. Mine¡­ well, even I cannot see mine." Alex could not see her own achievement list, and even though there were some of her past achievement boxes present in her inventory, she could not see them either. She knew they were present there, but she could neither perceive them nor could she open them in the time of need¡­ still, the same was not true for the achievement boxes that she had earned ever since her levels dropped. She could still use them whenever she wanted to, just that there wasn''t anything that she wanted from those things. "Ah¡­ I see. Well, then we are pretty much on the same level." Her level was a little higher than him and she had received a natural blessing in the form of nine physical stat points so she was a little stronger than him stat wise. He now knew about her special sword and circumstances as well, so he knew he needed to get stronger even faster now so that she does not have to use those important ''temporary'' keys of hers to help him with the smallest of things. He knew there were going to be many more difficult times when they would need that power of hers, so until then, he needed to be the strength that protects her and the rest around her. "Hmmm. Alright then¡­" Alex checked up a few things in her inventory, scanned through the community forums for anything going on, and after finishing it, she got out of bed with Elio. "Let''s go check up on the rest of them, see what they are doing, and go to the market." Her special hairstyle from Miss Aloha returned to the state it originally was with only a little bit of Mana so Elio helped her with it. "Are we going shopping? Didn''t you tell Misha that we would be busy all day today?" They tidied up their clothes, looked around the room to confirm it wasn''t messed up, and then tied their shoelaces for each other. -Knock. Knock. Elio opened the door, the two walked out and knocked on the door directly next to theirs. "Anyone-." "Is that brother Elio~?" Even before Alex asked something, from perhaps the knock on the door alone, the young voice behind the door somehow recognised them and came running to open the door. Her mom obviously tried to stop her, but even she knew stopping this one was not an easy task. She was excited, so, the door opened with a sharp movement, and Misha looked at the two of them with a joyous expression. "You''re finally back~!" She first hugged her big sister, showing who she liked more, and then her big brother who was looking at her mother inside the room with a bitter expression. S~ea??h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Miu!" "Muuuuu~." He did not like how Misha liked her more. He wanted to be the one to receive more attention and affection from her¡­ "Chirp~." [{ Welcome back, master. }] Sera greeted the two as they walked inside the room and closed the door behind them. The inside of the room was ordinary like any normal inn, but since there were two beds here, it was a little more spacious than their room. "Were you all playing some game, Misha?" Miss Rin and Sera were sitting on the floor so it seemed like the two of them, and the rest were playing something. But there was nothing there that could indicate what kind of game they were playing. "Hehe, no~. Az was showing us the new magic it learned recently." "Hmm?" "Muuuuu~!" This was news to them. Az had only learned the magic from the magic scrolls that Alex gave it until now, so if they were saying it learned a new magic, then this was not a simple matter anymore. "Can you show us what new thing you could do, Az?" Elio knew his slime friend well, so he knew it would not use a power that could be dangerous to them. "Muuuuuu~!" The spells that it used were very powerful. So much so that even a mage tower master could almost be killed with them. With its magic wand, it was much more powerful than a (tier-2) mage. In fact, if the slime could create magic on its own, it could become a (tier-3) mage as well. But, it was a slime. So at least Alex and Elio did not expect it to create its own unique spells. -Oooooooooong! Still, the fact that even Miss Rin and Sera looked somewhat confused meant there was something to this new magic they were talking about. "Hmmm?" But, when Az showed it to them, Elio did not understand what was so unique about some simple light particles flowing around the slime''s body. "What''s this light?" They were just blue particles of light that seemed to be dancing around Az. Perhaps it was some kind of light magic or water magic, or a combination of both¡­ but he did not understand what this thing was. "Are those¡­ spirits?" Alex, on the other hand, just like the mother and the Servant on the floor, knew well what these dancing particles of light might be. But, this did not make any sense to her either. Chapter 133 - 133: Elemental spirits Elements exist and they make up various parts of the world. Just like atoms, the elements make the base and foundation of this world. Mainly six elements exist independently and in their various divided and combined forms. Namely Water, Wind, Fire, Earth, Darkness and Light, these elements make up various elements of the physical world that every mortal perceives. "Wow¡­" "Seems like even you don''t understand this, Alex." Just like Miss Rin and Sera, Alex also sat down on the floor and observed the dancing particles of light that revolved around Az and occasionally went to the rest of them sitting around it. "There is nothing to understand, Miss Rin." These dancing particles of light, they were Physical manifestations of the water element making up this world. "That slime is just special. So much so that even spirits are interested in it." The Elemental spirits, much like guardian spirits exist in a unique world of their own. This unique word is called a [Realm] by the players and natives, and very few people know about these unique worlds. People know elements exist everywhere and thus a physical manifestation of these elements are also present all around them. They exist everywhere, just that they are beyond a [Boundary] that divides the physical realm of mortals and their own world. "These are spirits? Like, the spirits that the [< Elementalists >] command?" "No, these are spirits that blacksmiths use to forge weapons." She looked at him with squinted eyes, asking him just what kind of stupid question he was asking. They were spirits, the same spirits that Elementalists contract with, the same spirits that fairies are friends with, the same spirits that guide individuals closer to nature, and the same spirits that can very well be fused in weapons and items by the hands of a [Grandmaster] under certain perfect conditions. Spirits were a physical manifestation of the elements that they were made with. They were a conscious existence that had an intelligence, and in their own world, they were divided into various ranks that were divided into the powers that they held. They were unique entities that one could not understand simply as a creature. They were unique beings that were beyond simple understanding. "Dummy. Haaa¡­ just come here and sit down. Look at them closely, you will understand a little bit." These creatures¡­ in the entire world of NO, they were one of the purest beings. The intelligence they had varied greatly. The little particles of light that were dancing around them right now were all simply children that could not manifest completely in this world. They were using Az''s Mana as a medium, so they could not completely manifest in their original forms. But, even as this most basic form of a light particle, if one focuses enough, they could see a little more than what was visible to the naked eye. These creatures, these energy manifestations were more of a packet of energy than something like a complete physical entity. "You remember the tiger that the guard captain manifested into?" Alex continued looking at the Dancing Lights as she told him a little more about these unique beings. "The guardian spirits, much like the elemental spirits, are unique beings that reside in the spirit world like the elemental spirits." There were only a few ways for the entities of the various Realms to cross the Boundaries dividing these worlds and go into their world. "Elemental spirits are special. They are much closer to nature than the guardian spirits since the elements that they are made of is essentially what nature is made of on the surface level." Nature was a vast entity¨C it was a truth that could not just be limited to what one sees, what one experiences, or what one understands. Guardian spirits were the spirit reincarnations of unique souls that could not pass on to the [Afterlife]. They were energy bodies that did not have any physical properties and could not exist in the world that was essentially for the physical beings. However through certain skills or through certain methods, those spirits could be summoned into the physical world. And, the same was true for the Elemental spirits. "You know the basics about them, right?" "About their ranks and stuff?" "Yes, that." The spirits were divided into six unique ranks according to their powers, their scale, their intelligence, and their control over the elements that they were made of. They are not creatures, but unique Energy entities so they can grow constantly with their increasing age. They do not have a concept of death among them, just a cycle of birth and rebirth. Just like mortals, they grow, they gather energy, reach a supreme state-manifestation, and with a certain probability, their complete forms decay. At least, that''s what was theorized. "Elemental spirits are unique entities, Elio." A smile appeared on her face as she remembered her time in the spirit realm among the countless spirits, and a being that had helped her immensely in the past. "Even after all these years, We do not know much about them." She was one of the few fortunate ones who had ever got the chance to go to their unique world and experience what a mortal could not. Not many people understood these beings as much as she did. Yet, she knew there was a lot that she still did not know about these creatures. "The fact that Az could share its power with the spirits around it means it has a certain affinity for Elementalism. And it somewhat makes sense, you know?" Az was not as powerful without its wand as it was when casting the spells with the Wand. it was weird, and even Alex had always found it weird how a spell could work so differently with and without a wand. Until now, she had theorized that the wand had some kind of special ability that made the spells more powerful than they were. But, with the presence of the spirits, things were clear now. "The power to almost kill a mage tower master, destructive spells more powerful than the limitations of the spells themselves, and a power that was beyond the cost of its Mana." The Wand helped amplify the elemental power through the power of the spirits, which was somewhat the same as what the proper Elementalists and contractors of the spirits do. "Haaa¡­ the Hall master must have known about this as well." As a descendent of elves, as a contractor of a high ranking spirit, and as someone who could perceive the spirits directly, she must have known about them already. But the rest of them were only finding it right now¡­ sea??h th§× N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Isn''t this good then?" His friend will be like one of those rare few individuals that could use the pure power of the spirits. Elio was excited and happy about it. "It is a good thing, yes." There was nothing wrong with it, certainly. But Elio could not understand the reason why Alex, Miss Rin and even his Sera had a complicated expression on their faces despite nothing being wrong with it. "Well¡­" He wanted to know why they had that look on their faces, but Alex could only give him a new helpless look and sigh at him with a smile. "It''s a slime we are talking about, Elio." The simplest creatures of nature, the creatures that people ignore most of the time, and the beings that should have been nothing less than a blob of slime without any great power. "It''s not everyday that you see a Slime that can become an Elementalist." Just the existence of those with the affinity with the Elemental spirits was miniscule in this world. A slime that had spirits following it around? People would laugh if they heard something so obviously funny. Chapter 134 - 134: Preparing a dungeon run "Well, anyway¡­" Az was special. Much more than they had expected and there might still be something that they did not know about this special creature. "We are going on a dungeon run." Az could not keep the spirits around for long so while it recovered it''s Mana, Misha and the rest of them played on the other side of the room, leaving the rest of the adults alone. "On a dungeon run? Here?" Miss Rin knew the dungeons around this area, and all the hunting grounds so she knew most of those places were mostly only good for beginners or knights of much higher levels. There were some low level dungeons in the area that were also restricted from the common public and someone who was of the low level like the two of them were not even allowed to enter them. "Yup. It''s a secret dungeon so don''t think about it the same way as the rest of the dungeons. I know even we can take on the (Level-60)+ monster swarms, but they aren''t gonna be that helpful." They were strong enough to clear those kinds of dungeons, but they would not help them as much as they wanted right now. A dungeon run into those simple dungeons was not going to be much helpful for them. That''s why they were going to a new place that not many people knew about. "A secret dungeon? Such a place exists here?" "Yup. That old man himself cleared it a few times in the past. Not many people know about it, and I got permission from the hall master to clear it this time around." "...?" They did not know when she talked with the Hall master of the archer hall, but if she was saying it¡­ Elio knew it was a lie. It wasn''t in her nature to ask for permission for the things that she can just have herself, so unlike Miss Rin who actually fell for her words, he knew the truth. "It''s a forest environment dungeon, the humidity is high so water magic will be pretty useful. There are (Level-70) mobs, (Level-80) elites, and (Level-100) sub-bosses." With a smirk on her face, she looked at two of her companions. "There are going to be so many mobs there that each of the knight halls has to combine their forces to clear this one periodically. So, we are gonna need some wide angle spells." What she was saying was even more absurd now¡­ "Alex." The knight halls had so many knights above the level of Moongold''s guard captain that there should be hundreds of them. And, if they had to come together to clear the place she was talking about, then it most certainly was not somewhere they should go! "Are you serious?" Elio even had to confirm if she was joking or not. They were pretty high level now compared to a few days ago but, Elio had never defeated any being of high level. "I know you have thought things out but, will it really be safe for us?" He himself had never even killed any creature so he was not the same as her who had at least fought directly against the dark mage and defeated the mage tower master with the powers that she could not use more than once. "He''s right, Alex. And with Misha, I don''t know what we would do in a dungeon with higher difficulty." She might not have any problem going against those creatures and Miss Rin might also be alright with it, but the same was not true for a support like him, a weak being like Az that could not use its power as frequently as them, or Miu who could barely use any power that it had. They were weak, and since Sera was still low leveled, the powers that she had were very, very limited. "Muuu?" "Miu?" [{ I know. But it is our collective decision. }] Sera could understand the two of them, so she knew how they had no problem going to a fun sounding place. There was not much that Sera could help with, and that was the reason she wanted to level up faster and become someone who could help them. But the two of them had unique powers that will undoubtedly help them. "Alex, are you sure about this?" He was not worried about himself but he could not bear the thought of seeing any of the people around him getting severely hurt or dying. Alex might come back at one point, but the rest of them only had one life. A life they almost lost a few days ago. "Don''t worry, dummy." If this was dangerous, he did not want any of them to go there with them. And, she knew this would be dangerous, that''s why she also did not want all of them to go with them. "Miss Rin and Misha won''t be going with us, and as long as you hold onto these two troublemakers, things will be alright." He was looking at him confidently, with an excited smile on her face. She knew what she was doing, and she was confident. "I see¡­" This was going to be their dungeon run. They needed to power level once again and boost their levels so that they can use their powers, magic, spells, and techniques in a better manner. Without levels, she could not use a lot of her powers. And without proper powers, she wouldn''t be able to assist them. "There''s nothing to worry about, actually." she reassured him. "I''m stronger now, and from what I''ve heard from that old man, I know you will have fun there." and then she smirked at him. He knew she was up to no good, from that one smirk alone, so¡­ he observed her suspicious look for a moment, and shook his head when he saw how she had no intention of not going to that place. Her blue eyes were already looking ahead in the future, at something he could not understand. There was most certainly something that she was still hiding but he had no choice but to accept it. "Alright then¡­" They were going on a dungeon run. "Muuuuu~!" "Miu~!" And though Misha did not like how she was excluded from this fun activity, after what happened a few days ago, she did not want to see any more bad things. Death, especially. She did not want to see all of that. Sear?h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 135 - 135: Flin birds "Ummm¡­" Now that it was decided that they were going on a dungeon run, they needed some good equipment that would help them in that dangerous place. What they had on was not going to be enough so, right now¡­ they were walking towards a certain place, passing through a dark, silent backalley. There were no people around, the houses on the sides were clean, there was no eerie silence in the air, and from where they were all walking to, it certainly seemed to be the way to some shady place¡­ "Alex¡­ you''re sure this is the way, right?" They were also confused since they did not have any good feelings about this. This was like those movies where they pass through some similar alley, go to some shady place, give some shady code to open a secret door that does not open for all of the people, and get into a secret shop or something. "Don''t be afraid like that, lol. The knights of this town like to sleep early, that''s the only reason the street is like this. Come here early in the morning and you will find people exercising." Elio especially thought she was taking them to a secret place that will give them good things for lower price, perhaps some kind of underground auction house or something that will give them good deals and a chance to get things at a low price. He wanted to save money. They might need some new gear, but he did not want to splash millions on something once again. He did not have that much money and even if she had it, he did not want her to waste it all on something that might not get past a single dungeon raid. If they were going to get any gears, he wanted them to have some good quality ones. "I''m not taking you all to some secret place either, lol." They finally stopped before a dead end. A wall that did not seem to be a gateway to anywhere. And beyond the tall wall, there was an even taller building that was shining like a night lamp, illuminating even this part of the wall. "You''ve seen shops and places owned by [Candlelight] right? This is just one of them." A whopping six story building covering a large part of the central streets of the town of Yuta. one of the best places to get any kind of essentials and special products one wants. "They have things like consumables, armors, weapons, accessories, to even Flin birds." "Flin birds~?" Mish was with them, walking excitedly with Miu and Az, looking around the empty street merrily humming like a little girl she was. But those last words of Alex caught her attention. "There are birds here~? Really~?" "Yup. Didn''t I say you can have one of your own?" The Flin birds weren''t exclusive to the archers and archer hall, but there was a very complex licensing process if one wanted to obtain the certifications to purchase these birds. Not just anyone could have it, so mostly, only those affiliated with the official places like the knight halls and knight associations could possess it. Thankfully, she had the licenses and IDs that she would require to purchase one of those cuties. "Yeiiii~! Thank you~! Sister Alex is the best~!" The little girl hugged her sister. And Elio was once again jealous of her¡­ "Haha, don''t thank me just yet, dear. The Flins are limited so, you might not find one that you like here." Those birds were unique creatures and they were more like a pet than a servant, a partner, a companion, or a Familiar. Not just anyone could take care of them, but if they wanted to have them, they would have to be ready to take a very good care of them. They came from various parts of the world and were highly trained, some were high maintenance, while some did not even require constant attention from their Owners. "Alright then, let''s jump." "Hmm?" Without saying anything anymore, she picked up the little girl that was standing right before her and jumped away to the other side of the wall¡­ which was kind of not allowed around these parts. "Alex!" He knew there was a reason she did not take them from a roundabout route and took this ''shortcut'' when they just had to go to the town''s center. He knew there was no way around here to get to that place, and he knew jumping off the wall would be the only way¡­ but it was not allowed by the laws! If anyone saw them and they got reported, they would be paying a fine of tens of silver! "That girl is unbelievable¡­" Miss Rin sighed with a smile, and shook her head before jumping up as well. She did not have to step on the wall like Alex to jump all the way to the other side. "Muuuu~!" "Miu~!" Az jumped up the house and the wall to cross to the other side, while Miu the little gecko just walked to the other side. [{ Master¡­ }] S§×arch* The Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She was the only one that was worried about her master and was asking him if it was alright to go to the other side as well. "Haaa. It''s fine, Sera." But now that everyone else had gone over, he had no choice either. "Let''s go." Telling her to fly to the other side, he also used a new earth attribute spell that created temporary footholds on the wall to jump up to the other side. He was not as agile as her, but thanks to the many fights that they have had in reality, he had gotten used to a few things. "Don''t worry, lol. No one saw us." She was smiling at him warmly happily as if seeing him break a law was a blissful thing in her eyes. "I''ll remember this, Alex." He did not like this, but now that they had broken the law anyway, he was going to get back at her for it when the time is right. "Let''s go do some shopping then~!" She was excited for the new gear. "Yeiiii~!" while the little one was excited to see the birds. "Muuuu~!" "Miu!" The little duo was always excited anyway, shopping and seeing new shiny things just made them happier. "Hey, wait a minute." But unlike the rest of them, Elio was looking at the realistic perspective of this whole shopping trip. "What''s our budget?" Even if they spend a little more than the last time for some useful things, he sure as hell did not want to spend millions on useless things. And to avoid useless spending, establishing a budget at the very least has been proven to be an effective tactic. Chapter 136 - 136: A little grudge ''I have no value here, haaa¡­'' His suggestion to set up a budget for them was blatantly ignored by Alex first, and since Miss Rin could not get in between the two of them, she did not speak anything. Misha and the little creatures did not even understand what a budget was so they were just running ahead with Alex and now, he was walking behind them, with Sera on his shoulder. ''That girl¡­'' Alex just walked inside the shop without any hesitation and behind her, the little creatures- with Miu inside Az''s slime body- also jumped in. Miss Rin waited for him but he told her it was fine to go ahead with his eyes, and with a sigh, Miss Rin walked inside the big shop as well. [{ "Do you think I have any value here, Sera?" }] Value¨C it was a big word, especially to the natives of this world who directly connected it with the importance in this world and their own life. He walked inside the big shop, questions about his worth troubling him. He knew he was not much visible when the rest of them were around, but until now, Elio had just taken this as him experiencing this new world that She loved. One of the reasons he started with this specific game was because of her love for this world that he understood very well, but after meeting her in Moongold, seeing the world from how she saw it, the experiences they had together have been quite different from what he had expected. [{ Of course master! Of course you have value! }] [{ "Haha, right. Of course you would say that." }] Most of the time, she overshadowed him. He was not as familiar with this world as her, he was not as powerful or unique as her, and he also did not have any objectives to become a progression narrator until now. He understood that perhaps much better than she did¡­ [{ "Tell me, Sera." }] They were inside the shop now, and as always, Alex was choosing all the things that they would need for this dungeon run. She was with Misha, the people around them in the shop did not like a Slime jumping around so she was also holding Miu and Az, and now that they were shopping for something they would need for an important dungeon run, Miss Rin was also helping them. Elio on the other hand, was in the back. Watching them and looking around as he mostly does. [{ "I''m not a strong narrative driver, am I?" }] [{ ¡­ }] What he wanted to say and what his servant understood were simply if he had any unique presence among the countless normal people around them. [{ "Tell me honestly. I will appreciate an honest answer." }] Alex had experience of this world, she was strong, she had so many things to tell that there was no better presence around them other than her. And just like Alex, Miu and Az were special, Miss Rin had her secrets, and Misha was a knot that tied everyone together. If Olive was here right now, she would have a better presence than him as well since unlike him who liked to stay at the back and watch them, watch the world around him, and experience this world, she would take part in every little thing that happens around her. [{ Master, you are amazing. If you want, you can be the center point even stronger than someone like Alex. }] She knew how instead of someone who had many secrets, someone strong, or someone special, someone who did not know a lot of things, someone who had no experience, and someone who was looking, hearing, perceiving everything around them would be the best narrator there is. But, unlike someone who would want to be That person, he liked to stay back, click screenshots, and just smile at the cute things around him. Sear?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. When he was with her, unlike the real world, he had no need to act or come in the spotlight. [{ "But that''s the thing na, Sera. I''m faulty because I willingly do not want to to be That voice." }] They were finished with their shopping on the first floor, so they moved on to the second one. And when they were done there as well, they looked around the third, forth, and fifth floor, but there weren''t many things that caught any of their attention, so with Elio walking at the back, they all moved to the top floor where all the birds were living freely without any cage. There were ID check-ups first and other procedures, but again¡­ thanks to some new kind of ID Alex had, they were able to get past a lot of things a lot quicker than they would have. [{ "Look at those birds, adorable creatures." }] He clicked three screenshots as soon as they entered the floor and later, many more. The adorable birds, the fierce birds, the small birds and the big birds. He took grouped pictures and he took single pictures. Some photos came out good so he immediately pushed them in his Liked folder as well. That was what he did most of the time when nothing much was happening, and right now as well, he was doing the same. [{ "Haaa¡­" }] Sera wanted to say something, tell him there was nothing wrong with him being invisible among them, but she could not find the right words to put her thoughts into. [{ Master-. }] [{ "You don''t have to try that hard, Sera." }] He smiled at her, and shook his head as he watched the starry eyes of their younger friends. [{ "Do you see how Misha is smiling?" }] As if she liked all the birds around her, she was trying to talk to every single one of them. Unlike Miu and Az, she surely did not get any special response from them, but she liked these birds. And, only he could see the unique smiles she had for every bird around them. [{ Pardon, master? }] [{ "Haha, I''m just saying if you can tell how Misha smiles a little differently for each bird around her. Or, how Alex is currently thinking about something completely unrelated to these birds¡­ or how the soft eyes of Miss Rin have nostalgia in them at the moment." }] He saw a lot of things. When it came to human emotions, when it came to colors and angles, he knew what he was seeing. But Alex did not see this world the same way he did. [{ I¡­ Do not understand it, master. }] And the same was true for all of the people around him. [{ "Simply put, Sera." }] Sadly, Misha loved all the birds around here. So, she could not choose just one of them. "We can look at the birds in the other shops when we reach the city, Misha. How about that? There''s a bigger place just for the birds." "Really~? Yes~! Let''s do that, Sister~!" [{ "Everyone has a POV." }] He did not know if he had any worth in this world yet. He was not anything special yet, did not have any special strengths, and he was not like the rest of them. But, just like the rest of them, he also had his own point of view. And that point of view had unique ways to perceive things. [{ "I know I''m not as effective of a narrative driver as the rest of them. What I have to offer is very personal and it''s not as dominant as the cuteness of the gecko-slime duo, youth of Misha, Experiences of Alex, or anything like constraints of the past that Miss Rin has. I like to keep what I have." }] Like these screenshots and like the feelings that he does not talk about. [{ "But¡­" }] He was looking at a certain bird for a while now. It was a pretty green owl that had been sleeping and ignoring the rest of them since a while ago, something he found interesting, so he was trying to Observe it. [{ "I don''t like it when she outright ignores me." }] The way she ignored his suggestion about the budget got on his nerves. But he won''t tell her that since she knows about it already. [Ding!] Observation finally resulted in Identification. ============ [Green Flin Owl] -A Flin bird that has been trained very well. ============ He will just do what he usually does not. And make her pay for ignoring his genuine suggestion and once again splashing tens of gold on barely useful stuff. Chapter 137 - 137: A new Skill "What''s the difference between other Flin birds and a ''Well trained'' Flin bird?" Elio asked with a curious look, caressing his little slime friend in his hand. Since they were done looking around and did not find any bird they could bring back, they finished their shopping and were going back. "Hmmm? Why ask that? Did you find any ''well trained'' Flin there? Did you use Observation again?" Alex found this out of the blue question quite surprising. "Yeah. Remember that green Owl? The window said it was trained very well." "Wow, really?" It was quite unexpected for her. Elio was able to find out about something that people could not find even with normal appraisal skills with a basic function. "How many times has it been already? You''re most definitely used Observation and Identification more than a few hundred times, right?" "...what about my question? How are the well trained ones different?" As always, she was abruptly changing the topic to something she wanted to know. But, he did not let her do it this time. He wanted his answer, so he gave her the look that said what he desired. "What''s up with you, man? Did something happen?" "No? Well, just answer my question first." He was the one that asked first, so he wanted the answer to his question. It was simple. "Hmmm¡­" She looked at him for a moment, but then she just shook her head as if whatever thought she had just now did not really matter. "Flins are, at the end of the day, birds. They are not creatures, they are of various kinds and they have evolved and adapted to their nature. As you know, they are called Flin birds because of the geographical areas that they are found in, right?" They were going to leave early morning tomorrow, so they needed to rest in what little time they had. They did not dilly-dally after finishing their shopping and quickly came back to their inn. Miu and Az were with them tonight since they all needed to talk and prepare for tomorrow. "So¡­ when they catch a Flin, most of them are not as well behaved as some of the others. Even for master tamers and trainers, they are hard to deal with. But, some are more natural for the training they provide. Only the ones that complete the training are actually called a Flin bird, but those who are Well trained have better chances to do what they are trained." He sat down on the bed first when they reached their room, and Az jumped off of his lap. Miu came out of Az and stretched its crystal limbs, something that had now become a familiar sight to the two of them. "So, in short, they are better products?" "...it''s quite strange when you call them ''products'' Mister Elio." "I was just asking." with a sigh, he nodded at her who was still standing before him. Allowing her to place her head on his lap. She liked it like that, and he did not mind once in a while either. "Hmmm¡­ anyway, I answered your question. Now it''s your turn." She didn''t think there was anything wrong with him, so they moved back to her previous question. "Haven''t you used Observation and Identification a few hundred times already? Shouldn''t you get {Appraisal} by now?" "I should, I think. But I didn''t count how many times I''ve used that function. I practically use it every single day." He used it for all kinds of things. He observed little things outside his window when they were in an inn, when traveling, he Observed all things around him, and even when they were shopping, he looked at all kinds of things in the shops. He even Observed people around him, so it had become a simple daily practice for him. "After I didn''t get the skill after 300th Observation, I thought there was something more to the conditions that Players did not know. I thought I would get it after a certain level, but then¡­ Well¡­ since I use Observation everyday anyway, I didn''t really need a specific appraisal skill." Having an appraisal skill would be better, he understood that better than ever after meeting that old couple in their first village. But he did not need it for now at least. "I don''t think I need it right now actually anyway, so I''ll-." "You dumb human¡­" Sear?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Cutting him off midway, she shook her head and looked at him as if she was looking at the most ignorant human in this world. "Don''t you know anything about [Skill Qualification evaluation] function?" She got up from his lap and placed her hands on his shoulders with a frustrated look. "..." The look he had right now was not calm anymore. He did not understand what she was talking about. "Do you even know anything about skills or do you believe Players just get it directly like Natives and creatures do?" For a moment there, she had forgotten that he was completely ignorant about most of the things related to this game. "Of course I know¡­ about the Skill evaluation thing." He knew it. He had just never really heard much about the function since no one talked about it or anything. "You¡­ dummy¡­" She pressed her temple with frustration before looking at him angrily. "Repeat after me." "What-." "Just say what I say! ¡­please." She did not want to shout at him, but whenever he did something so obviously dumb, she could not control herself. "Say: Skill Qualification Evaluation." "...skill qualification evaluation." [Ding!] "Request." "Request¡­" [Accepting Request¡­] "Search Skill qualification data." "Search for skill qualification data." "Did I say ''for''?!" [Ding!] [Request accepted.] [Searching for your Qualified skills.] "Well, it worked anyway." She wanted to hit him in the head, but she controlled herself. He was so pitifully dumb that he did not even know players had to use a unique function to get the skills that they qualify for, much like a reward claiming system for doing certain things. It was one of the most common functions of the game, and yet he did not know about it even after having worked with some of the best of this game¡­ "You''re unbelievable, El¡­" She did not know what to do with him. So she just kissed him. Chapter 138 - 138: Skill qualifications ============ 1] {Tamer''s command} Conditions: Tame five or more creatures higher level than you at once. Status: Available. 2] {Tamer''s subspace} Condition: Create a [Family] consisting of one evolved creature and three or more creatures added to the family by the Primarily trained beasts. Status: Available. S§×arch* The Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. 3] {Pleasure} Condition: Achieve a complete unison with your partner for a prolonged period. Status: Available. 4] {Thread weaving} Condition: Master an ancient spell on the first try. Additional conditions: Possess {Mana senses} and cast fifteen or more types of magic spells. Status: Available. 5] {Compassion} Condition: Show more than fifty acts of compassion within a span of three days. Additional conditions: Show sympathetic pity and concern for the suffering or misfortune of a being unrelated to you. Status: Available. 6] {Mana Search} Conditions: Highlight your senses with Mana while being in an environment dominated by a different kind of unique energy. Additional condition 1: Obtain recognition of someone possessing authority. Additional condition 2: Obtain recognition of someone possessing partial divine essence. Additional condition 3: ¨C Status: In progress. 7] {Light''s grace} Conditions: Defeat a follower of evil. Additional condition 1: Possess Light element affinity. Additional condition 2: Possess Darkness element affinity. Additional condition 3: Catch interest of a being possessing high understanding of [Truth] who is also close with nature. Additional condition 4: ¨C Status: In progress. 8] {Tamer''s heart} Conditions: Befriend unique elemental creatures who are innately born with natural elemental powers without resorting to forceful activities. Additional condition 1: Understand the nature and habits of the creature with Observation. Additional condition 2: Connect with the untamed beasts on a deep level. Additional condition 3: ¨C Status: In progress. 9] {Raguel} Conditions: ¨C Status: Plausibility detection. 10] {Mana Overdrive} Conditions: Experience a Mana counterflow and counter it with only your willpower. Status: Available. 11] {Spell Arrow} Conditions: Infuse a wooden arrow with more than one Spell perfectly and destroy a Training target without destroying the arrow. Additional condition 1: Win against a powerful opponent in a direct standoff. Additional condition 2: Get acknowledgement of a Bowmaster. Additional condition 3: ¨C Additional condition 4: ¨C Status: In progress. 12] {Three Eyes} Conditions: ¨C Status: Plausibility detection. ============ ''There were a lot of skills that I could obtain¡­ but, one could only claim one skill through this function every 50 Levels.'' That was the reason he never really bothered with this function in the first place. ''Still though, thanks to her, I now know what skills I can aim to get directly through the system''s skill grating function.'' Skill evaluation served as a supplementary function, comprehensively assessing an individual''s potential to acquire skills based on predefined criteria. ''She overreacts a lot sometimes.'' He wasn''t hopelessly oblivious to this world at least. He knew about most of the functions there were, especially important things related to the skills and the functions essential to the players. "El, be careful. Come." They were walking through a forest, with Sera flying in the sky, observing all the dangerous things and advising them about them. ''But she cares a lot more.'' There was a steep hill, so she climbed first with the help of his spell, and then helped him to climb up so that he does not have to waste unnecessary energy. "Huup!" He climbed up with her help, and after walking a little further, he looked on the sides, observed the new kind of environment this place had then the rest of the places they had been to. "Is this it?" They were going to a unique dungeon, but even after tracking for three hours, they had not seen anything other than the normal dangerous forest, many creatures, and a lot more plant life. There were all kinds of creatures in the forest, but they were all not something they were after at the moment. Since their target was a dangerous dungeon, they were conserving their energy for when they would actually need it. "A little further. It should be around three miles away." She looked at him up and down and after confirming he was alright, she nodded at him and walked ahead. They were almost there, so she did not want to waste any more time. ''She was concerned and excited yesterday. Hearing I didn''t get the skill that I should have naturally obtained by that point indicated how I could obtain a unique skill of the same category.'' He knew about the function but he wasn''t interested in claiming the skills that were listed there. He would obtain them naturally with time. That''s just how things worked and he knew that. She was not the only high level person he knew, so¡­ he at least wasn''t oblivious about these basic things. ''Still, seeing her shocked expression when she saw that strange skill with that unique glow to its name was quite something.'' He did not know what kind of skill {Raguel} was but he certainly knew there was something special about this skill. It was different from the other skills listed there. And she somehow seemed to know what that skill was. ''Still though, even she did not know what kind of skill the {Three Eyes} was.'' From the list, it was obvious that this was the skill that he had the chance of obtaining in place of {Appraisal} but, even Alex did not know what that skill was. ''Most of the skills that players could qualify for were similar. In the entire list that we saw, she even knew that strangely shining skill but not {Three Eyes}.'' She was told how if she doesn''t know about it, then the chances of someone else knowing anything about this specific skill were low. Furthermore, she even told him how the skills that someone obtains for the first time are called [Beginning], a unique skill which that certain person alone has ever had. "Haaa¡­ Haaa¡­ finally." He was not of the appropriate level yet, so he could not claim any of those skills, but now that he knew about what skills he could obtain, without worrying about what he did not know anything about, he knew what skill he needed to work for next. "That''s¡­ the dungeon?" A great tree situated in the middle of a forest area that seemed to be experiencing fall when the rest of the forest was wet and green. "That''s not the dungeon." It was a tall tree, three times taller than the rest around it and, from the looks of it, it seemed like this one was a great, great, great grandparent of the rest of the trees present around this area. "Though¡­" Somehow, the trees that seemed to be experiencing autumn were connected to the ever expanding branches and roots of the one ancient giant. "The dungeon is under this tree." They were looking at it from the ground, but Elio knew looking at this scenery from the sky above would be much more thrilling than this ground angle. It was a natural ancient monument, not just a tree in Elio''s eyes. But, in her eyes¡­ "Do you remember I told you how money grows under trees in this world?" There was only a look of excitement. "Miu?" "Muuu~!" The entrance to the dungeon was located on the root covered base of the giant tree. They would have to jump down to reach the unique dungeon area¨C the world located under this great tree. "..." The moment they jump and reach the ''ground'' they would have been teleported in a new world altogether. "Get ready, darling." She had experienced it many times already. So she knew her beloved was going to like it as well. Chapter 139 - 139: Dungeon: Elmguardian’s Nest "So¡­" They were standing before the base of the giant tree. They looked like an ant before a giraffe right now, a little human before the great immortals who had been around since the old ages. "We have to jump down?" There was a hole among the roots that were intertwined to make this particular base area, and she was telling him they had to jump down the abyss like hole. "Hehe, you scared?" she smirked at him with an excited expression, the slime-gecko duo in her hand looking down with excitement as well. There was something down there and they could sense it. The slime, Az, was especially excited about this. It wanted to be the first one to jump down but for now, Alex was holding the two of them. "I''m¡­ just not sure about this." There was only darkness as far as he could see. He even tried throwing down a torch but it vanished in only three seconds. There was a strange kind of energy oozing out of this hole as well. What more, there was something strange in this entire area. He was not sure about this place. He had been to a dungen and it was nothing like this one. "Alex, you''re sure about this, right?" He was just asking her if she was sure about this or not. If she was not, he did not want to face something that they might not be able to face with the creatures around them. "You still don''t believe me, hun?" A warm smile appeared on her face. "Well¡­" He knew this was not good. There was something very wrong if she had that kind of look. "You can wait here if you want, we will be going forward." "...?!" She threw Az down the hole first and jumped in right after them while still smiling at him. "Alex!" And there was no way he was going to just let her fall in that dark abyss, so he instinctively jumped in as well. [{ Master, it''s alright. }] Sera was right behind him at the very back. When they fell, she flew right behind them while reassuring her master. He might not have experienced it himself, but he surely knew how some dungeons were a little different from the others. [Ding!] S§×ar?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The dungeon that they entered back when the Dark mage had overtaken it was already turned into something that was not a dungeon anymore. However, this one was a proper dungeon. A unique one at that. [You have entered the dungeon: Elmguardian''s Nest.] [A Dungeon quest has been created.] Most of the natural structures that were termed dungeons were either a natural habitat of some certain creatures or were places created by some powerful being. In some cases, the dungeon areas were so big that they were not simply just dungeons anymore, but they were too big to be called a field. In these cases, the dungeons, with the right age, and with the right qualifications, develop their own ecosystem. And this ecosystem further grows into something that becomes an important part of the System flow itself. "Hahahaha~!" "Miu~!" "Muuuuuuu!" They were sliding down the roots while going down a dark tunnel. But, they were soon thrown out of the darkness¡­ into a world that was completely different from where they had been just now. [Ding!] ============ [Dungeon Quest: ] : You have entered the unique region created under the generational evolution of an Elmguardian. The environment has evolved and grown into a unique ecosystem. There are various creatures in this land, most of which are dangerous. Objective: Find the escape platforms created by a Great mage located somewhere in the forest and escape the dungeon. Reward: Exp depending upon the actions in the dungeon. Failure conditions: Death, Death of 60% or more living beings inside the dungeon, Death of Certain important creatures that maintain the environment inside the dungeon. ============ "Alex¡­!" When they were thrown out through the slide, they all found themselves in the air. "Weeeee~!" Alex was enjoying this since she knew she would land on the ground without any worries, but Elio was not as proficient with these things as her. [{ Master! You can grab-. }] Sera was going to help him, but before she could do that, Elio just created a gust of wind with his magic while falling down¨C or it would be better to say he used his natural magic to gather the winds in the area and made a counter current upwards. "Hahahah~." The place that they had ended up in was a forest. And this forest was a magical place. "Muuuuu!" Tall, glowing trees, their leaves shimmering with bright colors without sunlight. Strange flowers bloomed in every color, even more vibrant from the trees and leaves, and the ground was soft yet covered in dry soil and fine dust. It was quiet, except for the whisper of wind through the leaves and the distant chirping of unknown birds. "Miu~!" Alex landed on her feet, Az landed on a tree branch, and the happy gecko adjusted his position and landed on a bush. Elio on the other hand, was covered in dust that was carried up by the winds. [{ Master¡­? }] Sera was alright since she had wings, but he was not fine when he was covered in dust and sand. He did not like this, and yet thanks to that girl, he was experiencing something so unpleasant. "Awwww¡­ look at you baby." Since they were inside the dungeon now, and since she has had her share of fun, she returned back to him and helped him clear himself up. "I am starting to rethink if I like this side of you or not." She cleaned his face with a happy smile, and kissed his cheek. "You''re no fun when we are back home. At least lemme have some fun when you still don''t know much." She knew things would not be the same in a few months. Perhaps by the time they come out of that great jungle, he would have learned more than enough about this world. She knew it would not take them that long to collect the remaining Keys after that with him spearheading most of the paths for her, so¡­ this fun time was much more precious for her than it was frustrating for him. "Anyway." They were inside a dungeon now and when people were inside a dungeon, even with a quest in place, they were going to face beings that they would have to fight against and defeat for the experience points that they were after today. "Looks like the fun starts now." 60% was the limit so, there was going to be a limit to their power leveling, but since this was pretty much a forest existing under a great tree, they were going to have a fun time with the various creatures of this unique ecosystem¡­ Chapter 140 - 140: Elm creatures Creatures of wood and greens¨C the forest creatures here were the main enemies and the opponents that they had to face. -Swiiiish! They were powerful creatures of (Level-70) and higher. [{ "Elio!" }] -Oooooooooooong! There were a lot of them as well, and right now, around ten of them had gathered around them. [{ "Alex, right!" }] Elio was at the back, Sera was still in the sky, assisting the two of them with Miu, and Az was on a tree branch, in a secured location. The slime was their main weapon against these high level creatures since the two of them alone could not handle the rest of the creatures present. [{ "I''ll attack right-." }] [{ "Don''t tell me everything you''re gonna do, dummy! Just do whatever you want! I trust you!" }] She was on the frontline, fighting the creatures that resembled various different creatures and yet were made of a plant body. They had flesh and blood but both resembled a creature that was born from an any, a forest spirit, or from an Ent''s essence. The creatures did not have any unique intelligence, but they were not dumb either. With sharp instincts and amazing teamwork, the group of giant ants that had attacked them, were proving to be more dangerous than what they had expected at the beginning. -Oooooooooooong! They weren''t resistant to magic, so the attacks that they were using were especially effective. Alex was also using a unique sword that was enchanted with fire attributes. She had to burn Mana stones to use the enchantment for a brief moment, but the fire attribute was especially effective against the creatures of this dungeon. Since their skin, the limbs and practically their entire being was made out of wood, it was easy to burn them all down with a powerful enough fire. The blade with fire attribute was effective even though these wooden ants were twice their size. They were powerful so even with Restriction spells of Elio, even with the buffs that he gave her, it was becoming difficult for them to keep going. "Ktktktktktktkt!" "Krkrkrkr!" "Kiiiiiii!" The ants were good at working with one another. They were so strong that the giant glowing trees around them were nothing more than a normal tree to them. They were unique, but they could still deal with them. "Now!" "Muuuuuu!" -Oooooooooooong! They had gathered the last of them in an open area, and with a strong condensed ball of water created by the slime, they managed to eradicate the creatures completely. "Shrrrr. At least, they defeated the first wave of the creatures. sea??h th§× n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [{ "Elio, drink a potion. We will be pushing forward this time." }] He was at the back since he still did not like how they were killing these creatures. If he could help it, and if it was possible, he would not bother and instead observe them in their natural habitat. But he knew taming them was not an option. They were aggressive beings so they needed to either deal with them completely or avoid them as much as possible. "Ktatatat?" "Here they come, everyone!" They were here to level up¡­ at least, she wanted to level up. He was here since he did not want her to go alone. But levels were important for the creatures around him. With increasing levels Az, Miu and Sera would become stronger. They would also learn new skills and when they grow stronger, he is ultimately getting stronger as well. The three of them needed to level up as well, so this time at least, he wanted to help them in whatever way he could. [{ "Elio, try that AOE spell." }] [{ "Already?" }] All he had were his Grace and Restriction spells. The physical spells were not effective when going against creatures like them on the beginning tiers of magic, so he wasn''t concerned with them. [{ "There are only three this time. I''ll stall them, so prepare the spell!" }] Alex just went ahead and defended against the creature that was coming for them. It had sharp, long, blade-like pincers. They were dangerous, no one would want to get caught up with these things. Still¡­ -Swish! Alex used her {Blink} and moved across the big creatures. She jumped, used {Smash} and damaged the hard structures of the creatures. They had not encountered other kinds of creatures yet, however, from the briefing they had before coming here, Elio knew all of the creatures in this dungeon were called Elm creatures. They were a native species of a unique environment such as this one. There were quite a lot of places that had similar environments in this world, some were far bigger than this one and covered a land as vast as a state''s. This one was comparatively smaller. Located below a great tree, this place was like an underground world where colors were common things for the plant lives. The Elm creatures, just like the ants that they were fighting right now, were also unique beings with dull colored bodies upon which, different bright plant lives grew. "Huuuu¡­" -Oooooooooooong! The creatures in this kind of environment were unique and were ultimately connected to the ''tree'' that they originate from. ''This is going to be tough.'' This dungeon was called Elmguardian''s nest because of the Elm tree that they were under. All of this existed inside the unique space of that tree, so the creatures present here were also called Elm creatures. ''Think¡­'' Still, since the creatures found here were mostly plant lives with not too complicated characteristics, just the fire element was going to work on it. ''Recreate¡­'' The Spells that Elio could use at the moment were limited to (tier-1) simple spells. He could use natural magic and had his own spell casting method, but he could still not cast magic of the higher levels. The AOE spells that the players and natives conventionally use were one of those difficult spells that he could not use yet. At least, he could not cast the spells that were known to the general public. [{ "I''m ready." }] There were various types of spells. Some were simple and some were complex. The strength of magic depended on the way it was weaved and the intentions that it was cast with. At its core, Magic was a phenomenon where the Mage played with the truths of the world and existing laws of reality that encapsulates everything. It was the conversion of energy, channeling of knowledge, manifestation of beliefs and one''s own World, and recreation of natural elements. [{ "On the count of three, release it!" }] [{ "Alright¡­" }] Magic was a vast subject and so were the countless spells of all kinds and types and series affiliated with it. [{ "3¡­2¡­One!" }] There were no limitations to this subject so it offered one the most freedom one could hope for. -Swish! [{ "Now!" }] She gathered all three of the creatures in a single spot, and vanished with a {Blink}. -Oooooooooooong! At the same time, Elio channeled half of his Mana and manifested six red magic circles that looked almost the same as one another. "Ugh!" All six of them were almost similar with only a few elements of the spells looking a little different. However, when they manifested in Elio''s hands, they all fused into a single large magic circle and became a new kind of spell altogether¡­ -OOOOOOOONG! On the other hand, a spell circle also manifested under the ants. "Ktktktktkt?" It was a red magic circle. And though only as big as the area the three ants covered, its mere appearance sent the emergency signals up to their antennas. "...!" Sadly, it was too late by the time they perceived the Restriction series, Fire attribute, Nature series spell of a higher grade than the ones he could handle at the moment. Chapter 141 - 141: [Spell fusion] Spells were simply simple or complexly weaved Mana instructions. To cast a spell, there were believed to be three main methods that the mages of today use. The first method was simply the vocal incantations: Chanting of a certain set of incantations that produces the same kind of string combinations that a traditional spell does. There were many mages who solely relied on spell chanting. They were not commonly seen but unlike the conventional games, the [< Magic chanters >] of were wise men who had learned the truth hidden behind those incantations and understood them on a deeper level. They were rare, and they were wise. The other method was what most of the people, and players used¨C the method that solely relied on the imagination of the individuals. A spell, at the end of the day, was a manifestation of one''s will. It was pretty easy for someone possessing an open Mana circuit to cast a spell through their will alone. Players especially could cast at least the basic spells when they learn to wield and feel the Mana around them by converting the Mana in the environment and channeling it through their body. Elio also used this kind of spell casting at first as well. He was good with his imagination, however, along the way, he changed his way into something of his own. The third kind of spell casting method was the Individual method. Something only those individuals could do thanks to their unique abilities. Unlike incantations and the general spell casting method, this method was difficult to teach to someone else since the base of this kind of spell casting was something that was unique to that person alone. -Swish! "Ktktktktkt!" "Kiiiii!" -Swish! Elio had a unique way of looking at things and a unique way to perceive the world around him. He also remembered all things in a different way than most people. His memory was not that good, so he attached a lot of important moments to his life with a certain kind of emotion. He could see the kind of details that not everyone could, especially when it came to things that were unique to someone, a characteristic that was not common, it instantly caught his attention. He clicked a photo of something inside of his head to remember it, and then stored it inside an album that was present in a house that existed inside his head. It was natural for him to be consciously aware of everything that was present inside this specific house, so all the things that were present there were readily available for him. But, putting things there required the ''emotions'' that were attached to those certain things. "See. I knew you could do it~." To cast his spells, he recalled the stored images of the spells that he had learned from a unique album that he had created not long ago. "Well¡­ it takes too much Mana to cast. I don''t think we can use this more than three times. Four tops if you add the effects of the items." He was able to break down and store the spell that was of a higher level, something he knew he could not cast at his current level. He could call out anything that was already stored inside an album so after storing the broken versions of the spells that Alex gave him, he followed her instructions and placed the spells upon one another. Just as she knew, the spells that were like a part of the big puzzle were gathered and got attached to one another when they were around one another and ultimately combined together through the [Spell fusion] process and became a new spell altogether. "Haha, you know, the technique you just used isn''t something even the Magic academy graduates from the empire are capable of." There were many other techniques that the professional Mages used to enhance their spell casting. Common casting methods that integrated incantations with their own spell casting methods was one of them. [Spell fusion] was mainly used to fuse together two spell circles that were of similar wavelength. Not all mages could cast a fusion spell, specially those who could not cast the spells in the fusion process perfectly could never perfectly fuse a spell. "Hmm¡­ it wasn''t that difficult." The reason was able to fuse together those broken spells was thanks to the spells that she had created for him and his unique way of recreating the entirety of the spell. "Don''t say that before the other mages, lol. Those from the magic academy would burn you alive if you say Spell fusion is easy." His unique spell casting method made it possible for him to bypass the entire spell manifestation process. He was able to directly create the spell circles that he wanted with a big chunk of Mana input. It sometimes took a lot of Mana, but if the spell was something he was already familiar with, the Mana consumption decreased by a lot. "Don''t exaggerate it. I know those magic academy kids. They are not that bad." If someone who did not understand enough saw him casting multiple spells at once, they would think he was [Multicasting] four to five together. S§×arch* The Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. It was nearly impossible for most of the mages to cast more than one spell even if they dedicated their entire life to their magic. Those who could cast two different spells at once were called geniuses, those who could perform Tri-casting were called prodigies. And those who could cast more than four different kinds of spells at once were chosen directly by the Archmages to be their students. "Besides¡­" [{ More are coming, master. }] "We should move now. Staying here isn''t good anymore." With his unique method which was not Multicasting but more like ''spell summoning'' according to what he understood it as, he was able to cast a higher level spell that enhanced the Elm creature''s fire weakness and increased the damage that they received. It was a wide area spell so it targets all of them in a certain area. "Yeah, let''s go gather a bigger crowd this time~." It proved to be very effective. Much more than even what she had expected when she created this spell¡­ She did not know if it was so powerful because an amazing person like her made it, or because an amazing person like her darling cast it. But whatever the reason might be, they confirmed the spell worked much better than she had anticipated. And that simply meant the time and efforts that they would have to put into their hunting was going to be descred a little. "Kehe¨Chehehehe." The evil in her deep blue eyes gave omen of a massacre. An event he had foreseen long ago¡­ Chapter 142 - 142: Kiting Many who are familiar with games involving hunting and killing would be familiar with the term ''kiting'' where someone lures in a bunch of monsters to a specific place without getting attacked by them. It is a very important part of a lot of hunting games, as well as the games that involve a large field. There are some basic rules to Kiting, but the most important of them all is dragging all the aggroed monsters to the predetermined spots without dying. [{ "Ten seconds." }] [{ "Spell is ready." }] In a dungeon filled with hundreds of thousands of high level monsters who mostly had a weakness to fire attribute, simple one to one hunting was not going to be anything fun. -Shrrrrrrrr¡­ "Miu!" "That''s right. She seems to have brought more this time." She had experience with this kind of dungeons that were used for mass leveling of a certain force. The new knights of Yuta used this place for the leveling purposes, the higher level knights were all the spearheads that took the lead and helped the newer knights with leveling up. They called it an inspection, but this was one of the most important training of their days in Yuta. Those specifically handpicked by the hall masters were the only people that got to come to this place. It was a restricted area so not just anyone could come here. The people that could fight with the Elm monsters were low as well. Their hard outer bodies made it difficult to deal significant damage to them. Wounding them was not an option and dealing with them in groups was an even more difficult task, but for a knight, it was the most basic thing to Protect their teammates. "Help me, Sera." [{ Yes, master. }] All those knights and the Hall master came together to defeat the creatures of this dungeon, the same creatures that the two of them were taking on all by themselves. [{ "Three¡­" }] It was absurd that the two of them were the only ones doing it. -SHRRRRRRR¡­! But, an even more absurd thing was how they had already cleared ten percent of the dungeon''s population in the last six hours that they had been in this dungeon. [{ "Two¡­" }] "They are here, Az. Prepare your spells as well." "Muuuuu~!" It was not possible through simply fighting the small bunch of creatures that came to fight them after sensing them in their environment. If they had stuck with the traditional methods, even with their unique spells that were highly useful in this certain scenario, they might still take a week to reach their goal of 60% of the dungeon''s total population. And, they did not have a week. S~ea??h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. They needed to move out of the town within four days. That was their goal right now, and to achieve that goal, they were kiting an awfully large amount of creatures of various areas into a certain place. [{ "Cast the spell!" }] -SHRRRRRR! "KTKTKTKTKTKTKT!" "KRRRRRRRRR!" "KRIIIIIIIIIII!" Just like right now, Alex went and kited around a hundred or so creatures to the certain place that they had created, an open area where they had engraved a magic circle on the ground, and a perfect spot in this dungeon where they could accommodate that number of creatures. -Ooooooooooooooong! He cast his fire attribute natural series spell and created the wide area magic circle on top of the bigger magic circle. [{ "That''s too much, Alex." }] [{ "It''s only one hundred and thirty! We can fit that many into that big place at least!" }] "KTKTKTKTKTKTKT!" "KRRRRRRRRR!" "KRIIIIIIIIIII!" The noises that these creatures- that seemed to be made of wood but in fact had flesh and blood- were very annoying. Elio did not dislike how these creatures looked, but even he couldn''t stand the kind of noise they made when they gathered them all into one place. He did not want to kill them, but there was no need to keep them alive when he understood how all these creatures, at the end of the day, were not the same as the real creatures¡­ "Az! Now!" "Muuuuuu~!" The creatures, the hundreds of Elm creatures that resembled ants, chameleons, snakes, sloths, beasts, and all kinds of other forest animals were already affected by the red magic circle that they were standing upon right now, but that only gave them the debuff. The real damage was going to be up to Sera, Alex, and Az. -Oooooooooooooooong¡­! Just like the Dark magic circle from the dark mage''s cave, this magic circle engraved on the ground was made with costly materials as well. It was the same as the spell circle of the mages, and required a great amount of Mana to activate and maintain¨C which they had substituted with the Mana crystals. Az was in charge of activating the conductors with its Mana. It had an amazing Mana control so, while it activated the Mana circle that created a gust of wind that combined together with the heat of Elio''s spells and made a tornado of fire, Sera assisted Alex deal with the creatures that were left out from the kited group. "Skiiiiiiiiiiii¡­!" "Kytkytkytkyt!" "Hgiiiiii¡­!" Combined together, they all created a scene that would be recited by the demon bards in the taverns of the underworld. ''I still don''t like this¡­'' The tornado of fire, a monstrous, whirling vortex of flame, tore through the ranks of the horde. The Elm creatures, spawns of the Elm guardian, were engulfed in its fiery embrace, their screams covered up by the roaring inferno. The ground trembled under the impact of the strong winds generated by the combination of spells, and the heat from the tornado was so intense it seemed to warp the air itself. [{ "Hahahaha~! Look at this beauty, darling~!" }] The already humid environment of the dungeon made the winds even sharper. The way they tore through the creatures, burned them alive, killed them in a matter of moments was a sight that was, ironically, disheartening to Elio''s eyes. Alex loved it. There was an excited smile on her face as she sliced through the creatures of the dungeon, there was a unique madness that he was familiar with. She was enjoying this. So much so that he did not want to say something that would ruin this whole bright mood of hers. He knew there would be a time to discuss this matter, so he just clenched his fiest¡­ and watched the death, the massacre that was repeating itself for the twelfth time before his eyes. "Chirp!" He was at the back, resting with Miu as he looked down at the dreadful scene from the branch of a tall, colorful tree. Below, Alex''s swift, precise strikes were a blur of steel, while Sera''s light element magic danced like a pianist''s fingers, each spell a destructive spear that found its mark. Their coordinated attack was a ballet of guiltless deaths, their flowing movements a stark contrast to the chaotic frenzy of the tornado. [{ "This was fun, hehe." }] The tornado vanished soon, and along with it, the lives that had been present around them were gone as well. [{ "Can we take a break now?" }] [{ "Sure~! I''m hungry as well~!" }] "Miu!" "Muuuuuuuuu~!" Az, still humming with the residual energy of the spell, Flew back to the top of the tree branch to Elio and its friend Miu. Now that they were finished with this segment and they were going to take a break, Alex would have to climb the tree as well. The ground was still hot and charred. Elio knew that the hot environment in this already humid place wouldn''t help with the resting part at all¡­ so, this higher ground was the better option. Chapter 143 - 143: The path to walk… "So, that''s what you remember?" Elio, Alex, Az, Sera, and Miu were in the dungeon right now while Miss Rin and Misha were in the town. "They are something else¡­ I don''t really understand if I''m doing the right thing by following them anymore." The Librarian was visiting after sorting out the mess that was created after the death of the mage tower master. "Your concerns are valid." There was a lot of commotion after the tower people found out about the death of their tower master. First the Main Magic organization''s investigation team visited, the tower was in chaos, all mages were panicking if there was another Dark mage, and the rumores soon spread to the entire Moongold and there was a chaotic environment for a long time. There were people from the magic association checking up on everything in the town, and then they followed the traces of the Mage tower master, and somehow found out that he was after a certain group of individuals who had recently left the town. "Though, I would advise you to hold onto them." By the time the Librarian got back from that certain place after meeting that certain person, it was already too late. The mage tower master was dead, there was commotion in the Moongold, there was commotion in the village that they had stopped in, and since the Mages were involved, there was a general fear among the masses. The Librarian had to overwork himself, convince the mage association investigators and send them back, and then calm the chaos that they left for him to deal with. "That girl¡­ I know her personally." He was supposed to prevent anything like this from happening but the death of the mage tower master as well as the storm of aftermath that was created was a little too exhausting. "I know that much by now¡­ she seems to know a little too much, she even calls you so casually, and your attitude towards her¡­ it all has been quite peculiar to me since the start." If he had not been greedy and left the town, the mage wouldn''t have moved and this kind of mess wouldn''t have been created at all. But, things happened, and he was already done dealing with them so to vent his frustration, to apologize to Alex, and to check up on the rest of them, he was finally visiting them. "Haha, of course it might seem peculiar. But, if I say so myself, I''m the fortunate one to have any kind of connection with that person." When he got here, he found out Alex and Elio had already left for the dungeon and wouldn''t be back for a few days. S~ea??h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He had predicted this might be the case, so he had brought some stuff to pass his time in this boring place. Misha was here, though she was asleep now that it was late night, so since he was here for a few days anyway, it was better to take this time and teach her a few new things¨C useful things as well. "She''s someone that has connections with not just individuals of high rank throughout this world, she has connections with forces that we do not even know the existence of. I''m not supposed to say this, but she¡­ that person has had a supper with the gods, has committed arson with the demons, beheaded Giants, and protected this world more than once in the short time she had been here. She''s like those Legends and Heroes that we hear the stories of. But, unlike them¡­ even after being a [Pioneer], she''s dumb enough to give up on all of that just so she could be with Him." From his perspective, she was simply a dumb person. There was nothing in this world that she could not have, and yet, leaving all of that behind, she walked on a path that has a certain chance of [Demolition]. She was not chasing perfection from the start, she was not someone that walked on a certain path either, she was one of the most aloof people that he had ever met in his hundred years of life. She knew more than the Progenitors, she used to be stronger than some of the Divinities, and she was one of the few in this world that possessed something unique of her own in her prime. She could have ruled this world if she wanted to¡­ there were many more like her Among the Foreigners, but she was quite special even among them. Unlike the TWO of them, she was a simple individual despite her uniqueness. "She has had many unique connections in her life." The Librarian caressed the head of sleeping Misha as gently as caressing a newborn spirit. "And she has looked after each one of them even while risking her life. Many times." There was a unique softness in his eyes that Miss Rin had never seen before as he talked about her. And there was also a bitterness in those festastical eyes of his that only someone who had genuinely loved something, or someone, could understand. "Her character is bad, she is extremely annoying, she has a side to her that most people, most common people in this world would not like, but¡­" He sighed, with a strangely bitter smile. "I''ve met only a few individuals as reliable as her in my lifetime." Then he returned back to his stoic look as he looked back at Miss Rin. "If it''s about following them, I''d say there are some divinities who also wanted to do it but were never given that opportunity by her." She was not following her. Alex was allowing her to follow them. That was the only reason she was still alive right now, and that would be the only reason she reached a stage very few had reached while walking on a certain path. "She saw a lot of unnecessary things, I can tell that much." placing his hand above the head of Misha, the Librarian channeled some of his unique energy. "But you don''t have to worry about her and overthink your decision on following them." -Oooooooooong. A soft light materialized on his hand, and fell on Misha in the form of tiny twinkling stars. "She''s tougher than you know." The whole experience with the mage tower master''s attack was the most traumatic for Misha. She was still recovering from it, he could tell that, and yet, she was smiling even in her sleep. "She can take care of herself." She did not need her mom to look after her all the time anymore¡­ Chapter 144 - 144: Boom boom! Bam! "Miu~." "Muuuu!" The forest was burning. -Ooooooooooong~! -Booom! Well, the dungeon was burning. "Miu!" "Muuuuuu~!" Elio was busy casting all the spells to maintain the momentum that they had picked up with much difficulty after the break they took last time, so he did not have time to pay attention to his surroundings. Alex and Sera were busy dealing with the creatures of this unique dungeon. Alex was moving left and right, slashing her sword in all directions, using some unique techniques to deal higher damage to the enemies. She was wielding a blazing sword enchanted with special magic. The damage that she was dealing to the creatures that did not fall to their Exp farming trap was significantly higher even without the magic field''s effect. The AOE spell had its limitations and casting it multiple times was not effective. Additionally, the creatures of the dungeon were not dumb creatures that would fall for their simple tactics. Hit and kite was not going to work for long so, they wanted to maximize whatever Exp they were getting through this method. "Muuuuuuu~!" "Miu! Miu miu!" Sera did not have her complete powers yet since she was still a low leveled servant. She could not use her skills as effectively as she wanted to, but still, the skills that she had were highly effective against a bunch of mobs like these. -Booom! "Miu~!" "Muuuu! Mu! Muuu! Muuuuuuu!" "Miu~!" -Booooooooooom! She had {Mana Senses} like Elio and her Mana sensitivity was higher when it came to perception. Unlike Miu who could only perceive things in its immediate vicinity, or Az who used emotions and elements in its surroundings to get an idea of its surroundings, Sera could see and perceive most of the things much more effectively than the rest of her party members. With her {Magic comprehension} skill, she could understand spells that Alex taught her and though not as well as Elio, she could cast the most basic spells of Light element. "Muuu?" "Miu?" "Ktktktkt¡­?" "Muuuu." "Miu~!" "Muuuu~!" S§×ar?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. -Ooooooooooooong! An ant creature was trying to sneak away from the area, but the Slime-gecko duo who were enjoying this arson happily sent it back to nature''s embrace. They were so nice they even thought about a pitiful creature that did not have any of its friends left in this world. Their joy as they played around on the ground by themselves was quite something, but they even went out of their way to look after the creatures of this dungeon. "Miu~!" -Booooooom! "Muuu~!" Such a precious pair they were~. "Sera!" "Chirp~!" There were explosions going on all the sides since after the flame tornado tectic, they were testing out new things that could be more effective. They did not know just how well various things would work in this unfamiliar environment so, while Alex was conducting her research, Elio was focused on filming the entire climactic scenery that was present before them. Thanks to Sera''s {Energy Infusion} skill, she was able to supply Alex with necessary energy¨C something that was only possible since Alex also possessed the same skill. It allowed the transfer and infusion of one''s body energy into an object, but thanks to this skill, Sera was able to share her innate energy with Alex, something that Sera did not lack thanks to her unique energy body. She was pretty much made up of energy that constantly renewed and circulated with the surrounding energies, so she had a large pool of energy inside her. -Booooooooooom! "Miu~!" "Muuuuu!" "Miu!" "Muuuuu!" "Miu! Miu!" -Boooooooooooooom! -Boom! -Bam! "Miu¡­?!" "Muuuu! Muu?!" "Miu!" "Muuuu~!" "Miu~!!" While {Light of Grace} enhanced a single individual''s stats at the moment, it was a very powerful skill. It was used by individuals like saintesses or those who were close to the light element. Using that skill, Alex set traps all around the field, and then with one of Sera''s most powerful skills, the {Elemental Attack}, they detonated these traps and explosions¨C fireworks, appeared all around the place. -Boooooom! "Miu! Miu miu miu! Miu!!!" "Muuu¡­" "Miu! Miu!" "Muu. Muuu-." -Booooooooooom! "Muuuuu¡­?! Muu!! Muuu!" "Miu¡­ hmph." The Slime and the gecko were just looking at these fireworks from the ground, watching the explosions from the fire, watching pretty green blood of the Elm creatures splashing all over the place, Looking at all the things with excitement and telling one another what they liked, discussing how they liked something more and how something was not to their liking. "Muuu!" "Miu¡­" "Muuuu!!!" Miu was upset after Az did not agree with how the dark green explosions were prettier, and instead of taking the hint, she admired the hotter explosions more. It was quite adorable how the two of them were arguing over elements of this battle that they perceived in their own unique manner. Az could not sense the elements of exploding Mana like Miu can and Miu cannot tell apart the dreadful screams of the creature burning in that fire. "Muuu¡­" "Miu?" "Muuuuu." "Miu! Miu!" They were just enjoying this whole battle in their own way. And, though Elio was not paying attention to these two little ones, he had made sure one of the angles of his recordings is always tracking the two of them. They were just too precious to ignore even in this difficult situation. He was thinking of making a video dedicated to the two of them. "Muuuu~." "Miu? Miu~!" -Booooooooom! "Muuuu~!" "Miu~!" "Muuu!" "Miu~!!" He knew Olive was going to love that video. He had to put in a little more effort especially with the parts where Miu shows expressions. They were precious footages. Perhaps there was some NFT market for it as well. [{ "It''s almost done¡­ hang in there, darling." }] [{ "Haaa¡­ I''m tired." }] Continuously casting spells, activating magic items, using Mana, and keeping track of each of the recording screens in each of the angles was a tedious task. This was perhaps the first time he understood just what sort of difficulty a streamer would face in this game. [{ Master, you can rest if you want. }] [{ "I''m fine Sera." }] They were finished with the mobs anyway. The real challenge was going to start after this¡­ Chapter 145 - 145: Recovery herb "Haaa¡­" Day, night, time, or flow of any natural element was almost restricted in this environment. There was no ceiling here so there was no sky. They had been here for two days already and all this time, they had been killing the mobs that they either kited or hunted in their own colonies. They destroyed the entirety of the large habitats of some of the creatures, Alex took the lead and spearheaded the road to higher levels for all of them. There were times they did not even have to expand their own energy. Just inciting some conflict led to internal complications resulting in the death of various large monster groups. "I want to go home¡­" "We don''t have a home, mister Elio. Though, there are some places that are like a house for me. Wanna go there when we get the chance?" "You used to live there? Haven''t you only traveled all your time here?" She was not the kind to stay in a certain place for too long. She just liked travelling and going to the new places and doing various things with various kinds of people that she met during her travels that would make her little time with them worths something. She was pretty social person so whoever she might be with, she would mix in with them and sometimes, even help them in various manner. "Yeah¡­ well, they aren''t a home. I''ve never had one either¡­ but, you know what? I''ve always wanted to make one." "A home?" "Yeah¡­" "Really? Can you stay in that home for more than a few days or weeks though? You know it wouldn''t be a proper house if you are away from it for two thirds of a year." They were camping at the moment since it was night time¡­ the environment inside the dungeon was still bright with all those natural lights still, but they knew it was night right now according to the system clock. So, since they were done with their initial massacre, they were going to start with the bigger fish of this dungeon, one that had a better chance to drop a spirit essence of skills. "Ummm¡­ well, I never said I wanted to live in a home. We already have that outside. I just wanted one here as well so that we can at least have a place to return to from the longer travels that we will do." He already knew how there were some certain things that Alex was searching for and how they all were scattered all throughout this world. It wasn''t going to be possible to collect all of them anytime soon, they would at least need a few years to gather all of them. "Hmmm¡­ that doesn''t sound too bad, you know?" "Right~?" They were going to the great Jungle of Nozama, and it would take at least a month to explore and get to the heart of that place even with the help of the locals that live in the deeper area of the forest. They would need to achieve Level-100 before they can go to that dangerous forest though, so they still needed to level up a little more. "Haha, it''s a fun idea." "I own a lot of land and houses in a lot of places, you know? We can make it anywhere we want to so let''s find the perfect place in this world together~." "Sure. I''d love that." They were eating some well cooked meat since there wasn''t anything else that they could eat in this dungeon. They were saving the other good food that they brought from the outside for later. They had worked hard until now¡­ Elio did not like how they had to kill all of those creatures, but things were beyond saving now. He was soothing his conscience by saying he did not kill any of them by his own hands, but he knew how he was the reason for their death as well. "Soup?" "Yes please." "Miu~!" "Muuuuu!" "You two don''t even eat soup, hahaha." They wanted some as well, cute babies. "How about you two have your own food. Do you not like it?" "Miu!" "Muuuu!" "Then?" They were Mana beasts so they couldn''t eat anyway. Were they going to try having some and ultimately end up evolving again? It would be fun if that happens¡­ but they weren''t after the soup this time. "They want the Mana recovery herbs I mixed in the soup, haha." As creatures of nature sensitive to Mana, they sensed the herbs that Alex had mixed into Elio''s soup portion. He did not notice it until now, but that herb was something he needed the most right now. He had ended up pushing himself too far. So much so that Mana recovery potions weren''t working for him anymore. They would start working again after the current potion''s effects die down. But until then, he needed something more powerful to replenish his Mana reserve. And that precious herb would have been the best for it¡­ S§×arch* The N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Here, you two can have it." "Miu? Miu~!" "Muuuuu~!" Still, even though he knew what it was, he placed the five leaf clover before the two little ones. This was no simple plant but something that was mythologically connected with the demons and angels. Finding it was like finding a needle in a haystack even in a dungeon like this one. It was easy to miss and difficult to notice due to its little Mana volume. It wasn''t anything too special, but it was still something that would have helped him immensely had he not given it to the two little creatures with a bright smile. "Olive is gonna love these." "Haaa¡­ of course you did it to click photos. And here I thought you fell in love with these two." "I fell for their cuteness a long time ago, dear Miss Twinkle. Just look at them." They were fighting for the cover. And, one of the leaves was detached from the main stem in their little fight. It was a symbol of demons before but now the clover was a sign of good luck. And, Elio liked this even more. "She loved four leaf clovers." "Yup. I see the pendant you made for her when you were little on her all the time." He was happy right now so, even though she did not like this, she did not want to ruin the mood for him. He was dealing with a lot of things already¡­ she can at least do him a favor by not being a bitch this time. Chapter 146 - 146: Ents Ents, the fictional, sentient tree-like creatures of the Middle-earth universe. "Depicted as the ancient beings¨C guides of the forest, they are one of the most famous mythical creatures." Slow-moving and conscious by nature, they possess a deep connection to nature. In many of the stories, they are guardians of the forests and possess wisdom that comes from centuries of life. "But the Ents of are divided into three main categories, much like many dungeon creatures that we would see." From their perch high in the canopy, Alex and Elio gazed down upon the monstrous creature that had nestled in the depths of this unique dungeon. Its lumpy, twisted limbs resembled the roots of a banyan tree, and its skin was a sickly green, covered in moss and lichen. It had four glowing eyes of an unnatural red, and its teeth were sharp, jagged, like the claws of a wild animal. "This one falls into the first category: the ugly boogies." S~ea??h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Elio''s heart pounded in his chest as he took in the creature''s hideous form. It was so hideous that it was unnaturally beautiful. "They are ugly, and as much as they look unique from the other kind of creatures in a dungeon, they are strong." He had never seen anything like it before, and he couldn''t help but feel a sense of excitement wash over him. This was the perfect kind of model that any wildlife photographer would want to come across. There were not many chances for one to witness a creature as hideous and freaky as this one in its most natural habitat. "This one''s a child, an ungrown Ent that wouldn''t mature into an adult Ent, the main kind of high ranking creatures that even the rankers fear." She knew how he wanted to leave this one and just watch it. If it were up to him, he would just leave all the hunting and stuff to the side and just watch this creature, this otherworldly creature doing its normal things. "A True Ent is not something even rankers can kill since they aren''t meant to be killed in this world¨C they are the same as dragons anyway so killing one is a faraway wish. And unlike those dumb lizards, they have heads and know how to converse with someone." Elio knew she was here to kill this amazing bastard and he knew there was nothing he would be able to do to stop her this time, and yet he seemed to be fascinated by the creature. He stared at it intently, his eyes wide with wonder. It really was horribly ugly. It was breathtaking just looking at it. "Gumoooooo." The creature let out a low growl, and Alexandra and Elio exchanged an excited glance. One wanted to kill this ugly creature while the other wanted to study it, see all the aspects of it and if possible even go ahead and try taming it. He had never wanted to consciously, but he really was interested in this ugly af creature. He couldn''t help wanting to check every inch of it, take samples, and perform a few fun experiments on it. "Will you stop me?" The two of them had left Az and Miu in Sera''s care since they were going to take care of this one by themselves. They were (Level-60) now so they also wanted to test out just how much stronger they had become by fighting against this (Level-81) elite. "Is it true that there are ten times freakier things out there?" He was mesmerized by the ugliness of that creature. It was so disgusting that he even had to question those ugly things he had seen in some of his client''s videos. "There are. The babies in this dungeon are pretty much nothing compared to the big daddies out there, hehe. And, I know this ugly piece of work that you''ll find many times more photogenic than this one. He''s ironically a good family guy as well." She was obviously talking about some kind of a demonic being or something like that if she was praising them so highly. "I will be in the back." He did not like it that they were killing creatures in this dungeon, but¡­ apparently these creatures were born from the spirits of the forest animals that fell into this dungeon. "I''m going to do all the work anyway, haha." He did not like killing them, he did not want to kill this amazing piece of ugliness either. But he didn''t want to ruin the fun for her. "Alright then~!" "Where should we start?" There were more creatures like this one in the dungeon and they weren''t going to kill all of them. It has been late since they entered the dungeon anyway so they were going to finish a few of them, check out the actual Elm Guardian, and then get out of there through the teleportation point. "What do you mean where?" -Swish. She used {Blink} and vanished from the place. [{ "It begins now!" }] It was a big creature. Much stronger than the two of them combined. It had strong magic resistance, it was hard with its strong tree-traits, and it was going to be difficult to use the same kind of tactics against this one that they had used against the other mobs. This one was not a mob, it was an area guardian that commanded those mobs. It was much more intelligent so it was going to be difficult to deal with anyway, but with its whip-like limbs that it had in hundreds, Elio had no idea how she was going to deal with this one by herself. [{ "Wind boost!" }] [{ "Yes, ma''am!" }] She had jumped down from the tree top and using {Blink} she reached the ground area and fell into the detection range of the creature. Ents were creatures close to nature, so they had the power to control all natural elements around them. It was said that some of them could command spirits as well, but this one was obviously not one of them. -Ooooooooooooooooooong! It was one of the weaker ones, so it was going to be much easier to deal with this one for them¡­ perhaps. Chapter 147 - 147: While the battle goes on. -Oooooooooooong! A restriction spell of fire attribute made by the blazing fire that she had created using her fire enchanted sword. It was made with the existing flames with the help of the special spells that Alex created. There was something unique about her spells¡­ They even worked on creatures the size of a dump pile. "Gumooooooooo!" With its hundreds of tentacle-like arms, the creature was after a little human that was trying to do something funny in his territory. "Gumoooooooo!" Elio was on a higher ground, there was no one here beside them, not creatures, not Az and group, and not even bugs. They were here alone, so¡­ Alex was taking this precious moment to relive her frustration. -Swish! Swish! Swish! She moved like a butterfly and plunged her flaming sword into the Ent''s trunk like a bee. She was faster now, much faster than she was when they first entered this dungeon. The leveling up was much more important to her since with each level that she recovered, she would recover more than just the powers that normal players acquire. She would get stronger at certain level junctions, and though it might not get reflected in her stats, she could use the techniques that previously could not. Especially after crossing (Level-50), she had regained a certain power. -Swish! The power of those who walked on the path of weapons, those who followed their heart and aimed to unite with the weapons that they held. A power that was not limited just to the knights, the symbol of chivalry. A power not limited to those who had earned the right to follow the path of honor, or adventure, or willingly face turbulent trials. [{ "It''s gorgeous however many times I see it, Alex." }] [{ "Hey! Stop with that flattering and focus! I will die if I get hit by those whips!" }] Aura. The power born from one''s deepest consciousness, the second most prominent natural energy of this world. "Gumoooooooooo¡­!" It wasn''t a simple power like Mana that one could use just because they had unlocked their Mana circuit. Unlike any other kind of special energy in this world, Aura was the symbol of acknowledgement. Being a knight did not mean one got to use Aura. Things did not work like that. Practice, devotion, understanding of the weapon, Talent, dedication and faith to one''s goals. Ambitions. That was the main factor that resulted in acknowledgement. -Swish! Swish! Swish! She had worked very hard to achieve this power in the past. She did not awaken her Aura until she had passed (Level-100), which was weird since her mastery over her weapon was much higher than even the knights of the empire. She had defeated many of them in an official fight without using Aura, sometimes even being mistaken as someone who did not respect the knight''s honors. [{ "So¡­" }] [{ "No talking! Elio! Focus!" }] Holding the flaming sword in her hand, attacking the already debuffed target, she was doing her best to avoid the branches that were coming at her from all around the place. They were after her, following her each movement¨C even the ones that were followed by her {Blink}. [{ "I''m going to die!" }] [{ "I won''t let you though. Why worry so much-." }] S§×arch* The Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [{ "Just shut the hell up then!" }] She wanted him to shut up and keep the buffs coming. That was all she needed from him right now. There was a blazing white flame with a hint of red and blue on her sword. It was a pale flame, which one would recognize as the power of {Aura}. But unlike the {Aura} that Elio had seen until now, during the battle with the Dark mage, and the Aura in the knight''s associations, this Aura was different. There was a certain emptiness to it. Something that made it seem like it was just a shell of the [World] that this Aura was originating from. -Oooooooooooong! By nature, Aura was a destructive power and it most certainly helped her at the moment with the main thing they were doing at the moment. Killing this creature was the goal, and, if it wasn''t for this empty Aura of hers, she wouldn''t have been able to deal even the little damage that she was dealing at the moment. Her attacks were effective only because she was dealing them with a combination of her Aura and Sword''s enchanted fire. There were obviously the effects of her equipment as well, and Elio was there, of course. He was fucking around with the spells and her distracting her to make fun of her, to torture her for making him do this, but¡­ she knew he wasn''t going to let her die by the tentacles of this Ent. [{ "I''m going for double casting." }] [{ "Hmmm? What?" }] [{ "Casting spells with both hands. Get ready." }] Mixing a Restriction spell and adding in a new Physical spell that he had not tried yet. It might not be effective, but it would render the Ent powerless in case it works as he wanted it to be. [{ "Are you fucking crazy?! You just started learning Spell fusion! What do you think you are to try and fuse two already fused spells?! Some kind of main character with plot armor?!" }] She barely avoided that one attack, used {Blink} once again, and got out of the Ent''s perception range by climbing a shorter tree. [{ "Ughhh! Just do what we planned! We can try experiments later!" }] They needed to finish up with this one so that they could move on to the next target¡­ but that would not be possible if they died just because he wanted to punish her and HAVE FUN! [{ "Too late, Miss." }] He used a bottle of Mana recovery spell, went inside his Mind House, picked out the spell book from his shelf, and opened the page with the broken Restriction spells. -Oooooooooooong! Then he turned the pages and brought out the Physical series spell. -Ooooooooooong¡­! Calling out two powerful spells was a difficult task, but he did it, even though his head almost exploded while doing so. "Ugh!" He had experienced many worse painful experiences in his time here anyway, so he just ignored both of them, and opened his eyes to look at the two spells in his hands. This, the casting of two separate spells at once even with the help of a unique casting technique, would be called multi casting- or Double casting in this case. [{ "Here I go then." }] [{ "Dumbass¡­" }] There was an Ent jerking its limbs around searching for the target that had just hand in its graph and there he was, trying something stupid again that was obviously not going to work! -Booooooooooooom! But, well, just letting him experience this was much better than cursing at him. Chapter 148 - 148: Total dungeon progress "Haaa¡­ three Ents, Elio. THREE FUCKING ENTS!" That''s all that he could endure before he genuinely started getting in her way. "And that too after you fucked up with that first Ent!" He couldn''t combine two of his fused spells during their fight with the first Ent either. He just went ahead, blew the best strategic point up and was critically injured. "You still finished it off though, so it''s-." "YOU ARE UNBELIEVABLE!" If it wasn''t for Sera, Az and Miu who were nearby, she wouldn''t have been able to defeat that first Ent either. "You never wanted me to kill them! That''s why you did it!" "Of course I didn''t want to kill them. Just look at those ugly things, haha. How can we kill them?" Defeating the first one was not easy but from the second one, she didn''t take the risk and included Miu and others into the fights as well. Elio assisted her and the rest of them but he was still not being as helpful as he could have been had he been taking things seriously. At one point, she got so frustrated she had to scold him and ask him to do proper work, and he did it. He helped them so well they were able to take down their third Ent in only an hour. But then, when they reached the fourth Ent, he couldn''t just continue helping her anymore and asked her if they could stop. They had made significant progress in that dungeon and there was nothing left here that they could destroy either since they had reached the 55% destruction limit. Going any further might complicate things, but according to her calculations, killing two more Ents wouldn''t cause any problem¡­ but he did not want to do it, so he did everything he could to stop her from even attempting to take on that creature by herself. "I knew it! I fucking knew it! You bastard!" S~ea??h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. They were resting at another tree top now, since it was time for them to go out of this dungeon. They had achieved their goals for coming here, they even obtained a Skill essence from one of the Ents. "We could have finished Level-65 with this!" "But we don''t have to rush things, Alex. We will get the dungeon clearing reward as well, you know? We might get enough Exp to complete the level." They were (Level-42) and (Level-39) when they came here so after killing those thousands of creatures, this kind of outcome was pretty good. "But that would be an extra Exp addition, Elio! Why act like this when you know how much we will need the levels when we reach the city and meet the Viscount?! Do you have any idea how the high society of this world works?!" They were almost done with everything they wanted to do in this Town. Alex got her item from the Archer hall master, Miss Rin had some idea what kind of path she wanted to walk on, Misha was now aware of the kind of dangers that they were going to face going forward, and Az was confirmed to have Elementalism affinity. Elio was now able to cast new kinds of spells, Sera and Miu had leveled up so their powers had strengthened as well, and lastly, the Two of them were of a higher level now. "You know most of my clients were affiliated with the high nobility of this game, right?" He might not know about high society, the customs of this world, the things that they do, and the kind of etiquette various places follow, but he knew how all these things work. "Besides, if we are talking about knowing about the high society and the people of authority, you know I know about that kind of stuff pretty well." His family might not be some conglomerate or something like that, but his grandfather had built something valuable that his father was maintaining much better than his father. His mom had been a normal Lady, but she was talented¡­ so much so that at one point in time, everyone interested in the Archery sport knew about her. She was an amazing person in his eyes, but unlike his family members, he wasn''t interested in growing what was going to belong to him someday in the future. He wanted something of his own. He wanted his freedom and he did not want to rely on the two of them¡­ That''s why he started by himself. Worked, and worked, and worked until he achieved all that would make his life stable even in the future. He had a capable elder sister to look after their family business, so he had no pressure from their side either. They just wanted to see him being happy, and be with the person that he wanted to. "Hmph." Even Alex couldn''t deny the fact that he was familiar with high society and the general things that go on in most of them at the very least. "Anyway!" At the moment, she was angry about how he didn''t help her with the fourth Ent, how he asked Sera, Az, and Miu to not help her either, and how he had that annoying smile on his face. She did not like it¡­ "We could have obtained some more Exp! Why couldn''t you just help out WITHOUT experimenting with stupid things?! I mean, it''s just an ugly Ent!" "No, Alex." That''s where she was wrong. "It''s The ugliest monster I''ve seen until now. That''s why I want to keep looking at that ugly thing." The thought ''How can something be so ugly?'' was constantly revolving in his head. He was thinking why it looked the way it did, why they perceived it as ''ugliness'' and he even thought about the very concept of ugliness, correlating things that were just too far apart. "You¡­" She looked at him with an annoyed expression. "You fucking piece of shit¡­" and then she cursed at him while slapping his face. "You''re enjoying this¡­ how dare you enjoy my misery you asshole! Is this all a joke to you?!" She takes things too personally and seriously sometimes. "Of course not. How can I take an amazing Game like this as a joke?" After playing this game for so long, the lines between reality and this unique world had blurred for her. She practically lives here nowadays¡­ and, it wasn''t that good a thing sometimes. "And how dare you hit me?" He bit her hand since slapping her pretty cheeks in this setting would be inappropriate. He did not want to start anything on a tree in a damn dungeon like this one¡­ she wouldn''t mind, he knew those wild fantasies of hers, but not yet. "Hey!!!" She was so invested in this world that she was becoming detached with the real world. "Oy¡­ no. Hey! I''ll fall! Alex!" He had only realized her unhealthy attachment to this world recently, and it wasn''t that good a thing for the life that they had in reality. He did not want a special life just in this special world. "You brought this upon yourself!" He loved her too much to limit their bond just to one world¡­ Chapter 149 - 149: Clearing difficulty "It is not advised to clear this dungeon." The Elmguardian Spawn, the sub-boss of the dungeon stands at the periphery, its massive form strolling around like an elephant in a park. Its body was covered in rough, weathered bark, and its face was a distorted mask that induced instinctive horror. Its eyes glow with an otherworldly light in this unique world of infinite possibilities and freedom, and its branches reach out like claws of a tiger. It looked dangerous, it was ugly, it was powerful and it was not even the final boss of this dungeon. "Hmm?" "Miu?" "Muuu?" The Elmguardian spawn¨C a horrible sight. It existed at the very edge of the dungeon and looked much uglier than any other creature the two of them had seen in this dungeon until now. Even the Ents were prettier than this one. "The Sub bosses regenerate every couple months and whenever they are born, the dungeon goes berserk, spewing out the creatures that are present in this dungeon at that time. The Elmguardian, this very tree that we are under, is a living entity on its own, but unlike other monsters, it is not something that can move or do anything to anyone. It actually is just a tree. And this entire dungeon, this entire unique world exists inside of it." The creatures were the fruits born from the flower that grew inside the Elmguardian, the Ents were a natural phenomenon that appeared due to the compatible environment and nature''s interference, and these Spawn were the direct creation of this special guardian. And yet, as the experienced people could tell, this unfathomably ugly creature of (Level-102) was not the final target of this dungeon. "No one has seen the real boss of the dungeon until now¡­" The cores of a dungeon that gave it the position of a dungeon, the main bosses that indicated towards the final destination of a dungeon run. The Boss monsters were mostly the strongest or the most special people in their respective dungeons. They were strong and they had their powerful skills, as well as unique abilities that gave them the authority positions. The boss of this dungeon had guarded this Nest for decades, perhaps centuries, and it had done so without ever being caught by even the best experts. "They did try however hard they could, the old man tried finding the boss for three years before he gave up and decided to leave the town to find the answer to his [Question]." The Elmguardian nest''s boss must not be a mindless beast. From how much they had found out about it, it must be a sentient being, and it should be able to communicate with the elements of this dungeon for it to have been hidden all this time. "The rest of them who came here all searched for it as well, but no one found it, and later, since the dungeon''s functionality and use was discovered, it was established that they should not clear this dungeon even if they have the chance." They were at the end of their dungeon run, facing the platform that would take them outside of this dungeon. It was a hill like high ground so they could see the grand ugly creature roaming around the place with somewhat of a joyful expression. Elio could tell there was something unique about this uglier creature, there was something so unique that even though he did not like how this one looked, he did not want to kill it. "I wanted to go around and try finding that one, but, doesn''t seem like it would be possible." Thanks to Elio''s initial help, they were able to deal with the mobs much faster than they had anticipated. But still, three days have passed since they entered this dungeon and now that they had finally achieved Their goal, they were going to say their goodbye to this pretty place. "We will be back, alright? Don''t stress about it. That boss monster isn''t going anywhere anyway." If knights like them could not find it, chances were slim that anyone else would be able to find it unless they were rankers with developed search skills. "Hmmm¡­" She had awakened her Aura power but she was still not too strong. And she did not have any special search skills so they might not be able to find anything anyway. Sear?h the N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Well, let''s go. I don''t wanna fight anymore anyway." She knew he liked the sub-boss monster as well and that he wouldn''t let her fight it, much less fight against it with her. He wanted to see the dungeon boss like the rest of them as well, but that would only be possible if they are able to find that creature in this big dungeon. "As you wish, Miss Alex." "Miu~!" "Muuuuuu!" The slime-gecko were happy even though they were going back. The fun that they had here, the kind of things that they saw and the cool things that they met here were all a precious experience to both of them. Az sympathized with the creature even though it killed them and asked for their forgiveness as it demolished them. Miu on the other hand, wasn''t aware of most of the things that had happened around them. Killings of creatures was a natural thing so it didn''t think much about it, but the fireworks, the blasts, the tornadoes of fire, and the destruction that disturbed the environmental Mana was all something that had made a comfortable place in this little gecko''s little head. "Miu~!" Not all of it was fun for the Two of them but they had quite a unique time in this dungeon with the Elm creatures and the Ents. "Ugh¡­ let''s just go." She was frustrated already, she did not want to say something that would lead to a fight in this place. There was a simple plain platform before them that they didn''t take long to find thanks to the Hall master''s instructions. They just had to step onto it to get out of here. And, after what Elio did, she did not have any motivation to stay back here¡­ Chapter 150 - 150: Back to the town [Ding!] [You have cleared the dungeon quest.] [Exp will be rewarded according to evaluated actions¡­] They came out through the teleportation point and not long after, their dungeon run was concluded. [Ding!] [The Reward Exp calculation has been concluded.] "Hmmm¡­ let''s see." [Ding!] [Level up!] [(Level-63) > (Level-66).] Both Elio and Alex were now (Level-66) even though she was a level higher than him. Sera was also (Level-46) now and since the levels were quite different for Miu and Az as they were creatures, they were on (Level-15) and (Level-18) respectively. They did not gain Exp for the same things as Sera or the two of them, but just like the gained levels, the kind of powers that both of them obtain at each new level were also different. They did not have any need to distribute their stat points like the rest of them, it was a natural process that happened as they leveled up. "See. I told you it would be alright." "Hmph. doesn''t change the fact that you''re a jerk." Looking back, there was only one thing that they needed from this dungeon run and it was Levels. "Haha. We leveled up more than twenty times in just four days, Alex. Isn''t that amazing~?" The Exp requirement for each level was incomparable to the previous one. sea??h th§× ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And with the increasing levels, this Exp requirement increased exponentially. "Hmph. It''s all thanks to my spells. If it weren''t for my genius, you would still be a (Level-20) dimwit." He did not want to kill anything and it was a noble wish. But, he has to understand that if he doesn''t kill things, he would not be able to attain the kind of power he would need to protect the things precious to him. "Oy, I''m no dimwit, alright?" They were outside now, so they were standing under the giant tree. Miu and Az had already run off to somewhere with Sera following behind them¡­ "If it wasn''t for me, who would have cast those spells?" "I''d do it myself!" "Can you even cast spells?" "Do you think I have that mage association ID for nothing?" Well¡­ she was a genius and that much was a fact that he could never deny. He knew she was smart and just from the spells that she created, the spells that helped them demolish almost half of that dungeon''s population, he knew just how amazing of a mage she would have been if she was able to use Mana. "...well, you can''t cast any spells at least for now, right?" He would believe it if she was saying she was capable of casting spells without having access to Mana. Spells weren''t a power limited to only the Mana users. No rule in this world restricted the use of magic to only those who were somehow connected with the mage field. "Even if I can''t cast any spells, I can still kill those small things! I''d just take a little longer, alright?!" He had a faint idea about the kind of resources she possessed. So, he knew if she wanted, she could just destroy this entire Elmguardian and the dungeon that it has within it with just a single spell scroll of high level. But, she was too conscious about the kind of resources that she has. She wouldn''t do something that would put a hole in her wallet, especially when it comes to things that she could very well do on impulse. "Yeah, I know you can destroy half of this world if you want." grabbing her hand and pulling her closer, he kissed her gently, shutting her down and turning her anger into surprise. "But, you''re too soft to do something like that to the world you love so much." He might not know the extent of the powers that she used to have, but he still knew how the players like her, those who had started before anyone else and were one of the [Pinnacle holders] very well possessed the kind of players most other players wouldn''t even dream of possessing. They had worked tirelessly for that kind of power, that kind of authority in this world. And he knew what kind of challenges he would face if he wanted to reach that level. "You¡­ you¡­ you''re a bastard, Elio!" A blush broke out on her face and she started punching his shoulders. "You''re adorable now, hahaha." If the level difference between them was still as great as it was when he came to Moongold, his arm bone would have broken already. But now that both of them were stronger and there wasn''t that great of a stat difference between them, it did not even hurt that much. "Ugh! I''m done with this shit!" -Swish! She stomped, took a look at the great tree behind them one last time and walked away from him using {Blink}. She didn''t want to get caught by him once again so she wasn''t even giving him a chance anymore. -Swiiiiish! "You''re not getting away from me that easily, Miss." Sadly for her though, she was the one who handed him the Ent''s {Physical acceleration} skill, saying he would need it more than her. Coupled with his enhancement spells, he was able to match up with the distance that she was able to cover using her unique movement skill. "I shouldn''t have given that to you!" "Don''t cry over spilled milk now, haha~." He was in a good mood after looking at that ugly face of the Ent. He knew how gross that sounded but it was pretty true. Looking at that ugly mug reminded him how he had a pretty girlfriend that was prettier than most women he had seen in this world. -Swish! "Get away from me!" -Swiiiiiiish! "Why would I~?" He liked this, actually. Chasing after her like this, through this Fall struck a forest area, through these yellow leaves¡­ Even Miu and Az that they passed on their way were excited to see this fun game. "Miu~!" "Muuuuuu~!" Sera was flying right behind them, with a happy smile on her bird face. She was enjoying this chase game as much as him¡­ Chapter 151 - 151: A unique sight The way back wasn''t long for them. Unlike the time it took for them to go all the way to the dungeon''s location, they just had to use a (Return scroll) to get back to Yuta. It was one of the most used consumables for players as well as the natives. Not only was it the cheapest kind of teleportation spell, it was a consumable that even many mages of (tier-4) and above could produce without the limitations of the elemental affinities. "Take out my cuties." "Don''t tell me, Miss girlfriend. I know what I have to do." They were back safely in the main plaza of the town, and since they were back, they moved ahead and started walking towards their inn. Though, there was one thing they needed to do before they went back. -Ooooooooong! "...miu?" "Muuuu¡­?" "Hey guys." Elio could not take Az and Miu back with them when they were using the return scrolls. It was a method that was better used by the individuals and not the creatures since there was a strong mental shock involved in the process. "Was it uncomfortable? Do you remember what happened when you went in?" "Miu?" "Muuu?" It wasn''t recommended for one to let their tamed beasts use a return scroll. Tamers especially were advised to get a unique storage device for the tamed beasts that cost more than ten gold coins¡­ too costly. It wasn''t easy to be a simple beast tamer in this world especially when you have unique creatures sensitive to Mana fluctuations like Az and Miu. "You don''t remember what happened after you went in?" "It''s similar to time stopping for them when they go in that unique space, dummy. Don''t you even know how your own skill works?" Alex knew if they used a return scroll, something bad might happen to them that they did not want to see right now. Thus, she urged Elio to get that unique skill {Tamer''s subspace} from the collection menu. "How would I know when it''s not even been an hour since I got this skill. I haven''t even read the description of the skill yet." "Ptfff¡­ dumb Elio." One of the most common skills that renowned tames that had their names famous in their towns and cities had was the unique subspace where they could place their tamed beast into. Different from item storage skills or the {Inventory} that players innately have, this unique subspace was a pocket dimension that made the tamer''s life easier. "Miu~!" "Muuuu~!" As soon as the tamed beasts go inside of the subspace of the tamer, time would almost stop for them and they would only remember the moment of going in that space when they come out. It wasn''t the best kind of experience, Elio knew that after using it just this one time, so he had decided not to use it unless they had to move with the return scrolls and such. "Anyway¡­" Elio now had three skills including his skill that allowed him to perceive Mana in the surroundings in a better manner. He was also the same level as Alex so now she couldn''t bully him like she had done until now. Additionally, since he also knew how to cast spells in a unique manner now, the chances that he would have to unnecessarily submit to her desires were going to decrease as well. "Do you feel anything, Alex?" "Hmm? What does that-..." They were going back to their inn but, right when they reached their inn, Elio sensed something strange, and right after they walked a few steps closer, Alex also sensed something strange¡­ something that she was familiar with. "Misha?" It wasn''t anything threatening. It was faint, but she could tell this was the energy of an Ichorborn that they could only use when they have gained a certain level of control on their power. -Swish! She used {Blink} once again and vanished from the place. She was going inside the inn from where this strange energy was coming from, and Elio also ran behind her. There was no way Misha was using that energy so he found this strange as well. "Miu~!" "Muuuuu!" He was worried, but the little creatures that he was running with were excited after they somehow perceived this unique energy. He did not know why the two were doing it, but there was no time to think about these things either, He just ran straight to her room and went inside the open door. "Misha!" "Hmmm?" But the scene that he found here, in this room, was not what either of them were expecting. "What are you doing here, Conny?" The Librarian was here, Miss Rin was nowhere to be seen, and Misha was on the ground, in a meditating position, with a unique golden energy covering her. "You shouldn''t just barge into someone else''s room, you two." He knew the two approaching were these two and that was the only reason he had opened this door for them, or else if the one coming was someone else, that door wouldn''t ever have opened up. "What¡­ what are you doing here? And what''s Misha doing?" As both of them could see, she was covered in a transparent barrier as she tried focusing with her eyes closed. S§×arch* The N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "You wanted me to teach her a thing or two, right? I''m doing exactly that¡­ or at least, I tried to do it." The Librarian was sitting on the bed while Misha was on the floor without knowing how they were back. "I wanted to take things slowly, teach her only the basics of energy control and cultivation as I wait for you to come back¡­ but she ended up mastering both the basics of energy cultivation as well as energy manipulation in just three days." There was an almost helpless expression on his smiling face. He was telling them what was going on, but he knew as well as them that whatever he was saying wouldn''t really make any sense to either of them¡­ "She''s much more talented than we had anticipated." He could see just how much potential one possessed and Misha''s potential was always good. But, it was nowhere near the two of these people, or that slime, or that gecko, or even Sera. He always believed she could have a good and normal life if she wanted, but now that he knew what kind of monstrous talent she had, he knew what kind of trouble the two of them were going to be in when handling her. "Perhaps¡­ she''s a genius." Coming from him directly, they knew this was no exaggeration. But, then again¡­ both of them could tell this was not something they had to worry about. It was not a simple matter, but he was the Librarian. He should already know what they are going to do about this matter¡­ Chapter 152 - 152: His mess "So, you mean you will keep teaching her from now on?" "Of course not. I have to go back to my library. I''m late anyway." He told them how they needed to keep teaching her about her powers from now on, and how she needed to learn more about herself to realize how she could do many cool things. There was a possibility that she might awaken her powers with some more knowledge about herself, what her powers were, or how she could do much more than what a mage could. "You know much more than I do, so you should obviously be the one to teach her." Besides, as he said, she might just be a genius. Just knowing about a few more things should be enough for her to realize the kind of strength that she had. S§×ar?h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "You''re just dumping her to me now? Aren''t you the one that has taught her until now?" Alex didn''t mind teaching their little friend. Misha was not a child, she was an adult from this world''s perspective. After that experience with the mage tower master, she knew how the world out there was a dangerous place. There were people, bad people, that would want to harm her and the people around her. She knew her mom was hiding a lot of things from her, but she did not understand a lot of things since she did not know much about the situation they were in. "I''m not as good of a teacher as you could be for her¡­ A genius would shine under the light of a sun much better than a distant star." He believed she would do a better job than him. Besides, this little girl loved them much more than she looked up to a stranger like him. "So, you do care about something other than Them?" Alex was also sitting on the bed, looking at Misha training her powers, with Elio sitting right behind them. "Muuuu~." Miu was walking around the room, mostly on the walls, while Az was happily circling around Misha. "Miu~!" Both of them liked the energy inside this room. This natural energy was something creatures of nature like them could not resist. They were happy to be here, and Az was calling out the spirits to enjoy this special atmosphere as well. They were enjoying this, but it did not last for long¡­ "Looks like she''s done." The golden light around Misha vanished and the barrier that was covering her as well. The spirits vanished as Az''s Mana supply was cut off, and Miu also came down from the ceiling when it saw the golden light vanishing. Both of them waited for her to open her eyes, but her head simply dropped to the ground. "She overdid it." The Librarian picked her up with magic and placed her on the bed beside them. "If you knew this was going to happen, why didn''t you stop her earlier?" Elio was stunned by how she fell uncious right after that light banished from around her. It was almost like a candle exhausting¡­ something he did not expect to witness at the moment. "She just exhausted herself with the energy cultivation. You know this isn''t dangerous, so why do you think I''d stop her?" She was doing much better than he had anticipated and there was nothing wrong with it. She was working hard as a young person her age should. Besides, this was not some simple Mana training. "You know as well as I do, Connie¡­ Ichor can be very dangerous." Alex went up to the young girl and looked at her happy expression as if she had achieved something. She was unconscious, but it seemed like she was having a fun dream or something. "It can certainly be dangerous. However, only when it is being controlled by someone who has awakened her powers. She doesn''t even know what the power she is feeling actually is." Environment and the nature that they live in was an amalgamation of various kinds of energies. Mana occupies a big volume of that energy, but just like water in the atmosphere, it is merely a small fragment of the big pool. "But that doesn''t make it less dangerous-." Elio was going to argue with him. He was being so nonchalant about this whole thing that he couldn''t help feeling worried about Misha. But, Alex put a finger on his face right when he started talking and looked at the librarian with squinted eyes. "So what do you want me to do here, bastard? Do I just go ahead and teach her actual Ichor manipulation when I''ve just got my Aura back?" As he said, she had just started learning the basics. She did not know much about her powers and Alex did not know a lot about these basics. If she were to teach her all the things one by one, she knew she would need months to reach the actual important stuff. "You know me. If I''m to teach her, I will be thorough with my methods." She had knowledge and teaching skills but her method was very specific. She could not teach anything to someone that did not have the basics cleared. If they did not know the basic things, she would start with the basics. If they know even a little about the basics, she would move up a step and refine their basics along with the other things. "I would have taught her all that she needed¡­ but you came and FUCKED everything I had planned for her." Energy circulation and cultivation on one side, what she was just practicing was called (Energy channeling). This thing was direct channeling of the energy from the environment to one''s body and from there, it was directly thrown out of the body without any kind of process through only mental stamina. It was a difficult process. Certainly not something easy, and more definitely something that she was supposed to teach her until she had learned all about (Circulation), (Breathing), (Materialization) and (Manifestation). "So tell me, Connie." She was angry after what Elio did in the dungeon already, but thanks to the Great things Librarian did here, she was even more pissed off. "Why the hell did you come here to fuck things over when you couldn''t even simply hold that One Dumb Bastard in his tower?" She was smiling right now. And for the first time, that Warm smile wasn''t towards Elio. "Miu?" "Muuu¡­?" He knew there was nothing he could say here, between them, so he just sat back down and watched the Librarian''s anxious look¡­ knowing full well he was going to receive a good little earful of curses. Chapter 153 - 153: A fast pass "If you are going to Kalp, I can give you a little ride." She shouted at him for three hours straight. Even Miss Rin came back from her little visit to the knight association and was surprised by this scene. "What do you mean by that? You will use a teleportation spell just for us? Really?" Rin knew the librarian was above (Level-200) easily even though she did not know the exact level. He was able to defeat legions of Dark mages in the wars against the dark forces, so it was a given that he was at least powerful enough to be on the same level as a high noble of this country. And yet, he was being yelled by some simple girl that did not even have a third of his powers. And, the more surprising thing was how he was just sitting there, listening to shouting, curses, and the comments of A girl. "Why would I waste a teleportation spell for such a short distance? That would be a waste of my precious energy, dear great Lady." She was finally done shouting at him, and Misha had also woken up after their little commotion a while back. "Don''t call me that. It''s simply Miss Alex now. Nothing more." Misha was happy that they were back, but since she could tell the adults were talking about something important, she didn''t disturb them and went to Elio and Alex''s room to play with Miu, Az, and Sera. She had a lot of things to tell them, and also a lot of things to know from them. "Right¡­ apologies, Lady Alex." "¡­" Alex didn''t really like being called a ''Lady'' since she knew she was nothing like those elegant women that were actually Lady-like. "Ahem, anyway¡­" The Librarian could tell she did not like being called a Lady either. But he couldn''t address her casually anymore. Not after he found out how she was the one that killed that high level mage¡­ not after finding out about that white sword. "We can fly to the Kalp. I can use an express route." He had already told them all about the commotion in Moongold. The investigation, the commotion, the anxiety in the air¡­ he told them all about those things and, it was surprising. They were stunned how just one death could cause such a commotion, but after hearing how he had already dealt with those issues, they weren''t worried about anything. He was good with his work, handling a library as large as that one was not a simple task. "The express route? Damn, really?" Sear?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Using teleportation spells would be easy for someone like him. He was not a simple human. He had lived for more than a century. He was also powerful. Using a teleportation spell was not that hard. But he wasn''t going to do it. Casting a (tier-7) spell was a little too much when they just had to cross a distance they can cross in 3 days. It wasn''t too much, they didn''t have to use a spell of that level for such short distances. "I''m going south to pick up a package anyway. I don''t mind dropping you off at Kalp¡­ besides, I think the kids will love the view from the sky." An express route was a flight route that was created especially for the high speed travels of special individuals. Mages, knights of high enough rank, those who had wings, those who had flying mounts, and the royalty. It was a special privilege few could use¡­ She didn''t think he would go out of his way and use that air route just to help them get to Cromwell''s city. "Is this your way to apologize or something? Or is this a bribe to my babies?" Alex was suspicious of him. There was something fishy about him. He was acting somewhat differently since earlier. She couldn''t tell what he was hiding but there was definitely something he had not told them. From what the Two of them could tell from his occasional glance at the white sword, both of them were also wondering if he had found out something about it. "Oh, no no. I''m just suggesting it would be better this way. The horses you had must have suffered significant trauma as well¡­ they might not be able to handle the bandit ridden hilly path." It wouldn''t be surprising if he did know something about it, but they knew there wouldn''t be much that he would know about it. Not even Alex knew much about this sword in the first place, and Elio also only knew about the few powers this sword gave her. "We can just take a shortcut, you know? I was going to avoid the mountain bandits for now anyway¡­ but then again, your offer is pretty good too." She gave it a thought. Flying through the sky, watching the little things below, cutting off their travel time to only a few hours¡­ It was a great offer. "El?" "I''m uncertain, but I think They will be happy about this so I don''t mind." Elio wanted to experience what this Fast pass flight felt like as well. But he wasn''t sure about the librarian''s intentions anymore. Not after seeing how he was glancing at Alex''s white sword while trying to make it seem natural. He was hiding something. But whatever it might be, he did not feel it was anything malicious. "Miss Rin?" "Oh I don''t mind, dear. It''s fine. I''m fine with anything you want. You''re the boss~." Miss Rin seemed to be in a good mood for some reason. And she trusted the Librarian. He might have been absent for a moment which resulted in what happened with them and that mage, but he wouldn''t have foreseen it either. He had stayed here to tell them everything because he believed he was at fault as well. But he made up for his mistake, and she did not resent him for whatever he might have been busy with. "Hmm¡­ well, Connie." Alex knew the children would like that as well. And, she knew this bastard didn''t have the balls to do anything to them anyway. The precious little Things he cared about the most would die if he did anything to her, which he wouldn''t as he had seen her brutality, but then again, she did not have the power that she used to. If he tries to act up once again, she wouldn''t be able to hold back at only a few fatal injuries¡­ She didn''t want to spill unnecessary blood once again. "We''ll take you up on that offer. Let''s depart at dawn." They were done with all they needed to do anyway. If they reach the city before her schedule, they can spend an entire day looking for Misha''s Bird. "Sure then." This was good¡­ In fact, this is Perfect. Chapter 154 - 154: Travel through the sky "Did you double check everything?" "Yup. Food, clothes, new blades, and items. All set." "Check it again. Here''s the list-." "Do you think I would have forgotten that tiny list?" "Of course not, Miss Savant. I''m just making sure I did not forget anything. So¡­ please check this list and tell me if everything''s fine." As the first rays of dawn kissed the horizon, they prepared to leave Yuta behind. "Elio, I checked that list three times already. Don''t stress about it. We will be visiting the auction house in Kalp and see if there is something good anyway." Alex was ready with her things, Misha was excited about flying so she was excitedly talking with The librarian. He was ready already, waiting for them to finish their last checks. "If you say so¡­ then it''s fine." Elio was done with his complaints, Alex was done answering him, Misha was ready since last night like Miu and Az, and Miss Rin was also looking forward to this. Sera wasn''t really excited about this or anything since, well, flying through the skies wasn''t anything new for her. But, she was still looking forward to how they will be using the Fast passage. "Looks like everyone''s ready." The librarian was getting annoyed with Misha''s constant questions so he wanted to just start moving. But, her companions were wasting too much time on useless things. "Yes." "Let''s go, Connie~." "Oh wait." Miss Rin was late since she went out to the knight''s association once again earlier this morning, then Elio was wasting time checking out his inventory, and then Alex¡­ Well, Alex wasn''t really wasting their time but her mere presence was bothering him. Still, he had endured it until now, and right when he finally thought they would finally be moving, Elio spoke up again, blocking their flow. "Oh, no. Wait. It''s nothing. I already sent the letter to the hall master. We can go." He was a good boy, but he was sometimes unpredictable. He did not hate it, but if he kept doing this, he did not know how his point of view of this talented mage/tamer/archer would change. "Then we should depart now." "Yessss~! Finally~!" Misha was 15 and yet she wasn''t like the usual ''adult'' kinds her age. She was a child and she acted like children should, and that was a nice aspect to the people around her. She did not mind what people thought of her actions since she was mostly an introverted reserved person, but after the two of them came into her life, she had become a new person. Someone her mom couldn''t help but be proud of. "Please gather around then." They were on the empty terrace of the archery hall, a place they had reserved for the take off. Alex, Elio, Misha, Miss Rin, Miu, Az, Sera, and their two horses were going to travel with the Librarian from Yuta to Kalp through their highway air route. And now that they were all ready to take off, the pilot did not wait long to unleash his spell. -Ooooooooooooong! A unique silver platform was created under their feet as a transparent barrier shaped like a teardrop enveloped them. "If you feel motion sick, endure it. It will only take a little less than three hours." The travel time of three days was going to be cut down to three hours. Which was a nice thing. But the fact that they were going to fly was even more fun to the young girl. "Then¡­" The teardrop barrier and platform along with the passengers started floating up in the air as purple-blue strings were released from the librarian''s fingertips. "Let us depart. For real this time." Arcanum was a unique power stronger than magic, and the Librarian was also a sorcerer born with the blessings of nature and Mana. He was a scholar and a high level mage, so the kind of spells that he used were not as simple as the spells that Elio used or even as weak as the spells of the mage tower master that they killed. As some of the few high level mages of this world, he was a unique existence. And when it came to [Spell weaving] he was also one of the best in the magic society. -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiish¡­ "Physical series, water attribute¡­ that''s a pretty spell, Connie." "I''m honored you think that way." "And I don''t like how you''ve been acting since earlier. What the hell did you find out about this sword that you are acting like that you piece of shit?" Sear?h the N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She did not see anything wrong with cursing an individual like him. In fact, this was natural to her, and she really did not like how he was acting. "I simply visited the white sage, nothing else." As they floated up in the sky, the knight halls, the houses, the entire town became smaller in their eyes. They elevated to a point where the entire town looked no bigger than a cat beneath their feet, which was quite high. And then, they started moving forward to the south, towards Kalp, the city of Cromwell viscounty. "You visited white gramps? No wonder you have been acting like that since earlier¡­ he must have told you quite a bit about the sword, correct?" Moving through the sky¡­ it wasn''t the same as the flight of the free birds, but, this was not something simple either. "Not really." They were floating in the sky and through a physical series spell that was creating this airship-like spell barrier, they were able to move through the reserved path where no birds could enter. "Wow¡­ mommy, look." "Miu¡­" "Muuuu¡­" The children were spellbound by the scenery that wasn''t really anything new to the people around her. The sky, the orange painted morning clouds that were just a few meters above them, and the endless world before them were a stunning sight to the younger ones, even the two creatures that did not have the same senses as the rest of them. "He told me what I was allowed to know, as you might have guessed already. Besides, I''m not really acting any differently from earlier." Traveling through the sky was a unique privilege. "I''m just interested in that object a little more than anything else out there at the moment." But, the highway path that they were using was not the best travel method for everyone. Chapter 155 - 155: Kalp: The City of Preservation It wouldn''t have taken them long to reach Kalp with the straight highway even with their horse carriage. They were fast and they knew the path so they would have been alright anyway¡­ however, if they had taken that path, they would have had to pass through the mountain area where there were chances of bandits appearing. They would have had to pay a hefty sum to pass through them¡­ and, since they were all nearly (Level-100) people, fighting with them did not really made any sense. They were in hundreds, they had strategic weapons and people who could cast magic of high level as well and they were string individuals. Fighting would not have been an option if they were unlucky enough to get entangled with them, but thankfully, they did not have to go through the road path. They took the sky route and crossed the distance that would have taken them with all the rest and occasional fights with the creatures, in just a few hours. "The Cromwell viscounty''s hairloom, the city that has been preserved in its natural state since its creation." Traveling at a high speed through the road and traveling through the sky at a speed that was considered ''high'' were two different things. Someone who was not experienced with the highspeed travels and motion sickness was more prone to getting unwell after traveling at that kind of speed. "Blaghhhhhhh!" Misha experienced it for the first time today, and that too after she had just started learning about her powers. She was enjoying the pretty view when they started traveling, she was happy and excited and thanks to her Az and Miu were excited as well. "There there¡­" But then, when they picked up the pace and actually started going at a high speed, Misha started feeling weird. And that continued till they had reached their destination, which then resulted in an unwell stomach, headache, and overall physical weakness. sea??h th§× n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And now, as they stand above their first city in this magical world, Misha was throwing up¡­ or throwing down would be a better way to say this since, well, they were still suspended in the sky. "Do you know why they call this place the city of preservation, Elio?" "Will you please shut up, Alex? Don''t you see that Misha isn''t well?" Elio and Miss Rin were looking after the young girl while Miu, Az, and Alex were looking at their destination with Sir Librarian. "She''s fine, you two. She''s just motionsick. She will be alright." "We know that! But how can you act like you don''t care?!" He knew this was her way of showing she did care since she knew the two of them would look after the little one, but he still did not like that. "You know me, Elio. And look at her, she is smiling. She had fun, and she will be better if I keep talking." Instead of worrying about her more than they needed to, it was better to enjoy this scenery. She would join them on her own. Even the Librarian knew that. "Blaugh¡­ ahem. Ahem! Sister Elle¡­ I''m fine." Misha was smiling as well even though she was throwing up. She found it funny how just traveling through the sky could make someone so unwell. This was something new for her. And she couldn''t help but want to chuckle at her current condition. "Of course you''re fine, dear." Alex smiled at her warmly, shook her head at her Darling who was overreacting at this little thing, and turned her head back. "So, as I was saying¡­ Do you know why they call this the city of preservation? It''s not because the Cromwell viscounty follows the path of Preservation or anything." Alex had been with little kids in this world and among the many that she had been close with, she knew this red head one was one of the toughest. She did not have the same mentality as the normal children that they come across on the streets. She was not a child and neither was she a kid that has lived a ''normal'' or simple life. "Miu~?" The little gecko liked the shiny atmosphere around this city, while even from so high up, the little slime could feel the Life that was radiating from this lively city. "It''s smaller compared to the major cities, the walls are bigger and more fortified than the walls of a town, and its scale is on a completely different level." Elio evaluated after confirming Misha was alright. Then he tapped his head with hers after going beside her. "Oy." "There''s no castle here, showing how this place is no capital city. There''s no unique attraction here like Moongold or Yuta either. However, the houses of this city seem to be from older times." Kalp was established when the Kingdom reclaimed the southwestern lands, and added them into their own land. The southern and western dukedoms were positioned here to guard these fertile plains, and from the cultivation produced by it, the kingdom of Viv was able to sustain itself in the difficult times. "Seeing the geographical importance of this area, the city that was established right after reclamation, the place that stands even to this day in almost an unchanged state¡­ I believe the reason they call this place as such is because of how it has preserved itself for so long." The Cromwells were the guardians of this City, the maintainers of the central region of the southwest. "That''s right." This was their first city and one of the unique cities of that actually boasted a large number of players. There was no unique attraction of this city, so this place wasn''t really for combat oriented players. However, for those who loved the lifestyle aspects of this game, this was one of the finest places, one that has existed for a long time. "Just like its name, oldness isn''t a bad aspect of this city. If anything, the Cromwells have always considered it a compliment." Maintaining and preserving something was not a simple thing. And yet they were able to do it for over two centuries¡­ It was nothing less than an achievement in itself, as Elio believed while looking at this fabulous view under them with an excited, anticipation filled expression. Chapter 156 - 156: At the gates "This is it from my side." After landing on the ground and confirming Misha was alright, they all walked towards the grand gates of the big city. "Thanks for the ride, Connie." "Thank you, mister Librarian~!" "Miu!" "Muuu~." The children thanked him after Alex and then Elio and Miss Rin thanked him for the ride as well. It did not take them long and thanks to his help, they were able to cover the distance much quicker than they might have. "It was nothing on my part, haha." He had to leave now. He was on his way to some other place and they did not need him there at the moment. Things about the mage tower master were taken care of so he was also free to do whatever he wanted. "Well then." They talked for a moment, and he also helped them reassemble their carriage and place back their horses. It was easy with his magical help, so they thanked him once again and then he bid his farewell to them. "Call me when you are in the capital. I''ll help you out with a little few things." He smiled at them, took one last glance at Her white sword, and patted the little children. "Look after them-." "I Am looking after them. I''m not like a certain greedy dumb guy." She wanted to curse at him but after their talk and scolding yesterday, she didn''t really have any more curses left for him. She really gave him an earful yesterday, so now that he was going on his way, she wanted to send him off with a few better words. "Haha, yes yes. I''ll make sure something like this doesn''t happen again." "I''ll cut your legs if something like this does happen to anyone around me, Connie~." She said it so cheerfully one might even ignore the malice hidden behind those serious words. "¡­" A cold shiver even ran down his spine when he thought about how she was actually capable of doing something like that. And when that happened, he didn''t want to stay there anymore. "I''ll see you all later, then." He bid his last farewell to them and vanished from there. -Swiiiiiiiiish¡­ Left alone, they were now looking at the tall gates of the pentagonal city. There was no prominent structure here that would be visible from the high sky, but when they came down and looked at the giant gates from a distance away, the sheer size of the gates overwhelmed a few of them. "Seems like we will have to wait in line." "Nothing we can do about that part." The gates made of old iron still stand as firmly as when they were just finished by the dwarven hands. They were of a simple design. Yet, their functionality was impeccable. "Mom. Why aren''t there as many people on the walls here?" "Because the wall here and the gates you see are different from a town." They were back in their carriage so when Misha looked at the gate at the front, she couldn''t help but feel amazed by the presence of the big structure. There were a lot of people in the line in front and behind them so it was obvious that the city was a popular place. "Have you heard about it? Can you believe such a thing could happen?" "The prices dropped so I bought it~." "I''m also here to see that! What a coincidence!" There were voices all around them, most of which were mundane. sea??h th§× N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. However, there certainly were some voices that were talking about the city and their experience with the things in the city. "Unlike a town, a city is a much bigger, larger, diverse, and greater place in most of its aspects." "I know that, Alex. We were just seeing it from above." Even though they cannot compare a city with a city state like the real world outside the game, they can still compare a city with something much bigger than a town. There was an obvious difference to both the places, and one could just see it in the population of that state, in the number of structures present, number of unique structures that might not necessarily be vast, or in its governance. "You''re a dummy. I thought telling you would be better." To enter the city, the procedures were the same. Showing them IDs and paying a toll if required was all they needed to do so the line was moving quickly. It would be their turn soon, but by that time came, they had some free time to chat and talk about a few things. "Miss Rin?" "I don''t really have experience with any specific inn in the city, but I''ve heard about a few of them." "Hmm¡­ how about (Hunter''s house)? I''ve heard it''s a good one." "Ummm¡­ it is good. But I don''t like the vibe in that place. Too many scary looking people." The place she was talking about was one of the safest places in the city exactly due to the fact that all the scary looking guys of the city gathered there. They weren''t bad, but even Alex didn''t want to look at their ugly mugs every morning for the rest of the month. "Alex? Weren''t we supposed to stay at Viscount''s mansion?" Elio did not understand why they would have to go to an inn when they could live in a noble''s house. He had already heard a lot about the big places that the nobles own. And he had seen the place that was supposed to be their destination. "We will go to the mansion later, dear. But we won''t be staying there." "I wouldn''t suggest it either if you want to move freely." "Hmmm?" He didn''t understand what they meant by that, so the little one took the opportunity to explain to her big brother. "They have a lot of procedures to go in or out of the big houses, brother Elio. It takes half an hour just to finish the process, and the more powerful the house is, the more checking there is~." Misha told him how the invitational visits were an exception to this procedure, but they would still have to go through a lenient process. It was mandatory. "So, you mean we would have to go through those check ups regularly when going in and out of his estate? What the hell?" Freedom was the most important to him. He wasn''t going to take permissions and go through those check ups every other day. "Yeah, so we get an Inn and talk with the viscount later." "Alright." He didn''t argue with her since their freedom was involved now. They moved forward and, and just looked forward to seeing the big city beyond these grand gates. Chapter 157 - 157: Past memories As they entered the city, the first thing that caught their attention was a big statue. "You see that?" Resembling a withered tree, this stone sculpture was crafted by a normal human'' hands that wasn''t even a Master. "Is that the Memorial you talked about?" "Yup. The [Sigh of sorrow]." Once upon a time, there lived a young boy in the city that was established just recently. He was an orphan and he had moved from the central states to this newly founded city with the hopes of turning his life around. He believed he would strike it big since the city was new and there were many opportunities¡­ or at least that''s what he overheard from the old passerby. He believed his life would change if he came here, but that didn''t happen. Even after pushing himself for three more years, he was still the same orphan that he was when he arrived there. It was depressing, and he was in an insurmountable misery. Then one day¡­ an old woman saw his misery, asked him what made his eyes so dark, smiled at him warmly unlike anyone had ever done for him, and sat down with him. She talked with him, took him to her shop, and showed him various pieces of simple stone statues that she had made. "To think that''s the work of an untitled master¡­ there sure are some funny things in this world, Alex." "Oh you still have a ton to see." She taught him how to carve the stones¡­ or at least, she tried to do it before she passed away the very next day. "Stone carving is regarded as one of the superior arts in Kalp." "Not just simple stone carving, Miss Rin." It wasn''t an accident, and it wasn''t an unnatural death. She passed away on her bed, with a smile. And the people of the city looked after her corpse as she did not have any offspring. Sear?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She was an old lady, someone that many knew and looked up to. One such person, after that point, was the boy that later spent the next twenty years of his life carving a single stone at the end of which, this time withered three was produced. "Kalp is called the city of preservation for two reasons: the first being its innate unchanging nature, and the second being this." Carving. It was also an art form. "Wood carving, stone carving, enchantment, gem carving, cloth carvings that have still survived in this modern era, and the most famous of them all, metal carvings. What better way is there to immortalize something than carving it down on something?" Alex liked this place not just because of its unchanging nature. There was something unique about this city that not all cities of this continent possess. In this constantly changing world, the certain need of a place stuck in its past was what gave meaning to the eternal change. "I wanted to go to the inn first, but how about we take a look around for the time being?" Alex suggested when she saw the unique look Elio had on his face. She could tell he wanted to go and look at that tree, she could tell he wanted to touch that old stone, feel it and understand what kind of emotion the creator of that thing might have felt while creating this beautiful piece. "Ohh~. Yes~. Let''s go play~." For Elio, looking around this city of the past was the same as looking at the past era that he couldn''t find in the other cities. For Misha, looking at the new things around here with her friends was the same as playing. Miss Rin would have to look after the little girl while Alex knew she would have to look after this blessed bastard of hers. "Alright then¡­" The horses needed some rest as well so they were going to leave them a good place before they go on and walk around the town. "Miss Rin?" It was still early morning so the city was just waking up. There were a lot of people around even though this was still morning time, but by the time the sun progressed further away on its path, the city was going to become even more cheerful. There will be people all around the streets. The workshops would start and there would be even more things that they would have to do. "I''ll look after Misha and the two little ones. You three should go and have fun." Sera was going to go with the two of them, but there wasn''t any need for her to come with them right now. They were just going to look at a few things and go to their inn. Even though they weren''t tired, they needed to do a lot of things when they were here. Reaching the (Level-100) was one of those tasks and they needed to do a lot of things to make it happen. "Alright. We should go now." Thanks to The librarian, they reached their destination in no time and unlike a simple flight, since they were using magic, Elio wasn''t affected by any of the effects. And the same was true for the rest of their partners except Misha. But she was going to be fine the next time they did this since, as Alex had predicted already, she would awaken by the time they were going to leave the city through the [Gate] located in the center of the city. "So¡­" The individual that carved this withered tree from the stone didn''t want to portray anything grand. This was his life''s work that he spent most of his waking hours on. He ate, he drank, and he carved the stone with his nail and hammer. That was all that he did in the fifty years that he was alive twenty of which were spent on this one rough piece¡­ "The rawness of this piece, Alex." When the mother-daughter duo along with Slime-gecko duo had left them in the plaza, the two stood before the sculpture once again. "This is unbelievable, you know?" And now that he had the chance, he was once again going to bore her with his Endless talk of deep artistic knowledge¡­ Chapter 158 - 158: An idol’s walk A city of the past for the players who had not been around for more than a decade of their time. A city that doesn''t change¡­ "It''s fascinating, you know?" There was a phenomenon in the world of called [Foreign propagation]. A unique phenomenon that brought a unique wave of change to the entire world that had existed independently before them. When they arrived, the entire world that was functioning just fine started going through a spontaneous adaptation. The existence of beings that could not be killed was not something the natives of this virtual world had experienced until now. But, they knew just how dangerous these people could become. "What''s fascinating? This city? If you think this place is special, I will tell you there are many-." "Not that, Alex¡­" An abnormal growth speed, something that they called Quests and rewards, the existence of special communication channels, their unique knowledge that they brought from the other world, special privileges that only they possessed¨C all of that was not only fascinating to the natives, it was almost unbelievable how there could be someone possessing such powers. When they appear in this world, they are already as strong as a normal adult human, but then they get stronger faster than most of the people of their own world possibly could. "Look at the people around here." If not for the two beta-testings that took place and the measures that were created over time before the global release, things could have been a lot more chaotic than they were when the players first appeared in this world. However, with time, things got better. The people of this world, nature, and the world itself adapted to the players and changed over time. Even to this day, all the nations that had a certain degree of player population were growing, adapting, and changing themselves, keeping up with the momentum that these foreign elements had brought to this world. "Moongold was like a medieval town, Yuta was like the towns of the Revolution era with all the knights and association halls around. On the other hand¡­ look at this place." After walking around the streets for a while, Alex and Elio had stopped by a stall and were eating a skewer. Apparently it was a speciality item of Kalp. "The architecture has been preserved like it was when the city was created, the same with the houses, and the entire vibe of the place." Elio liked this place, he certainly did. Unlike the cultural richness of Moongold and the theme specificity of Yuta, Kalp was pretty cozy, friendly, and classic. The people of this city, as he had seen until now, are pretty friendly. They were peaceful, kind, and cheerful as well. Unlike the towns, the city that he had seen until now was pretty simple and aside from the idols and carvings all around the town, there wasn''t much special to this town. "I feel like I''m in some kind of old movie. You know, those yellow and dull colored ancient things." There was art all around him, but there weren''t that many colors. Stones and carvings. Most of the beautiful things that he had seen since the morning they arrived here were idols of various beings, depictions of various nature deities engraved into the walls and things in the shops. Wooden elements that had stories made from them¡­ there was art around him but there were no colors. So, he was fascinated even more. "It''s just the theme of this place, Elio." Alex could understand well why he was saying that kind of stuff. He is happy right now, and whenever he is happy and is talking about the things that he likes, she knows she has to prepare herself for a few hours of long chatting sessions. "You like these things, I know. But that''s just how this place is. What''s there to be fascinated about?" She wasn''t an artist like him, but she was still closely interested in those things thanks to him. He liked to talk a lot when it came to his stuff, and she liked making fun of him whenever he was talking about things like that. "Well, Alex." He looked at her with a smile while taking out a piece of potato from his skewer. It wasn''t common to have potatoes in the skewers but they had made these special balls of mixed meat with some kind of special herbal mix that they boiled first before roasting them. It was a delicious dish. "They are not ancient." They were only talking about two centuries. "The town was created just because there was a fire in the plains and things burnt down." Kingdom only took the opportunity and claimed the land that the empire could not take. "There was no reason for them to stay the same as they used to be. The players also came here and they also brought the wave of change with them." There were a lot of idols on their path around the town. They were quite fascinating since not many of them were related to the gods that were worshiped by natives and were instead depictions of something that they regarded as a ''supreme'' deity. It was their individual perspective and it was diverse even though their daily lives were pretty much the same¡­ and that very thing was fascinating to him. "The people of this city, Alex¡­" He looked around himself and saw the nice people that were doing what they usually do, people that were going to try something new today, people that were happy, and also people that were pretty sad at the moment. "They choose to live a common, simple, mundane life that the people of Their past used to follow." All their attire was the same as the common cultural attire that one would find in the Kingdom of Viv and yet, as he looked around, unlike the two towns and the village that he had been to, he could feel something¡­ something that seemed to be from a completely different time. "This is their culture. They carve things to remember their time, and they naturally immortalize the past so that they don''t stray away from what this city, their culture, was originally based on." She already told him the founding story of Kalp, and how Cromewell was appointed as the governors of this city as well as the towns and villages in this entire region. Following that example, the city that used to be at the heart of that whole historic account, Kalp has become what is present before their eyes. "It''s an unconscious cultural process¡­ as a person of science, Alex¡­ don''t you find this fascinating?" This city, the idols and sculptors, even the carvings and statues around them¡­ S§×ar?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He could tell not all these things were made from a hammer and nail. As Alex knew, some were made with a sword, some with magic, some with just a hammer, while some carvings in this city were made with bare fingers. There was diversity and there was uniqueness, and along with it, there was a nostalgic feeling in the atmosphere. "It sure is a fun place, if that''s what you mean." It wasn''t that amazing for her to be fascinated by it. But she still liked it here. It was kind of cozy. And, the inn that they had decided to go to was also quite a special place. She knew they would have fun in that Lavish place. Chapter 159 - 159: (Goblin’s den) "Why''s there such a long line?" At the peak of afternoon, they had reached the place that was going to be their abode for the following few weeks. "And are we really going to stay in this biiiiiiiig place~?" The (Goblin''s den) the best inn that was nothing less than a luxurious hotel in Kalp. It was a very rare palace kind of architecture that was made with the help of many mages over the decades a long time ago and since its inception it has stood as one of the best inns not just in this city, but in the entirety of Cromwell viscounty. "Haha, yes we are. And this place is famous as you can tell from this line." Many people, be it players or natives of the areas around this city all wanted to stay in this special place. However, the reason behind this long line despite the lavish appearance of this place was because of the unique way this whole place operated. "Have you seen auctions, Misha?" The gates of this place were huge, there were ladies wearing attractive old fashioned clothes before the gates, and beside them were a few notice boards. Of the many floors of this special establishment that contained many rooms, there weren''t many empty. "Hmm? An auction?" Some people who had financial status to constantly support them had taken permanent residence here, but there were still hundreds of rooms left here. Still, if one is not a permanent resident here, they could only stay in this place for a couple of days. They would have to pay upfront to get to their rooms, and if they could not pay up the next time, they could not renew their temporary residency. "This is a special place that auctions out the rooms to the highest bidder, dear. And, they don''t deal in cash but resources." "That''s right." sea??h th§× ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "An unconventional method, however, perhaps following this method is what made them a strong competitor of [Candlelight]." They did not have to stay in the line or take the same door as the rest of them, but just for the experience, Alex led them through the front gate while crossing the rest of the people in the line. She did not care about them and pulled Elio who was stunned by what she was doing. "Hey Miss! What do you think you are doing?!" There were some high level players among the crowd, there were rich merchants, and there were even important people from various other places. Yet, she just walked past them. "There are some rare resources that are chosen randomly to be the [Core] for that day''s resource code. Anyone that has that certain rare thing can get their room by trading it and some other resources depending on the specially calculated prices. The others would have to bid with the certain resources that are listed in the code, and anyone could participate in one round of auction each day that gives one a chance to bid on one room." The profit they generate with this unique method is substantially higher than their revenue since the maintenance costs of the place are significantly decreased with the High Efficiency Employees. "This place sure is amazing though¡­" The interior of the place was spotless. There was a unique red marble floor, the high ceiling was adorned with precious looking chandeliers, while the three receptions on the left, right, and center of the hall room were the most important aspect of this place. The employees weren''t all humans. Elio could see some beast people, some cat ladies, some wolfkins, and even some half elves¨C all of them were hot as well. They were professionals that were highly trained in all needed aspects, they had perfect kind of attractive bodies that most people uselessly loitering around here were attracted to, and they knew what they were doing. [{ "You can look at them. They offer special services as well, if you are interested-." }] She knew he was just admiring their professionalism and yet Alex started teasing him. She knew he did not like it, but she would get upset if he said anything that he needed to say in that situation. [{ "Sure. Let''s invite some and have some fun together." }] Sadly they were a monogamous couple, but one can have fun in more than one way. "Wait, really?" They knew how to have fun, with just them as well as with some other ''friends'' around. "If you want, why not?" They hadn''t done stuff like that yet, but he surely wouldn''t miss a chance like this. There were otherworldly beings here. He would be a fool to not use their Special services. "Hello there. How can I assist you today~?" Of the three receptions of the main hall, one was completely dedicated to the auction process so it was always the most crowded one. The ones who won the auctions were sent to the right reception hall where they could complete the procedures, while the one on the left was solely dedicated to the Residents as well as people who were there to inquire about something important. "Oh¡­ mom, she''s beautiful~." The lady on the left reception was extremely pretty, had white hair and fox ears, as well as three tails that looked as pretty as her hair. "Dear, we are doing something important." Misha was just admiring the fox lady''s beauty, but in case she didn''t disturb them, Miss Rin asked her to give them a moment. But Alex shook her head at her and brought the young girl to the front. "Oh, it''s alright. She''s not disturbing us." She then looked at the receptionist lady, and just as she was trained, she nodded at Alex with a smile and then smiled at Misha as well. "Not at all." Then she shook her head and gave a chocolate bar to the girl that was looking at her with stars in her eyes. "O-oh! Thank¡­ thank you!" Misha was usually shy, and after receiving this little gift from the pretty person, she couldn''t help her blush and just hid behind her mom while squeezing Az. "Hahaha." The rest of them laughed at her cuteness, even the receptionist lady did¡­ and seeing this, Alex confirmed that this one knew exactly what she was doing. "We would like to get to our room please. Oh, by the way, how long have you been here, Miss?" Alex took out a certain key from her inventory and placed it on the reception desk. "Oh, I''m pretty new around here¡­ only sixty-two years." "Sixty is still pretty good." Alex nodded at her in approval, and seeing the key that was placed on the desk, the receptionist also confirmed these people were also residents that she had either never met, or someone that was just borrowing the rooms of some other resident. In either case, she had nothing to do with it. Who they were and why they had this key had nothing to do with her. She was there to do her job and she had been doing it impeccably for a good long time. "Please come with-." She was just about to hand them over to some other employee after checking their key''s authenticity, however, the moment she actually held the key¡­ a certain sensation ran down her spine. "...?!" Then she turned the key, and looked up at the [12] engraved on the crown of the key. "Is anything that matters?" Alex had a smirk on her face once again. And seeing both Alex and the receptionist''s expressions, Elio knew she had done something crazy once again¡­ Chapter 160 - 160: Why an inn? [{ "What''s up with that key?" }] Elio instantly figured out how something was wrong with the key that Alex had given to the receptionist. The receptionist was walking them to their room herself for some reason when he knew they mostly give that task to someone else so that they don''t have to leave their positions. It was strange, but since he had seen the expression the fox-kin receptionist had when she handed her that key, he knew the reason for her current upright behavior was that key. [{ "Well¡­" }] They were in the magic elevator at the moment. And the receptionist was taking them all the way to the eighth floor when most of the usual rooms of this inn were on the second to seventh floors. [{ "You know how the special early investors of a place that has a big hand in the establishment and initial prosperity of an organization receive special privileges?" }] S§×arch* The N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. (Goblin''s den) was one of the establishments of the organization that offered such privileges. [{ "Yes? So, something like loyalty privileges, right?" }] [{ "Somewhat. Well, anyway, you know what I mean." }] She looked at him with a happy smile and winked. [{ "So, there was this guy I bet up in the past-." }] [{ "I knew it¡­" }] Half of the things that she tells him after winking are like this. Besides, he had foreseen this. [{ "Bastard, listen first before jumping to conclusions." }] -Ding! They reached their desired floor and the elevator door opened up. "This way please." The fox woman continued guiding them as Alex explained to him how there was a guy that she beat up who had obtained this key from a quest in the past from someone that was one of the early supporters of the parent organization of this establishment. He willingly gave him this key in exchange for teaching him the technique that she used to defeat him. [{ "There are 369 Rooms in (Goblin''s den) and of them, the single digit ones are the most premium ones that are only used to accommodate high ranking nobles of various nations, royalties, and some very special people of this organization." }] The smaller the number, the more important they are. And, when it comes to numbers closest to the single digit number rooms, it is an unwritten rule that the employees have to pay extra attention to them. [{ "The single digit rooms are like a presidential suite of an isekai world¡­ on par with the royal and imperial bedroom chambers." }] After walking a little more, they reached the door that had (12) engraved on its finely carved wooden surface. "A moment please." The fox lady inserted the key inside the door, and right when she did it¡­ -Ooooooooooooong! The engravings on the entire door were filled with a colorful light for a moment as they heard movements of some kind of mechanical gears¡­ which stopped in a moment, and a certain clicking sound was heard. -Click! The door was open now. "Have a pleasant stay, valued patrons. We will be here to assist you in any way you may need." She greeted them, and gave them a respectful look before she bowed and walked away from there in the same professional manner that she has had until now. [{ "We should ask for her as well." }] [{ "You liked her that much?" }] [{ "I didn''t, but I''m pretty sure you did." }] He had already seen how she was looking at her throughout the time she was with them. [{ "I was checking her out for you, dummy. I know your type." }] They were quite unique¡­ Miss Rin knew that much by now. "Wow¡­" "Muuuu¡­" "Miu?" Miu, Az, and Misha were stunned as soon as they walked inside this big room. "A nice place, right?" The door opened into the main hall room. There were a total of six doors in this circular hall room with a window wall on the exact opposite side of the door, and there were couches set in the middle of the hall. The lighting was cool and calming, the scent of this place was also pretty simple and pleasing, and of course, with the view of half of the north side of the city, this was in no way a simple inn room. "Why do they call this place an inn? This is obviously not some place that accommodates simple travelers for a night or two and provides simple services like food and warm water." Two rooms to the left were bedrooms and a bathroom, while the one with a white door to the right was the master bedroom. The other two doors adjacent to the white one were a bathroom and a kitchen. Comparatively, this was a simple place. Even though it looked quite posh, it was a simple place. And, that was one of the reasons this place was called an inn. "Why an inn? Well dear, there is no concept like hotels here. Haha, everything that accommodates travelers or people of any position and provides them with various simple or unique services is called an inn. You can''t call it a bar, a tavern, a restaurant, or a brothel. So, it''s an inn. Perhaps, they should call it the inns of the rich, right?" The concepts in this world were pretty different from the world that he had lived in for his entire life. Some things that he could not understand here were common knowledge for the natives and the people that have been in this world for a long time now. Just like this place that could very well be called a presidential suite was merely an advanced version of the common rooms present in this ''inn'' the standards of this world were completely different from their world which had seen many difficult times when it comes to financial systems. "Hehehe~." Misha was running around the place after she ran and looked outside the window with her two little friends. She looked at the left side bedrooms first, was amazed, and then she saw the big bathroom between the two bedrooms. "Wow¡­" There were still the rooms on the right and left, and yet, she was stunned¡­ just standing outside the bathroom. "Hehe." She was pretty cute. That wasn''t even the best thing about this room¡­ Chapter 161 - 161: Noble Authorities "I know why you gave them the master bedroom, you know?" After sorting out the stuff and having a light dinner, they went to their bedrooms for the night. It was still early in the evening, but they were going to go and pay a visit to the viscount''s estate tomorrow morning. They were going to go shopping after that if possible so they had planned to go to bed early. "Yeah? You do?" She turned around, facing her bare back to him. "Of course you smart naughty twinkling star." He helped her with her dress''s zip. She was trying out the outfit she would be wearing in the main event that they were invited to by the viscount. "Elio I would have punched you if it wasn''t for this dress." After zipping up her dress, he pushed the zip back, helped her with her sleeves, the jewelry, and both of them sat down on their bed as he started making her hair. "I know you don''t like being called that. But you know why I keep calling you ''twinkle'' miss twinkle?" "I''m going to punch you, Elio." "You can-." -Dhum! "That wasn''t a warning." She used her elbow so it wasn''t a punch, but it still landed around his right kidney. Which was hella painful¡­ iykyk. "¡­" "Oh? No screaming? Seems like you have become well accustomed to Pain, baby." She bit his lips but he did not scream or shout or grumble. He just bit his lips until he was bleeding, endured the pain with his high Endurance, and gulped back the blood that flew out of the wound on his lips. "You''re a bitch, you know?" "I''m your bitch, so shut it and continue what you were doing." He was angry but he was at fault here in the first place so he didn''t complain and continued braiding her hair. "What were you saying though? What was it about you calling me by that disgusting name?" "Oh, calling you tw-." "I''ll use my sword next time, Elio." "You can''t even take a joke, Alex." "I can take many things many times and a joke with that name involved isn''t sadly included in the list." He turned her head to the side and kissed her with his still bleeding lips since the pain was getting worse. "Well, yeah. You can take things quite well." He knew what she was planning when she gave the room with better soundproofing to the mother-daughter duo. With the kitchen and bathroom on both sides, the right side was better in many ways, and even though not as good as the right side, the left one had much better usage for couples like them when they were going to live with someone else. "Anyway¡­" He tried it, but he couldn''t braid her hair as well as Miss Aloha did. He was good, but she was a Master for a reason. "Looks like you will have to change back to the dress that matches the hair. How about the black one?" "Nah. It''s too plain." She got up and took out the stockings first, then the detached sleeves, and her earrings. "What do you think about the blue one?" Half of the bed was already covered in her dresses, and there was an entire pile hanging on the hangers on their left. "We don''t have jewelry for that one, Alex." "I can just wear the items, you know? Look at these¡­" She took out a few items from her inventory and was about to show it to him¡­ when he got up from the bed and hugged her from behind. "Yup. I think the blue one will work." He helped her take down the necklace and other heavy things before the heaviest dress. "You know I don''t care about what I wear, right?" "You look amazing in anything you wear¡­ even more without it." There was a smirk on her face as she felt his nose on her neck. "Look who''s being horny now." "You, yes. I can feel that as well." He took down the zip for her first, then he very respectfully backed down and set back down on their bed. "We can just chat and go to sleep if you want though. I''m fine-." "Hell nah, you bastard. Not after this!" The dress was expensive so even though she wanted to jump on him, she first took down the dress¡­ or at least she tried and got stuck when she was removing it the wrong way. "Ptfff¡­" He had to help her even though he enjoyed that stuck sight of hers. But she was soon out of that damned piece of cloth. "Are you going to act clumsy before the viscount as well?" Looking at his partner with most of her skin bare, he smiled warmly. She was pretty, and she was hot. But at the same time, she was ironically dumb as well. "You''re making fun of me again, Darling." She was angry, he can tell that much. A Viscount was not that high of a noble title in her eyes, but it was still a noble title. The nobles of this world were pretty different from the nobles of the other games that mostly are the cause of most of the troubles. They were nobles in true meaning¡­ At least most of the kingdom''s nobles and a majority of the empire''s nobles on the western continent were like that. They were capable people that the crown trusted as much as they trusted their royal guards. They might not be perfect individuals like the lore accurate nobles should be, but they were good people. Yet she was cursing that good person with that look in her eyes. "You know what I''m going to say now, right?" "Strip down?" sea??h th§× N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "¡­no, hell." Usually he''s the one saying that, but she was already pretty much naked right now. "Haaaa¡­ just shut up, darling." She set back down on the bed, beside him. "Is that what you were-." "Kiss me." "Hmmm?" "Kiss me or I''m going to the room next door." "¡­yes ma''am." She was tired now. He sure knew how to wear one out mentally¡­ as well as physically. Chapter 162 - 162: Cromwell mansion "Do I look presentable enough?" "You look human enough. That should be fine for now." The two of them had saved Moongold and for that, the Viscount that was in charge of this entire land, the towns and the villages in this part of the kingdom wanted to personally thank them. He has also directly invited both of them to His daughter''s birthday that would be a week from now, so they were also looking forward to that, however, for now, they were going to the viscount mansion to meet the man that not only controlled the entire city of Kalp, but also was in charge of many of the villages as well as towns. Moongold especially held a great importance to him since his wife used to be from that town, and since he was also one of the few people that was directly connected with the Blood-iron Duke of west, he was an important figure in the political circles of the kingdom. "Haaa¡­ I''m nervous, Alex." She had met many people of high authority, but this was going to be the first time for him. "Of course you''re nervous. You''re skipping (Lord) and (Baron) and directly meeting a viscount. A powerful one at that." The authority ranks or the noble titles in Kingdom of Viv were only given by the absolute authority of this land, the Queen and the master of the Eternal throne¡­ as well as one of the few people Alex actually looked up to. And, since the Queen was the only person that granted the noble titles, there were only a handful of individuals that held any noble titles be it the most basic title of a [Lord] or the highest possible authority beside the Queen''s, the title of the [Crown successor]. "Well, it''s not going to be anything complicated. I know the man, he''s a family guy." They were in a carriage right now that was taking them to the Viscount mansion. They were traveling for a while now, so they were expected to reach their destination anytime soon now. "You know the Viscount as well?" He knew she was friends with the Queen as well as the absolute monarch of the Empire, but it was news to him that she knew someone as simple as a Viscount. "Not really. I''ve just seen him at big events. Oh, I know his father though. That old man is in the capital, hahaha." She knew a lot of important people of this kingdom personally, but the viscount and the current head of Cromwell weren''t one of them. She had heard a lot about him from his father though so she knew what kind of person he was, what he liked, and the things that would make a good impression on him. "Is that why you got up early to make That thing? Will he really like it that much?" She had heard that the viscount had a certain sweet that he used to love when he was younger. Sadly, the grandma that used to make that sweet, someone that had lived in Kalp for a long time and was an immigrant from the eastern continent, passed away when he was still young. "Only time will tell. Let''s see what happens." He had not had this thing in a long time so she did not know how effective it would be, but she was hoping they would get a good Quest from him so that they could continue their run to the (Level-100). "On that note¡­. They had arrived at their destination, before two not so large gates situated somewhere in the middle of the city. They weren''t too grand either. There were also two mages in knight''s armor standing outside them. "If it''s your first time, you wouldn''t even think this is a noble''s house." Elio climbed off the carriage and respectfully helped Alex climb down as well. Then they gave the carriage driver a tip, patted the horses, and looked at the gates as well as the long garden that starched to around half a mile beyond them. "But if you have Appraisal, then, everything would be different." The gates that they were seeing were highly enchanted with high level magic enchantments and were made from the metal that was said to be the ancient mages'' creation: Kronum. S§×arch* The Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. It was a rare metal that was used to create magic staffs, and here¡­ they had used it as a medium for the high level magic enchantments. And that was just the start. "Miu¡­" "Muuuu? Muuuu!" "Calm down, Az." As Az and Miu both could tell, the Mana concentration in this area was higher than anywhere else in the city, and the reason for that was the magic barrier that was covering this entire estate. "Hehe. Looks like they got excited." The two mages in the knight armor were in fact (Level-108) battle mages that were trained in physical aspects as well. They weren''t a Magic knight like the viscount himself, but they were still much stronger than the conventional mages that only refined their magic powers. They had achieved their first enlightenment so they were in no way anything less special than high ranking knights. "Looks like this will be more fun than we expected, Elio." "Hmmm?" She was looking at the mages at the gate and they were looking at them, at their two little creatures to be more precise. Unlike the mages that they had met until now who did not know what exactly Miu and Az were, these two could tell what exactly these creatures were at a glance. They were highly trained individuals that must have also been to the battlefields. "What do you mean by that?" Elio was focused on the two little ones so he didn''t see the eyes of the two mages, but she knew he would figure that out when they stand before the two do them. "Nothing. Let''s go." She knew he had a thing for observation, so she also knew he would try observing these two as well as this special looking gate. He knew this was no simple gate from what he had read on the community forums, so he was also looking forward to observing that gate. But, if he wanted to do that¡­ { "Halt." } He would first have to prove the two of them were guests of the Viscount. Chapter 163 - 163: Andrew Ethan Cromwell { "What business do you have here?" } The guards were blocking them, but instead of blocking them with spears like gate guards usually would, they had their magic wands in their hands, the powerful wands that were bound to them. "Miu¡­" "Muuu¡­" Miu was amazed by the kind of Mana their equipment possessed and Az could tell the two of them were interested in them, so it was trying to hug the guards. However, they would be attacked by a powerful spell if they did anything stupid without providing their purpose of visit. "Here. We are Viscount''s guests. He must be expecting us, so please check in with him." She handed them a special envelope that had the viscount''s unique golden signature made with the unique Mana pen that only a few people could use in this city. { "Please wait for a moment." } They could tell the letter was authentic at a glance, and the Mana signature was also certainly a real thing. But they still checked the letter with an item of their own to confirm if it was something that had any tempered elements. "It will take a minute, Elio." "Oh, I''m alright." "Miu!" "Muuuuu~!" They didn''t find anything wrong with the letter so they used their communication channels to talk with the guards inside and when everything was checked out, they nodded at one another. { "You can enter." } The gates opened for them, and at the same time, Elio, Az and Miu felt a new wave of Man rushing out. "Wow. This place sure has dense Mana. " Elio has his heightened senses so he could tell this new rush of Mana was coming from the inside. There was nothing special about the garden that they were seeing by appearance, but still, the Mana here was dense. "Let''s go, everyone¡­ oh, and you can hug them now, Az." "Muuuuuu!" The slime jumped off from Elio''s hand and started jumping before the guard. The guard found the creature interesting so he picked it up and patted it as well, which Az enjoyed very much. "This is an adorable companion." Until now, the guards were using their Mana voice, but now that they were playing with Az and were looking at the joyous smile of Miu inside of the slime, The two creatures were quite unique and the guards found both of them interesting. sea??h th§× N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. They even wanted to touch the Mana beast Miu, and try to see how much they could endure the Mana poisoning. But, they refrained from doing silly things and returned both of them back to Elio. "The viscount is expecting you in the hallroom." They saluted them and went back to their posts. And, as the gates closed behind them, Elio and the little ones said their goodbyes to the good guards as well. "They were nice people." "You won''t find nice people, nice guards to be precise, like them. The Cromwell viscounty has a strict moral standard on which they select their training candidates. Not all guards you will meet in this world would be as nice as them. Especially when we leave this continent. You will find the worst kind of jerks out there among even the simplest of the guards." It wasn''t a warning but a simple reminder of the information that he already knew. As someone that had grown up in a unique family and had lived a unique life of his own, he knew what kind of people the world could have. He was good with people, that was one of the reasons he had chosen to do his own business when there were other ways to earn money. He was a big name when it came to the freelance industry. And he had not achieved that name and fame overnight. "Don''t embarrass me, and keep your dumbness locked up inside somewhere, ok? We might lose a quest that would be a direct ticket to the first enlightenment." "I''ll say the same for you. Don''t do stupid things." The viscount estate was just like many of the noble estates. There was a big garden and a mansion was located in the middle of this garden. There was a fountain on their left, a flower garden on the right, and there were also some specially decorated benches present in this garden for some special occasions. Mansion itself was big, a white-gold house with a red rooftop. It seemed to be a simple work of architecture, but in fact, that was not the case¡­ "Can you see this, Alex?" Elio, Az, and even Miu were mesmerized by the grand house which in fact was the center of all the barriers and magic that was present in this garden. "Of course I can''t, dummy." The mana was so dense around the house that it refreshed all of Elio''s senses. And, it wasn''t even harmful to those who couldn''t perceive Mana. This special Mana was present in the atmosphere naturally somehow. So, only those who could perceive this special energy could understand how unique this feeling was. "Let''s go in." The front door, it was the entrance to the estate, and they did not have to open it themselves. The moment they walked up to the platform before the door, the door opened on its own, and a unique aura flowed out from the inside. "Miu¡­" "Muuu¡­" Inside the house that was bigger than He had expected, the master of the house, the master of this city, and the person in charge of this entire region of southwest was sitting on a couch, waiting for them while drinking his coffee. "Welcome, saviors of Moongold." Viscount Andrew Ethan Cromwell, the Magic knight of Kalp, the Saviour of White Princess, the Knight of Golden Lance, the Grand Punisher of Blood-iron Duke. He held many titles. "Hmm? Oh! They are here~?" But instead of these fancy titles, people knew him more as a rule breaker, someone who loved his family, as well as someone who had burned down an entire fief just because the lord disrespected his daughter¡­ Chapter 164 - 164: A noble’s thanks "Hello~! It''s so nice to finally meet you two~!" The viscount was on the couch in the center of the hall while there was a woman along with him who ran up to the two of them as soon as she saw the doors opening. "It is our honor to make your acquaintance, Lady Deborah." She approached them out of the blue, but unlike what Alex was expecting, Elio formally greeted her in a proper manner. She was a pretty woman, but her beauty could not mesmerize him. "Oho~. You must be Sir Elio! And these two must be the creatures that Eve wanted to meet, right~?" She was a cheerful woman, and there was a warmth to her that both of them could feel instinctively. "Miu?" "Muuu?" She was instantly interested in Miu and Az, her dark midnight black eyes sparking like the night sky filled with stars. "Debbs." She was too excited to greet them, touch the little creatures and hug them perhaps, however, hearing Viscount''s voice once again, she came back to her senses, and backed off a little. "Ahem. Apologies." Then she started acting like a noble lady actually should as she lightly greeted them back first. "Welcome, dear guests. Come, please take a seat." She bowed lightly and walked up to the center of the room along with them. sea??h th§× n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Greetings, Lord Andrew." Alex was evaluating just how he was ever since they crossed the gates of this house. Her sword became excited as soon as they perceived the natural aura of this individual and wanted to clash with him. Just from that much, Alex knew how this person was as strong as she had heard from his father. But still, the fact that he was still sitting until they walked up to him, sipping his coffee while going over some documents suggested what kind of dynamics he wanted to have between them. "Greetings, heroes of Moongold." Only when they were before him, did he stand up to greet them. Then, he asked them to take a seat as all of them sat down on the comfortable couch. "We''ve heard a lot about you from Roland and the guard''s captain. They have praised your achievements, as well as unique abilities a lot." He was a strong individual, his Mana was definitely on par with the mage tower master that had almost defeated their entire party and at the same time, he seemed to be as strong as the knights they had seen in Yuta. "Ah, and they also mentioned you have quite a few special companions¡­ seems like they weren''t exaggerating." Elio could tell he was on the same level as some of the high level mages and almost on par with the Hall masters of Yuta, something that did not match his rather lean physique. He wasn''t muscular like most knights he had seen, and he wasn''t skinny like most mages he had come across. "Miu¡­" "Muuuu¡­" Now that they were before him, Az and Miu couldn''t help getting attracted to this person. "Huhu, seems like they like you, dear." The Mana around him was more fresh than the Mana they had felt outside. Even Elio could tell his Mana was more refined than the natural Mana in the surroundings. It was fresh as well, like his sky blue fresh hair. Completely opposite of the fearsome crimson eyes that were looking at these two unique creatures. "It''s not everyday we see a Mana slime, much less what seems to be a mutant crystal Gecko. They sure are rare beasts that we might never come across in the wild." The viscount removed his white glove and placed it before Az, and sensing his intentions, the slime jumped onto his hand. "Muuuu~." Az could feel the emotions as well as intentions of the individuals around it. And, it knew how some individuals were better than the others. It was more attracted to those that it liked, like the viscount that didn''t seem to have any ill intentions towards them. "Does the unique skills this little one have something unique? Oh, and is that a wand? Can it use magic?" The first thing that caught his attention was the unique behavior of this slime, and then he saw the hairpin-like thing that was attached to the little slime. "It can use magic, though the spells it can use at the moment are very limited. And we don''t yet know the full extent of the skills that they possess." Both of them were pretty young, almost like children. They did not know much about themselves, much less about the powers they possessed. [{ "Shouldn''t you tell them about spirits?" }] Alex talked with the viscount while his wife beside him watched the little creatures with a pleased smile. It was an adorable sight that she knew their daughter would love¡­ sadly though, she was sleeping at the moment. [{ "It''s better to not tell them, right? Like, look at him¡­ he''s still somewhat uncertain of us." }] As the masters of these tamed beasts, he was their guardian as well. He knew there could be people that would want to possess them and their powers. So, if someone couldn''t trust them, he couldn''t trust them either. Telling him about the unique spirit affinity will only cause trouble for them. "Anyway¡­" Some people just have a unique aura to them that represents the high authority they hold. "I wanted to thank you two for saving the wonderful hometown of my love." Not all nobles in this game had this unique air to them, but this person before them certainly possessed that uniqueness that others did not. "I wished to give you something as a token of my gratitude. However, it doesn''t seem like something simple like money or items will be of any use to you." He didn''t beat around the bush too much and got straight to the point after handing the two creatures to his wife. "Plus, I want to see the skills that the two of them praised so much." His daughter wasn''t here at the moment, so he also had to keep them here until she woke up or else he would be in trouble. "How about you all come with Us on a hunting trip tomorrow? It might be useful to you, I believe." This statement was a clue. [Dung!] And the quest window that opened up before them was the precursor to exactly what Alex had been looking forward to¡­ Chapter 165 - 165: Hunting operation ============ [Personal Quest] : Viscount Andrew Ethan Cromwell has taken a keen interest in your achievements in Moongold town and wants to Thank you for your support in the town. He has decided to take you on a hunting operation. (Accept this quest to go on the hunting operation in the underworld of Kalp.) Objective: Show your skills to the Viscount. Rewards: Achievement: Viscount''s recognition (Rare), A new quest, Access to the unique trade shop of Viscount, additional rewards based on performance in the hunt. Failure conditions: 1) Death during hunt, 2) Failing to get viscount''s recognition, 3) If it is revealed that the Slime (Az) possesses elementalism affinity to the viscount, the quest would be deemed a failure. ============ It was a simple quest, however, the last listed unique failure condition caught their eye. [{ "Seems like it was the right call to not tell him, Elio." }] Alex was smiling at him, which definitely indicated how she already knew how revealing the unique power of the little slime could be a bad idea. [{ "If you put these little one''s life in danger, Alex, I won''t forgive you." }] That was his warning, though he was still not showing any sign of negative emotions on his face. He was a great actor, that was the only reason she didn''t hesitate to play pranks like these. [{ "Hehe. Didn''t I tell you about Eve? Andrew''s daughter? Apparently she''s an elementalist with a special condition where she couldn''t use Mana even though she can perceive it and store it inside her body. She can communicate with the spirits, but it has been proven impossible for her to actually make any contract with these spirits¡­ and apparently, she also has affinity for water attribute." }] [{ "And you''re telling me that right now?" }] For a moment, he forgot all about acting and looked at her with a glare. Then he shook his head and accepted the quest. "It would be our honor to assist you, Lord viscount." She knew about all this, she knew that Az was the perfect Medium for his daughter. ''It is well known just how much he loves his daughter yet she was doing this?'' He couldn''t believe it. She was practically putting the little slime''s life in danger. [{ "It''s alright even if Eve comes in contact with Az, right? I''m pretty sure we aren''t going back without meeting her today." }] She was a crazy woman, but he knew she loved him too much to mess with the ones around him. She wouldn''t put the little creature''s life in danger here. He didn''t want to separate from the first ever friend that he had made in this world. And this quest aside, he sure as hell was not going to let a viscount or any kind of noble take his precious friend away from him. [{ "Don''t worry, haha. She can perceive the spirits but she won''t be able to tell the spirits that she is feeling are following Az specifically. And even if she does perceive it, she''s just a nine year old. Az will have to be with her for hours for her to confirm the spirits are, in fact, following the slime." }] S§×arch* The novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And that wasn''t going to happen, as she knew. "Well then, I''ll be looking forward to seeing you two tomorrow morning as well." He was a noble that had all the power to forcefully take Az away from them. And, he would do it as well since his daughter was struggling every day just because she cannot do magical things even while being the child of two exceptional mages. If he needed to deal with two low level foreigners, he wouldn''t really care about it as long as he could see the bright smile on his daughter''s face. And, she wanted to meet these two creatures everyone was talking about anyway. How would a child have any understanding of the situation they were in? "Oh. Now that you are done with the talk, would you two like some tea? Or are you a Coffee person like him?" Tea was the prominent refreshment among the noble ladies of the empire, while coffee was famous among the men. "I''ll have coffee." "I''d like some tea, thank you." But the opposite was true between the two of them. "Oh?" If they were given the option like this, Elio would always prefer tea since he had always been a tea person, while coffee was somewhat a lifeline for Alex. "Alright then~. Please wait here just a minute." Instead of telling the servants, the viscountess stood up, and almost ran to the back. There was no need for her to do it herself when there were almost three people present just in this hallroom, ready to serve them, but she was doing it herself, which was also a show of admiration of a sort. "My daughter has been looking forward to meeting you as well as these two little ones for a while now¡­ will it be alright to ask you to wait here until she wakes up?" "Oh, yes." "We don''t mind at all. In fact, it would be nice to make acquaintance with the famous Lily of Cromwell." They already knew about the little one and were looking forward to meeting her as well, but since they also had to go shopping for the new quest that would start tomorrow, they had to get back soon so that they could finish some work they had in the city. They also had to go to the bird sanctuary of Kalp to find a partner for Misha¡­ but it didn''t seem to be possible for now. "Seems like my little lily is famous." He had a smile on his face that was typical of fathers. His well maintained light blue hair and the long yellowish hair of his partner had resulted in a dull fresh green in their daughter. While instead of his crimson eyes that he got from his mother or his wife''s midnight black eyes, his daughter had received the previous viscount''s, his father''s deep eyes. She was a little child that was famous all throughout the southwest region of the kingdom thanks to the many things that her father had done for her, and because of her. "Oh, speaking of little Lily, it seems like she''s finally awake." They couldn''t tell, but his highly developed senses picked up a presence walking down from the third floor of their house. "It seems you two won''t have to wait as long as you thought¡­" It wasn''t her waking time since it was still early morning for them, but it seems like she woke up early. It was good for them anyway, but from a father''s perspective¡­ this wasn''t good behavior. She needed sleep. Proper sleep of at least nine hours every single night. Chapter 166 - 166: The Eve "I didn''t expect them to be so cool." Unlike their expectations, the little girl did not come down running when she saw the two of them and these two special creatures. Well, she did hurry down as soon as she saw them and came to her father to ask him if they were the ones she had been looking forward to meeting. She even asked his permission to play with them after she greeted Elio and Alex in a graceful manner. "A slime''s mucus body is mostly made by a simple natural membrane that varies depending on their kind and type, but they are unique creatures so not all slimes are the same." He was telling her about the slimes as well as about the Mana beasts that are practically made of Mana. "Miu¡­" "Miu''s saying you''re pretty, Miss Eve." She was like a princess from the fairytales. A short stature of a nine year old, fresh green hair that seemed to have never been cut almost touching the floor, eyes that were far deeper than Alex''s eyes, a unique aura that made her much like her father, while the bright smile she had resembled her mom''s. "Oh? You think I''m pretty? You''re pretty as well." Eve Andrew Deborah Cromwell. The famous child of the Cromwell viscounty, the precious gem that was famous all throughout the north west. "Miu~." As pretty and adorable as she might be, there was a unique maturity in her behavior. The two of them who had seen children grow up before their eyes knew well how this precious child could have experienced things that were beyond that of her own age. "Muuuuu~." "Az says you''re pretty as well. It wants to touch your hair, if it''s not a problem." "Oh, of course not. You want to see my hair, little one?" She was a calm child, the pureness in her eyes and the unique kind of calmness she had as she looked at the two little creatures was quite something as well¡­ [{ "Is that longing, Alex?" }] Elio could tell there was something this little girl wanted. ''She''s not a simple child, and being from noble families while having completely different characteristics than the people around you is quite a difficult thing.'' He knew it well. Complicated things were never his cup of tea. [{ "That''s not longing, Elio¡­ well, it is longing, but I think it''s more like a wish. She wants to have something but she knows she cannot have it. These two little creatures have it, or more like they were born that way. And, she''s envious of them." }] She cannot Use Mana even though she had it and could feel it in the surroundings¡­ The natives called it [Mana release syndrome] but the players had a different name for it. [{ "The [Curse of Mana]... it''s not fair how someone cannot do what they could do well just because of a condition." }] [{ "It''s a natural condition, Elio. she was born with it, and there is nothing one can do to change that." }] There was no cure to what is part of your being itself. There was no way to cure or treat it since it wasn''t an illness but how her body functioned. [{ "I know. I''m just¡­ sad." }] If this was reality, they could associate this condition with an abnormal physiological anomaly caused by gene mutation. And, there was no cure for such conditions even in their modern society. These things weren''t something they could cure. They were simply how one was born. [{ "Don''t be sad, dummy. Just look at her¡­ she knows her condition, she knows she will never be able to use magic like the rest of you, yet she is smiling." }] Eve of Cromwell¡­ She had seen magic and magical elements all her life. Her father, a magic knight, could use his spells unlike most of the people present in this kingdom. And though not as special as him, her mother was also a simple mage that had her own unique magic. Both of them were amazing people, and since she had lived with these amazing people, this little girl most certainly never had a simple life. [{ "If you are sorry or something about this child, don''t be. She doesn''t need your pity." }] In Alex''s eyes, this little girl was a warrior. A valkyrie that had fought against her natural limitations all her life. "Miu~!" S§×ar?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Muuu~!" "Hehehe, hey that tickles~." She was good with these little creatures, and they liked her as well. "Do you two want some snacks?" "Oh, no. We will directly have our lunch later." "Is that so?" The viscountess seemed sad that they weren''t going to stay for as long as she wished them to. But, it was alright. She knew they were going to come back soon anyway so, for now, she just smiled at her little girl that had a slime and a little gecko playing on her hair. "She''s adorable¡­" She was still in her night clothes, there was a teddy bear with diamond as its eyes with her when she came down, but now she was happily playing with their little friends. She liked them, she liked their owner and the pretty looking sister sitting before her as well, but for now, she was busy playing with the little creatures. She could tell just how amazing these creatures were from the pure and abundant Mana they possessed, and even without that energy, she could tell these two were different from their kind. "Isn''t she?" They were like her in a way, unique entities that could not be considered normal even from an abnormal perspective. "Hehehe." Both of them now knew why she might be so precious to this person sitting before them. And, since they understood it, they knew they would have to be extra careful about everything they do. "Oh, looks like our guests will have to leave soon." Her mom knew they had to leave soon, so she started preparing for their departure. They would have to leave for work with her husband early in the morning, so they must have a lot of things they needed to take care of. She understood that. And, the two of them were thankful for her help. Chapter 167 - 167: On a not-so-fine dawn In the Great city of preservation, another dawn broke, spreading its gentle warmth. The wide streets of the city were painted with the first rays of the shining morning sun, the old yet sturdily standing houses were painted with the light of a new day, making it seem like someone had just blown colors into a vintage black-white painting. It was morning, so the citizens that woke up, picked up their tools as the sounds of chiseling and whistling filled the air when these artisans began their daily work. -Swiiiiiiiiiish¡­ Just like every morning, as the sun rose, the once asleep town came back to life with the scent of freshly baked bread and roasting meats, sounds of stone carving artisans, as well as normal people who were starting their daily lives. -Booooooooooom! The central square of the Kalp was home to a majestic stone fountain that could not be compared to the fountain they had in either Moongold or in Yuta. Crafted by an ancient stone, this pure white stone fountain was three times the size of the fountains one could find in the towns around this city. S~ea??h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. -Oooooooooooooooong¡­! The fountain was a magical piece of artistry, crafted by the hands of the various renowned artists with their combined efforts over a decade in the past. If one looked close enough, they could see the various different styles of the creators of this fine masterpiece. "Ughhh!" "TO THE RIGHT¡­!" -BOOOOOOOM¡­! In the markets of Kalp, just like every Normal day, the artisans proudly displayed their creations in wooden stalls, showcasing delicately crafted wooden figurines, intricately carved wooden boxes, and beautifully crafted stone statues. It was a sight to behold for those who were new in this amazing city, however for those who had been in this fine place for some time, this sight would be something as common as the bright morning sky. -Bang! Bang! Bang! -Clank! Clank! Clank! The sound of hammering grows louder with each hourly bell, signaling the start of another day''s work in Kalp''s many workshops. -BOOOOOOOM! However, the trimmers that fail to make their way to the ground above are never perceived by the common citizens that live a rather simple life in this vast city¡­ [{ "I was not expecting this when we received this Quest, Alex!" }] [{ "Neither was I! Now shut up and give me a buff!" }] -Booooooooooom! As the sun reaches its peak, the town is bathed in a warm, golden light. While at the same time, under the feet of everyone, under the houses that have been standing here since the inception of this city, in the underworld¡­ yet another orange flash of explosives graces the outsiders. [{ "Alex. On your left! Odin! Assist her!" }] The air above was filled with laughter and chatter as people gathered to socialize and enjoy each other''s company. While at the same time, in the underworld that had been changing every single day since the inception of Kalp, yet another bloodbath was unfolding. -Swish! Swish! Swish! -Boooooooooom! -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiish! [{ "Miss Alex-." }] [{ "Less talking more killing, Mister knight!" }] All of this started when the two of them met Viscount Cromwell right before dawn and traveled with him as well as his party to a certain corner of the back alley. He was leading a group of six knights and three battle mages, all who had achieved their first awakening and all of them combined were a kind of force that could take on an entire dungeon all by themselves if they wanted. [{ "Alright, now, Alex. Start kiting them." }] [{ "Alright!" }] [{ "H-hey! What do you mean by-." }] [{ "Just shut up and do what you are told! This is not the time to talk!" }] But, they weren''t going to any dungeon or to any forest area, or even to any Fields. They were going to a different kind of place that not many people knew about, a place that existed right beneath their feet. -Swiiiiiiiiiiish! "Yeeee¨Cghahahahah!" The underground underworld of the city of preservation, the place that had been the only element of this city that had been changing almost every single day since the city was created. The home to the criminals, the area that produced some of the largest profits for the city, as well as the place where the viscount spent most of his time when he wasn''t working. [{ "Elio! We will need Sera''s help!" }] [{ "I know! But just bring a bunch of them here so that we can decrease the load all at once! I''ll call her out after I have some Mana to spare!" }] This underworld, unlike it is the case with most of the places, was not the darkside of Kalp. Yes it was a different place compared to what this city was all about, but it was still an important part of the city since it allowed this city to truly remain unchanging. [{ "Alright!" }] -Swish! It was a place created by the first Masters of Kalp, the ancestors of Cromwell, and it has always been a traditional duty for them to watch over this small village-sized place. -Ooooooooooong! The people that lived here were different from people who didn''t even know the existence of this place. They were delinquents, they were troublemakers, they were unconventional thinkers that could not live in the enclosed nature of the society that existed above. The ideas they had were unique and different, radical and certainly something that would cause a lot of distress among the people that loved the peace that they had. -Booooooooooom! The first masters had foreseen the possibility of something like this in their time. They knew if the city were to remain unchanging, then there would undoubtedly be some elements that would want to break out of it and go out into the vast world with unhealthy ideas that could cause trouble in not just the city above, but in the world outside the city walls as well. [{ "Alright! Elio, get ready!" }] The first masters of the Kalp sent any kind of troublemaker or potential threat to this underground where they could do whatever they wanted. Some of them turned into criminals that made the life of the other people living here a hell, while the others ended up becoming an asset that had a great value to this city, as well as to those who understood their unique styles. -Oooooooooooong! It wasn''t the Lord''s job to look after these delinquents and troublemakers, but the Viscount of this generation found it fun to occasionally come down here and take care of some matters through a fun hunting game. And, though rare, sometimes he would also invite some special candidates to join him, and assign them the task He was here to take care of. [{ "On the count of three!" }] [{ "Alright! Odin! Get out of the way!" }] He had a perfect playground to evaluate the talent and potential someone had. And this time around, he had brought Three Foreigners to help him deal with an individual that had been a high value asset to the City until just a few weeks ago. [{ "What''s¡­ what''s happening?!" }] [{ "Three!" }] [{ "Shut up and move!" }] [{ "Two!" }] -Ooooooooooong¡­! But then he went over to the dark side¡­ and now, with a heavy heart, it was time for this city to let go of the only [Marionette] they have Ever had. Chapter 168 - 168: Odin (1Hr proper to descend¡­) "Oh, Master Elio, Lady Alex." They were meeting the Viscount early in the morning, yet he looked even more intimidating than yesterday. "Greetings, Lord Andrew." "Morning~." Yesterday, the viscount told them to be more casual around him. He allowed them to use his name instead of the usual honorifics as a gesture to get closer to them, so Elio was now using his name instead of his title, however, Alex wasn''t paying any attention to his status anymore. [{ "Hey! Aren''t you being a little too casual?!" }] He asked them to be casual with him and she was doing exactly that. However, Elio didn''t like how she was even shaking his hand when they met him. [{ "He asked us to be casual darling. He should have specified what kind of casual." }] Even the knights that were with him couldn''t help their surprise when she shook the viscount''s hand. It was out of the blue. Even Viscount didn''t understand why he instinctively accepted her handshake as if it was the most natural thing he should do at that moment. "Let me introduce to the people that will be joining us today¡­" He didn''t understand why he did that. There was no reason for a noble like him to act like that in front of some low leveled new foreigner that had only a few achievements to their name. She wasn''t even a noble so it was just strange how he couldn''t even feel anything wrong with what he had just done. "Oh~. I see a player. Is he someone that will be coming with us?" This was strange, but he ignored it for the time being and focused on what was important at the moment. "Oh, that''s right. He''s someone I''ve had my eyes on for a while." There were a few battle mages in his party as well as a few knights. However, along with them, there was an individual in black armor that most certainly didn''t seem like a native. "This is Mister Odin. A dark knight with exceptional combat abilities." His dark armor was not black but it was a shade of black close to the actual black. It was shiny armor, and the person that was wearing this armor seemed to be someone in his Late twenties. "Greetings, Mister-." "That''s a cool name, mister! It''s quite refreshing to see someone using a simple name as their ID~." Elio was going to greet him normally, but Alex jumped in and shook his hand as well. And the one in knight armor actually shook it as well. Experiencing something similar to what Viscount had experienced a moment ago. "Oh? You''re welcome, I guess?" S~ea??h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Short Black hair and dark brown eyes. He seemed pretty much like those eastern people that go for the samurai path when they reach their first awakening stage. But, this person was different from them. "I''m Elio. And this is Alex¡­ please excuse her rudeness." He smacked her head and bowed to him as he apologized. Elio knew it was inappropriate, especially when the person before them had already achieved their first awakening and had a unique Class. "It''s fine. It''s no big deal." He was a [< Dark knight >] someone that could control the [Darkness], a rare kind of energy that very few people in can access. Plus, he wasn''t a swordsman like most of the knights in this game. "Haha, it seems like we will be doing the same quest~. Let''s do our best~." He was carrying around a large hammer of his own size, and he was holding it with only one hand as if this large hammer didn''t weigh anything to him at all. "Mister Odin has had experience with the underground area, however, it will be your first time so let me tell you a little about it as we walk." The viscount first introduced the rest of the party to the two heroes of Moongold who had become famous in the city recently. Then he introduced the warhammer wielding dark knight, told them how he had known him for a few months now, and finished the small talk. They would know more about one another as they continued with this quest, so the viscount didn''t have to worry about them himself. [{ "What do you think about him?" }] [{ "Can''t tell yet, but it seems like he knows his stuff. Seeing as how he has achieved his first awakening and is still in this city, it seems like he either likes this place, or there''s some reason he''s here." }] "The place we are going to exists under Kalp and only a few people could go there." They already knew about the underground underworld. Alex had already told him all about it yesterday and, though neither of them had been there, they knew what kind place it was. "A few ''special'' individuals reside there and a few ''unique'' things happen there, so I''d like it if you keep what you see there to yourself." It was early morning so the streets of the city were all pretty much empty. The shops were closed, there were no hammering sounds, and the people and children were still sleeping in their houses. There was no one around at this early hour, but they were still using spells to conceal themselves to make their morning walk simple. Their destination was already decided, but they still walked slowly. There was no need to hurry there. "Don''t worry, lol. We know how to keep things to ourselves." Alex wasn''t even following basic curtsies anymore and was chatting with him as if he was her junior or something. And the viscount didn''t even feel anything weird about it. "¡­" The fact that he was unbothered by something that would be intolerable to him usually started concerning him. But, for now, he didn''t have to worry about it. There was a bigger issue they had to take care of today. "This is the gate and once we pass through it, you will find yourself in a new place." They had reached the corner of a back alley that would take them to the underground area. They only had to pass through this one wall¡­ and then their main task would commence. Chapter 169 - 169: The Black Joker -Ooooooooooooong! The only thing viscount told them about their task was how they had to find a certain individual in a black joker outfit and kill Them before they walked through the wall. The viscount was going to watch them as the other party members took care of the other things that they needed to do in that place, and as they dealt with those things, they knew they would have to look after the other challenges that were present in this special Field. That''s right¡­ the underground area of Kalp was categorized as a ''Field''. A place that was filled with all kinds of threats. "Hmmm¡­ at least the air is fresh here." From what they knew, this place was where those with unique ideas and those who had committed crimes resided. These people were dangerous, some of them were simple people but their creations were dangerous, and then there were things that had just appeared here out of nowhere. It was a strange place that had existed since Kalp was created, and since its most basic nature was volatile, everything in this Field, including the small huts, the barren lands that they were seeing right now, to even the very ground they were standing on continuously changed. "Seems like there''s only three of us. How about we plan-." They needed to be extremely cautious since the three of them were the only ones present in this place at the moment with no trace of the other party members. They needed to look after one another and they needed to showcase their talents to fulfill their quest conditions. "Wait." The two of them at least had to show the viscount that must be watching them from somewhere what they had, and impress him without the help of their hidden cards. If possible, they were planning not to use their skills as well and just deal with the black joker with techniques and spells. "Do you sense anything?" That was at least their plan before they got to know there would be another player accompanying them, so now, they had to change their plans and center them around the person that had the most raw strength between them. "What do you mean, Mister Elio? It doesn''t-." "Oh! It looks like the field is changing!" -Oooooooooooooong! They had just arrived in this place and the field that looked like a barren wasteland was changing already. "Looks like viscount started whatever they were here for." Their objective was a certain someone in this vast field but since the field was a flatland, they only needed to go and check each of the huts that weren''t actually huts but were more like highly advanced apartments. -Ooooooooooooong! -Shrrrrrrr¡­! They just needed to find that black joker, deal with them, and showcase their talents in the process. It was an easy task, and in the process, they were planning to kill the creations of the crazy people that live here, the diabolical creations that shouldn''t exist in the sane societies. "Don''t move! Grab something and don''t fall off your block!" They thought things would be pretty straightforward since this was just the prelude of a chain quest, but that wasn''t the case. -GRGRGRGRGRGRGR¡­! Not even a few moments after they fell into this place, they were already facing a big crisis. The entire area before their eyes was changing. S~ea??h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The land that turned into cells of a building block was getting rearranged by some mysterious power and it seemed like everything that they were seeing until now was changing right before their eyes. It was strange and they didn''t understand what was going on at first. Elio and Odin were even stunned in their places. However, after Alex''s shouts, they also grabbed the first thing that met their eyes as the entire ground beneath their feet started moving. -Zaaaaaaa¡­ It was a strange phenomenon that lasted for around three minutes, and after three minutes, they were looking at something completely different than the bee before. "What the hell?" The barren landscape was replaced by a simple alley with simple two to three story buildings on both sides. "Where did these houses come from¡­?" ''If everything was divided into blocks and just got rearranged, how could new structures that weren''t there at first appear out of the blue?'' Elio questioned as he looked around the alley that he was in right now. It was strange, but since they understood this was a game world with magic, even with some logical explanation, this was certainly possible. In a place filled with creators that could manipulate the reality itself, this much was certainly possible. "Can we go inside-." "We don''t have time for all that, darling." Rein took out a sword from her inventory and got into position as soon as she sensed a strange presence in front of them. Then Elio sensed something strange as well, and prepared a spell. "Looks like we will be hunting a little bit before finding the target." This field: the underground underworld of Kalp was a rare opportunity. "Grrrrrr¡­" Just as they experienced a moment ago, there were all kinds of supernatural things in this place. Many strong individuals that they wouldn''t find in the old Kalp were present here, and many of them were special individuals that were famous all around the kingdom as well. "Do either of you have an appraisal skill?" Odin prepared his tall hammer and a unique purple lightning started crackling around it. There was an appraisal scroll in his hand, and he was ready to use it on whatever was coming their way, however, they did not need that. "It''s fine!" ============ [Green goblin replica] (Level-84) -Imperfect Biological replica of a green goblin that was enhanced with blood of various creatures. ============ They knew about a green goblin and they knew what it meant to be a replica. "What''s a chimera doing here?!" "Grrrrr¡­" Though Kalp was famous for simple carvings of various things, it wasn''t a place where just anyone could go. The citizens of Kalp either had to be a heinous criminal, or someone that had genuine unique ideas. There was a unique magic cast over the entire city that automatically sent the people that met a set criteria to this place, and here¡­ they had no restrictions. "Get ready!" Sometimes, they would create something that would help the world while sometimes they would fail and end up creating something dangerous that would sometimes just wander around in this place. "GRRRRRRR!" This ''goblin'' that looked like a Red Orc was an example of such unique creations that wandered this field. Coming across it out of the blue would be a death sentence for those who weren''t strong enough or weren''t prepared to face something like this. But¡­ [{ "Elio, Boost." }] For the people like these three who had been ready for any kind of fight ever since they got here, this was simply the beginning of a fun game¡­ -Oooooooooooong! The Mobs in this place were quite high in level and, since they had the help of a big dark knight as well, they knew they would farm at least a level or two from this quest. Chapter 170 - 170: During their search (6Hr following the descent.) "So, you''ve been here for three months now?" "Yeah¡­" After killing the green goblin with not too much difficulty, they killed 101 more chimeras, monsters of alchemical origin, creatures made from wood and metal, things that weren''t even monster like but were ''creatures'' and some undead that gave them a bunch of exp. But after that, they were tired and made a safe zone for themselves to regain their strength. "What kind of quest are you doing that you came to Kalp of all places? I don''t think there''s anything related to the Dark knights here." Alex was cooking for them, and Elio was taking a nap after his head started hurting from excessive spell usage, so Odin and Alex were chatting as they prepared for their lunch. "I cannot tell you the details, Miss. And besides, why is it that I''m the only one that has been doing the talking? Tell me something about yourself as well¡­ How''s that someone with such a low level as you can use a sword even better than many high level sword users I''ve seen? And how can Mister Elio cast five spells at once at that level? I don''t think that''s supposed to be possible." S§×arch* The N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Yet here we are. Present in flesh." He told them how he was doing a unique quest that required him to get close to the viscount and get something from his treasury. He had been doing all kinds of things to get the attention of the viscount since he got here a few months ago. And he was genuinely jealous of these two when he learned the two of them were the people that saved Moongold¡­ along with many others, of course, but they were the prime contributors. And for that simple achievement, they were directly meeting the viscount when he had to spend weeks and months to build up any kind of affinity with him. "Are you some kind of ranker doing a unique quest? Are you actually high level or something?" He was one of the many that had heard about how these two had saved Moongold from a dark mage at a low level. It was known that their levels weren''t even in their thirties when they fought the high level Mage. And yet right now, they are over (Level-60) and that shouldn''t be possible. There was a limit to power leveling so, if they were actually the people that had saved the Town, their levels didn''t really make any sense. "No, no lol. We aren''t any hidden rankers or anything. I mean, yes I''m doing a special quest of my own, but he''s new. He doesn''t even know half the things about the community." He surely was a strong person now, but Elio was simply a new player in this world. He still had a ton of things to learn, and that was visible in his lack of battle experience. "Hmmm¡­" Odin surely thought both of them were making their levels at first since, under the circumstances, they had revealed a few things about one another. But now that he thought back to the various battles they have had with those weird things all this while, he could tell the insurmountable difference between his and Alex''s level of experience, and the little experience Elio had with complicated battles involving terrain movements. "You don''t use that fancy looking sword either¡­ is that a quest item or just a decorative sword?" "Oh, no. It''s a quest item. But it''s kind of hard to explain what this is." From Elio''s observation until now, he had reached the conclusion that this person, Odin, was actually a pretty decent man. He was a dark knight, but since he had gained this class recently, he didn''t really know about his own powers yet. "A lot of things are complicated about you two, I guess." From their levels to their highly synergistic battle style. The strange spells that he was using with that stranger spell casting technique and even the sword techniques Alex was using¡­ none of it was simple. "We can tell you about us over lunch but there''s nothing much fun we have done yet, you know? It''s only been a few weeks since he started playing." Alex and Elio¡­ "It''s better if it''s not a long chat anyway." Though they were unique people with unique circumstances, he didn''t mind hearing about a couple''s experience in this special world. If anything, he wanted to know about them. "Sure then¡­" They talked a little more and finished lunch preparations before waking Elio up. Then they all ate their lunch, talked about one another a little more, and when they were done with their food, they went out of their little safe zone barricaded by the dead bodies of creatures they had dealt with until now. "We''ve checked the south and west sides, so let''s go north this time." They were looking for a black joker or a person wearing a black joker outfit. They had cracked all kinds of places and met all kinds of psychopaths that threw weapons and bombs at them or made their ''pets'' chase them, but none of them was a black joker. "Elio, do you see anything from up there?" "No!" Alex was walking on the street while Elio was jumping from one rooftop to the other with his assistance spell. Odin was on the ground walking a few feet away from Alex in case something happened. He was looking at the back line, Alex was looking for the black joker, and Elio was looking at everything with his sharp eyes. But they had not found anything until now. "Oh wait. I see another house!" The old connected rooftops were the only things that they had found until now and most of these places were either empty or were filled with a bunch of wild monsters. But there were some isolated houses where the crazy psychopaths or people that were unbothered by their presence there lived. They had found a bunch of these houses until now, and after checking all of them¡­ they all just prayed that this one belonged to the target the three of them were looking for. Chapter 171 - 171: A crazy puppeteer "Hello there¡­" They didn''t knock on the door but on the window before they just broke it down with the sheath of their sword. -Craaaak! "Anyone here~?" They entered through the window as they had done until now, but unlike how they had experienced until now, they were not attacked by curses or tools of the people. There wasn''t any screams as there were in a few of these places and there also wasn''t any security trigger that appeared when they entered. "What the hell?" When they were inside, the only thing they saw was a bunch of dolls and a few stuffed animals¡­ and by stuffed, it means creatures killed and then stuffed with cotton. Taxidermy as they call it, was a process in which the stuffed creatures were made into toys¡­ and there were a bunch of small ones present in this room. "Is anyone home?!" Alex was shouting since there didn''t seem to anyone present here, but as soon as she shouted, they all heard footsteps coming their way, and got into their position. Elio even cast a grace spell on Odin just in case they have to directly engage in battle. -Step. Step. Step. [{ "Be prepared¡­" }] They were tired after those last few hours of killing and wandering around. This place wasn''t too big, there shouldn''t be more than a few hundred people present and they had already disturbed a few dozen of them. -Click! They were after a black joker, someone that either wore something like a black joker outfit or had something that would relate to the black joker. That was at least what they were looking for, but they did not know what their target was. "Who''s there?" It was an old voice. "If you''re here for something, I don''t have anything of worth in this room! Please go away!" It seemed like a very old voice. And, from how this person was holding the door without opening it, it was clear that they were afraid of whatever or whoever was behind those doors. "Hello?" Odin put his hammer down, and Alex lowered her guard as Elio called out to the old voice. "Apologies, looks like we ended up in the wrong place. Can you help us, mister?" The voice they were hearing was an old voice of a simple sounding person. "Why are you here?" The door crack opened and an old man, with wrinkled face, a short stature, with a cane in his hand walked inside. He was looking at the intruders that broke his window and were standing there with weapons in their hands. And, seeing this, seeing the shattered glass on the ground, he couldn''t help his anger! "Do you people know just how costly these things are these days!" The old grandpa shouted at them, and looked at each one of them one by one! "How are you going to pay me back?!" The old face of the grandpa became red, and red, and it continued becoming more and more red as a second passed. "Something''s wrong!" A face as red as that wasn''t biologically possible, so Alex knew something was definitely wrong with this thing. She can tell there was something very wrong with this place as well since each one of the dolls that they were seeing right now to each one of the taxidermy dolls that they were seeing seemed to be looking at them. "How will you pay me back!" The red face became so red that it couldn''t be more red than what it already was and¡­ popped like a balloon! { "How dare you destroy my property!" } Then a Mana voice reverberated all throughout the room and, all them knew something was very wrong with this place. "Get out of here!" S~ea??h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Mana volume of the entire room skyrocketed in an instant, Elio was almost freezed into his place. -Oooooooooooooong! The things that they were seeing in the room, including the headless body of the old grandpa stood up and glared at them with a strange light in their eyes. [{ "It''s a Marionette!!" }] Alex shouted as soon as she dragged Elio out of that place! -Boooooooooom! The body of the old man that had been growing red until now exploded as well, but unlike the head that popped like a balloon, this one exploded like a bomb! { "How dare you?!" } Soon, out of the blue, the dolls that were glaring at them also jumped outside the house and started changing into something else. -Oooooooooooooong! "It''s dangerous! Odin! Get away!" Elio cast a speed boosting spell on Odin so that he could get away from these strange creatures and dolls, but he was late. -Swish¡­! "Ugh!" The simple human dolls were turned into tall full sized human mannequins! The animals turned into creatures that had an unnatural number of eyes and limbs, and that wasn''t even the worst of it! { "Did that viscount send you?! That viscount sent you didn''t he?!" } A strange thing walked out of the floor door of the house¡­ a thing that they couldn''t call a human or doll or something inanimate. { "That bastarddddddddddd¡­!" } It seemed like those strange dark monsters that doesn''t have any definition to their bodies, a black shadow that only had strange red eyes and a white mouth with two rows of sharp white teeth. A body that seemed to be made from a dark energy¡­ a dark energy that Odin recognised well. "Looks like this is it!" He was on a quest to find a being that was not human, not demon, not spirit, and not something like the dwarves or elves. This was a being that was born of darkness, a being that had lived a simple human life until now, and a being that had forgotten its true origin. "Is that the joker, Alex?!" "Are you blind?!" By outline, it seemed like a joker without a hat, and by color¡­ it was as fucking black as the void! And, there were red threads coming out of his hands! [{ "Scatter! Elio! You''re on your own!" }] Out of the blue, the enemies they were facing had become ten times what they had been fighting until now, and that wasn''t even the end. More were coming out of the house, and turning into creatures that seemed to be from the deaths of hell! -Booooooooooooooom! This wasn''t what they thought would be the scene when they meet a ''Joker''! That creature wasn''t even human! ¡­technically. [{ "What do we do now?!" }] The creatures that were turning into multi-eyes multi-limbed beings of hell were simply the interpretation of various emotions of their creator. The one operating them was the puppeteer in black! And what they were fighting against¡­ was a field Boss ranked creature of (Level-112). [{ "What can we even do, fuck?! Start Running for now!" }] Just a single target would have been fine as well, but with all these things that weren''t even creatures that give Exp but simple Tools of the puppeteer¡­ this wasn''t a battle anymore. It was a one sided chase that they knew was wayyyyy beyond their current levels! Chapter 172 - 172: End of a chase When they broke into the house of this crazy being, they didn''t think they would be fighting something as weird as this thing. They were practically fighting an endless swarm of monsters, a never ending misery that wasn''t even leaving them alone! -Boooooooom! They ran but these creatures chased after them. They exploded and some of the creatures that were created by the dolls of that dark thing even used a strange kind of magical power to deal various kinds of damage to them. It was strange at first, but by the time they got used to fighting these strange things, they knew they were fighting what they could not kill with simple methods. [{ "You were here for the seed of darkness. I understand why you would go to such lengths now." }] Odin was a dark knight that had received a class quest when he got his class a while back and when he came here, he was searching for this very fragment- or the ''seed'' that had turned a human into that dark creature which now controlled all these dangerous beings. It was a high level individual that knew their art, but with the power of Darkness that they were using, a Pure power of nature that was more like Mana than the dark power that the Dark mages use. By nature, both of these powers were very similar, however, if one thought about it, they were quite different from one another. Unlike the dark power that was corrupt and was a sign of evil, the darkness that had now devoured this individual was the power that Dark knights and Necromancers used in order to interact with the Dark Souls that exist in a similar realm to the Guardian spirits and the elemental spirits. These beings were powerful by nature, but unlike the evil beings that existed in a completely different realm, these souls were individuals that had embraced the darkness in its purest form. They were followers of a certain part that indicated the eternal finality of everything, thus being the same as any other path strider of this world, or someone with a certain kind of Goal and ambitions. -Ooooooooooooong! Darkness was a powerful force, like Aura. However, not everyone possessing it could handle its nature. [{ "I think you''re right, Miss Alex. It seems like you know about this, so I''ll be selfish and ask for your cooperation in this case. I need that seed and extracting it from that person will only be possible after we defeat him! He has already lost his sanity, there''s no way to save them anymore!" }] When someone who was blessed by the dark side was chosen as an agent of darkness, they were given a choice. They had to sacrifice something that they would obtain in the future in exchange for the power they received in that moment. sea??h th§× n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The kind of sacrifice they would have to make is up to them, however, the kind of power they receive from the Darkness is completely random. [{ "Elio, we will be going in. Get ready with Sera." }] [{ "Alright." }] Those who receive a strong physical disposition along with special skills become Dark Knights, those who receive the power of dead become Necromancers, those who wants to follow the Darkness in its purest form become (Dark Worshippers) and those who are chosen by the Gods or the Truth that form the Darkness in its entirety, receive the power of [Shadows]. Something so rare that even Alex only knew two who possessed that special power. [{ "The target has a weak defense but, even if we attack together, we will defeat them with only a long battle. And we might have to deal with all the puppets before that." }] Dealing with the puppets had been a difficult task until now so she knew the simple method wasn''t going to work. Not only Elio had to cast multiple Fusion spells and AOE spells, she even used her skills multiple times to deal with these things. Elio even revealed the existence of his servant, and they knew the people watching them from afar were now aware of her existence. But that was fine. In this moment when they had to deal with hundreds of creatures that didn''t even give any Exp, there was no time to think about things that didn''t really matter. { "That viscount! He used me for years! For decades! And when I wanted to go out of this hell, he did what?! He sent people to kill me! My children!" } Unlike Odin who had received a simple power from the Darkness, the power that this Joker had received was quite unique. Seed Of Darkness, or the permission for housing the [Embryo] of a creature born in the darkness until it reached maturity. This person had received a very special gift from the Darkness. However, they could not handle the overwhelming power that came with this gift. And, when they couldn''t handle what they were given by the primordial Path that they had walked on willingly, the newfound powers hindered their entire philosophy. { "Why must only I suffer?! What did I do to deserve this?!" } The reason he had turned into that monster Joker of darkness is because of the overwhelming contradiction that came with the Truth that was revealed to them. Subconsciously, they couldn''t accept it. And even though it didn''t get reflected outwardly, because of the contradictions, they were suffering. [{ "How much do you know about Darkness, Odin?" }] It must not have been long since he obtained this power and was subjected to this state, that much Alex knew since she had seen what happens to the [Ruptures]. [{ "I don''t know too much about it. I''ve just started learning about this¡­ why do you ask?" }] She had seen how dangerous these people could become to themselves and to this world, so she knew she had to end the suffering of this person. [{ "We will attempt to combine my Aura and your Darkness to deal the required fatal blow to him while Elio casts his magic on us. It might be dangerous for you, but it will definitely be effective!" }] To get past the remaining barricade of puppet creatures, and to deal the required damage to kill a high level being like this one was not easy. Odin and Elio both thought it would be very difficult to deal with this guy and were prepared for a long battle of attrition. But¡­ Alex knew that''s not what He was here to see. [{ "Believe me. This will be more effective." }] The quest wanted them to prove their talent and impress the Viscount. And, she knew the best way to do that in their complicated situation¡­ Chapter 173 - 173: Dark-Aura Smash Alex was explaining to Odin something very crazy right now¡­ and, Elio was just watching everything from the high building as he ran away from the creatures that were still chasing them. He was on the higher ground, jumping from one rooftop to the other, dealing damage to the creatures that came too close and avoiding the ranged attacks with his new movement skill. -Boooooooooom! The puppets that ended up exploding around him were a bad experience for him, but at the very least, they did not kill him. He did well increasing his agility and endurance stats. Without them, he didn''t know if he could have survived all those explosions, attacks, and maintained his footing. Falling down from there would result in an instant death. These dark creatures were all on the ground as well¡­ sea??h th§× n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And all of them looked disgustingly creepy. -Oooooooooong! He didn''t hate how they looked but they were certainly dangerous for them. Alex and Odin were more experienced with the terrain battles so they were jumping around the places, taking advantage of the building on both sides, destroying things and using them as blockades if needed, even doing what he mostly wouldn''t¡­ This was the first time they were fighting this type of creature, especially hundreds of them at once with the possibility of them exploding like a (tier-2) spell. [{ "It''s fascinating how one being could control so many of these creatures¡­" }] They weren''t taking help from Az and Miu. He had put them in the special inventory for the time being even though he didn''t like it. [{ "Elio! We don''t have time for chitchat! Cast all the buffs you can on us! We are going to finish this!" }] Odin explained to them why this ''person'' or the black joker was beyond saving. Elio also knew about the characteristics of darkness, and thanks to a certain incident that Alex once talked about, he knew how dangerous this matter could be. He didn''t want to kill this person, and He wasn''t going to do anything either. -Ooooooooong! But just like every time, he was going to have a hand in the death of this person. [{ "Tell me when you are ready!" }] [{ "We already are! Throw them!" }] They were being chased by a lot of puppets ever since they came out of that strange house. It was a simple house yet there were hundreds of those things and most of them even looked as real as actual taxidermy dummies. There were some human ones as well, and they made things difficult for him. He was conflicted whether this person was a good person or just a criminal that deserved death. However, whatever conclusion he might reach, he were still going to end up dead. [{ "Alright! Get on top of that platform." }] Elio prepared six pairs of spells on both of his hands, spells of grace series, and physical series. He was mostly using wind and water elements throughout the battle, but this time, he used spells of all six elements from the grace series to help them with all aspects of this one final blow! [{ "Odin!" }] [{ "Yes!" }] Winds gathered and became wings for them, flames sharpened the edges of their weapons, water enhanced their strength, earth beneath their feet became even more solid and with each step they took, the weight of their weapons increased as well. Darkness rose from their shadows and made their steps lighter, while the light around them condensed and wrapped around them. -OOOOOOOOOOONG! They were ready. { "What did I do wrong?!!" } And the target was about to lose itself in the depths of the darkness that had overwhelmed them. However¡­ [{ "Now!" }] -Zaaaaaaaa! Alex called out her radiantly colorful Aura while Odin called out the dark energy that was less ''black'' than the actual darkness that made up the Joker. [{ "Three!" }] Alex used a {Blink} and left the other creatures behind. While Odin also used his own movement skill to get ahead of the creatures behind him. [{ "Two!" }] When both of them were free from the puppets, they stepped on a platform which was a little higher than the current location of the Joker¡­ and right when they stepped on this platform, the joker''s eyes widened. { "WHAT ARE YOU DOING¡­?!" } He screamed with the loudest voice Elio had heard until now, and at the same time, a pitch black darkness exploded out of his body! [{ "Odin! Now!" }] The energy was going to materialize into a completely new puppet, one that would have contained much more strength then any puppet present there. He would have controlled this new one with even better strings, paid more attention to it and used it to kill all of them that were after him, however¡­ -Ooooooooooooooong! Alex had already jumped in the air along with Odin with her sword slashing downwards along with the giant hammer covered in a purer form of darkness. The darkness of the two distinct energies somehow found harmony as they descended towards the dark creature. { "Noooooooo¡­!" } The joker even perceived their attack, even created a barricade of red strings and smaller puppets¡­ he even used the things around him as puppets in that last moment¡­ However, it was futile. -ZAAAAAAA¡­! When the Aura and Dark Aura were combined, what came out was an energy that had only one effect on the surroundings¡­. Destruction. -Boooooooooooooom! When the smash was hit, an explosion was heard all around the field! ''Damn.'' As Elio saw, the combination of already destructive Aura with the Dark Aura of the dark knight was so powerful it literally obliterated the barricade of Puppets and red strings of the joker, and pierced right through the dark matter that was covering the actual body of the Joker. [{ "You two alive?" }] The explosion of energy was unexpected. The area around them was shattered, the puppets that were flooding the entire place were nowhere to be seen anymore, and there was now a dead human body left on the ground¡­ its face smashed with a hammer, and its body cut in half. [{ "Hopefully." }] [{ "I think I''m dead¡­ ughhh!" }] Ultimately, it seemed like all three of them, as well as Sera made it out alive. [Ding!] And as if the system was announcing it, a screen window popped up before all three of them as they lay on the ground, on top of debris, covered in blood and scars all around their bodies¡­ Chapter 174 - 174: Viscount’s recognition [Ding!] [You''ve completed the personal quest.] [You''ve earned the achievement: Viscount''s recognition (Rare)!] [You''ve earned the achievement: Savior of Darkness (Common)!] [Exp has been awarded for the total achievements!] [Ding!] [Level up!] [(Level-66) > (Level-67).] [As an additional reward for defeating the puppets of the designated target, you have received: Victory pouch [Coins: 30 Silver, 100 Copper; Potion: Healing potion (Basic) Stamina potion (Basic).] [Chain quest will be revealed soon¡­] [Viscount''s unique trade shop will become available soon...] The rewards they received were quite good. And the fact that they both received two new achievements was the best thing. The additional rewards were one thing, but the reward boxes were more important than anything else that they received, aside from the level and Exp, of course. "Haaa¡­ it was exhausting¡­" Elio walked up to Alex and looked down at her as she lay on the destroyed ground, covered in dry blood and dust. "You look like a mess." "I Am a mess¡­" He used up all his Mana so he didn''t even have anything left to cast a water attribute spell to help her clean herself. Sera was also exhausted so Elio already instructed her to go back inside her mark on his hand. She needed rest, but she declined and flew back to look around the place in case there was any danger left. "Man, that was quite something." Odin was also still stunned by what they had just done. "That was the most thrilling thing I''ve done in this game!" He was also out of all energy but there was a bright smile present on his face. His hamlet was destroyed, half of his armor was dented after enduring all those explosions and he was bleeding through his mouth and eyes¡­ but he was still smiling radiantly. "Are you a solo player, Odin?" S~ea??h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Alex somehow sat down with Elio''s help and looked beside her at the dark knight that had achieved his goal. The quest from the viscount must have been completed, but since the seed of darkness that was present in the body of the now dead Joker was still present there, his main main task should still be pending. But that was beside the point. "Yes¡­ well, I don''t have any special friends or anything. I just like playing by myself. It''s only been two months IRL time since I started actually so I''ve not met anyone special." was a special game that almost everyone throughout the world knew about. Around thirty percent of the world population was playing this game in this era, and new players that had not joined it in the last few years due to their own circumstances were still joining this world every day. Be it young people that were just becoming eligible for playing this game or had gathered enough money to purchase a head gear, were the main population of the new players. But, occasionally, even older people like him joined in on this fun world. "Is that so? Then, why did you start playing? To earn money or something?" The equipment that he had was pretty basic and seemed to be purchased from this very city or rewards from the quests. He wasn''t like the normal players and like Olive, he seemed to be an old fashioned man. "Not really for money, though money definitely is a great factor in this game. Well¡­ to tell you the truth, I was working in a good position until recently so I didn''t really have any interest in games or anything." "This is your first VR game?" Now that was surprising for both of them. He was somewhat like Elio. "Yes¡­ you can say that." He was still laying on the floor, but, right after he said that, he felt a familiar presence from nearby and instinctively raised his body. "Looks like you''re bonding¡­ we should have waited a little longer." It was a familiar voice. A deep familiar voice that they all recognised instantly and looked in the direction it had come from. "Lord Andrew¡­" Elio looked at him with an upset gaze, while Alex was already pouting. "Hey! Why didn''t you tell us it''s going to be so dangerous?!" He was a noble and yet she was shouting at him again. "Mind your words, Lady!" The informal talk was something the knights and the battle mages still overlooked, but this kind of informal way of talking to him was unacceptable! They couldn''t tolerate it. And ended up raising their voice. "It''s alright." However the viscount didn''t mind her words. "That''s right. We should have given you some more information. I apologize." "Hmm?" "¡­" Until now, he had only shown them his tough act and his noble side, but for the first time, he was being humble before them. And, that apology was something that was unexpected even for Alex. "I''ll make sure you have all the information we do the next time." He was saying he would be more transparent with his quests the next time¡­ which actually meant he wasn''t going to test them anymore. "I''d appreciate it if we can continue this cooperative relationship." Relationship¡­ [{ "Is this his recognition? Does this mean we are closer now?" }] [{ "Of course, dummy." }] They had to get the recognition of the viscount to finish their quest, and they did get it at this moment. They proved their worth, and that worth was something too precious for even this person¡­ "Ah, looks like you got hurt a little." Viscount Andrew Cromwell. He was a mage knight. A knight that could wield magic. -Ooooooooooooong! It was known that he had mastered various spells of the Destruction series and even knew various basic spells of the rest of the series. He had fought in the wars alongside the person he followed, so he was an experienced mage. "There. Is it better now?" Casting a healing spell was no big deal for him. "Much better. Thanks." Alex was being informal again, but the two others with her were genuinely surprised how all the wounds were healed in an instant. They even got cleaned up, as if someone had washed them with a few buckets of water without them knowing. "Well then¡­ now that our work is taken care of, how about we all go back? Staying here isn''t the best thing at the moment." Someone that had lived in this underground for a long time was killed¡­ the other inhabitants and The ones that changed the structure of this place every other day weren''t going to like it. "Oh, but before that¡­ you should claim what you''ve worked so much for, Mister Odin." There was a dead body that was already decomposing. However beside this dead body, there was an Embryo¡­ a pulsating life that was searching for a host. "Thank you¡­ Lord viscount." This little dark Crystal wasn''t anything simple. It was very valuable, and precious. "It is what you have been looking for. It is only right that you have it." He could have very well claimed this precious thing as his own and made an enormous profit off of it. But, he didn''t do what many other lords would have done in this situation. He did what was right¡­ just like how he had done for most of his human life. Chapter 175 - 175: Bonding (POV: Odin.) (PS: Voice: He is a Dark Knight.) It took me a long time to search for any clues related to the ''Bright Darkness'' that was mentioned in the quest I received even before I became a Dark knight. ''Was it during the tutorial? I think right after the tutorial, right?'' I didn''t find it strange that I was getting a quest out of the blue right after finishing the Tutorial quest. It was a simple thing for someone like me who didn''t even know much about these games and these worlds and the settings and what not¡­ ''Yes I did my research, I surely read all the things I needed to- the guides and the tutorials- some of my colleagues used to play this game so I have heard about it in the past as well.'' So I didn''t think much about this unique quest at that time, but after learning a little more about this game and understanding how the quests in general were a rare thing in this world, especially the ones that one received out of the blue, I was quite confused why I would have gotten this quest. The quest didn''t have many details. It was worded vaguely as well. ''It wanted me to go to the city that was living in its original state.'' The quest didn''t reveal a lot of things, and kept pointing me in some direction¡­ "Go Odin~. Hahaha~. Elio, watch closely~. Something fun is going to happen." I can hear Miss Alex''s voice¡­ she was not like the players that I''ve met until now. ''Rankers¡­ or do they call them the High rankers?'' She was different from any kind of player I had met. She was more like those regressors on manhwa that know about the things that will happen or have far more experience compared to their low level and weak self. She was different from anyone I''ve met, and her partner, Elio was the same. ''I''ve not seen someone use a Sword like she does, not even in the videos.'' And casting six spells and combining them into one spell? Casting two pairs of six spells of different elements at once? ''Is that even legal?'' If I was new to this game, I would think they were using some kind of bug or cheat. ''I actually would have believed at least Elio is using some kind of hacks or cracked additional code.'' Sadly, that wasn''t the case. In a place that was practically an actual world, the ''hacking'' concept couldn''t exist in the first place. ''There was a very unique class that worked with space-time and was too sci-fi to fit into this medieval theme here, and Elio certainly didn''t have that class.'' He was simply a mage, or something else like a mage. ''He just possessed tremendous talent.'' It''s not everyday you meet special people like these two. Elio even had a special servant, so I can''t even imagine what kind of force these two were going to grow into in the upcoming future¡­ ''I have to maintain this connection we have at least.'' After being kicked out, the need for cash is constant. And with acquaintances like these two, who knows? ''I might actually strike it big.'' It was just a wish but hey, a thirsty longs for a paradise, right? "Alright." The quest brought me here. It forced me to get close to the viscount. Thanks to this quest, I spent a big part of my time here doing various things for viscount and I was happy when the quest window said this quest from the viscount would be the final task. ''I knew I was looking for something.'' I knew the quests wanted me to look for something and most of the things I did were somehow related to that. Until now, I didn''t know what I was looking for¡­ however¡­ -Psssssss¡­ The moment I saw that person covered in that dense Darkness, I felt something strange deep inside my heart. It was a strange feeling¡­ I knew what I was Searching for so long at that moment as well. "Should I just pick it up?" "It''s fine, Odin! Just pick it up!" She seemed to know something that I don''t once again but, I don''t know if she knows what''s going on with me, or why I was still feeling so¡­ so, hot. This strange feeling in my heart¡­ In my soul, if I can say that¡­ "Alright then." The little crystal that was the only thing remaining after the decomposition of the former Joker''s body. This little crystal that he was gifted with. It was a living being. A creature born from nature, from darkness itself. "Hello." Picking the little crystal up carefully and gently, feeling the strange sensation intensifying inside of me, I looked at the beautiful movements of darkness inside this jewel. It was beautiful. And, for some reason, it seems like it''s happy to see me as well. -Oooooooooooong. When I picked it up, my raging heart started calming down. A strange sensation washed over me. S§×ar?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. I felt as if¡­ as if¡­ -OOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG! As if I was liberated. -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiish! I was looking at the crystal a moment ago, and the very next moment, I found myself in an endless void. Underneath my feet, there was black water. In front of me, there was a dark sky starching endlessly on all sides. And dividing all of this, was the surface of the black water¡­ or, the faint silver light being reflected on its surface. ''What''s happening¡­'' I wanted to think something like that, but I didn''t. I couldn''t. There was no need to¡­ -Step. Step. Step. My heart was serene at this moment. -Step. Step. I could Feel footsteps inside of me. Footsteps of not a human¡­ but of a being that seemed to have been part of my long lost soul. -Step. I did not blinked, yet, something appeared before my eyes out of the blue. < ¡­ > And, seeing it¡­ seeing this being, somehow made me tear up. < Master? > A silver horse, a Colt. A being that only had a silver outline, and a body made up of the same darkness as the one present around me. "Now I understand¡­" I instinctively moved forward, and caressed the mane of the gorgeous being that¡­ as they say, was my Soulmate. "Now I understand what they call it¡­ Bonding." I placed my head on its young face. It was cool. Not cold, just cool¡­ < Master? > "You don''t have to call me that¡­" He wasn''t my servant, nor was he going to be my slave. < Then? > "How about Odin? That''s what everyone will call me in this world." < Odin¡­ > He''s young. Just like his pure voice. "That''s right. Ah¡­ you''re going to need a name as well, right?" < Name¡­ My name¡­? > "Yes, haha. Your name." It has been a month since I reached (Level-100). Perhaps, that was also the time I got an actual clue to the purpose of this strange quest. "How about¡­ Sleipnir." It would be funny, but that would be quite lore accurate as well. < Sleipnir¡­ it sounds strong. > "Well, that it is." He doesn''t have eight legs, but I know¡­ I know he is going to become very strong. < We like it. > And I''m going to be the fortunate one to be there with him as he makes his existence known to this world¡­ Chapter 176 - 176: The bystander "There are times when one''s soul resonates with a being born from nature at such a deep level that the world itself leads that individual towards that one being." Alex had figured out something from the small hints that Odin gave off starting with the quest information that he shared with them. ''This wasn''t the first part of the quest.'' When she heard him talk about his unique quest as if it was nothing, she knew there was something more to this whole thing than what met her eyes. She thought and as she observed him, how he was so adapted to fighting even after not being a one year old in this world, she knew there was a unique force that was helping him. However, as a veteran, she knew whatever force was behind his tremendous strength, had not given him that power directly. ''He had earned that power¡­'' She could tell the kind of strength that he had was not something that he had received without putting in any effort. That kind of strength and experienced game style could only be cultivated with one''s efforts, system''s support, and tough quests that would take more than a normal teenager''s life experiences. "When one Person finds a being that resonates with their very being on the deepest possible level- a level that is only known to the liberated- that is when the whole process that we call [Bonding] is triggered." Alex had figured out there was something unique going on with this person that they had only met coincidentally. And when she saw the little crystal containing an embryo of a being born from nature, she had figured it out completely. "A familiar and their master''s first meeting doesn''t happen coincidentally even if it might seem like it¡­ we players call this phenomenon [Fate''s mischief]." Odin stood there, covered in a blinding black-silver light, outline of a creature that was not present there until a moment ago having been materialized in front of him. He was lost in a unique world where the being that he had been coming towards with each turn of his life was greeting him for the first time. "A bond is formed when you meet your soulmate." It may seem overly romanticized but that is not really the case. Unlike the normal relationship, an actual intangible bond is formed between the souls of that individual and that creature. This unbreakable bond is, in its truest nature, unbreakable. S§×arch* The ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Supported by the truth of nature, truth of individual, as well as the truth of preservation: [{(Akash)}] this process is overlooked by the Path owners themselves." They were looking at something very rare at the moment. The process of someone bonding with that one being that is the only one in this entire vast world that resonates with them on a particular level. This is not something simple and more than simple, this is not something just anyone gets to see every day. "A familiar¡­" Alex wanted him to look at this scene closely so that he can at least learn a little from them and understand how this is more important than what the community understood. ''Be it the rankers or just the normal players above level-100. Even when counting all the natives who are above that level, not even ten percent of them would have a familiar.'' And that was a very big deal¡­ having a familiar was the symbol of the Chosen ones. And, having one at an early stage of their (Level-100) was something very rare. "I''ve told you about my experience with them, remember?" She had to spend years to find the being that was The one for her. And when she found the being that was her soulmate, she was already beyond the levels of the rankers of that time. "It''s a magical feeling¡­" Not even the viscount had a familiar, or the knights and mages with him. "And the special thing about this whole bonding process¡­" Alex looked at the smiling face of the dark knight as well as the brightness that was exuding from the creature before him. Both of them seemed happy, and though young, this horse seemed to be quite a pure being. "¡­everyone has a different experience when they Bond with their partners." For her, it was something different. For her acquaintances that had a familiar, it was a unique experience, and for Elio as well¡­ when he meets the being that is meant to be with him forever, it is going to be a unique experience. "No one knows what they experience when they are bonding with their partners." There are speculations saying one experiences the one thing that they had longed for, and some say people experience something they are supposed to experience sometime in the future. But, according to what she had found out, that is not the case. "It''s always different." What one experiences when they bond with their familiars is very, very subjective. It depends only on the two of them and it could very well be influenced by one''s past experiences, one''s expectations, one''s basic personality, or something that is related closely to either of them. [{ "It took me a long time to find my match, but I wish you luck with your search, darling." }] Perhaps he will find the being that he was supposed to be with on their journey, perhaps he will find it while roaming around some place himself, perhaps he will find it in the corner of a street, or perhaps he will find it in the depths of a jungle. She didn''t know when he would meet that one being and she didn''t want to know it either. [{ "Thanks¡­ I wish We meet soon as well." }] His heart was throbbing as he watched Odin and the unique creature. He tried using observation on them but it did not work. Anything he did, however he focused, there was no result¡­ and he knew the reason for that is the nature of this whole process. "Bonding." The process was complete, so the light had subsided, and Odin was coming back to his senses with his new partner before him. "I wonder what my partner will look like." The dark horse with a silver outline body that almost made it seem like an astral being was so beautiful Elio had already taken a dozen screenshots of the two of them. Everything they do is always being recorded so he was also thankful that she installed this amazing feature in their chariots. "I bet it will look cute, just like my cute dumb darling~." This horse was gorgeous, and he was looking forward to meet the gorgeous partner of his Alex for a long time as well. However, after watching these two, he also wanted to meet the being that will be his partner¡­ but for that, he knew he would have to wait for a long time. Reaching (Level-100) was a priority. He can think about other things when he gets to that level. Chapter 177 - 177: Sleipnir: The horse of horizon "What did you name him?" "Sleipnir." "Oh? Lore accurate, are we? Well¡­ he won''t grow more legs, or else it would have been a perfect name." A body made of pure darkness, outlined by the primordial silver light that was the same as the silver card that Sera came from. Eyes so deep and such a profound shade of black that anyone looking into those eyes would be lost into an entirely different realm. A young body, only as big as a pony for now, however, as a few of them already knew, this little one was going to grow a lot more very soon. "I can''t believe I''m seeing one myself¡­" Viscount had a deep admiration as he looked at this creature, and there was a unique envy hidden within his unique eyes. This being¡­ aside from being a familiar of someone that he had been looking after for a long time now, this creature was also a legend from the old folklores. "The horse of horizon¡­" There exists a horizon that connects all the realms, a dark place that is not habitable to anything. Only beings that have embraced the greatest darkness could live there, though their lives there couldn''t be considered as simply living. "You''ve heard the tale of the Golden emperor, Lord Andrew?" This was perhaps the first time Rein was calling him respectfully. She knew how to act in all kinds of situations, and this was the best way to address someone that was flowing in the memories of his past. "My grandmother used to tell me that story sometimes." Story of a miserable hero that lost everything he had more than once. Someone that kept giving what he had, and someone that kept helping those that needed his help. The one kind person that seems like a mythical existence to the world of today, a selfless man that smiled every time someone was taken away from him, and someone that walked a path of peace, a path of constant bloodshed, and a path that led him to a place that no mortal should have been able to enter. "Shining gold glittering under the darkness of the sky, with his feet bathed in serene silver. He who suffered it all, he who lost it all¡­ he who embraced truth regardless of it all¡­ he found himself facing a family of three in the vast darkness enlightened only by a thin silver lining." The viscount was lost in his memories, warm memories that he seemed to have forgotten about, and he wanted to stay lost forever in that nostalgia. But, he shook his head and came back to reality as he looked at the Brave knight that seemed to be oblivious to what he had just obtained. "Sir Odin." He was calling him with honorifics now, even though the difference between them was still the same. "Would you bless my little daughter with your presence on her birthday?" And since he was directly giving him this invitation, something he had not even done with the two of them, the knights and mages that were attending him understood what they were supposed to do now. "Hmm? Viscount?" The knights and mages that were standing behind the viscount got on their knees with their weapons dug into the ground. "And¡­" They were bowing before them, or perhaps something else. Elio did not understand it. However, Alex knew exactly what was happening here. "Would you like to be my [Knight], Sir Odin?" Knighthood¡­ a knight was only a knight when he was serving a master, or was a quest of his own. Odin was searching for something ever since he came to this world, but now that he had achieved what the world wanted him to, he did not have anything specific he had to do. Just like every player, he had to find the path that he would take from this point forth. And, within the many paths that he could begin on, he was offered a unique path that very few individuals in this entire world receive. "A knight?" "It''s like sharing their noble authority with someone else¡­ and since a viscount can only appoint fifteen knights at a time, the knights that are more like servants of the viscount would obviously be below him if he accepts that offer." Authority. It was also one of the major things in this world. The nobles weren''t Noble just because they were appointed as nobles by their king or the head¡­ they were Nobles because they also received special privileges from the System when they received this important title. The journey of a simple nobleman started from being a knight and proving their worth to the world and to the crown through their achievements, that is how they could gain independent status. For players, this was one of the most common ways to enter the noble circles of this world, and the more important the master in the political sphere, the more likely it is for them to succeed as a noble of any place they are in. "My lord¡­" It was an amazing opportunity that has a lot of money involved. Any player would know just how much profit an official knight made with simple tasks and through the salary they receive from their lords. But¡­ money wasn''t everything to this amazing game. "I will have to decline the offer of becoming a knight." There was a vast world that one could experience, a kind of freedom that one cannot experience when they are tied to one place, or when they are working under someone else. "Though, it would be my honor to attend Young Lady Eve''s birthday. I believe she would love to see Slee as well." As someone who had already lived the life of an employee, he did not want to be tied to this place anymore. There was a new companion with him. He could finally go to the places that he wanted to instead of the places that the quests wanted him to visit. "Haaa¡­ I expected it." The knights and mages on the ground were shocked. They were even glaring at him with thoughts like ''how can he do that?!'', ''such disrespect! Unacceptable!'', ''we must cut his throat this instant!'', or something similar. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity, and he was declining it without even giving it any thought? They couldn''t understand it like the natives. S§×ar?h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Oh~. Odin will be coming as well~?" But the people from the other world like the two of them knew very well why he would be so quick with his answer. "You two were going as well, Miss Alex?" "Obviously~." If money was not the main driving force for a player, it would always be the game, the world, and the fun that all of this brings. Not everyone wanted to be noble and not everyone wanted to fight and kill and get stronger and earn achievements. There were some like Elio, there were some like Alex, and then there are also some like Odin. "Let''s have fun again then~." Ones that simply want to do what they want with those that they feel comfortable with¡­ Chapter 178 - 178: Time off (Back to reality¡­) Rest in the real world was important as well so they were resting in the real world after finishing the important quest with the viscount. They were doing something they liked right now, which was different for both of them, but they were doing it in the same room without disturbing one another, so that was a unique thing. "How does this look?" "Hmmm? Oh damn. That''s a good one as well." Elio was printing out some screenshots that he had selected from the thousands that he had taken in the game while Alex was surfing through the community for anything that could catch her eyes. "You remember the one I asked about, right?" "Oh, yes. I sent it to Xin so he''s going to take care of it." "He better do a good job, alright?" "I trust his skills, it''s fine." The last time they were outside, they met up with their friend Olive and then they went back to playing. They had taken a break for a few hours when they reached their chariot''s assigned limits as well, but since they were going to do the viscount''s quest, they went back after a quick break and a little sleep. Now that the quest was over, they were going to take a longer break so that they are ready for the big event that they were going to have in a few days. It wasn''t going to be a simple event. Unlike all the things that they had experienced until now, they were going to the house of a noble for an actual event. There were going to be many people of great importance present in that event, and since this event was the Birthday of the Princess of Cromwell, every neighboring lord, as well as the other smaller fief lords were also going to attend. Some rich merchants, and some special people that were selected by the viscount himself were also going to be there. "You know what Elio, we should go and have some ice cream." "Hmm? Out of the blue?" "I''m craving sweets¡­ well, there''s always the Other option. You know?" S~ea??h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. They needed to be in their top condition for the event, and to be in the top condition, they needed to rest. But, instead of resting or sleeping, they were high on caffeine and were doing something else. "It''s six in the morning, Alex. I''m not eating ice cream right now. Let''s go and eat some warm cake." "The chocolate cake? Nah. That''s not what I want." She was on her chair a moment ago, but by the time he looked back up, she was standing beside him. "You know what I want, my sweet cinnamon roll?" She was quite agile in the real world as well so he had to keep an eye out for the strange things that she does occasionally. Especially when she''s nearing her cycle, he had to be especially cautious in those times. "No, Alex." When she was just about to get on her knees before him and press him against the desk with the printer, he moved and her head hit the desk instead. "We have to go back to sleep in a bit anyway. Don''t get me started right now!" They knew they needed sleep, but they also knew they were going to go and have some drinks when they go down for some fresh food later. They knew what they do to each other, for each other, and with each other after downing a few good ones, so at least he didn''t want to start right now. The food was necessary, and so was the rest. And if they start right now-. -Buzzz! Buzzz! Alex didn''t like getting hit by that desk so she was about to jump on him and give him a decent beating, but right when she turned back with her sharpened claws ready, they heard their doorbell. [Facial recognition confirmed.] [Biometrics confirmed.] [ID: Olivia confirmed.] [Asking for permission to grant access.] They heard the voice of their house''s AI caretaker Sunday, and looked at each other with a surprised look. "Why''s she here so early in the morning?" "Could it be that the cheriot''s here?" They looked at one another for a few more seconds, evaluated the level of honey they had reached, and concluded they could put this off for the time being before both of them got out of the room and went out of their room. "Sunday, open the door for her. Tell her we will be out in a bit." [Yes, master.] They did not have time so they needed to wear at least something before they went out. Being naked half of the time they were here was one of the reasons they were so Active. "You''re wearing that inside out!" "Well, who cares?" "She will care. Wear it right." Alex was so lazy she didn''t even wear her t-shirt properly. She was hot without those clothes, but most of the time, the clothes that she wore were always something random, oversized, and something that would completely cover the body that she had forged with years of hard work. "Look, Alex." "What?" "You''re hot." He kissed her before he ran out. "¡­" He wanted to do a lot more after seeing that clumsy side of her, but they didn''t have any time right now. There was a guest they had to attend to for now. "What the hell?" He kissed her out of the blue so even she was surprised how he just ran out after only that little peck on her lips. That wasn''t even a proper kiss! "Elio!" She ran out angry after that as well, and by the time she reached the hall room where Olive was sitting already, she realized something. "Hmm? Alex?" She forgot to put on the shirt that he wanted her to wear properly¡­ so she had to run back inside and come back with an embarrassed face instead. "Why were you only wearing a-." "Don''t ask." She sat down beside her, and looked at the bastard that just left her there with that small peck. "Bastard." If he really meant what he said, he should have at least used his tongue or something. That was¡­ disrespectful! "Hmph." He was going to get a beating, Olive could tell that much from that angry expression. Chapter 179 - 179: Chariot installation "Dad will be here in a bit now." "He landed?" "This morning. He was held back at the town hall though, some documentation for the sensitive devices that he was carrying around." "Sensitive devices?" "His jet¡­ well, you know how it''s always full of his work stuff? He left in a hurry so he didn''t get it cleaned up. Military thought it was an assault unit since it didn''t appear on the radar." "Lol he left that Cloak device active? What the hell?" Alex started laughing, and even asked Sunday to play a background laughing track. The matter was just too funny for her, but for the two who understood the severity of the situation, this was not funny at all. "Anyway¡­ he should be here anytime now." The chariot was not considered a sensitive piece of equipment, but the thing that he was bringing here was not something simple. It was a personally modified, disassembled piece of high value equipment that he would be bringing here in around thirty different boxes. As Alex knew, there were going to be many components that he wouldn''t be bringing from all the way there, so he would also pick up a few things that he would need for this one construction. "Sunday, see if you can find any rows of cars coming this way." [Checking for the provided target around the house¡­] [Search successful. There are nine pairs of SUVs coming this way. A quick search of the vehicle plates reveals they all belong to the Weil corporation.] "Yup, that''s him alright." Eighteen cars¡­ good thing he wasn''t bringing all of them together. "Let''s go up. He will bring the stuff up to your place directly." "That I already know, Alex¡­ but what the hell? Eighteen cars? Why the hell would you need so many vehicles?" It was just a transportation thing from her perspective, they could have just bought a truck or something, but they were wasting resources and bringing so many cars some of which wouldn''t even have anything in them! "It''s not as simple as you think, Olive." S§×arch* The N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The assembly of the special chariot that he would be bringing was going to be a complicated task in itself. Even with the support of all her bots in the house, she would need a week just to disassemble their chariots, the one that her dad, Sean had prepared for her was a much more powerful device then theirs. "Just the circuits and detachable program chips, and all the wire and stuff¡­ It''s complicated. And it costs millions so, please understand. At least that level of safety is necessary." She wouldn''t understand since she was not from a tech background or had any particular interest in these things but Alex knew about these things. Her father was her tech buddy, so she was looking forward to this day for a while now. "Anyway, let''s go~." Elio was trying to explain a little more, but Alex stood up and just dragged the two of them with her. "Sunday, call the lift." [Yes, master.] She was going to Olive''s place since all the stuff would be there soon, and since the main stuff would be carried by her father himself, she knew they all would have to wait till everything was gathered in her room. -Ding. Thankfully, a large part of the twenty-first floor belonged to Olive''s family. Her own apartment might be a small place, they were going to have enough room to do their technical stuff. "Haaa¡­" Olive was tired already. It was a holiday for the shop and yet instead of resting, they were doing something else that was tiring her down. She liked her holidays, but here she was, running around the places and waiting for her dad to bring something that could simply be swapped with a little headband. "Do I really need that chariot thing?" "Not really-." "Of course you do! Everyone does, Olive!" If she just wanted to experience this world, there wasn''t really any need for her to get the special chariot. The headgear was good enough. But, if she was going to experience this unique world that Alex and her dad as well as her big brother loved, they all wanted her to experience it the best way anyone possibly could. A simple chariot would be a different story, but if they were talking about something that was practically created by her father, it had more meaning than just a simple piece of equipment. "Lady Olivia!" When they reached the higher floor, there were already a bunch of people present in front of her apartment. And the moment they saw her, all of them bowed respectfully. "Yes yes guys. Jeez. Step aside." All of them were wearing casual clothings, but all of them were holding various big and small boxes filled with special stuff. "How many of you are left?" Olive first went forward so that she could unlock the apartment door, and Elio and Alex were right behind her. "Around two third of us are still left, young Lady. Master will be here with the last of them." The people gathered were respectful to Olive but, when they were greeting Elio and Alex, they were even more polite. If one observed closely, they could see sweat and subtle shaking that indicated fear or rather, intimidation from the two of them. "Haaa¡­ why can''t you just do these things normally." She opened the door and first went inside with Elio and Alex, and only after she took care of a few things inside, did she instruct the rest of them to come in and rest a little. "You must be tired from all that work. Wait just a moment, I''ll cook a few things." "I''ll help~." "I''ll wait here for uncle, call me when you are done with the cooking part." They didn''t need the decorations, but everything was still better when presented in a better way. "Alright~." "All of you, if you''re free for now, can you clean up the place please?" "YES, YOUNG LADY!" "Hey! Don''t shout! The neighbors will complain!" Since all of these strong and experienced people were here anyway, it was better to use them instead of confirming what they had brought with them. The tech stuff wasn''t anything fun for her, and even Alex was only interested in a few things that had not arrived yet. So¡­ "What should we make for them? Hmmm¡­" They were going to wait until He was here, and when he arrived, after a few formalities, they were going to jump right into the assembly. She wanted them gone by dusk or else she would have to sleep with Alex and Elio¡­ Chapter 180 - 180: A loving father -Screeech! A car stops in the underground parking lot. -Clik¡­ Dhum. A man in a lavish light gray suit steps out of it. "Which floor was it again?" A pair of feather cufflinks that he received as a gift from his daughter, glasses covering his deep brown eyes, his sharp clean face resembling that of an intellectual, and his eyes observing everything around them. The parking lot was empty at the moment, cars lined up on all sides before them. "Twenty First floor, master." Two men in black also stepped out of the front doors, a black goggles covering their eyes. "Let''s go then." "Yes." Without taking much, the man in a gray suit first walked forward towards the elevator with a silver suitcase in his hand¡­ the green feathers on his cuffs shining under the dim light of the parking lot. "One¡­ two¡­ three." Walking behind the man in gray, the two in black carried a coffin on their shoulders. They didn''t need six people for this task since it was a rather light piece, however, since it was a difficult task even for these muscular men, it certainly was not a light thing. -Ding! Thankfully, the elevator of this building was a big place. There was enough space for all three of them as well as this coffin in there. And, it was quick as well. -Ding! They didn''t have to stop anywhere else and reached their destination. "It''s that way, right?" "Master!" The man walked out and started walking to the left side, however, the two in black called out to him before he took a left turn. "It''s on the right side, [303]." The first one helped the other get the coffin on his back, and then on his shoulder, and with a lifting jerk, he also placed it on his shoulder. S~ea??h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. A painful movement, but it was effective. "Oh, I see." With him in the lead, the three walked to the right this time, and soon, they stood before an apartment house with its door open. "Master?" "Oh, master''s here!" The others wearing a casual outfit, who were engaged in housework like cleaning and dusting, greeted the man first, but the man looked around inside the place. "Where''s she?" He stepped aside so that the two with the coffin could go in and place the thing down, and the others helped them get it off their shoulder and place it down without damaging the marble floor. It was something their young lady cherished, so they knew what would happen to them if they damaged anything. "What''s going on? Did I hear something?" His deep brown eyes were finding someone inside this Shabby house filled with people and dust and a sweet familiar smell. He was looking around, and when his eyes saw the one they were looking for coming out from the kitchen side, a warm smile broke out on his Young face. "Dad?" "Olive¡­" With his eyes filled with joy, his heart filled with warm blood and his lips curved into a smile, he walked towards her¡­ "Hey, wait!" But she shouted before he had taken even one step in. "Shoes to the side, dad! Don''t you see they''re working!" People wore shoes in their houses usually, but not the same ones they use outside. She especially didn''t like the outside shoes inside the house, certainly not when someone was cleaning up the house. Their efforts would be in vain if he came in with his outside shoes. "Hmmm?" He was confused for a moment, then he looked down at his shoes that were as clean as a newly bought pair, and then he looked back up at his little daughter''s serious face¡­ and a chuckle broke out of him. "Haha, yes. Of course." He placed his shoes on the side stand, and picked a pair of indoor flippers. They resembled the crocs that used to be famous a few decades ago, but nowadays, they use a unique kind of design for the indoor footwear. "Is this better?" He smiled at her warmly, and she nodded with a warm smile of her own. "Much better~." She ran up to her father, and hugged him. "How has my little olive been?" He asked as he hugged his little sunshine back. She had been here for a few weeks now so they had not seen each other in person for a while now. "I''m fine, tired thanks to you and those two friends of mine, but today was a new experience." She was working here, and it wasn''t time to come back home yet so he didn''t think he would be seeing her anytime soon now. But then, she called him one day out of the blue, and asked him if she could have the Chariot he had built for her back home. It was something that belonged to her even though she had never used it, and he had not been as happy in a very long time as he was when he heard her say that. "Hmm? Olive?" "What''s going-¡­ oh!" Alex and Elio had been inside, in the kitchen helping Olive with the sweets and drinks. They thought she only went out to see what was happening, but after she didn''t come back, they came out as well and looked for her¡­ only to find the person they all had been waiting for since earlier. "Uncle Sean-." "Sean~!" Elio was happy to see his uncle, but Alex was so excited to see her friend that she ran up to him even though she was half covered in wine, and hugged both her Olive and her tech Bestie. "Hey! What the hell! Why are you so wet!" "Is that wine¡­ is that wine!" Wine stains on a gray coat¡­ they knew what was going to happen to that pretty piece now. "Hahaha, you''re as energetic as always, Drew." But the one wearing the coat didn''t mind her. He just laughed, and hugged her back. "Hey! Alex! No! Get away!" But the daughter knew how that costly coat wasn''t going to get cleaned up if she kept clinging to him! She pushed her away, and seeing all this¡­ Elio couldn''t help but sigh helplessly since he knew how this was just the start of their craziness. "Alex, come here you dirty little kid." Sean Weil¡­ he was called a genius in the technological field. He was the person that invented the cooling mechanism that''s used in most of the Chariots nowadays, and he was a genius among many smart people of this high standard society. He was respected by many, and in most eyes, he was a fearsome individual. Yet, with his daughter and a friend one and a half decades younger than him, he was nothing more than a simple man. "Hehehehe~. We are gonna have so much fun~." A simple man that loved his craft, that is. Chapter 181 - 181: Two enthusiasts "Wow, is that really what I think it is?" They had finally gathered in the main assembly room after their refreshments and were standing before all the stuff gathered in one empty room of her apartment house. All the components of the chariot, from the smallest screws to the biggest outer coating of the lightest and toughest fiber were placed here. "Yup. A fresh RWX3990." The suitcase that he was carrying personally contained exactly twelve super important microchips whiteout which, this entire equipment would be useless. "Damn, man!" Including the red chip, all of the shiny chips with the little elements moving inside of them were like pieces of the finest jewelry in her eyes. She was an enthusiast like him so she had collected a lot of stuff to make the chariots that they use as well, but none of them contained chips that were present here. "Have you tried them? Does yours also have these? How''s the performance? What about the acceptance rate? How much does it consume on a bad day? How about the L-ratio?" She was in her work attire like him now, so as she spoke with those stars in her eyes, the others couldn''t help but chuckle at her excitement. "It''s always fun looking at her when she''s like that." "Right?" Elio and Olive were going to sit out for this one. They didn''t understand even a third of what they were talking about aside from the simple things, and getting in the way of these two would only hinder them. "It''s not as amazing as your homemade ones. Even Yevvy and I use that one after you gifted us that, but since Olive''s just starting out, I thought these would be better for her." A chariot was a high end, sensitive device that not just anyone can have. Not only was it a costly piece of equipment, it was also something that needed a certain kind of environment that not everyone can produce in their houses. The little components that these equipment were made of were delicate, and if there''s a rat inside this machine, or if there''s a cat that likes to sleep in the cabinet of these chariots, or if there''s unusual environmental conditions, the chances of something going wrong were elevated. That''s why it was advised to get insurance for these things. Though¡­ "Hehehe, let''s get started then~." You cannot do it for the ones that you are assembling yourself. "Yeah¡­ it''s going to be fun." Especially with the things that were practically separated till its last screw. It wasn''t just an assembly at that point, it was simply something beyond that. And the two of them that weren''t working with the rest of them knew that well. S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. There were a few things that they needed to do here now that they were starting, but nothing contained helping them with anything. "The Z-tool." With Alex and her dad at the center, the two started from the base circuit and started assembling the motherboard. The first of the many chips that were going to be the brain of the equipment were going to be here, then the chip that will maintain the connection with the big net, then the one that will maintain the house''s system with the other parts of the device. One of the chips was going to be in charge of the in-device safety system, so they needed to check for it intensively. "Jack, start with the cabinet." Instead of making the big things first, they started with the most important things and then moved to the things that were less important. They played with a few devices while they were assembling, but when they were working, their attention to each and every detail, to even the simplest of the wires was unbelievable. "Here, everyone~. Have some water!" Olive knew the two of her tech junkies. They were sometimes so engrossed in their work that they even forget there existed an entire world outside of their little world. "Alex, no you aren''t doing that without gloves! You will bleed again!" Some fine works required special equipment while some technical things required safety measures, and Alex obviously didn''t mind a few of them. "Jeez, it''s alright Elio." Even his uncle, who was almost always a strict person with the rules and safety, ignored a few things that Alex did since he knew she wouldn''t hurt herself even if she wanted to. She was a kind of genius that he had not seen many times in his field. Her attention to details was admirable in itself, but her fineness with her work, the delicacy of her artistic style in things that had nothing to do with art, and her experience¡­ even he didn''t think he had as much experience with opening up and putting back machines as she did. She was amazing¡­ "Alright, we''re finally done with the first part~!" He had known about her even before Elio introduced her to him when he brought her to their home a few years ago. She was a famous personality within the research society since she was one of the few notorious individuals that had owned many patents and was an anonymous publisher of many papers that gave insight into so many things it was helpful to many of them in many areas. No one knew who she was or how she would have come up with some of the ideas and research that she had conducted and recorded on those records, no one knew why she was anonymous, and everyone wanted to know her qualifications, her field, her career achievements. Yet, when he met him, the person he found was not some elderly expert that had dedicated their lives to academics and science. Instead, he met a cheerful young woman that did not even attend school, much less any university. She was just someone that loved her craft, and she did a lot of things to find out the answers to the questions that Many of them had asked themselves and each other for years¡­ She found her side of answers, and though not all of them were proven, she, as the creators of those articles and papers, was a respected figure in the industry because she had shared all her findings with the world. "Sean! Don''t start without me! Lemme finish this part first!" He had not had as much fun doing these things as he did after meeting this person. There was something bright in her that enlightened everything around her. "Hey Alex! No! How can you take it away like that! I was working on it!" "No! We will do it together! This is supposed to be the last part!" "Why can''t we do the last part simultaneously?!" "We can''t do that! Hmph!" "Of course we can! Gimme that!" He didn''t know what happened to her in but she used to be someone that had guided a lot of rankers, high rankers, saints, sages, archmages, rulers, even gods. She was nothing like usual natives or the usual players. She wasn''t even widely known¡­ Yet, for those that had ever known her, like him who knew her in reality and in that other world, like Elio who shared a significant part of his life with her, and like Olive who was like a sister to her¡­ she was someone irreplaceable. "Ugh! You two! Stop it right there!" "Alex! Put it down this instant! You''re going to break that thing!" She was fun to have around, even with these not-so-simple perks. Chapter 182 - 182: Erisea "And with this¡­" He connected the chariot with the main power supply core of the house. "We are done." The various lights present on the chariot lit up, illuminating the inside of the comfortable cabinet, the temperature and body-conditions control units, as well as the various panels that indicated the status of various devices inside. "Was there any need to make it transparent? Can''t you just use metal like Alex has?" The final chariot that was left in a relatively clean room was a transparent full dive capsule or pod. A rectangular piece of equipment that took them six hours to assemble. And that was with the help of so many people who had knowledge of these things, and two people with enough brains and skills to have the capacity to do all of this by themselves. "This is better than a sheet of metal, Olive." Her dad had used a unique variety of fiber that was tougher than simple metal and was appropriate enough for this particular type of equipment. "I''d use it if Elio wasn''t so stubborn about the aesthetics of the gaming room. It''s more practical, but just like him, not everyone might like seeing the translucent chariot like this one." The final destiny''s were done, the three Cyberwatches connected to the device gave a green signal, and the external sensor had also given a green light, so the installation was complete in true meaning now. "Hey, I never said we must use those things. I just didn''t like how they look with a translucent fiber cover, that''s all." He liked to keep the house in order. Everything they might need to have a place of its own. And, all of those places were attractive, or at least practical. Like their big bathroom and washrooms. They knew they needed more space in those places, so they had made it that way. "Hmph. Whatever." She didn''t want to argue with him when she had just finished the assembly process of this amazing piece of equipment. "Olive~." Now that it was completed and it was time for her father to go back as well, she wanted to see her try this chariot. "How about you go in? See if it is comfortable or not." Olivea didn''t want to spend her time uselessly like the three of them. After taking only one day off, she had been feeling anxious about the shop downstairs. She had been there three times in the time they were working and had checked up on everyone in the meanwhile. She loved that shop and backing. But, she also wanted to give a try to this new world that all of these people special to her praised so much. "Alright. I''ll try¡­ but what am I supposed to do?" "Oh~! As soon as you go in-." "Alex, can I please teach her that part?" As her friend, she was excited about this. But as a father that loved his daughter as well as that unique world, Sean wanted to teach her about the important device that gave them access to that special world. "Oh, sure~." She wasn''t detached to the world so she knew the basics, obviously, but she did not know everything about a chariot. So, her father explained to her how things inside the Chariot worked. How the holographic screen was projected, how the mind is connected through the sensors present on the seat, and how the various device functions worked. "When you go in and start the device, you will find yourself in the pre-created subspace. The installation will take about three or so minutes so you''ll have to wait, and then the bio-id registration process will begin." He told her about the registration, then he told her about how she would have to create a metabody, and assign an Immortal name. He was explaining to his baby daughter, so he explained slowly and in a way she could understand the best. Then, he gave her a few suggestions, told her about the initial tutorial quest, and after that, he looked at her with a warm smile. "I don''t know how they convinced you, but I''m glad they did." "Not you too dad¡­ you know I''m not going to spend hours and days on that thing like you all." A chuckle broke out of him when he heard his stubborn daughter say that. "Of course, silly. Why would my amazing Star backer leave her perfectly famous shop and play around in a unique other world. What will the people in that shop do without you around~?" He was being sarcastic, so she had puffed her cheeks in a cute anger. "Obviously! Hmph! I have to be there for everything to go well!" They knew her, so they knew what she was going to be like after she found her passion in that new world. A world much more amazing than this simple one. "Hehe, relex you hot Olive. He''s just joking, haha." Alex laughed and calmed her angry friend down. "Tell us what special name you''ve come up with for your character instead of being all hot and red. And be more creative than this bastard!" It was common knowledge that you name your game character something other than your real name. Everyone did that, but not her dumb Elio. He named his in-game character Elio as well, and she still found it boring. He had zero naming sense! "Hmm? Can''t I just have (Olivea) name as well? Or Olive?" "Of course you can-." "You shut up!" Elio didn''t find anything wrong with it, but it wasn''t a bad choice. "Haha, an immortal name isn''t that simple, dear." Alex and Elio started fighting over the names and creativity of the names, so her dad took over the conversation and explained to her how the Immortal Names of meant much more than a simple name. They carried great importance to that world, as well as to the ones who owned those names. "Hmmm¡­" It was not so simple, and Olive understood it. "Then." She thought about it for a moment, searched the web for some suitable options, and after a few minutes, she finally created something for herself. "How about Erisea?" It was a unique name. "Hmm?" "It''s a pretty one, just like you." "Ohh~! I love it!" Elio found it unique as well. It was a great name. "Then I''ll go with it." She wanted to try this device and see the world beyond the virtual realm. But before that, she had to send off her dad who had important work to attend to. S§×arch* The N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Dad?" She would love to play with him and her brother as well, but before she does that, as they knew, she would want to get acquainted with the basic things and concepts of this world. "Yes, I know it''s getting late." She was smart though. For an acknowledged baker and sweets chef, she was quite a smart person. "Let''s wrap things up then, shall we?" She would be fine, they knew that. She wasn''t a child that they would have to save from a little kitten anymore¡­ Chapter 183 - 183: Sanctuary of Flins The city of preservation, Kalp was becoming cheerful with the arrival of new guests that were going to stay in this city with these craftsmen living with their old ways. The carriages filled the city, with the inns becoming more cheerful and, with a new boom of business, the common people were having a unique festival of their own. "Is this the place?" "It sure is." The birthday of the young lady of Cromwell was on the horizon, so with the arrival of guests, the city was filled with a unique kind of freshness that contracted with their vintage style. However, this was a common occurrence for the citizens who had been experiencing this unique kind of festive moment for a few years. "Wow¡­" "This sure is different from the shop we went to the last time." The city was preparing for the big day, just like how the house of Cromwell and their guests were. Elio, Alex, Miss Rin, Misha, even Odin and the little fellas were preparing for the big day. "This place was established a decade after the establishment of this city by the first master of the Cromwell house in order to house the best Flins that they could obtain from all over the kingdom. Do you all know how the first master of Cromwell used to be a Tamer himself and had almost an army of trained beasts of diverse kinds?" Elio and his group were out shopping for the Event, but before they went to the shops with accessories and clothes and gifts for the young Eve and a lot much more¡­ they had arrived before one of the finest establishments of the city of preservation. "Oh? How do you know that, Miss Alex?" Odin was with them as well since, well, he also wanted to come and see the sanctuary of Flins from where most of the Flin birds were supplied in the southwestern region of the kingdom. "I like reading, haha. I know a good lot about history so ask me anything you might be interested in~." That much was true. There were few people as knowledgeable about the Past as her. "I''ll make sure to do that, thanks." He was being humble, but he was definitely thankful for her. She had been helpful to him and his new partner ever since they logged back in, and even now, they were helping him with a lot of things. "It''s no big deal~." A large building resembling an observatory made inside a greenhouse, this special place had glass windows which had a tint of black, giving off an old feeling. The soil around it was covered in the shadow of the building, making it darker like the old soil of a barren land. There were weird sounds coming from inside of this building, sounds that one would hear in an aviary or a bird area of a park or the zoo. They were quite peculiar, and to those who did not know about it and were passing by this haunted building, they were nothing short of horrific. But, to the people that were standing before the small door of the building, this place was quite¡­ fun. "Just how many birds are there~? I''m so excited!" "Muuuuuuu~." "Miu~!" The slime was jumping with the gecko inside of it, and beside them, the young girl was also excitedly shaking her hands. She wanted to go in as quickly as possible and look at all the amazing birds, see the big ones that her sister Alex told her about and find someone that she could bring back with herself. But before she could do that, they would have to go through the mandatory checking and the general procedures. And there was no exception to that even for the guests of the viscount himself. "Then, if everyone''s ready, should we go?" "Yesssss~!" "Yeah, Elio. We should go." Miss Rin had looked after the little ones in their absence and with Misha there, he didn''t have to worry about anything. They had a big place to play around so they didn''t even have to go out when they were gone. And now that they were here, they were going to have some fun once again~. "Hello there~. I believe you must be Mr. Elio and Odin, Miss Rin and Alex, and this must be Misha, right?" At the reception right inside the door, there was a lady who recognised them and greeted them with a bright smile. "That right~." "Miu~!" "Muuuuu~." She was wearing a simple outfit that one would find in any kind of office in the other places, but for Kalp, this was a unique attire. "We have been expecting you. Please, allow me to guide you all." They had already taken an appointment to observe and choose a suitable Flin for the young member of their party through Lord Andrew. They had enough credentials and credibility, so they didn''t have to wait in a long queue, but still, they would have to go through the necessary procedures. "Let''s go, everyone." The bird sanctuary that they were going to was a big place, and it would take them half a day just to look at the various birds present in certain unique environments that were maintained inside this facility. There were around a bunch of unique Flins that weren''t going to be something they could purchase and take away with them, but they could still see all those special birds. [{ "I''m looking forward to seeing the one you''ve been so excited about, you know?" }] [{ "Of course I know. Even Odin knows at this point, haha." }] Among Flins, there were some special Creatures as well. Sear?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And, not just Alex, even Elio and Odin had a few of the famous ones that they had been looking forward to seeing, and touching as well, if they allowed it. [{ "Well¡­" }] The inside of the observatory was brighter than how it seemed from the inside. The air was fresh here, it was divided into various sections to accommodate various kinds of Flins, and magic was used for enchantment and preservation of various things as well. But, above all, the one thing they all found interesting as soon as they went inside for their necessary checkup¡­ was the person with wings and a beak. A bird person: An Aerokin¡ª similar to the ocean people: Aquakins, or the volcano people that are practically like flame spirits: the Pyrokins¡ª this was a unique being unlike Elves or Dwarves that were pretty common in this otherworld. "Hailoo mah friends~." Even though this wasn''t a Flin, this was the one Elio was looking forward to meet. He had heard about them, and, for a long time now, he wanted to meet one and hear the unique accent that these guys used directly. Chapter 184 - 184: Bald… who isn’t bald Aside from the usual unique species, there existed intelligent kinds that were rare even in this world. Humanoid birds, fish that resembled mermaids but were actually fish, creatures born and raised in scorching flames that did not have any connection to the ethereal spirits¡­ giant golems with superior intelligence, Druids that look after forests, Children of Light and Darkness¡­ There were many unique species in this world that one doesn''t see often. And, aside from their set habitats and communities, and nations, there were only a few places where they could meet these beings and individuals. "Huuuh! Haaa! Ye must be the Lord''s friends~!" The big humanoid resembling the ancient painting of Horus, a falcon headed god that didn''t actually look like an eagle or had a muscular body. He was wearing a thin cardigan on his upper body, but the lower part was certainly covered in proper clothing. "Woh! Are you a bird, mister!?" Misha was excited to see this being. They even had feathers connected to their hands like bats do, so they were certainly something that caught the little ones off guard. "Muuuuu¡­!" The little slime that could perceive emotions was especially excited to see this person. It could tell the pureness that their emotions contained, and the little slime was excited to meet such a unique person. "Huhuhahaha~! Seums like thee little guys luck me~." sea??h th§× N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The way he spoke was quite funny, especially to Elio who associated this individual with the Forgotten Enigma that had blessed him. They weren''t wearing any expensive jewelry like those people of sand and pyramids, and unlike what he knew about them, this being was quite humble. "Anyway~. Buds! Shel Woll get goin." This person¡­ this bird person, was from a faraway land who had been in this city for perhaps the longest. He had been in this position ever since the third lord of the Cromwell assigned them this position, and ever since then, they had been here¡­ as they knew. "Em called Bald, and this Pwetty Lady here is Trischel." Funnily enough, this person was named Bald even though they were covered in feathers from head to toe. Instead of legs, they had bird-like claws, and even their hands with five fingers resembled that of a strong bird''s. They did not have any muscular features as one would find in special humanoid creatures that actually resembled that of the Ancient Egyptian gods. These beings were special, there was no simple way to describe them, but they were different from an Aerokin like him. And, unlike him, they were monsters that players and natives hunted¡ª just like the sirens. "Hehehe~. It tickles~." Mr. Bald and Miss Trischel were doing the necessary checks before they all went inside, but the feathers that Mr. Bald had were tickling her. "Quite, Misha." Her mom could tell she was being unnecessarily loud, so she asked her to tone it down. But why would the children do that when they were having fun? "It is alglight~." The Aerokins had wings but not like the Angels. They had beaks, but they did not just gulp down meat. They had certain things they liked, and some of them were also herbivores. They also had proper etiquette and manners unlike the wild beasts, and that made them different from the Creatures that resemble them closely. "Okya~. You''re alchecked~." In the time they were doing the check-ups, Elio had observed this person closely. From how he was dressed to how he was speaking to how his feathers looked to how he was a being of the physical world instead of a being born from nature. Sera was interested in this creature, but not because it was something unique, but simply because there was something about these creatures that reminded her of something special. This being, it wasn''t a creature¡­ It was a person, and Elio understood the meaning behind it after talking with them and asking them about some personal things. [{ "It''s not everyday you''ll meet someone like him." }] [{ "I know." }] Alex had met others of his kind, as well as kinds that they might not see while they travel together in this world. [{ "They are quite peculiar, you know." }] They were quite simple creatures, not that different from humans, and the reason behind that might not be the constant interaction with human society. They must have had their own unique beliefs and since they were not ''human'' they would have also faced prejudice from the people around them. [{ "They are simple people, though just like the other species when we go and meet them in their own habitat, you''ll be surprised." }] Especially in a city that lived in the past¡­ "After we go in, please be careful of the Flins. Some of them are sensitive so they might not like direct touch. However, do not worry. With these bands on your hand, most of them will not attack you or harm you." They were going to go inside now that they had finished the procedures. They were going to meet the birds and the creatures that were quite special for their kind. Some of them were quite old, however, most of the ones here were less than a decade old¡­ which was still a good time for Flins. "Is everyone ready?" "Muuuu~." "Miu~!" "Yeiiiiii~!" The door that they were going to cross now was simply a wooden door, and beyond it was world completely different from this office like place. "Alright then¡­" Odin did not know much about these things, but he had seen this place in videos so he wasn''t as excited as the children who were going to see this place for the first time. -Click. As they entered the place, they found themselves in a place filled with many trees, some big and some small. -Chip! Chip! Chip! -Chirp! Chirp! Chirp! -Craw! Draw! Fraw! -Skiiiiiiiiiiii¡­! All kinds of bird sounds and calls and screams and noises greeted their eyes, along with a peculiar smell that was maintained here for the visitors as well as the workers. There were some simple birds here and there were some that weren''t as simple¡­ like the bird that came and greeted them before anyone else. "Chirp!" A silver bird that had a long tail as well as a beautiful crown. "Hmmm?" The bird was greeting them¡­ However, the one that it was greeting wasn''t actually the People that had arrived. "Muuuu?" It was the slime who was the most prominent member of Elio''s Family¡­ Chapter 185 - 185: Perks of being attractive Az was apparently more attractive to the birds than any of them present there. "Muuu~! Muuuu~!" It was jumping around the place, and there were around a dozen birds following after them. Miu inside of him was having fun since the friend that she had been with for so long was just running around and trying to get away from these birds that seemed to be interested in them. It was strange seeing Flins showing direct interest in someone or anyone for that matter, especially a Slime. Most of them present there didn''t understand why it was happening or why they were following Az around or why they were so interested in them it seemed like they were in love with them or something. But Alex knew exactly why this was happening¡­ "Since Az is a Mana slime with Elemental affinity with water and light, the ones that are following him around are the Flins that were highly trained for the dark environment. They are also attracted by the Mana that Miu has, and since the two of them are together, there is something unique going on with the birds." "Gruuuug~. Thy think thee slime and thai friend isha torch~." As Bald said, the slime and gecko had become the torch that these special Flins were trained to follow. They were trained by the tamers using some special methods that were established and worked well in a diverse variety of beings of the Flin category. And, unlike the unique method of Elio, this taming methods were used with various objects that were used in training them. One of them being a torch that was used to teach them how to find the sources of fire, light, water, and Mana in a forest or cave environment. sea??h th§× N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. These birds were then conditioned to follow these things and find them, or be attracted to them. "This is funny, haha~." For Elio who understood how troubled his little friend was and how the other little one was enjoying the misery of her friend, this entire thing was just fun. He was sitting on one side with Misha going around to various birds with her mom and Odin to see how they behaved around her. But, unlike the slime, she was treated coldly by the birds that didn''t find anything special from her. They could sense Mana but since they weren''t creatures born from nature, they weren''t something that could perceive her special Ichor. They were simple birds that thought she was also a simple being and mostly either ignored her or showed only a little interest in her. On the other hand, they were all afraid of Alex as well as Odin who were either Aura users or were affiliated with a certain power that didn''t go well with these birds. Odin especially was terrifying some of the birds and had to go to the other area where the birds that actually worked with the Dark knights were. So, he was there, and Misha was with her mom who was pretty attractive to the Birds thanks to her Holy powers. Some birds that were trained for the light element mistook her holy power as a light element and were following her if they weren''t after Az, and the rest of them were gathered around Elio¡­ who was the most attractive to them out of the rest of them. "You should pay at least some attention to these little ones" There were around three or four dozen birds gathered before Elio. They were all tamed beasts and they were gathered before a tamer that knew how to treat them. Thanks to his title, he had even more affinity with these creatures than the simple creatures that could be trained. These birds, especially the ones who could be called ''Well trained'' ones among the others, could tell this person was not just a simple observer. He was also exuding all kinds of energies, be it the elemental Mana, the energy of a Tamer, or the magic powers of a mage. They were simply attracted to him, but Elio was just enjoying the show happening with Az. "Haha, I''m not the one that needs a Flin here Alex, and there''s nothing else here for me. I''m just having fun, haha." She was being rejected by every one of them. With her Aura frightening them, and and without any kind of Elemental affinity, she was pretty much hated by them instead of just being invisible to them like Misha. But, she liked these creatures. They were adorable, and the diverse ones present around him were quite a unique bunch that she would love to have in reality as well. But, they didn''t like her¡­ he knew if they didn''t like her now, there''s no way they used like her when she was much stronger, so at the very least, he wanted to let her have a little fun with them. "You¡­ dummy." They were gathered around him and were avoiding her since their attraction to Elio was much greater than their dislike for Alex. They simply didn''t want to interact with her so they weren''t paying attention to her, however, since they were before her, they couldn''t help it when someone as strong as her picked them and played with them. "Thanks." She was gentle with them and after a while, they also started liking her soft touch, so it was a fun experience for her who actually couldn''t do something like this in the past. "We should go though¡­ there''s a lot to see here and this is just the first area." "Yeah. Let''s go after five more minutes, hehe." He was still looking at Az who had somehow managed to get away from those birds. But, from beside him, Alex was looking at him with a warm expression. She was thankful to him and she wanted to say that as well, but she didn''t say it. "Dummy." She just kissed his cheeks and continued playing with the green crow which had submitted to her gentle touch. She was a swordsman so she knew how to handle delicate things well. Especially the living ones. She might not be a taming expert like him or someone who understood these creatures as he did, but she was still well aware of the uniqueness of these creatures. Her worldly experiences with various kinds of creatures had made her an expert of her own unique craft¡­ Chapter 186 - 186: Diversity of Flins Since Flin birds are a kind of bird that are found in a unique geological region, they are not bound by some certain characteristics. They are creatures that are diverse and can be considered as different beings completely if one did not know much about them. The regions that Flins live in, that particular geological region, are protected places all over the world. And in this world, these little birds are considered an important part of various individuals'' daily lives. The people that tame them and train them are not that rare, however, they are highly trained individuals who had to master their craft first before they could start training Flins commercially. The Central association of Tamers, much like various other organizations, are the ones who provide the tamers who have mastered their craft and training methods of Flins and grant them licenses. They also assign them various types of Flins to train in a given period to evaluate their skills, and, much like the adventurer''s rankings, the Knight''s ranks, and the mages'' positions within the association or the towers that they are part of, a Tamer''s competency is determined by the number of Flins under them that have passed the official screening process. It''s a tough job so not many are able to succeed as a Flin tamer, but there are some in this world who have accepted this job as their calling. "Wow¡­" They are so good that they overshadow a lot of beginners and those who have worked in this field for more than they have even lived for. "We can divide Flins into three broad categories." They were in the place that was called the Sanctuary of Flin birds, the place from where these birds were distributed to the entire southwestern region. So, there were bound to be birds of a grand variety that they couldn''t possibly categorize with simple methods. "The first and some of the cheapest ones are called Friendly Fairies." Starting from the small birds and the ones that were physically weaker compared to the others, and at the same time, could not understand complex instructions from the humans, fell into this category. The small sparrows, the simple pigeons, some birds whose relatives one could find in the urban areas, and those who were prone to some kind of injuries under even a little tough conditions were also among them. "Does that little pink one also fall under Friendly Fairies?" They had moved to the inner area that was much cooler than the other place they had been to until now. The birds here were the ones that lived in a relatively cooler environment, and were better for the mountains. They were mostly big or strong looking since mountains are never something simple or good or easy. "Oh no no." If they wanted to survive there, they needed to adapt to that environment and develop some weapons that could help them survive in these places. The other birds in this place, thus, were strong looking. Like that Eagle almost as big as Misha. "Though small and fragile looking, that one is one of the toughest you will find. A rare breed that doesn''t appear in many places, but wherever they are, you''d find at least three generations of these birds." Unlike that small and cute looking bird, that one was strong enough to even fly with their masters if needed. And at the same time, they had a great memory and vision that could see things even at faraway places. These kinds of birds were the ones that the people who worked mostly in the mountain regions or dealt with the areas with that kind of environment would need. But, who would need small birds that just knew how to survive in harsh environments? Elio wondered for a moment before coming up with a few possibilities. "Does the pink one fall into a different category?" "Correct." Since the simple Friendly ones were used by the most people for common work like that big eagle might do, the ones with unique features and powers would need some special masters that needed their unique set of skills. "The pink one falls into the third category: Experts. And the ones just below them, like that yellow duck, fall into the second category: Helpers." Different Flins were trained for different things. Some were good with finding things, some were good with creating things, some were good at destroying things, while some were simply good with using their senses. "The pink one is especially famous within the high ranking individuals, scouts, and hunters with a high degree of mastery." The more things they could do, the costlier they are, the more unique things they could do, the better they are considered to be within those who own a Flin. They weren''t a simple pet, but a partner that was the same as a familiar for those who didn''t have one. And since anyone could have a Flin if they have certain traits and acknowledgment from certain organizations, they were considered much more useful than the familiars that not many people have. They were friendly, and sometimes they were needy. But, be it the simple Flins or the well trained ones or the unique ones, these creatures were not something that one could consider the same as normal birds. "Well, these ones are still simple birds compared to the ones that actually only a few individuals could ever have." Alex looked to the other side, inside a cage where only one bird was resting. "That vulture¡­ it''s a (Level-30) creature with not one or two, but six different skills." "Woh¡­" Inside the dark cage rested a being covered in silver feathers so shiny they did not need any light to illuminate the cage they were in. It was a majestic being, and Elio couldn''t help but admire this beautiful beast. "Including that one, I wanted to see the three eyed Owls, the Devil''s messengers, and the Heavenly Swan that they have here." S§×arch* The novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Special creatures that one could only rarely see even in the wilderness. Beings that were brought here from all over the continent. They were Lucky that they were even allowed near these creatures and could see them all, or else not even the wealthiest could get access to these special places with these special creatures that require special attention from their caretakers. "I want to touch its feathers¡­ let''s go." The birds in this place, every single Flin as well as the creatures that live here weren''t imprisoned. They were free and they could go anywhere they wanted within their designated environment. They had a place to go back to, and as they were trained, after playing around, at exactly the ninth bell of the afternoon, they would go back to their nests for rest. "Hey wait, shouldn''t we wait for Sir Bald or-." "It''s fine, this one''s the calmest." She knew these vultures¡­ one of her Servants dealt with exactly these kinds of creatures before she passed away. So, Alex knew how to handle these fragile ones well. Chapter 187 - 187: The heart’s connection "Hmmm¡­" There were a lot of birds here. "Hmmmmm¡­" There were too many of them, actually. "Hmmmmmmmm¡­" It was impossible for her to choose just one of them and take them home, besides, she didn''t really feel like out of these hundreds of birds present there, even one of them could be of any use to her in her daily things. She wasn''t an archer, and she wasn''t even a weapon user. She didn''t go into dungeons like these people around her, and she didn''t do anything dangerous like those adventurers do everyday. She wasn''t a hunter and she didn''t live in any kind of mountain lands. The only thing that she did every day was sit in the house, play with her two friends and sometimes Sera, and sometimes with her mom and brother and sister. Misha was mostly bored since she didn''t have anything fun to do at home aside from doing the things that the Librarian taught her recently. That was the only thing she did¡­ perhaps she was getting stronger as she did that, but that wasn''t the point. "I''m not sure! Ughh!" She was here to get a Flin and there were a lot of them present here. All of them had things they could do and all of them had limitations. Though, they were able to do something that many others could do as well, so there were a lot of options that she could choose from. But¡­ she loved a loooot of them present there and wanted to get as many of them as she possibly can. She just wanted to live here if possible, or have this many friends that she could play with outside, and that was possible, certainly. What was not possible, though, was taking more than one of these Flins with her. "You don''t find anyone here either? Should we go to the other side then?" Miss Rin was going with her from here to there and there were just too many things that she had on her mind right now. Misha and her choice, Elio and the kind of attraction all the birds present here had for him, Alex and how all the birds disliked her and still were feeling blissful in her hands, to the concerns about Misha''s future. There were so many fun creatures here, and she could just get a pretty one like the girls her age would or the toughest looking one like the boys her age would. But, instead of finding the coolest one or the prettiest one, she was finding someone that could help her in her daily tasks, someone that could help us with our tasks in daily lives, or someone that will be of some actual use to her. She knew Misha understood how she could only choose one of these hundreds of thousands of creatures and, instead of taking this lightly, she put it before everything else and was considering everything she could possibly think of that would affect our daily lives. "Hmmm¡­" She had a certain white bird in her hand for a while now, something that was small and something that she was caressing since a while ago, but she didn''t think she was going to choose this random bird that was just going around with her. It was a simple white bird with no special unique features anyway, as her mom, she understood this one was not the one that she was going to have as her one and only to take out of the other unique ones present there. But then again, this one was the only one out of all that she was carrying around to see the other birds. There might just be some connection to these two¡­ or something like that. "Mom¡­ what''s that big bird?" There were many big birds in this place, some were even bigger than me and Mr. Bald. S§×arch* The nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. These birds were placed in special places that not just anyone could enter, and these special places were only places where special people could enter- or their caretaker, Mr. Bald. They could come out and they weren''t supposed to either. They were not dangerous, but they were placed in the best environment possible for them. With their size as big as that of a giant, these creatures were more of monsters than simple birds. "Mish~. It us called Becky! It''s a storm chaser~." "Hmm? That bird is a storm bird? Like the ones who guide the ships in dense storms?" She had heard about these creatures. They were the reasons many of the ships don''t lose their ways even in the worst weather conditions. "Wow¡­" "I''ve heard people ride these birds as well, like a mount." Even though they weren''t creatures, or monsters, these beings were the same as a flying mount¡­ sadly, there weren''t that many of them in this continent anymore. "They are amazing~!" "Aren''t they?" Seeing her happy was at least a good thing for her, but as Sir Bald instructed them, this was not a simple creature. They weren''t going to go in the special environment made for them, so the chances that they could see them was small. They were here since they had been here for a long time and didn''t want to leave this place and the person that they had been with for so long. They had made this place their home¡­ "Haaa. Well, looks like we will have to move to the next place." "Chhhhip!" This was the first time the small bird in her hand had made any noise, and it seemed like it was a mocking voice to the creature that was beyond the glass window. And, somehow, the big guy even notices this relatively small voice, and, as they all saw, it seemed like there was a hint of fear in the grand eyes of the great creature tens of times bigger than this small furball. "What?" "Did anyone hear anything?" "Oh lord!" All of a sudden, Mr. Bald shouted out as if they had suddenly seen a ghost, and at the same time, Misha noticed the small bird in her hand that she had been caressing since a while ago. "Hmm? Who''s this small guy?" It seemed like she was seeing this creature for the first time¡­ but to the person that had been looking at this simple creature since a while ago, this was a surprising sight. Chapter 188 - 188: A Picky Bird A small round head that didn''t seem anything special to anyone that looked at it, a small body that was just big enough to fit into the small hands of Misha, and feathers that were white, but not as white as that of The special swan they had seen a while back. This small bird had deep blue eyes that seemed to be similar to Alex''s eyes, but unlike her experienced gaze, the gaze of this little one was that of a carefree guy. The silver beak that it had seemed normal as well, and the little feet that it had, which were half covered in its feathers, were also small and practically harmless. "They are called (Shan Eugenes) or the Furball ''Lords'' as their discoverer used to call them." After they suddenly found this little guy in Misha''s hand, a lot of commotion was spread throughout the facility. A lot of caretakers that had been doing their own daily work had gathered around Misha and this little creature, and seeing all this, even Alex and Elio had gathered here. Miss Rin had no idea why this was happening, how this little bird could scare a bird as big as that, and why there would be such a commotion out there, but, as someone who loved the most peculiar things of this game, Elio and not Alex was the one that was explaining Miss Rin why there was such a commotion out there. "These little birds, some of the rarest of their kind, are a long life species and are so rare it''s almost believed that they are an extinct species. There are so few of these little guys in this world that it is said that whoever even gets to see them out in the wild, have gained a great luck that would last them for a month, or week, or whatever they believe in." Though small, and though without any great powers or skills, these birds bear the title of a ''Lord'' in the wilderness. In the food chain, they hold a very important position not because they possess any special skills, but because of their mere importance in this nature¡­ plus their ability to manipulate Ichor. "They are like Miu, if we have to compare them to anyone or anything." Just like how Miu had the ability to control the very Nature to a certain degree, these little guys could change Micro changes to the Ichor present in their environment. These seemingly unperceivable changes are something that doesn''t affect beings like humans or those with high intelligence, but for the creatures of nature, or the beings that live in this nature and perceive even the smallest change to the environment, these creatures are the same as the gods of their kind. "Though small and very fragile, they are also a long life species. Plus, they are as intelligent as the humans, or even more in some cases." These creatures are perfect beings when it comes to cuteness. There is a separate fan following of these creatures among the players, there''s even a fan club for these furballs, and Elio, being the great appreciator of Art he is, is part of almost all of them. He adores these creatures¡­ and he had always wished to meet one if fate allowed it. But, there was one flaw to these creatures that makes it impossible to see or meet them in controlled settings. "They are one of the pickiest animals in this world." They don''t show themselves to even the other creatures, much less humans or other beings. Even to their own kind, they are not a friendly species. "They are one of the rare long life species that lives for hundreds of years so they don''t find it necessary to ''mate'' and produce offspring unless they Accidentally come across a partner and end up together. Plus, they are extremely lazy so they don''t like doing practical things, and by that¡­ I mean anything including walking six steps to reach the place where their food is placed. That aside, thanks to their unique ability to manipulate Ichor, they are almost always invisible to most normal senses. Even if they are around you, you won''t even notice them. And, since they are the pickiest animals out there, they don''t just go to anyone, not even the highly trained caretakers that feed them." They are called Lords by the ornithologists while by the players, they are known with the name ''Royal princesses'' because of their distinct laziness, cuteness, and pickiness. "I think that''s the only one in this sanctuary, right?" "Yup." Alex wanted to touch it as well, but it was not going anywhere from Misha''s hands. It jumped on her head or shoulder if someone tried anything funny, and it made them fall down on their face if they tried touching Misha in any way to get to it. It was being protective of her, just like it is to the ones that it likes. "The founder of this place, the first lord of Cromwell personally found this little one somewhere around the corner of the continent and brought it here. There are some stories saying this little guy was actually the reason the founder even got the idea to create this whole facility in Kalp that was just being constructed at that time." Alex had only heard rumors so she wasn''t certain either. That little bird was a legend in this sanctuary, there were a few caretakers that had never even known about the existence of this creature, but Sir Bald who had heard stories of this little guy from the following Lords of Cromwell knew well how it had never taken such liking to any other person. In the many decades he had worked here, he had only had a few sightings of this little guy, and most of the time, it was either bullying the biggest birds in the area, or was sleeping around like a little carefree baby. "Anyway¡­ it looks like we''ve found Misha''s partner." Considered as some of the most competent, smart, resourceful, and Lazy creatures, these little furballs only had a few people that showed any liking towards them. And, as the caretaker of this place knew, there were hardly any people every century that it would ever show such liking to. "You know what, Elio? I think they are perfect together." "I was thinking the same thing." These creatures were pretty clingy as well, so once they found someone that they actually liked, be it a human or a partner, they would spend the rest of their lives being lazy together with them. And, among the millions of players that play this game every single day, there were less than a dozen that had been blessed by these creatures'' affection. "Haaa¡­" He adored these furballs like no other being in this game, and wished for their affection as well. But, sadly, even after his trials, he didn''t gain any attention from them. "At least, someone found a friend." A high maintenance, lazy and picky friend, yes¡­ but, its adorable features made all the negative aspects of its existence meaningless. S§×ar?h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 189 - 189: Loneliness and being alone After the one and only Lord Furball showed interest in someone after so many years, as it was wished by the founder who brought this creature here, the little guy had its own freedom and no one could do anything to it. If it wants to go, it can go at any time and if it wants to come back, it can come back to this home anytime it wants. The current Lord of Cromwell had a will written by the founding lord about this and after Mr. Bald informed him about what had happened here, he came running to see the creature with his own eyes. Even an old person like him had not seen this being in all these years he had been in this city. It was a big day for him actually since his grandfather used to tell him stories about this special creature and how he longed to see it at least once before passing away. For the Cromwells, this creature was more special than Any of them had expected. Lord Andrew was impressed once again and was confused how unique things were happening around these people and around the people around them. "What are we going to do about the gift?" As the current lord of Cromwell, he found it his honor to see the creature finally find someone that he could go out with. sea??h th§× N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Instead of protesting against this, he thanked them for giving him such honor, and since he did that before all the employees of the sanctuary, there were going to be rumors and talks about it soon¡­ And, all of it was going to be highlighted with the grand event that was only a night away from the City of Kalp. "I have an idea, but I think we should prepare two gifts." "Hmm? Why so." Misha named the little furball [Kivi] a name that contradicted its physical appearance, but it was a cute name. And given by a little girl that also fell in love with its cuteness, the lazy bird also smiled at the name before it fell asleep on her red head. Seeing it sleep was a sight to behold for the people around them, however, this was an amazing opportunity that Elio didn''t miss and Clicked a photo of this special little furball. There weren''t many of them like this one, so even a photo of a new one on the various communities would create a great commotion. And, as someone who genuinely loved these creatures, he was going to use this opportunity to do everything to spread the cuteness of this amazing being. "So, the thing is, the gift I''m planning is a little personal. It wouldn''t really represent all of us, and I want to give it to her myself." After all the drama, they were back to their inn, on their bed, fully rested, fully prepared for the Birthday of the city lord''s daughter. "Hmm? Is it because of her condition?" And, like always, Alex knew what Elio was after with only the look he had in his pretty green eyes. "Yeah¡­ how sad must she feel, you know? Having a power that you can only feel and not use, a body that restricts you from using the very gift that you''re born with, an incurable condition that couldn''t be fixed even if they wanted to." After all of that, Elio at least knew one thing: Just like how happy Misha was after getting the first friend of her own that only belonged to her, Lady Eve was lonely without any friends that she could play with. As a noble, gathering and all were a formality for her. He knew how she must have been with many other friends and made friends among various circles, within her own house. It wasn''t like she was alone. Just like Misha, she had people that she could be happy with even in the absence of her special powers. "She and Misha aren''t that different if we look at it from this angle, right?" Misha only had her mom and Lady Eve had her mom and dad that look after her. However, only her mom is with her most of the time with her dad being busy with a lot of things. She has people that she can be around, but just like how Misha couldn''t be with someone for long because of her constant travels, Lady Ana only has a few people that she had been around for as long as she might remember. They were a family more than they were a friend at that point, and with her being able to perceive spirits, there must have been a lot of instances where she might have had the urge to talk with them, call them to her house and play with them. She was even younger than Misha so the chances that she had longed for companionship was pretty high. And, Elio understood that. "Since we can''t give Her Az, shouldn''t we at least give her something that will help her in some way, instead of just something that will make her feel even more lonely?" Elio knew how it felt to be lonely even with many people around you. The strange feeling of alienation, that you don''t belong to somewhere even though it is the only place you have known for your entire life. The distinction between loneliness and having the company of people that we have known for the most part of our lives¡­ It''s thin for those who don''t understand it, and thick for those who have lived through something similar. "Hmmm¡­" Elio had been through something similar, and Alex had been through something exactly opposite of it. So, she understood it as well. "Well, then what do you want to do?" The gift that he was thinking for her, was something pretty personal, but for the gift that they would give from their side, he only had a few ideas. "The ideal thing to give would be something or someone like Az." But that wasn''t going to be possible-. "Sure then. Let''s give her something like Az." He knew it. He had a hunch but, now that he was seeing that smirk on her face, he knew he was going to see or experience something extremely extraordinary. Chapter 190 - 190: Secret shop and the dealers As the reward for their first quest from the viscount, they had obtained access to a ''special'' shop. A special place that one could only get access to through the referral of someone who held a certain amount of authority within the empire. sea??h th§× n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "While being system operated, (Omega) is one of the biggest private organizations that deal with items that one couldn''t just get through simple means." With their connection portals located in every single city of the kingdom and beyond, they were some of the rare organizations that catered to a certain level of people¡­ mostly, ones who had money or a way to get it. "They have all kinds of things on in here, some so crazy that even you would be surprised, darling." The connection point existed in a normal looking house of the city which was also old and didn''t have anything special about it. People lived in this house, however, they did not know much about the special connection point since the building''s upper floor did not belong to anyone. Occasionally, a few people would come and go there but, the ones who actually lived here and maintained the house did not know much about what happened in that place. And, since they weren''t really interested in the dealings of strangers, they didn''t pay any attention to them either. "Come, take a look." There were outdoor stairs that directly took them to the upper floor so they didn''t have to disturb the residents when they came here. There was a certain painting in one of the normal rooms through which they could access this special shop. And, since the interface of this shop was pretty simple as well, Elio didn''t need a long time to understand the design and its use. "¡­" While he was looking at the things listed on the front page, the categories that were similar to their modern day shopping websites, and the other tabs which had other functions of this shop, he couldn''t help but wonder just how much the player''s ''trading area'' or their unique system feature was behind this one. They had a simple interface which was highly user friendly, plus it was attractive and aesthetically pleasant. While looking at each of the things present, each of the categories, and the items in all the categories, he couldn''t help but wonder how well made this thing was. And, since this existed on the System, he knew Magic was highly involved in the creation of this particular Shop. "There sure are all kinds of things here¡­" "Right~?" The entire shop was divided into three major sections: the Highlight field, the Auction, and the Private Trade Center. The first one included the homepage of the store, as well as the other components that one could access through the home window. There were all kinds of weird things in that place. Things made of gold and silver, items that had features that any player would pay a fortune for, and accessories that could save anyone''s life in most of the critical situations. But that was not the weird part¡­ There were all kinds of monster meat present on the listings on the very first page, various kinds of human and other intelligent species'' meat and body parts, things that one would find disgusting, and things that Elio actually found interesting¡­ There were even some monsters listed there, some domesticated, some tamed, and some that were especially starved for days and were much more ferocious than they usually are. There were some that were highly maintained and taken care of, and among many of these creatures, some were quite rare ones. But, the actual rare ones were kept inside the auctions that were going on in the other tab. "Wow." There was always an auction going on for various items and there were various bids placed by many anonymous individuals. From slaves to property, and from heirlooms to things that were forgotten in history and were merely legends, the auction section had a lot of things listed on it, things that people were bidding on, things that people were fighting over with their hundreds of thousands of gold coins. "This is quite well made as well." Though some of the things that were listed here were disturbing, though some of the things that were present there weren''t appropriate, though some people were even offering sexual services and people were bidding like crazy over them, what he liked here was how well made this Shop corner was. "This isn''t even the best one out there, lol." He was mesmerized by the compartmentalized sections present in each of the categories. They were not only showing what they were selling at the moment, they were even showing what was going to come up next, what they would have tomorrow, and a special blind lot section for those who liked gambling. "This is still quite something¡­" The first two sections were anything but simple. They were well made and were pleasing to the eyes even with their disturbing products. The last section though, was something close to a number pad. The simplest section among the three, but the one that Alex had the most interest in. "Alright then, if you''re done looking¡­" She ignored the rest of the sections as if this entire shop was nothing more than a small thing for her, and opened the last tab present there. "Let''s get the perfect gift for that little girl." Alex typed some kind of special code on the number pad and pressed the enter key. -Oooooooooooooooooong! And as soon as she did that, not that just the interface of the shop window, half of the room that they were present in, the entire wall before them was covered in a strange blue light. [Entering personal Dealer space of Omega.] [Dealer rank: Dimond.] [Dealer ranking: 15th.] [Please wait while the dealer prepares their products.] Even two chairs appeared out of the blue for them and surprised Elio. This wasn''t what he was expecting when he saw that simple number pad at first, but he knew something unexpected was going to happen for sure. So, he didn''t let his surprise get reflected in his behavior. Not even when the strange masked man''s hologram came out and sat down on a chair that was present before us along with a few transparent glass boxes containing his merchandise. Chapter 191 - 191: Eve’s present "Yo, wassup Micky." { "I should have known it would be you from that emergency code. Who else but the would use that call code?" } The masked individual was wearing a lavish coat, no jewelry, and black gloves. The shoes that they were wearing seemed to be expensive, but to those who did not know what material they were made of, they were nothing more than a simple pair of expensive shoes. "Hehe, why do you look so tired~? Were we having some kind of important business meeting?" For Alex, this person was an old friend, but in Elio''s eyes, this person was someone that was wearing a pair of shoes made from the Dragon''s skin. It was a very distinct leather that he had only seen in photos before and wanted to see someday if fate allowed it. Trying a pair was out of the question, but now that he was actually before someone who was wearing one, he couldn''t help but be in awe of this person. { "Obviously. What do you think? I was watering my garden?" } This person¡­ though only a hologram, was most definitely a strong individual. At least compared to them, they were someone many times stronger than what met to one''s eyes. The aura that their mere hologram was exuding was making him feel a strange emotion he had only felt from a few people, but Elio wasn''t surprised even though Alex was speaking in that tone with this person. After going through all those weird things with her over these last few months, he at least knew the kind of connections that she had. "Hehe, sorry to call you out of the blue like this, but you see, there''s something important I want." { "Obviously there''s something important that you want. Why else would the great Lady would remember some lowly street side merchant?" } The way he was being sarcastic also indicated how deep their relationship was. He was wearing a mask, but Elio could already imagine the kind of tired face he might be making at the moment. { "Oh, by the way¡­" } Since he appeared there, he had been looking at her only. But, finally, he turned his gaze to the side and looked at Elio. { "Who might this be? Another poor soul you picked up somewhere?" } He seemed to be uninterested in Elio at first. And yet there was pity in his voice. "Oh, this~?" There was a joyous smirk on her face now. "This is the love of my life, my joy and pride, the stars of my eyes, and the happiness of my existence~. Remember I told you about him a while back? This is him~. Elio, my darling~." It was an exaggerated introduction, but as soon as he heard who Elio was, the merchant with a black mask visibly flinched. { "That''s him?!" } The way he shouted was completely out of the character impression that he had made until now. He was shocked, and he was almost shaking. { "Ahem¡­ excuse me for a second." } Now, there seemed to be some kind of fear present in his voice, and after he said that, he also vanished from his seat¡­ reappearing only after an entire minute had passed. { "Greeting, Mr. Elio. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." } He was being sincere even though he was trying to hide how he had just acted at the moment. "The pleasure is all mine actually." But Elio didn''t mind him. By now, this was a normal thing for him and just ignored his behavior for now. There was something more important they needed to talk about at the moment. "So¡­ mister Micky?" { "Oh, where are my manners? I didn''t even greet you properly thanks to this Great Lady." } He passed down a card to Elio, a card that was made of metal and only had a name and a contact code written on it. { "I''m Michklean, a Beast merchant." } The products that were present around him were all creatures of various kinds¡­ creatures that were famous and rare, something one couldn''t procure through simple means. "I''m Elio." He nodded at the merchant as he introduced himself with just a name since he knew the other party knew most that there was to know about him and perhaps much more. "If your greetings and personal evaluations of one another are done, shouldn''t we start talking business? Micky? Don''t have to go back to that meeting?" { "Of course I have to! Jeez!" } He had somewhere to go soon, so she didn''t want to beat around the bush. She knew how busy this person was. { "What are you looking for this time? A dragon tooth? Phoenix''s feather? I got a pair of (Silver goats) a while back if you want to do another crazy summoning." } The way he was calling out those Epic materials with such ease indicated how respectful this person was and how much Alex must have Used him for her various crazy plans. Elio was also feeling pity for this person now. "Nah man. I''m not doing anything fun like that anytime soon. I just want something that can be of use to Viscount Cromwell''s daughter." { "Hmm? Viscount Cromwell? Are you two in Kalp? For the viscount''s daughter''s birthday? Did the old man send you there or what? Hahah." } He was misunderstanding something¡­ "Something like that, so. Do you have something that can help her? You know her condition, right? I''m looking for something that can help her materialize the spirits that she can perceive, make a contract with them if possible and supply them with energy." She knew what she wanted this time at least. The merchant didn''t have to waste his hours helping her decide what she even wanted from him. { "Hmm¡­" } It was a complicated request since there weren''t many beasts in this world that could have spirit affinity, having one like Az was nearly impossible. Yet¡­ { "I''ve got what you might be looking for. Wait a minute¡­ let me get it." } This merchant seemed to have what they were looking for. And from how he left so confidently, Elio at least knew the gift that they were looking for might just be in their grasp. Eve was a nice girl, he knew that. And he wanted her to be happy. She deserved to be happy, make real friends, and go out into that vast world on her own. And see what she was not able to for a long time now despite being a Native¡­ Sear?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 192 - 192: A secret friend (Viscount''s house: Eve''s room¡­) "There are so many people coming." It was a special day for the little girl. She turned ten today. "I never understood why so many people come here whenever it''s my birthday." For the city of Kalp that lived in a unique past of its own, the festival that they were celebrating for the last decade was a pretty new thing. The city''s history was not that long, but whatever history was known of Kalp, a father''s affection for his little girl was highlighted in the last decade that was known by most of the citizens. The world knew how much the Viscount loved his little daughter, and they knew how special his beautiful little girl was. For the people of Kalp or anywhere around this part of the kingdom, her birthday was a special occasion that was celebrated by many noble and important people of the world. Even if they had not seen her or met her themselves, they knew how this special occasion was celebrated. "It is my birthday, so why do they get so happy about it? Just because of this party?" The viscount''s affection for his child might perhaps also have something to do with his wife''s past, but they did not know that, and yet, whenever it was her birthday, not just the people that come to her house, even the normal people of their city celebrate it as if it is somehow connected to them. She had never understood why it was like that. [ "They are¡­ greedy." ] And, she also never really understood why her Special Friend didn''t like these people. "Greedy?" Though smart, She was just a little girl. [ "Greed is a selfish desire for something one wants, something that they cannot have perhaps, but¡­ something they want. Something one longs for¡­ something one wants with all their heart." ] "Oh?" Not many knew about it, but she had a secret friend. A friend that only talked to her, someone no one could see, including her. They were always there to answer her questions, to tell her why someone did something they did, to teach her about the world that her mom and dad did not. "Then¡­ am I greedy as well?" As They said, she also longed for something with all her heart. Just like Them, she could also feel the Spirits of elements in nature. She could not see them, but she knew they were there. She could even talk to them like she did with this Special friend. But she could not see them, meet with them, play with them like the others could, and¡­ even though she felt an intense desire to become friends with Them, she could not call them to her side to play with her. [ "You''re not greedy, Eve." ] She wanted to meet those special beings that she felt such a deep connection with, she wanted to see them, befriend them, and even help them if they needed. She wanted to play with them like she had seen other children like Her do with the ones they befriended. Because of her physique, she could not do it, but her father had told her he would find a way for her to do what she desired by the time she gets old enough. And now¡­ she is a decade old. [ "Unlike them, you do not do anything to please anyone else, you do not follow anyone else''s instructions, and unlike them¡­ you don''t do anything with ulterior motives." ] "¡­I see." They were her secret friend that no one else knew about. She knew they weren''t spirits, so the fact that only she could talk with them and not even her mom and dad could perceive them made them someone Very unique. [ "You''re much better than them." ] She had always known they were special. And, though they were mysterious, she liked talking with them. They were always helpful to her. [ "You''re much better than any of them." ] "Come on now. Don''t be like that." [ "Compared to those people wearing a mask of smile and happiness, you''re a much better Human. You don''t have to pay any attention to those fake people. You''re better off without them-." ] "Haha, alright alright. Enough of praises now. Let us go down~." Dressed like a princess, wearing a shiny dress covered in ribbons, she looked like a fragment of nature itself. Her green hair, never cut or trimmed, was finely braided by her lovely mom, while the pretty shoes that she was wearing were something her father had bought for her personally. Their garden was filled with the guests right now, since it was the venue for the event, so there were a lot of people out there that she could see through her window. She was alone in her room right now and she didn''t really want to go where all those people were, but since her mom and dad, as well as a few people that she was looking forward to see again, People like master Elio and Miss Elle, the little Slime and Gecko, as well as the people that they were going to bring with her. She had heard her dad had invited a few more guests this time around since she was turning ten, so she was also looking forward to meeting these special people that, hopefully, weren''t Greedy as the Voice had described them. "Oh, at least, we can look forward to all the fun gifts~." There were always a lot of people here for her birthday, some important people and some that her father served under. [ "Gifts¡­" ] As she could tell, many of them were also strong people, some being even stronger than her father. And, her mom was always anxious whenever there were many people around, so she doesn''t like going out to gatherings, or parties or things like that. She couldn''t help the gatherings that they have in their house so she has to deal with it on her own, but she doesn''t mind it. [ "Yes, gifts¡­" ] Especially, her little one''s birthday. In all of the year Eve sees her, she''s the happiest on this special day since not only is this her birthday, it is also the day when her mom''s bright Evening came to this world. [ "Gifts¡­ are good. You should look forward to them¡­ the gifts¡­" ] "Right~?" Sear?h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She was happy in the morning when she played with her father and mother, she was happy when the three of them did all those fun things together in the morning, and even as she walked out of her room, there was a bright smile present on her adorable face. Usually, she seemed mature for her age. But, she was still a child. [ "Gifts." ] A child that Knew how to make friends, at the very least. Chapter 193 - 193: A happy Evening "Hahah~." She didn''t think she was going to have so much fun when she came downstairs with her mom who had been waiting for her outside of her room since a while back. "Weeeeee-heheheh~!" She was riding Sleipnir, Odin''s familiar. And she was having fun even with Odin holding her from the sides. She had rode horses before, but that was mostly normal horses, not one this shiny, and pretty, and amazing~. It was a simple horse ride, but it was a completely unexpected kind of birthday gift, especially from someone like Sir Odin that she had seen around in her house before. He was a simple person that treated her nicely, and even gave her a unique candy that he got from a different town so she didn''t dislike him. But, after this fun ride all around their garden, she knew she was going to ask him for this special experience many more times in the future. "Alright, Miss Eve. Seems like we should stop now." Odin stopped in the front of the house where the viscount was waiting along with the viscountess, Elio and Alex. There were some important guests coming, so they needed to go and greet them. "Awwww¡­ I wanted to ride a little more!" "Ah, we can do that anytime you want though. I''ll be here for a few more days." "Hmm? What?! You''re going to go away?!" She was shocked to hear that after seeing him around the house and city for the last few months, but those who come to your lives also have to go, that was just how things were. "Yes¡­ well, you see¡­" He helped her get off the young horse, which seemed just like a pony and was perfect to her, and the little girl looked down with puffed cheeks and sad eyes. She liked this horse quite a lot, but she understood how this was Sir Odin''s familiar. It was a creature that was more than just a friend to him. As her mom has told her many times, as a familiar, this horse was part of Sir Odin''s existence now. There was no way he could separate from them, so she cannot have them. And, since they weren''t someone she could order around like many in her house, she knew being stubborn would be pointless. "Haaa. You don''t have to explain, Sir Odin." She shook her head and smiled at Odin, and then she caressed the ethereal horse that still seemed like a ghost to her. "And thanks for the ride, pretty one." "Weeeee¡ªhehehehe~!" Slei also had fun with the first ever person that rode him. They did not have a saddle or any foot holdings attached yet, and, unlike the traditional horses, they all knew this special being wasn''t going to need all that. It was going to grow into a strong and powerful horse, so if anything, the one who would ride him would simply require enough strength to hold onto him at the speed that he will achieve when he is old enough. "Did you have fun, dear?" Lady Deborah was happy to see her daughter happy like this. "Yes~. This was one of the best gifts I''ve received~!" She was happy, smiling brightly like a little girl she was¡­ and that childish smile was more precious to both her parents than any jewel or ornaments they might have received from the people present around this garden. "Thanks~." The little girl hugged her father as well, and then her mom, and then the three started chatting as they also waited for the arrival of the important guests that they were waiting for. "It''s cheating, you know?" When Odin came to the other side, to Elio and Alex, she couldn''t help but give him an upset look. "That''s right, Sir Odin. The gifts were supposed to be given much later¡­ I would have gone ahead as well, you know?" Even Elio was upset, but he didn''t show it on his face like Alex. He knew how to maintain his expressions, and he knew how to look at the people that were present around them. They were important and all, surely, but they were still just guests of this party like the rest of them. They all might be important in their own ways, but for someone that didn''t have anything to do with all of them, just like Alex, he also had no interest in any of them present in this garden. "Hey hey! Don''t blame me! She wanted to see Slei and I couldn''t just say no to her, alright! I didn''t mean to do it¡­ it just happened." He had no intention to give his gift in this manner, he wanted to have her ride his special partner all around the city at night when all of the people would be immersed in the party. But things went south and he had to improvise. "You will have to get punished, you know?" "Punished for what?! I didn''t even do anything!" "Shhhhh, keep your voice down, dummy." The viscount was standing right next to them. Speaking at all wasn''t a good thing, yet he was shouting with a loud voice, and it most definitely wasn''t a good thing. "Look, Odin. You will have to show up for something I need you for later, alright? That''s all I want from you." She was saying it like Odin had to do something for her. S§×arch* The N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "You¡­" He knew that already, and he wanted to ask her why he would have to do anything for her in the first place. Their friendship aside, if he was doing something important, he most certainly couldn''t just leave all that and come to help her with whatever she might need. "Alright." Yet, he couldn''t say no to her when she was looking at her like that. There was this strange feeling in his mind that something bad would happen if he declined at that moment. "Good decision." And Elio knew exactly what that feeling he might be experiencing was. "Alright then~." They were pretty close by now, so they were pretty much friends. There were still a lot of things he did not know about either of them, but he knew being with them was a profitable thing, so at the very least, he wanted to stay in contact with them. "Miss Alex, Mister Elio and Sir Odin, seems like the Duke''s envoys are here. I''ll go escort them." The viscount was a close companion of the Duke of west, the Iron-blood Master of the entire north. And, though he was a busy man, he made sure to attend at least the most important event of his subject''s life. Sadly, he had some work coming up this time and couldn''t visit personally¡­ Still, he had sent his most trusted people for the party, and the Viscount wanted the three of them to meet them. "Yes, Lord Andrew." "Yes~. We can finally start the party." "Miu~." "Muuuuuu~!" They all had been waiting for these important guests, so now that they were here, the noble''s party could finally see its actual beginning. Chapter 194 - 194: Important guests Politically, the Kingdom of Viv was divided into six distinct parts which were different from the eight directional sections and the center: The cardinal directions controlled by three dukes and six marquis, the Center governed by the royalty, and the special places like the southwestern plains, the northern jungle, the eastern gorge, and the northern border that divides them from the Empire that were under the supervision of special people. The Queen was the supreme authority in this kingdom, and then there were the individuals that held the position of Crown successors that would take over the kingdom after her. There used to be a King that ruled the kingdom alongside her, however, that Great person passed away heroically while protecting what he loved the most. But the kingdom had always belonged to the Queen, and she had been the one ruling over it for the last few centuries as the sole supreme authority of the land. Under her, the Crown successors existed, however, they did not yet have any authority like the Princes and the Princesses of the Empire and the other nations do. They were just individuals that were selected directly by the Queen as her replacement candidates and when the time comes, all of them would have to prove themselves as the valid master of the Grand throne. "We apologize on behalf of the-." "Oh no no. You don''t have to do that, Lord Cale." As the successors, they had their special privileges, but all of it was unrelated to any actual authority within the kingdom. Thus, under the Queen, the three Dukedoms and the six Marquis families were the only high ranking nobles that actually had any hand in the working of the kingdom, the maintenance of the people''s lives, and the way of individual living. And¡­ the Queen cherished these Nine families quite dearly. "These are not my words, Lord Andrew. These are our lord''s words. Please do not stop me from delivering the message my lord personally wanted to deliver." Among the various dukedoms of the kingdom, the Luthor dukedom was among the special ones that the Players were especially interested in. The Blood-iron duke was one of the strongest people in this kingdom, and was considered to be on par with the high rankers. He wasn''t on the level of the Successors when it came to the abilities, but still, as a duke, a Grandmaster, as well as the master of the entire Northern region of the kingdom, he was one of the most prominent figures among the players. S~ea??h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And, as the players knew, he was currently doing a rune exploration and wasn''t present in the kingdom. [{ "You know what? I know that guy." }] The viscount was one of the closest aides of the Duke, and just like him, Lord Cale that had arrived here on his behalf was also his close aide. But, unlike the viscount, Lord Cale was more of an administrator than a fighter that went to the battlefield, knew magic, or was good with various things. He was smart and famous for his abilities, but unlike the viscount, he was simply a lord that served a greater Lord. [{ "Well Alex, you know the dragons and gods as well so it doesn''t really matter." }] [{ "No, jeez, dummy. That''s not what I meant." }] The duke had sent his close aides along with Lord Cale, which included his knight captain who was a (Level-201) swordmaster. He didn''t have a noble title but just being a captain of the Duke''s knights gave him a reputation close to someone like Viscount. [{ "That Cale guy, he knows me as well. And Black sword of the Blood-iron duke, even the knight with him knows me." }] [{ "Hmmm?" }] She had fallen to a much lower level and they wouldn''t expect someone like her in a place like this on a simple occasion like this, but both of them knew the main reason they might not recognize her, would be because of the pretty dress that she was wearing. [{ "Shouldn''t we go and say hello then? You should greet them at least." }] [{ "That we should do. Let''s go." }] She was wearing a pretty dress that went perfectly with her long black hair that looked as pretty as they looked right after Miss Aloha had made them. They couldn''t find a master in a place like this, so she was just using that hairstyle with a pretty matching jewelry and dress set, and¡­ with some makeup and a little bit of smile on her face, she was the center of attraction on the level of Viscountess or the little Eve who looked as noble as the knights in shining armor. "Greetings, gentlemen." She looked nothing like the bloodstained sword maiden that they knew her as, so, when she and Elio, who looked just as stunning as her went to them and greeted the knight and Lord, neither of them recognised her. "Oh, Miss Alex, Mister Elio." The viscount had been eager to introduce these two to the Duke''s people since a while ago, so he didn''t wait long and introduced all six of them together. "Friends, these are some promising individuals that has been helping me with many Important things lately." Starting with Elio, Lord Andrew introduced Alex, Odin, Az, Miu, and Sleipnir to the gentlemen before them. He shared how Elio and Alex had helped him with his ''work'' and he shared how Odin and Slei were helpful to him for a while now. He told them how Slei was a special being, something they all had understood already the moment they laid their eyes on them. But, they also understood how this creature was a familiar of this dark knight. There was no way to obtain this being, so, the Lords and the knight captain went ahead and actively engaged in a conversation with them. They didn''t really find anything weird with Alex, aside from the fact that she was Extremely pretty. There were only a few ladies that they had met who had been as pretty as her, as elegant as her¡­ who also possessed as sharp eyes as hers. When they were looking at her, her attractive way of dressing, the way she carried herself, her smile, and those deep blue eyes¡­ they couldn''t help getting enchanted by all those features despite their direct encounter with the pinnacle of beauties. There was something unique about her, something nostalgic. Initially, some of them, including the knights and the others, were going to greet her personally as well. However, they did not do so¡­ "Hey, shuuu." "Ahem." After they saw the look in her eyes while she was smiling at her partner, Sir Elio¡­ that certain look that the adults like them all understood the meaning of, they did not try anything. They could see she was taken. And just like them, the young ladies present in the garden could see Elio was taken as well, which was sad. Some of them still went ahead and tried greeting them, some adults tried introducing their younger children to them, and socializing¡­ but it did not work. At the end of the day, Elio did not leave Alex''s side, and Alex did not leave Elio. They just, stuck together throughout the introduction phase of this Amazing party. Chapter 195 - 195: Friendship… "His name is Kivi?" "Yes~." Misha found Eve, and then, the little girls left the adults alone and went inside the house. It was getting suffocating even though they were outside in the garden. "He''s so cute~." "Isn''t he~?" Misha was showing her the new little partner that she got a few days ago, and the little white furball that was now wearing a funny looking bowtie, who was again sitting on Misha''s head, was grumpy about the bowtie. He did not like it. He was a bird, why did he have to wear clothes like them humans anyway?! "Can I hold him? Please?" Eve was meeting Misha for the first time today, but she had met Az and Miu before. And, though not many people noticed it, she had seen how Misha was touching Miu. It was strange how someone was touching a creature like Miu, but instead of being cautious of it, the little girl found it fascinating. "Oh Eve¡­ I don''t know." Misha tried picking up Kivi and placing it on Eve but the creature did not stay in Eve''s hand. Misha even tried asking the little one, and the furball clearly denied going anywhere near her. "Ummm¡­" Misha was then confused why he was being like that. He had at least greeted the other people they met, he didn''t like anyone other than her but at least, he wasn''t as rude with others as he was with her. "It''s fine. I understand why he''s like that." She didn''t know why the little bird was being like that, but Eve understood it. She had seen some other creatures doing it as well, so she knew. "He''s special, isn''t he? He can tell something''s wrong with me." "Hmm? Something''s wrong with you?" Misha didn''t know about Eve''s condition. She was meeting her for the first time so she only knew Eve was an important nobleman''s sole child. And that was a big thing. Misha knew that. "Well¡­ you see¡­" Elio had at least asked her not to tell anyone about Az''s special powers so she knew how important of a secret it was. She wasn''t going to tell anyone. "I have this physical condition where I use my Mana. I can feel it, I can sense it, but I can''t release it. They call it [Mana release syndrome], but¡­ I don''t know¡­ some creatures just don''t like me because of that." A curse, as the players called it. Even some of the players had this condition for some reason where they cannot release any of the Mana that they accumulate in their body. And it was worse than having a complete Mana opposing body like Alex does. "Oh¡­ I''m sorry." "Why are you sorry, Miss Misha? I was just born like this. There''s nothing wrong with accepting the way you are." "But¡­" She couldn''t play with the little bird, but at least, Az and Miu didn''t mind her. They played with her well, and she was happy to meet them. "Accepting something we are born with doesn''t always mean you''re accepting how you are, or how you want to be, right?" Misha knew Kivi well enough by now, so she knew he wasn''t going to mind even if she did something to him or forced him to do something against his will. "Here." That''s why, even though he did not want to, Misha grabbed him and placed it before Eve. "¡­" And though Eve didn''t understand why she was doing it at first, now that she had the chance, she patted the little bird with cotton like feathers. "Soft¡­" She couldn''t help but be amazed at how soft, how pretty, how cute this creature was. "I wish I had someone like him as well." Ultimately, he didn''t like her though, so when Misha released him, he went straight over her head and hid himself. Misha found it funny, but seeing the behavior of that cute bird, Eve couldn''t help feeling a bitter feeling inside her heart. "You''ll find a friend as well, Miss Eve~. I know someone who''s old and rude sometimes, but he''s very smart and has a looooot of books. He once told me how he also didn''t have any friends for a long time! He didn''t even know much about his parents, and only after he was much, much older than us or Big sis Alex or brother Elio, did he meet his partner and his best friend~." She was talking about the Librarian and his familiar, obviously, But Eve only saw this as something bad. "Then¡­ will I have to wait for a long time to have friends like you do as well, Miss Misha?" "No, silly~. I''m just saying there''s no reason to Accept something that can be overcome!" Misha had her mom, she had Alex and Elio, she even had Az, Miu, and Kivi. Odin just told her he''d stay with Elio and others for a while as well, she''d also have the fun black pony with her. "You''ll find friends as well. I was alone with mom until I met sister Alex and brother Elio a few months ago as well. I''m sure you''ll find friends soon as well~." Misha believed she was helping Eve and Eve wanted to believe that as well. But sadly, Eve didn''t really like all this waiting, and waiting and waiting. "Friendship¡­" It wasn''t like she didn''t have friends. She had friends in this house, she had her mom and dad, she even had the Voice with her. So, she didn''t really lack any friends. "Yeah. I hope I meet them soon as well." Eve knew Misha meant well. She knew this girl in that pretty red dress was simply a young child from a small town that didn''t understand much of the Real world, or the lives that They lived, so she wasn''t angry at her. [ "Don''t worry¡­ we''re here for you." ] She just, had this weird feeling in her heart that she cannot explain. sea??h th§× novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. It was something she didn''t usually feel, but today¡­ "I think we should go out now. Dad and mom must be waiting." "Yes~. Let''s go~." Today, for some reason, with all these people, with Misha around¡­ that strange feeling was weirdly more Present there. She, couldn''t explain what it was but it might just be jealousy. Yeah, that might just be jealousy towards what this Simple Girl had. Chapter 196 - 196: Why don’t I have that…? The party continues, and the one this party is organized for, sits alone in a corner with her Friend. "Did you also like the show?" [ "It was decent." ] She was eating something, or so it seemed with the plate of dessert before her. "Hmmm¡­" A while ago, as they started the celebration of her fun birthday with her dad''s speech like they do each year. Her father had prepared a special surprise for her, a performance from the Elementalists. It was a surprise performance where a few individuals who had contracted multiple spirits came together and artistically performed with their spirits¡ª a unique but famous entertainment that the nobles of got a high enough status could afford. "Well, it was fun." Eve looked around the garden, and a few people met her eyes. Alex was with Elio, chatting in another corner. They didn''t seem to be interested in the other people that had arrived here, and for some reason, she could even tell both of them were bored. The red-head woman that had come with them was trying to avoid people so she was smiling at Misha from a distance, and Sir Odin was with his familiar, smiling and laughing as he had found some old knights to chat with, and then there was Misha¡­ "Why''s she so happy all the time?" She was smiling brightly, and she giggled a lot even though she was older than her. She was a simple girl, yet she was pretty. And because of her smile, she also attracted the attention of many people around her as well. But, she did not pay any attention to any of them and just played with Miu and Az. Her little friend is still sitting on her head with his upset look. Sear?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [ "She enjoys living. Since she has everything she wants to have in her life, she''s happy." ] "Wouldn''t having everything you want in your life make you content? Both are different, aren''t they?" [ "Perhaps. However, looking closely¡­ we just see a child that has all that it wants." ] She wasn''t wearing anything costly, she didn''t have any item on her that would have special skills, she didn''t even have that much jewelry even though she was traveling with forefingers. But her dress was pretty attractive, and with her natural appearance, she looked prettier. She had friends, but her happy nature wasn''t exactly a great thing in Eve''s eyes. [ "She has a mom that can always be with her On her Travels, she has friends and people that can teach her about special things, she can have anything she wants with the resources of the people around her, and, more than that¡­ she''s healthy." ] People wanted to talk with her but she avoided them all and just played with the slime that can use magic and a creature that was the same as poison to anyone that got near it. She was happy¡­ "And here I am, haaa." This was her party and people certainly paid attention to her, but since she came and sat down here, no one had even approached her. She was by herself, and since her mom and dad had many people they needed to talk with at the moment, she didn''t mind them doing what they had to do. But Misha''s mom was watching her, and was there for her if she needed anything. "Why don''t I have all that, friend. Family that can be there for me, special friends that understand me, a simple life, a simple mindset, ability to smile as freely as I want¡­ why not me?" She wasn''t jealous anymore. And she didn''t dislike her sweet big sister Misha. She understood she wasn''t like her. She wasn''t raised like her so she didn''t understand much of the things around her, and since she didn''t have any conditions like her, she also shouldn''t be compared with her. She was different, so she had done nothing to be envied or hated for. She was Misha. And Eve was different from her, she understood that much. "Is¡­ something wrong with me?" [ "No, Eve." ] The voice spoke from the shadows. [ "There''s nothing wrong with you." ] And it reassured the little girl. [ "Everyone is different. She, the two with her, the two in the corner, her mother, the people around her¡­ all of them are different. Comparing yourself with them will only bring sadness and anger." ] The Voice didn''t want her to feel all those emotions. [ "You''re much better than them, even with your condition. You''re not faulty, you''ve done nothing wrong either. You''re unique, more special than anyone else." ] And thanks to the Voice, the little girl cheered up a little bit as well. [ "You''re Eve. And the others are others. Don''t lower yourself to the level of those people." ] The voice was not right. "Right." But the little girl nodded, washed away her anxiety and sadness, and stood up from her chair when she saw her dad looking at her. "I''m not like the others." It was time for the gifts, so, instead of being all sad and confused¡­ "I''m different." She should just look forward to the fun things that she''s going to get this time around. "Well then¡­" Sir Odin had already given his gift, and she wasn''t looking forward to the gifts of the other people that would bring the same kind of things this time around as well. And, since this was her tenth birthday, her mom and dad had given her their gifts in the morning already. Which she loved, actually. "How about we start with the gifts?" It was a tradition in the Noble society of the Kingdom to bring gifts for anyone''s birthday. The kind of gift did not matter since it was more about the emotions behind them, so¡­ Eve who had been seeing all the people giving half-hearted gifts to not her but indirectly to her parents, had never liked them. But, it was different when it came to people like Sir Odin. All their gifts were something she had always looked forward to for as long as she could remember. And this time as well, she was looking forward to seeing the gifts that she receives from Miss Alex, Sir Elio, the Sword grandpa and¡­ the amazing gifts that a certain person sends to her each year. There were more gifts that she was looking forward to this time around as well, so, when she reached the center of the garden with a few people already present there, there was a glimmer of excitement in her eyes. [ "¡­" ] A bright glimmer that was perceived as a Good sign by many others present in that garden¡­ Chapter 197 - 197: Oh… no. "Oh! Is this what I think it is~?" Eve had a special grandpa that she had only met a few times in all these years. Someone who was very busy and lived in the capital most of the time. "That most certainly looks like an appraisal glass. How about you try using it though." He was out for work most of the time, sometimes for years, and these past few years, he was not able to come back home to Ben though he was here until he passed on his position as the lord to her dad. He was amazing apparently, famous all throughout the land as one of the most trusted knights of the Queen. However, since he was such an important figure, he could not give as much time as he wanted to his family. In all the ten years of Eve''s life in this city, she had only met him occasionally, but she knew he was someone amazing. And, though he could not come home permanently for now until he retires from his duties after five more years of service, he makes sure his gift reaches his beloved granddaughter. "Oh! Yes, this is an Appraisal item~." A golden monocle with blue jewels embedded on its periphery, attached to a simple looking silver chain. A device that was only found in dungeons of past civilizations and runes of ancient times. Though simple looking, these things were something invaluable to anyone who knew its value. "Hehe, this is amazing~." It was a special gift to his beloved that Alex knew he cherished deeply, and from the smile she had, it seemed like she certainly liked it as well. "Alright then~. Is it time, Miss Alex?" She revived a unique dress with self defense functions from the Blood-iron duke or the sword grandpa as he called him. From Elio personally, she received a recording crystal that had pictures of all kinds of creatures and brings. It contained videos that others had not seen yet, there were a bunch of pretty pictures, and most of all, it had a lot more space where she can record and store her own things. It was a costly item, as rare as the monocle that she had received from her grandfather, and Elio wasn''t sure if Alex would have it or not, but she did have it. And, since that item was the only thing with which players can share their screenshots, it was the perfect personal gift for her. "Alright alright. Here, you can open it now." Elio''s gift was also invaluable for her. Plus there were so many pictures in this crystal that she knew she would need an entire day just to go through those things. It was different from all the other gifts she had received from those Greedy people. It was genuinely something that someone wanted her to have. And, she loved it. "Yes! Mommy, help me. Help me open it." His gift reflected their adventures and the fun His Friends have had until now, and in a way, he wanted her to know there were other ways she could be happy. Making food, going around new places, playing with the creatures you find on your journey, making friends that like you for who you are, she could do a lot of things even if she was like this. There was no need for her to be lonely when she had so many more things she could do instead of focusing on her elementalism. But, she had not yet understood the entirety of that message¡­ "Where did you even find a temporary pocket dimension?" "Trade secrets, Lord Andrew. Trade secrets." Alex had requested Eve to open Their gift at the end and now that all the other gifts were opened, only the unique glass cube was left on the big table. Her dad had already told them how these special cubes were called (Temporary pocket dimensions) and were used only by the best merchants for living organisms. They were pretty rare and costly, but the fact that they were seeing one here, simply meant someone had that kind of resources and connections to obtain something like this. And, since this wasn''t a TPD for items but for ''living organisms'' it was obvious that someone was inside of it. "What could it be~? What could it be~?" "Calm down, Eve. I''m opening it now, okay?" sea??h th§× n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Alex and Elio did not know if she had ever received a creature as a birthday present, but seeing her reaction right now, it did not seem to be the case. Plus, Eve was extremely excited right now. "Yes~! Let''s goooo~." Ornaments, items, books, clothes, jewelry, things¡­ all those things had become pretty common for her. But a creature, a pet, a friend, a partner, someone that would be with her just like how Elio was with Alex, how Miss Rin was with Misha, how Az was with Miu, or how Sir Odin was with his familiar~. -Ooooooooooooooong. She would get a friend that was Hers, and not someone else''s¡­ perhaps not someone like Kivi, but definitely someone she could finally be with, play with, and talk with like she does with the Voice. So, she was excited right now. This might just be the best gift that she might have ever received~. -Click. And, when her mom opened the box with a little bit of Mana, Eve''s excitement reached its peak, with her heart beating so fast that she believed it would jump right out of her chest. "Ready?" "Huuuuuu. Yes." But, she calmed herself down with deep breath as everyone present in the garden focused on the pretty blue light that illuminated the entire area around them. "Pi-kyu?" As the box vanished along with the light, with a low sound of something unique, a being materialized on top of the table. "Wow¡­" And the first one that came out of Eve when she saw this creature, was the gasp of admiration. "Oh, my lord." "Is that¡­" "No way¡­" "Haven''t they gone extinct?! What is this?!" "How is that thing here?!" "Oh! Oh! To think I''ve lived long enough to see a [Blue Mystic Fox] with my own eyes!" A cute, white, furry creature with large, blue eyes and glowing crystalline ears, that had magical energy swirling around its body¡­ it was a being of myths. But, it was a baby. A creature just a little bigger than Az, with a foxian white tail glowing in a serene blue energy, its eyes looking around the entire garden, a unique curiosity resting in them. "Hello there." Eve slowly walked up to this amazing creature, feeling the clear presence of the spirits around it. She could tell it was special, she could tell this being, this creature was exactly what she needed to not only do what she had not been able to because of her physique, but also the friend, and the freedom that she had been searching for. With this mystical creature, she believed she would finally find the Joy that was lost from her life. With this creature¡­ "You''re so pretty¡­" She thought all her problems would go away. "Pi-kyu." Sadly, all beings in this world had the inherent right to Choose what they wanted to do in their lives. Even the ones who had been trained by the best tamers of the industry. "Hmm?" Sadly, the amazing creature which was gifted to her¡­ did not choose her to be her friend. "Pi-Kyu~." It chose her father. The lord of Cromwell. -Oooooooong! And that too as not a friend¡­ "Oh¡­ no." But a lifelong partner that she''d spend the next nine of her lives with. Chapter 198 - 198: Hurtful play of fate "This was unexpected." "Too unexpected¡­" Alex and Elio watched in shock as the creature that they had obtained from the special merchant for the young daughter of the viscount jumped passed the young girl and stood before her master. The blue eyes of the creature locked with the red eyes of the person who now seemed to be in a daze. He was looking down at the small mysterious beast that he knew little about, feeling as if he had known about this creature for an eternity. And the creature was looking up at him as well, a calm expression present on her face. She was looking up at him, and he was looking down at her. Which went on for a moment more, before both of them were covered in a storm of blue energy. "Should we call it a coincidence, Alex, or simply fate?" Of hundreds and thousands of creatures that exist in this world, they obtained a certain creature that also had elementalism affinity like Az so that Elio doesn''t have to part ways with his little friend. The creature that they obtained didn''t cost them money since there was some kind of Tab going on between the merchant and Alex, but Elio knew they would have to pay him back for this creature. But, he was fine with it thinking his connection with this person would make them good enough profit for something like that. However, that did not work as he had intended¡­ "Fate is a bitch most of the time, Elio. Just like a poisonous mosquito, it shows its true colors exactly when you are paying the least attention." The present that they had brought for the little Eve was now Bonding with her father, something that didn''t really make any sense since the Viscount was a battle mage instead of someone who worked with elemental spirits. He was a pure mage, and from what they knew, he did not have any affinity with the elemental spirits, and yet, the creature of lores that was famous for their unique relationship with the spirits, was now bonding with the viscount who had already given up the hope to meet his familiar. "It''s unexpected¡­" Alex looked at Eve who was now looking down at the ground with a look that seemed to be confused, and angry at the moment. But, there was nothing that she could do for this little girl. Sometimes, some things aren''t just meant to be. "But it is what it is." What they were seeing right now was, once again, a rare sight. "Some things are just out of our control." Not long ago, they had seen Odin bond with Slei, and not long after that, they were watching viscount bonding with the creature that his daughter was looking forward to greeting. Just a moment ago, she was cheerful and happy, but now, she didn''t even know how she should feel. "At least though¡­" The present that she was looking forward to the most could not be hers, but that wasn''t really the end of this world. There were a lot many beings that she could have as her friend and channel, this one fox was simply an exception. Obtaining another one of the creatures with such specific traits would be difficult but, at least, it wasn''t impossible. Unlike a familiar that was one of a kind for a certain being in this entire world, a being with powers similar to this little fox''s or Az''s weren''t limited. "I''ll go talk with her." Eve was still a child, a pitiful little girl that wasn''t supposed to go through so much at such a young age. This little incident¡­ her father''s bonding with the creature that could solve all her problems according to her perspective, was certainly a big thing. But, it wasn''t a bad thing for her. She was just confused right now over what she should feel, how she should react to this, or weather the things happening right now were even right or not. "Be careful, she must be vulnerable right now." Her mom wanted to talk with her, but on one side was her husband who was bonding with the being that he had been searching for decades, and on the other side was her baby girl who couldn''t understand why her gift had just ignored her. She wanted to talk with her, help her, but she did not have any words. "Miss Eve?" But Elio did have those words and so, he walked up to her and looked at her with a bitter expression. "Miss Eve." He knew what he needed to say at the moment, he knew what was the best thing that she needed to hear right now, and he knew how he should go from here on out. But¡­ "Miss Eve¡­?" She wasn''t listening to him. "Miss Eve?" He looked at her mom, after she didn''t even react to his calling. And, seeing this, even her mom got worried. "Eve dear?" She called out to her, and even grabbed her shoulder, but she did not respond. "Eve! What''s wrong!?" Most others around them were focused on the grand sight of viscount and the mystic fox''s bonding, so their focus only arrived on the birthday girl and her mom. "Eve¡­!" The guards, Alex, Odin, and Miss Rin also looked in their direction after that desperate scream of the mother, however, that voice did not reach the girl who was lost in the Darkness¡­ "Why¡­" She was murmuring something, but it was inaudible for the rest of them. "Why me¡­" Her skin was becoming paler. And, the shadow under her feet was reacting¡­ [ "Even your father doesn''t want you to be happy, young one." ] "How could they¡­" [ "They don''t care about you, they only pay attention to you to get closer to your parents, they are Greedy, they are Selfish, and they are Envious¡­" ] -Ooooooooooooooong! "Hmm?" "Muuu¡­?" "Miu!" Miu sensed it first, and Alex was the second. "Elio! Get away from there!" "What did I¡­ how could they¡­" [ "They don''t want you to have what you deserve. They aren''t worthy of you¡­ young one." ] -OOOOOOOOOOONG! Alex used {Blink} in a hurry, closed the distance, pushed Elio away from the little girl, took the viscountess and with another {Blink} to barely make it to a safe distance. sea??h th§× N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [ "We are the only one who cherish you." ] A familiar darkness enveloped the young girl. [ "Only we want to help you get what should be yours, and yours alone." ] The viscount finished his bonding exactly at that moment and saw a heinous darkness enveloping around his little girl. [ "Only we are your friends." ] "Friends¡­" -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiish! A sinister energy sprung forth from the young girl''s body. [ "You are better than any of them. Better than everyone. The best. The Supreme¡­" ] "The best¡­" The darkness enveloped her body, and turned her little self¡­ into something that could not even be called human. [ "You don''t need any of them." ] A chill ran down every one of their spines who witnessed this horrific transformation¡­ [Ding!] "No¡­" And, with a sudden quest window''s appearance¡­ [ "WE are the only ones you need, oh young one." ] Elio''s heart froze in its place. Chapter 199 - 199: Advent of Evil ============ [Area Quest: ] : Viscount Cromwell''s daughter who has always longed for the elemental Spirit''s affection but could not befriend them due to her innate physical condition caught the attention of the Evil beings of the Dark realm. Taking advantage of the young girl''s weakness, they befriended her and when she did not receive what she had longed for and became vulnerable, they started corrupting her. And with the severe mental trigger that they had been searching for, they have taken over her being with their perpetual Impurity. Objective: 1) Defeat the Evil who have taken over Eve Andrew Deborah Cromwell | Survive the descended evil and get out of the viscount estate | Kill the enemy. 2) Save Viscount and the delegates of other important noble households. 3) Limit the Dark Energy Outburst. Rewards: Will depend on individual actions. Failure conditions: 1) Death by the Evil beings. 2) Death by any actions caused by evil beings. 3) Death by individual actions. 4) Death by environmental causes. 5) Death on the field. 6) Death of Viscount and his family. 7) Survival of the evil beings who have taken over Eve Cromwell. 8) Death of any individual present outside of the quest area due to Evil being''s actions. 9) Acceptance of [Impurity]. ============ It was a unique quest given not by any individual, but by the system itself. And, this was an area quest so every single individual present in that area had received it including the parents of the being who had become the target of the evil beings. "Shit. Shit!" Eve¡­ the adorable little girl who was smiling just a moment ago, had now turned into a creature that resembled the Joker that Elio and his party had seen when they went underground a few days ago. Back then, the being that they had fought was a creature of darkness, someone who had failed to align itself with the pure darkness and was overwhelmed by the power that it received. It wasn''t evil from the beginning but the overwhelming power corrupted them, however, even though Eve looked somewhat similar to that creature with her body that now resembled a bewitching demoness, was not the same as that joker. She was being possessed by the evil creatures that are responsible for the birth of the Dark mages¡­ "What do we do, Alex?!" "Shut up for now! That''s all we can do right now!" -OOOOOOOOOONG! Eve wasn''t like that joker who initially followed the pure darkness, a truth that indicated the ''finality'' of all beings, she had turned into an ''impure'' creature close to that Dark magician that the two of them had fought in Moongold. S§×arch* The N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Unlike that joker, she wasn''t in control of her body at the moment, so, whatever was happening right now, wasn''t exactly her fault. -Swish! Swish! Swish! Dark spikes made of that impure darkness were now coming out of the ground from all around the garden, breaking through even the platforms made in various places. The knights who were on standby including the knight captain who had arrived from Luthor was on guard. The entire estate was sealed off by the estate mages, and though stunned by the quest window that had popped up before him as well, the viscount was taking command of the forces. [{ "How the hell did it come to this?!" }] Eve¡­ the creature that had taken over her was trying to kill every single person present in the garden, every single greedy person that had ignored her and had envied her in any manner. [{ "It''s those fucking Evil bastards! Fuck! This is bad! Very, very fucking bad!" }] The Evil beings of the Dark realm were responsible for all the impurity that existed in this physical realm. They were beings closer to the spirits, or gods, or the ghosts. They were abstract in nature, they were evil, and¡­ they had only one objective: Chaos. Following the truth of Impurity, these beings were worse than the demons who had their own ideology- one that could still be dealt with in a simple manner. But not these beings¡­ They were Evil. They wanted Chaos. And to cause that chaos, they used their abundant power of Impure Darkness on anything that they could take advantage of. [{ "Elio! Forget about everything else! We have to deal with that Dark energy Collector!" }] [{ "But¡­!" }] [{ "If that thing explodes, the entire Kalp will be done for! Elio!" }] The knights that had arrived to save the other people were being wounded by the spikes that were popping out the blue from the ground. It was something that directly pierced through their armors, and when it got into contact with them, they started turning into creatures that resembled the Dark joker, covered in dark energy, with no control over their bodies anymore. [{ "Just leave them! Odin! Miss Rin! Get the children and the Important noble people out of here! And tell anyone you see fighting those things to stop and focus on evaluation! Priorities taking them outside of the estate! I''m going to help Andrew! Many lives are on the line right now so don''t fucking do anything stupid!" }] That creature flying with its dark wings, smirking down at all of them as if it was enjoying all the chaos happening there¡­ It wasn''t Eve. That poor girl just fell victim to those evil bunch and, though Alex didn''t want to admit it¡­ it was too late now. "Lord Andrew!" "Pi-kyu!" He had taken out his magic wand and was helping the guides while the fox creature that he had just bonded with was helping the people get out of this estate with the help of water and wind sprints. It was a mystical creature, so it had the power to not only use Mana in the environment directly, even though it was young, it was able to summon at least three basic spirits. It was going to be weakened after using so much energy, but since Lord Andrew was sharing his own Mana with the creature, they should be fine for now. "Miss Alex! What''s-." "Andrew! I know you''re confused right now, but you know exactly what''s happening! And you know what that form means!" "No¡­!" As a father, he would never accept the fact that his child that he had cared for as the most precious treasure in this world, someone he had given his everything to, the one he had nurtured so preciously¡­ had fallen to those fucking evil beings! He could see what had become of his little one, but he would never accept the fact that she was gone completely! "She''s there! I know she''s there!" "Yes she is!" The knights who had fallen to the evil''s darkness and became a dark creature came and attacked them, but the Viscount sliced them all into pieces without mercy. The only thing that he could see right now was his precious daughter who was being controlled by those damned evil beings! She wasn''t doing all this purpose, THEY were making her do all of this! He knew that! "But you know as well as I do! It''s too late!" "No¡­!" -Ooooooooooooong! Those evil beings start taking over one''s being from the very moment they get into contact with them. "I know she''s there¡­!" This was a well known phenomenon which had resulted into a Main scenario six years ago and everyone knew how those Evil bastards worked very well. "Yes she''s still there!" The father who had cherished his precious treasure so dearly would never accept this fact. She knew that better than anyone else¡­ "But she''s just a little girl, Andrew!" Right now, if it wasn''t for the Knight captain of the Duke holding that being back, many of them would have died already. He was the only one who could hold it back even though it was merely a (Level-180) creature at the moment. "Do you think she can defy the Impurity of those evil bastards?!" There was chaos all around the viscount mansion which was celebrating a grand occasion just a moment ago. The one who was at the center of this festive event, the precious gem of Cromwell, had now become the murderer thirsty for the blood and screams of all the individuals present there. Now a representation of Evil, she was blocking the Knight captain of the Blood-iron duke with one hand, while controlling the dark spells to take lives on the ground. Her mother who was overwhelmed by the trauma of seeing her child turning into that monster had lost her mind and was moved outside of the estate already. And her father, who cherished her unlike anyone else in this world, was helping the knight that was blocking her from killing the rest of them present there¡­ [ "Khehahahaha~!" ] There was a giant orb of energy that was gathering dark energy from the surrounding as well as from the body of the creature (Eve) and anyone seeing this orb¡­ could instinctively tell it wasn''t a good thing. As mentioned in the quest window, it was something that''d cause a Dark Energy Outburst, and anyone familiar with that name, or, anyone who was more than ten years old, knew exactly what it was. "Eve¡­" And, as even Elio knew¡­ they had to stop that thing from exploding. Above anything else, even the life of the little miserable girl, what all of them present there had to focus on right now, was that Dark orb hanging above their heads. If that explodes¡­ the tragedy of the Empire''s western gate from six years ago would be repeated in the Kingdom of Viv as well. Chapter 200 - 200: Miserable father… [Elio''s POV: ] Up in the sky, there was a creature, the reason for many deaths that have already occurred in this garden, as well as the deaths that might happen if that thing above its head explodes. [{ "How do we stop it?!" }] Those fucking bastards¡­ those damned evil¡­ they took advantage of that little girl who knew little of the truth about this world. She was a child! [{ "The only way to stop that bomb from exploding would be to ''Dismantle'' the energy that makes it. But only the one who made it could do that!" }] [{ "There has to be another way!" }] Alex knew what she had to do right now, and she was doing it. She was helping the viscount and Knight captain with Odin and Miss Rin. Miss Rin was the only person who could use Holy power here, and though it was a dangerous idea to show that to others present, in all this chaos, without her help, the knight captain and the viscount might not have been able to survive the brutal attacks of the being that was constantly getting strong. Its level was increasing as well, and there was nothing that we could do about it. Helping the ones who were fighting and evacuating the others who could not fight took priority, so we were doing that right now. The pretty garden that was present before our eyes not long ago was already a mess and all of that aside¡­ the child who was smiling joyfully not even an hour ago, was now possessed by those damned evil beings! ''Damn it!'' Forgetting how many lives are already lost, setting aside the fact that there was a big commotion around me, even forgetting how I had to move Misha away with the viscountess against her will after knocking her off since she Wanted to help, we were fighting a little girl that wasn''t even at fault here¡­! [{ "The only other way to stop that thing would be with a power almost as powerful as the being that is behind all this!" }] Just a while ago, Alex told me how this must be the work of those evil bastards, and one of the lowest of them since they were going after a girl that had a condition where she could not use Mana. ''Since she had mana release syndrome, she couldn''t use the Mana inside her body, which made her body much stronger than a ten year old''s. And since her mentality was much stronger for her age, Alex already explained how she was the best candidate for some of those low lives!'' The birthday and everything that happened until now, along with their constant ''whispers'' must be what became the trigger for all this. It must have been what made that strong little girl''s heart shatter into pieces! ''Those damned bastards¡­!'' S§×ar?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. They took advantage of that bright little girl and¡­ and¡­! [{ "I can''t do it, Elio! Andrew isn''t strong enough and the rest of us, even with the special powers, won''t be able to stop it with just us! I''ll have to use that key-!" }] "Fuck!" [{ "You can''t do that!" }] She had already gone over this. ''If she uses that unique power of hers, she would kill the creature along with destroying that bomb hanging above their head.'' If she does that and kills that creature, Eve who was currently inside that creature, which she Was, would die as well. The corruption had already progressed too much. Viscount was in tears already as he fought the dearest piece of his heart. He knew as well as I did that there was no other way. His beloved daughter¡­ ''Fuck!'' I was on the ground, helping them with my supporting spells. No magic was working on the creature that had taken over the Little girl, and even with holy power, and magic attacks of Az, it was only barely scratching that creature. The only ones who were dealing any damage to that creature right now was the viscount who did not want to hurt his child and the knight captain who was using his powerful aura to get past the defenses of that creature! [{ "Elio! I have to do this!" }] We did not have any time to stop and cast big magic spells, to create any kind of combination techniques, to use any powerful items, or even look away for even a minute! [ "Muhahahahahahahahaha¡­!" ] The creature''s very existence was a debuff for the rest of us. It was similar to when we fought that dark mage, but unlike that being, the Creature that Eve had turned into was much more powerful, could use the evil darkness in a way that that dark mage had never, and to make matters worse, the creature had only now slowed down growing in levels¡­ but that was after it crossed (Level-207). Perhaps the little girl''s body could only hold that much experience at the moment, or perhaps it was something else, but it was dangerous. That creature, that bomb, the very air that we were breathing filled with evil energy was going to kill us if we didn''t deal with it in-. [{ "Elio! We don''t have any fucking time!" }] [{ "Alex! Isn''t there anything else-." }] [{ "Nothing that''s worth using right now! No!" }] She had special items and scrolls that could deal with this situation, but she either couldn''t use them herself, or didn''t want to since there was a much better solution right before her eyes right now. ''She wanted to kill that thing.'' Her white sword¡­ it was reacting to something and it wanted to come out. And for that sword to come out, she''ll have to use the temporary key that we were saving for Nozama! ''And right now, she was fine with that as well¡­'' The only reason she was fighting her urge to take out her sword, was because of me. "¡­" I didn''t want that child to die. She had done nothing wrong, she was just a kid! Those bastards, those evil bastards¡­! They were the ones doing that to her, not Eve. She didn''t have to die for something she wasn''t even aware of! ''She didn''t have to die¡­'' [{ "¡­I''m sorry darling." }] And no one else wanted her to go either. But¡­ we did not have any other choice. [{ "Miss Rin, please tie her up for a moment with Odin and Andrew." }] Even the father that had cherished the girl more than his own life could not overlook the life of all the citizens that he was responsible for. He was a father, and he was a lord¡­ so¡­ even if he didn''t want to, even if his soul had shattered into a million pieces, he chose his duty over his dearest little daughter. He was ready to sacrifice her if it would save hundreds of thousands of lives. But¡­ [Ding!] I didn''t want that. -Ooooooooooooooooooooong! I couldn''t just watch the death of an innocent little girl who only wanted to make some friends and be happy. [{( Conditions have been met. )}] She was innocent, the only one wanting to cause harm to any person present in this garden, this estate, or this city¡­ were those evil beings. [A Blessing has been realized.] They were the only sinners here. [ "Hmmm?" ] [{( Plausibility calculations have completed. )}] "¡­!?" "¡­!" "¡­" [The genuine desire: Punishment to the evil sinners, will now be realized.] -OOOOOOOOOOOOOONG¡­! -Zaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! They were the only ones who needed to be punished, not a little innocent child. Chapter 201 - 201: A Divine Punishment Piercing the night sky twinkling with countless stars, a golden light ascended to the heavens, catching the attention of every single individual present in this garden dominated by evil energy. "Elio?" The origin of this golden light¡­ was a dumb boy who cared a little too much about a young child that he had known only for a little while. "Muuu?" "Miu?" He was the master of two little creatures so adorable and so special, even nature paid attention to each of their actions. "Big brother¡­?" For the young girl that accompanied them, the special young girl that a mother wanted to protect with all her being, someone who had fought the guards to get back to where her Family was fighting against that Creature, this scene was¡­ a little confusing. { "I''ll take care of her, Alex." } He was covered in a golden light right now, something resembling chunks of gold were slowly covering his body along with a bright blue cape that wrapped around his back to his torso, and, with his green eyes glowing strangely brightly¡­ his light brown hair were glowing gold as if illuminated from their base. She was looking at him from a distance, yet she could see his bright self clearly. And he could see her as well¡­ { "Dumb Misha." } Alex was not the only one who had seen a scene like this in her life, even the viscount and the knight captain of the Blood-iron duke who had fought on the battlefield countless times had witnessed this¡­ phenomenon in the past. "Elio¡­" she released her grip on the hilt of her white sword while looking at his unique form with a little surprise in her eyes. He low-key looked hotter with all that gold on him. But she couldn''t say it out loud. A blessing was a direct permission to use the Authority of a divine being. Elio was using that transcendental power right now, something that only those chosen by the divine could ever use in their lifetime. And of all things, he was using that grand power for something as small as helping an innocent child. { "Don''t worry." } He reassured the father, while his unfathomably furious eyes were fixed on the evil being that seemed to be confused at the appearance of this divine power. { "Eve will be fine." } But its confusion was of no concern to him. -Swish! In a blink of an eye, he vanished from the ground and reappeared in the air before her, leaving a straight golden dash in his path. -Ooooooooooooooooong! Then, before the creature could even react, he dug his hand inside the murky darkness that felt no different from blood to his hands. [ "Aghhhhhhhh¡­!" ] The touch of divine power was several times more intense than the holy energy¡­ it was like Holy water to the lost souls who wander this earth aimlessly. { "That body isn''t something you can have with mere sweet talk." } Elio knew how these evil beings coerced innocent souls, broke them apart with years of sweet talk, and overtook them for as long as possible to create as much chaos as they possibly could with that temporary vessel. [ "Ughhhhhhh¡­! No! She belongs with¡­ aghhhhhhhh! With¡­ US!" ] THEY tried their best to throw him away, used force, used the darkness that could have corrupted even the holy swords of the great Swordmasters, but, it did not work against someone who was blessed by a divine power. Elio used the power that was granted to him Like Mana and tied the creature with it. At the same time¡­ { "You made a mistake choosing this child, you know?" } With the resonating of his Voice that reached far beyond the gates of this estate, far beyond this district into the old city of preservation, he was using the gold covering his body to encapsulate the Bomb of dark energy that had become too big at that point. { "Eve Andrew Deborah Cromwell¡­ they don''t call her the jewel of Cromwell because she''s small, or adorable, or smart¡­ no." } Elio did not understand the power that was granted to him much, but as far as he knew, with this power, he could do whatever he wanted. So, he was doing what he wanted by interfering with the Connection that those Evil beings had established with this world through the little Eve. On one hand, he was forcefully dismantling the very structure of the dark energy that was creating that Bomb, and on the other hand, he was spreading the gold that was around his body, to atomically destroy every single particle of the darkness that those Evil beings had manifested into this world. [ "Stop¡­ stop this¡­!" ] { "She''s a strong child, you bastards." } The voice that was reaching even the mother who had just woken up, pierced through the deep fog of darkness and reached the slumbering child as well. { "Even if you''ve made it this far¡­" } -Oooooooooooooooooong! { "Eve, that child¡­ she knows how to make friends." } Divinity that had manifested with the purest intentions could never be defeated by an evil who wanted nothing more than chaos. In the hierarchy Truths that are known and followed and believed in, [{(Prakriti)}] or the freedom of each and every individual, would always overcome the confined philosophies of the [{(Ashuddha)}]. { "She''s strong, unlike you fucked up bunch." } The gold overwhelmed the darkness, and before the darkness evaporated into where it had come from, Elio grabbed a small hand and pulled it out of the disappearing fog. { "She has always been strong, even with her limitations." } Though unconscious, Eve was fine. She had fought against the whispers of those evil, and, even after a long mental battle with herself, she had maintained her dignity, her sanity, and her Identity. -Oooooooooooooooooooooooong! The Outburst was taken care of, the evil were gone, the viscount was safe, and¡­ the failure conditions were avoided as well. S§×arch* The Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. So¡­ [Ding!] [Area Quest has been completed.] [Calculating results¡­] The quest was over now. "Haaaaa!" And since the quest was over, they were free to finally take a breath of fresh air free of that disgusting darkness. "Huuuu." Elio came down to the ground, and handed the little sleeping princess to her dear father who had broken out into tears of joy and pain. -Oooooooooong. With the objective achieved, and his wish fulfilled, the power that was granted to him also vanished. "Bastard¡­" He looked at his partner who had fallen to the ground, exhausted. She was cursing him again, so it meant she was fine. And since she was fine, he looked around the devastated garden, the lost lives, the fallen bodies of the knights that he could not save, as well as the wounded men who had shared a conversation with not long ago¡­ "¡­" The outcome of this brief battle was devastating, and it reminded him just how powerless he was without that unique kind of support¡­ He was weak, and he could have been helpless this time as well, but, thanks to the Blessing, he was able to save the little girl this time. [Ding!] The power that he had experienced was something that belonged to those who were called High rankers and individuals who existed beyond them. -Ooooooooooooong! It wasn''t something that he should have been able to use. But he did use it, even though it was through the blessing of a divine authority. "Hmmm?" And, it wasn''t a power that he had obtained without consequences. "Elio?" [Rebound will now start.] "¡­?!" "Elio!" -Ooooooooooooooooooooooong! Each conclusion was followed by a premise, just like how each result was an inevitable consequence of a hypothesis. "Elio¡­!" "Ale-." -Oooooooooooooong! He fulfilled his genuine desire¡­ "¡­" And now, it was time for him to get what he was supposed to. (Volume 1: Prologue: Complete.) Chapter 202 - 202: Painful awakening Headache. Chest pain. Back pain. His legs were still sore, perhaps entropied. His eyes were shut, but he could sense the bits of light that were present on his retinas. Though, with his arms almost as heavy as a boulder, he couldn''t feel much of anything. He was barely conscious. But, he could tell he wasn''t dead¡­ yet. He was on the verge of death, but he was alive. And he had been alive for the last few hours, just that the state he was in, was not something that could medically be described as ''alive''. Still¡­ -Lu-dub. Lu-dub. His heart was beating. His neurons were firing. And he knew he was alive with his barely conscious mind. Just that the kind of pain he was feeling throughout his body at the moment was so high that it had crossed the threshold of his perception. Aside from the knowledge of the fact that he was, in fact, in pain, he did not know what was going on around him. And, that wasn''t a bad thing. [Ding!] [Connection time limit reached.] [You will be forcefully logged out.] Finally, after an unknown period of time, his connection with this world was severed. And, on the other side¡­ [Master, the other master has woken up.] With the opening of his chariot case, a sound was heard by his ears after a long, long time. "Ughhh¡­" He wasn''t hurt here, but the mental trauma was still present so he grabbed his head with both hands and tried to get back to his senses. "What¡­" The only thing he could see right now was darkness, but he understood that it was because of the prolonged gaming session, so he stayed inside his chariot until his senses calmed down. "¡­" And only after his headache subsided, only after his vision returned to normal, and only after his body had realized how he was back to his original body, was when he slowly opened his eyes¡­ and greeted the gorgeous face of his crying girlfriend. "Hey there¡­ Alex." There were tears in her eyes even though she''s tough and calm most of the time. They were only playing a game, so even if he had died there, it wouldn''t really mean real death¡­ he wanted to say all that to her at the moment, but, no word came out of his mouth. Instead, his eyes teared up as well. "Don''t Hey me, you fucking bastard!" He had just climbed out of the chariot somehow, and was just about to trip down when he caught him, and hugged his weak self. "What the fuck did you do?!" She was shouting. She couldn''t help it, she had been worried sick for the last nine hours. "I¡­ I''m sorry." He didn''t know why he said that, but that was the only thing that came out of his mouth when he hugged her back. Seeing her crying wasn''t actually new for him¡­ but, seeing her crying like this, over something he did, had certainly never been the case. She was crying, and it was because of something he did. Something he wasn''t even aware of, but he worried her. And, he didn''t like that fact. "You¡­ damn bastard¡­" The evil from the dark realm had overtaken Eve and the only way to save her at the moment was to defeat them through the obvious means, something he did not want. He didn''t like it, even though that was the only way to save her. S§×arch* The n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Even when they were getting to the undesirable part, his desire to save that child still resonated inside his heart and soul, and perhaps, that was the reason the Blessing that he had obtained in the Library event was triggered. "I''m sorry¡­ Alex¡­ I''m alright¡­ I''m not hurt¡­" He didn''t know what he was doing when the blessing was triggered, but he at least knew at that moment that he could do anything he wanted¡­ He could fly, he could use any kind of magic he wished for, he could see far away into the city, he could see how Miu and Az looked in the eyes of the spirits that follow them, and¡­ he could also defeat those damned bastards that had done something that should never have. He was able to do everything he wanted, his genuine desire to defeat those bastards was fulfilled at that time. And when he was done taking care of those bastards as well as the bomb that could have become another tragedy, he came back down to the ground. [Physical scan of the other master indicates that he is hungry, thirsty, and sleep deprived.] He had no idea what was happening to him since the last few hours, the last thing he could remember was how seeing Alex on the ground, her worried look to be more precise. He knew¡­ "Shut up¡­ Sunday¡­" He knew something had happened to him, and because of whatever had happened to him, he was in extreme pain at that time. He knew that he wasn''t in the viscount''s mansion when he was going through that pain since if that were the case, she would have done her best to relieve the endless pain he was feeling throughout his body. His very consciousness was crumbling, and he did not know why he had not died or logged out much earlier. "I''m sorry¡­" He had no idea what was happening with him, but the fact that she was crying because of him remained true. "Stop apologizing, you piece of shit." She kissed him¡­ and, he kissed her back. By saving that little girl, he was at least feeling better that he wasn''t completely powerless for once in that damned game. He felt better, and though that power was temporary, he now knew what it felt like to have actual Freedom to do anything one wanted, what actual power was in that world, as well as how Weak he still was. "Let''s go eat something first." The kiss wasn''t enough to quench his thirst, so he needed some hydration as well. He was also weak after suffering that extreme mental trauma, and needed a long rest. Right now at least, it wasn''t time to blame him for her worries. For now at least¡­ "Yes." Alex knew she needed to take care of her bastard for now. She can yell at him after he is rested and all better¡­ Chapter 203 - 203: Backlash of excessive Power "Do you wanna know what happens to you?" "Hmmm?" He was gulping down the food like a pig right now, with his face covered with some sauces and spices¡­ which was a cute sight to her who was used to seeing him eat with all that etiquette and manners. "Gu knuw wha happen ta mi?" "Are you really the Elio I know or are you doing some kind of role playing? I''ll tell you it''s not working if you think that''s the case, alright?" "And here I thought you''d like it." She knew it, actually. But she had been enjoying this Wild side of him for a while now. S§×ar?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. It sure was fun seeing him like that, at least. "I love it. Keep doing it, and just answer my question." He was quite good at acting as well, so it would have been difficult to tell the difference between a pig and the current him if she didn''t know him better. "Gus muaam~." There wasn''t even food in his mouth this time and yet he was able to produce that funny voice. He was amazing with this little things, at least. "Hahaha." She laughed, then she looked at him, and he smirked, which made her laugh a little more. "Bastard." But she liked this. She was still angry at him but since he hadn''t slept yet, she couldn''t vent her anger out just yet. "Anyway¡­" Taking a deep breath and remembering how this was just acting from his side, she sighed and looked at him with a new interested look. "You know how it feels to have actual strength now, right?" Interlocking her fingers and placing her chin on it, she enjoyed the funny nod that Elio gave her at that question. "But, do you know how much time and effort it requires for one to gain that kind of power?" He was blessed by a Divinity and was able to use only a fragment of their Authority. What he had gained was only as much as what his physical and mental bodies were able to handle, even a fraction more than that and he would have exploded himself and destroyed the estate that they were so desperately trying to protect. "You were able to do what you wanted, making any thought you had into reality through the power of that blessing¡­ something the true path striders or, the Truth Chasers as we call them are able to do with their skills and the Power of the Truths that they follow. The power that you used is something that they only gain after slaying countless beings for years and years, by having a kind of talent that could not be defined with logical reasoning, or by having such deep understanding of that world and what they are doing that it would allow them to access the Origin of the philosophies that make up that world." Simply put, the power that he used was something that was not something someone who hasn''t even achieved their first awakening should have been able to possess. "You just got a free pass to use that power because of that blessing, and it was fine till then, just that the power had terms and conditions applied to it." It wasn''t like this in most cases since blessings were meant to be a special gift by those Higher beings. It was different from a stigma where they make that individual their own, or mark them as something that belonged to the Truths that they governed. But then again, most of the things that happen with him are strange or unusual. As she knew, that blessing which was supposed to help him achieve one of his genuine desires was also somehow meant to aid him in his growth. "Did you hear any weird voices before the blessing activated, El? Something similar to what we hear when we just start the game?" "Gumting gimilar¡­ ho! I gid gear gumting gimilar!" He was cute when he did that, even though he looked filthy doing it. "Did it say something about Plausibility? Calculations maybe?" "Hmm?" He nodded once again, and as he did, a helpless sigh escaped her mouth. "What''s up? Is it serious? What happened to me-, the game body of mine?" It seemed like she knew something about this as well, and it seemed concerning. "You¡­" She looked up at him, who had wiped out his filthy face for now and was looking back at her with a serious, worried expression. "Well, it''s rare but, there''s this phenomenon where people who suddenly receive excessive strength for a small period through whatever means experience a Backlash in proportion to the strength difference between their current self and their strengthened self." He certainly remembered seeing a strange Red window about backlash or something. "This backlash happens through the Plausibility correction where the System calculates the entire plausibility difference and sets a backlash that''d perfectly offset the plausibility that was lost during the moment they gained those temporary superpowers." "Then¡­" "It''s random what happens to those people suffering from this kind of backlash, but one of the most common phenomena that occurs in this scenario is an abrupt random spatial transfer." "¡­?" "And it seems like that happened with you as well." Her words were pretty simple so he understood them perfectly. Just that¡­ what she was saying made sense, and confused him at the same time. "You were out for nine hours real world time after suffering from backlash but you were alive, so wherever you''ve ended up in, doesn''t seem to be that dangerous of a place. Though, your vitals were fluctuating all the time you were out, so it seems aside from a spatial transfer, something else also happened to you." She told him how he had vanished from right in front of her eyes, as well as how she was monitoring his data in real time right after that had happened. "There are cases where people''s accounts get permanently deleted, or though very, very rare, there are cases where those people turn into a monster and have to live as a monster without any control over their actions for the rest of their life. Thankfully¡­ it''s just a spatial transfer this time." A sudden influx of strength is always followed by consequences. While freedom is a birthright of every sentient being, one could not say the same for an abstract concept like Power. Not everyone was as Lucky as that Dragonslayer (Rank-2) of the unified rankings. Not everyone was destined for greatness like those TWO. Elio was lucky to face only a simple rebound like that. But still¡­ "That means we''ve been separated¡­ right?" "Damn right we are." He wasn''t with her anymore. And wherever he was right now, the chances were greater that it was no simple place according to what that Blessing, had wanted for him. Chapter 204 - 204: Ill be fine, dummy. "Is that so? Oh, haha. Didn''t we tell you~? Of course of course~. Oh! Yes! We wanna know about the tutorial as well~! Tell us when we meet next time. Yes. Yes, alright, go go. It''s almost time to open the store. Yeah, alright." He waved his hand at Olive and closed down the holographic window that was present before the two of them. Then he placed the watch back on his wrist, and looked beside him, at Alex. "Seems like she''s having fun." "And unlike a certain someone, it seems like she finished up the tutorial as well. That''s a good thing." Olive or Erisea to be more precise, had finished up her first few days in that fun world, and it seemed like she had fun with all the new kinds of experiences. "I didn''t take that long for the tutorial because I wanted to. It just happened to be like that!" Alex still teased him over how he took so many days just with a simple tutorial where he had to deal with a bunch of slimes. It was no big deal, he could have finished the job had he killed them after gaining a few levels through his observation ability, but he didn''t do that. Instead, he went ahead and tamed them, made a family, and spent almost a week of real time with them. "Of course you didn''t want that. You''re just a dumb little Good Boy." "Hey!" He didn''t like it when she called him that. It was embarrassing since she called him that because of how close he was with his mom. "Alright alright, big baby." With a kiss on his angry face, she got up while shaking her head, a smile present on her lips. "Anyway¡­" She walked up to the kitchen, and with a fun smile, Elio walked behind her as well. "Try to find out where you are when you get back in, and, if possible, check if the message system''s working or not. That [Friendzone] shit never works when something like this happens." She took out a bottle of white wine, picked up two coffee mugs, and then, avoiding Elio who was coming at her with no-so-pure intentions, she walked out into the hallroom. sea??h th§× ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Where do you think I''d be? Some kind of cave or something? A forest?" "Nah, you''d be dead by now if that were the case. You were alive for, like, over a day in that place. No player could stay alive even in the most simple cave or forest for that long." She poured him a cup, and half for herself as well. It was an expensive wine that they were saving for a special occasion, but right now was more special than anything else could have been. These mugs were something his mom gave them as a couple gift on their third ''dating'' anniversary so they cherished them much more than some wine glasses as well. "Then? Where am I? In some kind of elvan settlement? In the east, perhaps in some hidden master''s crib?" "You''ve read too much of those eastern novels, Elio¡­ oh, wait. You''ve written a few as well." She shook her head with a smile while flicking his head. "Yeah, sure. There are countless possibilities. You could be anywhere on the six continents of [Areht]. On the west would be better since we had to go to that Jungle, but there''s the eastern continent filled with the eastern stuff that you''ve been so interested in, there''s the North filled with ''modern'' stuff, and then there are the other three smaller continents that Players don''t know much about yet. Closer would be better, much better if you are around some city or at least a town, but if you are lost in some dangerous place, we''d take a while to meet back." She had her fears. He knew that much. And he had his own fears as well. "Welp, you''re somewhere at least. That much is a good sign, right~?" But at least, she didn''t take this matter too negatively. It was a game, he was somewhere, he was fine most probably, and if they found out where he was, she could use one of the three High-distance Teleportation scrolls to get to him so that they could be together. "Az and Miu, Miss Rin and Misha will be fine without you if you''re worried about them, so let''s not think about bad things and work on getting back together, ok?" "Yeah¡­" He wanted to say something right now, he wanted to ask Her if She would be fine without him or not, but he didn''t. He just took another sip from his Blue mug and smiled bitterly at her. "Don''t be all sad on me now, bastard. It''s not like we will be apart forever." "Yeah¡­" It''d be better if that were the case. "But¡­" He placed his mug to the side and grabbed her hands. "Promise me you''ll continue playing without me there, alright? Without doing anything funny as well¡­ Az needs people around, they get scared when they''re alone and Miu needs light so try to keep the two of them together. Misha is starting to get a hold of her power, so she might awaken them pretty soon, look after her¡­ and Miss Rin will think all of this is her fault so try telling her it''s fine. Odin¡­ well, we don''t have to worry about him. But at least tell Viscount that I''m fine. If it''s not too far, I''ll get back to you all as quickly as I can, but even if I can''t do that, promise me you''ll keep looking for your Keys as you come to where I might be, alright? We don''t have to do everything together." Though, that was the whole point of Them playing this game. "Alright¡­" She didn''t like it, this was fucked up for her as well, but there was little she could do about this. They did not know where he was yet, so she was still thinking positively, but if worse came to worst, she knew she would have to be prepared. "Alex." Elio knew she would be alright as well, but that wasn''t going to be enough. "¡­" "If you start crying right now, neither of us will get to play today, and we won''t know where I am either." "I know that!" She wasn''t crying. There was no sign indicating she was about to do so either. But he knew her better than anyone else. "I''ll be fine, you Dummy!" She finished her cup, and stood up from her seat. And then she made him stand up as well. "Go now. Go and start, find out where you are somehow. And don''t you dare die wherever you are!" If he died, he''d get a penalty. And if he couldn''t play, she won''t be playing either, which will only hinder their progress. "Of course, I know what''ll happen to me if I do." Dying wasn''t an option for him. Or else he would have to suffer IRL. "Right? Let''s go now. Let''s go!" He didn''t know what was going to happen to him when he got back, but at least, for now, he was also thinking positively. And¡­ he was hoping for the best, even though he knew it was not what he should be doing according to the common lore of the separation tales. Chapter 205 - 205: Light, and rewards [Ding!] [Ding!] [Ding!] [Ding!] [Ding!] [Ding!] He was used to these piles of notifications when logging in by now. "Ughh¡­" Though, logging back with pain all over his body was not something he was used to just yet. "Well, it''s not that bad anymore." He could move his body, he could open his eyes, there was some bright light all around him so he was keeping them closed and was waiting till they get adjusted to it, but aside from a lot of manageable pain, he was alright. The ground below him seemed a little moist and it was mostly earth so it didn''t seem like he was inside some house or facility, so at least that meant he was in the wild. Plus there was a very unique smell around him, a fresh smell that you don''t experience in most of the places. There was also quite a lot of space around him, so it wasn''t like he was in some kind of cramped up place. "Seems like this is a cave or something similar." That was his ultimate deduction, and it turned out to be right from what he could tell after opening his eyes. "Wow¡­" The place he was in was quite large, he was at a dead end, with nowhere on his left but on his right, it seemed like there was an entire cavern. It was quite vast, however, he could also see the end of the cave with his good vision on the other end. But, that wasn''t what he was focused on at the moment. All his attention was focused on the end of the cavern that was around him. "What the hell is this¡­?" It was glowing, it was green, it was warm, and for some reason, he seemed to realize while being in the presence of the light that they were producing. "They seem like a moth? A firefly, I guess?" There were bugs as big as his hand all around him. They were resting, however, the light that they were producing seemed to somehow relive the mental and physical pain that he had. "Hmmm¡­" They were quite an interesting creature, so he tried to focus his eyes on them. He was going to try and use Observation on them so that he could somehow Identify them, however, when he tried focusing on these creatures, he didn''t have to stare at them for as long as he usually does. [Ding!] Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. A status window, a Green status window opened before his eyes. "Hmmm?" And, unlike most of the status windows that he had seen in his lifetime in this game, this one had quite a unique design. "What is this¡­?" ===Status=== [Havin Bugs] : Unique bugs carrying Bioluminescent organisms that produce a calming light containing healing properties. (Can be used as a portable healing lamp.) ¡ª Creatures can be tamed. [Advice: They have excellent spatial awareness and decent memory. They can be used as good partners in dark places such as caves.] ============ "¡­" He stared at the window that had appeared before him just now. Looked at it for a moment more, and then¡­ he immediately opened up the message windows that he had put aside a while ago. [Ding!] [You have completed the Area Quest.] [You have received: Money pouch (100 gold).] [You have received: Grace''s feather.] [You have received: Victory''s gift.] [Ding!] [You have earned the achievement: Avenger of Freedom (Epic)!] [You have earned an Epic Achievement before reaching (Level-100)! Earning an achievement!] [Ding!] [Achievement: Achievement Hunter (Rare) has been awarded.] [For defeating the Evil beings of the Dark Realm, for saving A Young Life, and for desiring something selflessly, you will be Rewarded¡­] [Ding!] [You have received a title for your accumulative achievements!] [Title has been awarded.] ============ Effect 1: You''ll receive a favorable treatment from Neutral and Noble individuals when meeting with them for the first time. Effect 2: Effect could be activated at will, which will affect an area of six meters around you. ¡ª Individuals affected by this effect will look up to you in awe. Effect 3: When you are in the City of Kalp, you will not die. ============ [Ding!] [You have experienced a divine authority.] [You''ve unlocked the unique stat: Avatar.] [Each time you encounter divinity, Avatar stat will increase. Every time you are affected by divine power, Avatar stat will increase in proportion to your connection with that divine power.] [Ding!] [You have met the Requirements.] [You have earned the skill: {Three Eyes}.] "What the¡­ hell?" Two achievements, things that he didn''t even know the use of, and a title. And if that wasn''t enough¡­ he had a new skill as well? "Is it because of that skill?" He stared at the green status window before him for a moment, and then he stared at a few other things to check if that same status window opened up for him or not. Apparently¡­ "Oh, damn." A similar status window actually opened up for him. And, depending on what he was staring at, the way things were explained in these stats windows also changed. "This is quite something¡­" Unlike simple appraisal skills, this one told him about things that he should know. [Rock.] It did not show him anything more than what something obviously was when he was being stupid, however¡­ ===Status=== [Giodide: (1-Star).] ¡ª Can be sold. [Advice: You should keep this.] ============ "Oho? I should?" Some rocks weren''t just rocks. And, he wouldn''t have known that without this new ability. And, it kind of seemed interactive to him. Which was something he needed at the moment¡­ "Alright~." He had no idea where he was, but this was a cave that had precious stones inside of it. He didn''t need these things, but the status windows, his new eyes, weren''t advising him to keep all of the special rocks that he came across. There were hardly anything worth taking in this place so for now at least, he was going to try and somehow tame these special healing bugs. The exit to the cave was near, so he will go out first, and then he will look for the clues for his current location. However, before he did that, he had to check what exactly he had obtained from that area quest. "Oh, right¡­" And even before that, he had to check something else. ''Status window.'' Chapter 206 - 206: The cave ============ ID: Elio (Level-75) Race: Human (Commoner) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 60 Agility: 66 Endurance: 69 T-T (System stats) Intelligence: 30 Luck: 6 Charm: 9 Avatar: 1 T-T (Functional stats) Energy: 55/60 Stamina: 50/60 Fatigue: 10/60 Mana: 66/70 (Stat points: 12.) {Skills: Mana sense, Physical acceleration, Tamer''s subspace, Three eyes.} [Titles: , .] =Achievement List: Tutorial tamer (Rare), Special Rookie (Common), ¡­ ============ "Hmmm¡­" His stats looked good, and the long list of achievements that he had made until now also looked quite attractive. They were the proof of his adventures until now, and though not too much, they were pretty good. "What do you think?" [{ I know about the avatar stat if you''re asking about that master, however, please do not try to change the subject. }] He was in a unique place with a new skill in his arsenal so right now, he was testing it out however well he could. And thankfully, he wasn''t alone in that place. "Sera, I''ve apologized already. I don''t know what more I should do." [{ "You should have called me, at least! Why didn''t you do that!?" }] "Sera¡­ we were at the viscount''s estate, remember? There were a lot of people so we decided to not call you for the time being. And yes I know you asked me to call if something happened, but those evil beings, that fight, Eve¡­ everything happened so quickly that I couldn''t even find any time to call you for help. And besides, you know as well as I do¡­" She was still too weak even with her support abilities. He didn''t have to say that out loud since she already knew that much. "Well, things happened, okay? And none of us had any control over it." There were many things that he could blame at the moment but he did not do that, there was little that would affect anything that has already happened, so for now, he was more focused on what was more important. "Well, good thing is, we won''t have to worry about water for the time being." There was a unique spring inside the cave made of natural minerals. And the water that it had, according to his eyes, was good for Mana as well and consuming it regularly would make his Mana pool grow. It was no simple water, so he was happy about that. And since he also had some food and stuff packed for now, he won''t have to worry about staring and getting out of energy for the time being. "And this place isn''t so bad either¡­" Inside the cool and dark cave, there was a damp, earthy smell in the air. The walls were uneven and covered in shimmering minerals that caught what little light there was, creating a sparkling effect in certain aras. Stalactites, which were icicle-like formations hanging from the ceiling, dripped slowly, their tips glowing faintly in the dim light. In the heart of the cave, a small spring bubbled up from the ground. The water was crystal clear and flowed steadily from between the rocks. It was filled with tiny flecks of minerals that made it sparkle as if it was sprinkled with glitter. The spring formed a little pool where the water gathered before continuing its slow journey across the cave floor. The sound of the water flowing was soft and soothing, a gentle, constant trickle that echoed slightly off the stone walls being mesmerizing. This whole scene created a calming, rhythmic noise that filled the cave, enhancing its serene and tranquil atmosphere. The cave felt like a hidden, magical place, untouched and peaceful. It was magical, and perhaps the reason he was thrown in here had exactly to do with this atmosphere¡­ as well as the bugs that produced that healing green light. "Alright, this one''s done as well." With Sera''s help, he was able to isolate a few of the bugs from the big group to a different area and with the Mana crystals that he had, he was able to take them through a similar method to what he had used with the Manawater slimes. Plus, since this place seemed safe as well, he had made preparations inside in the time he spent observing and noticing the unique creatures that were present inside this cave. "Huuuuu¡­" Sear?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [{ That should be enough, Master. They will be difficult to maintain with their monstrous appetite. }] In the cave, there was a small hut made from rough cloths and stones. Its roof, covered in dried grasses, had kept out the damp cave air. Inside, there was a cold fireplace and simple furniture: an old wooden table, a couple of stools, and a straw bed with blankets. It was surprising how he was able to create all this with the simple spell scrolls that Alex had given him, but thanks to all those creation scrolls, and the things that he found around the place, he was able to make this good enough place. "Yeah, I think three are enough as well." The air here already smelled of earth and wood, mixed with the fresh scent of the nearby spring. Although it was dusty and cobwebs of a poisonous monster spider species hung in the corners, the hut still felt like a cozy house, especially with the unique green flame torch burning inside of it. "How about we go out and look around as well. You said there''s nothing dangerous right?" [{ Not in the vicinity, no. There''s a few monsters of around (Level-50) some distance away from here though. }] A few hours had passed since he opened his eyes and he was able to tame three healing bugs in that time in addition to making this place as well as surviving the forest area outside of this cave. There were quite a bit of fun things inside of this cave that he was able to get a detailed description of through his new eyes, but still, he did not know where he was or what this place exactly was. "Alright then, let''s go." So, as the new and most important matter right now, he was going to go out of this safe haven and check just what kind of wilderness existed outside of here. And if fate was on his side, he was hoping that this would at least be somewhere humans or any kind of beings resided. Only that way he would know what to do next¡­ only then will Alex be able to reunite with him, he knew that much. So, he picked up his things, and his bugs, as he looked at the end of the cave present on the other side of this dim darkness. Chapter 207 - 207: Current location -Chirp! Chirp! -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiiiish¡­ -Sherr. Sherrr. Sherrr¡­ As Elio stepped out of the dark cave, he shielded his eyes from the bright sunlight that greeted him. It took his eyes a little bit to adjust to this new light, however, he it was normal¡­ And right now, normal was a good sign for him, "Hmmm." After the cool, shadowy cave, the sun felt warm and bright, lively as well. "Huuuuuuu." He took a deep breath of fresh, crisp air, which smelled of pine and earth. The forest area¡­ it actually was just like how he had felt when he was around the city or town areas. "Seems good." In front of him stretched a wide, open forest, and he was surrounded by tall trees that seemed to touch the sky. The trees had thick, sturdy trunks covered in rough bark, and their branches formed a green canopy over his head. Rays of sunlight filtered through the leaves, creating tindle patterns of light and shadow on the forest floor. [{ The last time I went to the north, however, there''s this big slope or something around ten kilometers away from here. We should go to the south or the west this time, master. }] "Let''s not be haisty though." The ground was soft here and covered with a mix of fallen leaves, needle leaves, and small patches of unique grass. As he moved his eyes around the opene area, he could see colorful wildflowers growing here and there, adding splashes of red, purple, and yellow among the green. Birds chirped and sang in the trees, though there were some creatures among them as well, their songs mixing with the gentle rustling of the leaves in the breeze. "You should go and check for any threats nearby once again. Even the smallest things could be as dangerous as those evil bastards in an unknown place." As he took in the scene, he noticed a few small animals darting between the trees and across the forest floor. Squirrel-like beings with horns and three eyes scurried up and down the trunks, while a black-yellow bird cautiously peeked out from behind a bush before bounding away into the underbrush. He was a foreign element in this environment¡­ [{ I''ll do that, master, but don''t run around and try ''befriending'' those beings, alright? }] "Haha, I''ll try to do that if they are harmful." [{ ¡­ }] Elio felt a sense of wonder and excitement along with a certain fear and anxiety. The forest was so different from the dark, quiet cave he had just left that he wondered how these two distinct places could feel so different and yet so daringly similar. Both the forest and the cave were alive with their own colors, sounds, and their wildlife. He smiled, as a tamer and an enthusiast, feeling the warmth of the sun on his face and the softness of the ground beneath his feet. "Enough with that glaring, Miss Sera. Go now. See if you can find any sign of civilization here." [{ Yes, master. }] The first thing he had to do right now was to find out where he was exactly, and he was going to do that with the help of various things that were present here. First of all, he was going to check the plant and animal lives of this area and try to find out where they were, and then he would have to cross reference them from the database that Alex had installed in his personal search engine. It should not be difficult with the help of all the things that he had given him, plus he also had his eyes now. "Can you tell me where I am right now if I use you?" As if he was asking himself and his new skill, he just said it out loud before focusing on a tree present nearby. And, as if to have heard what he was looking for¡­ [Ding!] [Activating analysis function of the {Green Gaze}.] [Analyzing the target¡­] A green light shot out of his eyes and in the very next instance, the light that had Shot out returned back in his eyes. [Analysis complete.] Alex did once say that there are skills in this world that only a single individual possesses, called the unique skills, and she also said some of those skills appear for the first time in some cases¡­ But, Elio had not paid much attention to that in the past. Though¡­ [Displaying Analysis results¡­] Now that he was looking at this crazy window filled with all kinds of data, he was finally realizing the skill that he had unknowingly acquired, was in fact no simple skill. "The hell?" However, the kind of data that was presented before him was so detailed that he did not even understand what half of these things even meant. [Analysis function will now be on the definite cooldown of (72 Hours).] All these status screens that he had just seen were all green instead of being blue, like the ones that he got after using his skills. Plus they were quite weird, and though he did not understand what they were or how they worked or what even the things present there even meant¡­ "Wait¡­ eastern continent?" He at least knew what he wanted to know for now. And, though it was good news that he was in a place that was pretty much good news for them, it was a different continent from where Alex was right now. And, in intercontinental travels were not yet established. "This is going to be difficult¡­" They weren''t on the same continent, so he at least wasn''t going to meet her for a while now. He did not know how she will get here, or how he will get out of this unknown area, but he will have to figure something out somehow. And, for that¡­ Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Let''s see." He knew for sure that this unknown chunk of data will prove to be quite helpful to him, at the very least. "Three eyes." He looked around him and it seemed like the creatures that were present here weren''t affected by that green light in any manner. It was a strange skill, and since there was no given description of this skill, he knew he will have to find out more about it on his own with trial and error¡­ Chapter 208 - 208: A safe forest? His new skill, {Three eyes} was quite a unique skill. Not only was he able to see the unknown information of various things and creatures, he was able to get suggestions, various uses, and warnings that he needed to heed if he wanted to make use of the information given to him. It was more than something that could be considered ''appraisal''. It was quite a unique skill. That much he knew for certain as he explored the forest area around this place, and saw all the creatures that were present here. He didn''t engage in any battles this time since he was only observing the area around here, however, the variety of wildlife that he saw here was certainly something more interesting with his new eyes. He looked around the place, he saw the diverse trees and plants, he saw the creatures that weren''t over (Level-80) and after his observations, he concluded none of the creatures in his vicinity were threatening to him. The entire ecosystem around here was as stable as it could be. Aside from him being an anomaly that shouldn''t be here, the creatures in this ''forest'' were quite adapted to their environment. The herbivores consumed plant lives, the ones who feed on the other creatures weren''t mad enough to go after their entire families, no one was particularly interested in him since he was a foreign species, and they were only worried about him, a few that could be tamed showing interest in him. These creatures in this place were also quite different from the creatures that they could find in the west. They were simple yet unique. There was a particular kind of elegance in their appearance, and they were fun to have around as well. [{ It''s surrounded on all sides so it seems we''re at some mountain top. It doesn''t seem like it''d be that difficult to climb off the tall walls though. And this seems to be a safe forest as well. }] "A safe forest?" He looked around the place. There were some creatures that had taken a liking to him and were following him around while there were some creatures that were following him secretly thinking he had not noticed him. But he knew about them thanks to his {Mana senses} and Sera''s unique senses. They weren''t going to be harmful to him since he knew these creatures weren''t exactly something that wanted to harm him. Instead of something that they should show bloodlust to, they were more interested in him as a unique thing. Despite their obviously stronger physique, they didn''t try to aggressively analyze what he could do. It was as if¡­ "It''s like this isn''t a forest, to begin with." It''s more like someone''s personal garden or something. A controlled environment that was made by someone else to have as his own. "There''s no ''monster'' not even the most basic of the slimes here. There''s also no particularly dangerous beast here that could disturb the environment." And if they consider this to be a normal forest that would have gone through a long period of evolution, the fact that there''s nothing imbalancing this environment just didn''t make sense to him. But then again, this was the eastern continent as he had found out thanks to the data that his eyes gave him. From what was known about this place, they knew most of the areas in this continent was untouched wilderness. He could be anywhere on that continent, and since there were only a few nations on the entire continent that are divided into various factions and cults, this entire continent was what he had always wished to experience: the Murim. He was excited to experience this new world until he could find any way to get back, but before that, he wanted to know more about this simple forest that didn''t seem like anything harmful for the time being. "Sera, did you check what''s there above that big lake in the center?" [{ Mostly creature houses, master. Most of the stronger creatures of the forest live there and drink the water of that place. Should we go there? }] "Yeah, for now, let''s go there." He had wandered around and it was getting late as well. He did not know just how badly this place would change when it was night like it is in some novels. It was better to be in that cave at night, but then again, that cave wasn''t exactly a place that he should consider safe just yet. The creatures that lived there weren''t particularly threatening, but they were most definitely creatures that they couldn''t ignore. Still, it was still a bright evening. They had time, and since this place wasn''t particularly that vast, it wouldn''t really be a bad idea to go and check that lake. They might actually find out some clues about their exact location through the unique creatures that might be present there. Having more information about this place would be helpful for Alex since she will be able to get here more easily. "Hmmm¡­" Since the trees had pretty good space between them for maneuvering, they were able to get to the lake area in the center more clearly. There, as soon as they saw the sight of the vast water lake, they also saw various creatures that they had not seen in the outer parts of the forest. "They seem pretty interesting." A bright orange moose drinking water with his baby, a swan that was green and blue, with eyes as red as blood in the water, there was also a good looking family of monkeys, white as Jade and unlike their stereotypical simple appearance, this family was even more prettier than the swan in the water. They were like nobles as well, exuding a kind of dignity that one does not see in many creatures. S§×arch* The Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Still though, those fishes in the water are the most beautiful creatures among any of them." They were fishes, colorful fishes resembling Koi. However, unlike the simple creatures that were present there, these fishes were ginormous. Almost as big as the Dolphins. They were just swimming around the water, feeding on the grass that grew inside of the waters, and though it did not seem like it, from the looks of these creatures, they seemed omnivorous. They were bright and vibrant, when they opened their mouths, one could see the rows of sharp teeth resembling that of predators of waters, and there were also struggle marks on some of these fishes, so it seemed like they had also fought among one another. [{ They are still pretty though. }] "That they are." They weren''t eating one another, and they also weren''t attacking the birds that were resting on the water. It was difficult to tell why they had these special teeth, but he did not have to care about that for the time being. There was something else that he was more interested in at the moment. "Sera, let''s go that way." There was a big tree on the other side of the lake. It was the tallest tree that he had seen in this forest until now. So¡­ he was going to go there. He wanted to see how this place would look from a higher ground. That tree was perfect for that. Chapter 209 - 209: Next course of actions Alex was back after a few days, and she had left out of the blue the moment Elio vanished from the viscount''s garden. The entire aftermath was taken care of by the viscount and the Duke''s people, however, this thing still blew up like crazy. By the time she was back, everyone was talking about what had happened in the viscount''s mansion. Things were even getting out of hand by the time she was back. There were talks of issuing a gag order, but it wasn''t imposed just yet, so everyone was talking about that incident all around the city and beyond. Just the fact that the evil beings took over the sole daughter of the viscount was a big news that must have even reached the ears of the Queen and, since there were many spectators at that time, the information of the golden hero who sacrificed himself to save Eve was spreading like a wildfire as well. "This is a mess¡­" When she came back, she first met up with the viscount and got a detailed report of what was happening there. The viscount also told her how he had obtained a letter from his father asking him to follow Her, so he was being more careful around her at the moment. He was not someone that would ask him to follow just anyone, so he knew Alex was in fact someone that special. He had even received a few special letters in secret that she knew about already, but he wasn''t going to tell her about them and she didn''t need to know anything about those things either. The most concerning thing right now was Elio and his whereabouts. "Hopefully, master Elio is alright." "He''s fine. Don''t say all negative things, Andrew." She had put down all kinds of honorifics and was calling him by his name, and he didn''t mind it anymore. After getting letters from even the Supreme throne, he wouldn''t even dare to guess her identity anymore. They all had asked to help her for the time being, and he had intended to do that from the start. Elio had saved not only his daughter, but the entire Cromwell family. He was indebted to them for his life, and helping them with a few things for the time being wasn''t going to be nearly enough to make up for what they had done for him. "Alright then. For now, let''s just say he''s dead." "Hmm?" Just a moment ago, she was telling him to not speak negatively, and now she was telling him to announce the great help that had helped the viscount and the Kalp had passed away? Even though the fact that he was a player was known by everyone? "I mean, dude¡­ let''s just say he''s dead and the penalty that he received was big so he couldn''t log back for a while. People will stop asking about him if he isn''t here, and since we will be going soon as well, they won''t really have anyone to ask anything about the great golden hero or whatever they are calling him." It was also known that he had used the power of a blessing so this was even more interesting for him since according to what was known about him, he was the same person who had helped the Moongold along with Alex. He was pretty famous because of the slime and the gecko that he had with him all the time, but now that those creatures were with her instead of by his side, she didn''t know what they were going to do about the little children. She wasn''t sure if they would stick around with him, but then again, Misha was here. And she was their friend. If things go well, they should be able to have them with them, but they weren''t their familiars, or servants. They belonged with Elio and Elio, their master wasn''t here anymore. They were free to do anything they wanted, but at the very least, since they were going to find him anyway, sticking with them would be more helpful for them. They were part of his [Family] so being away from for so long wasn''t going to be a good thing. "The communication doesn''t work even though he is logged in, so he must be in some faraway place. Considering how Sera''s with him, he shouldn''t have any problem at least surviving for the time being and with his food and water supplies, he should be fine even if he''s stuck in some cave or something. But I''ll still consider the possibility of him dying multiple times in whatever place he''s in and will have to go back to my world more frequently." She looked at the viscount with a serious gaze, and placed her hands on the table before them. "I would have asked you to look after Rin and Misha if I could move on my own, but they belong with Elio as well so I can''t just leave them behind. That''s why, Andrew." She was sitting in the chair that only his father had ever set in so the kind of pressure that he was feeling from her was beyond any level or experience. "I want you to get rid of the attention that the Kalp has on us. I don''t care how you do it but we need to get out of this place and for that, we will need to move carefully. I''ll go back as soon as I meet Misha and Rin and tell them about that bastard, but I''ll be back pretty soon, and when I come back and have any idea of his current location, I want you to keep the transportation medium ready. S~ea??h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. We might have to move to the center if needed, so make preparations for that as well." She wasn''t asking him, but telling him to do all that. And in this situation¡­ "As you wish, Lady Alex." He didn''t even have the authority to ask her to be polite. She was like the deputy of the Monarch of this land at the moment. Even asking her anything against her wishes would mean treason. And he did not want to go to jail right after getting his little daughter back from those damned evil. There was so much that he needed to do now that he knew what threats those damned evil could pose to them. And, he knew he would need her help for that as well. So¡­ "Don''t call me with honorifics dude. Just call me Alex. As if we are friends." "I''ll do that then." He''d do anything if it was for his daughter. He had almost lost her once but¡­ not again. He wasn''t strong enough to go through all that one more time, not even as a lord. Chapter 210 - 210: Poison of Peace "Wow¡­" Standing atop the tallest tree in the forest, he was greeted with a panorama that stretched quite far in all directions. From this elevated branch somewhere just below the top of the tall tree, the once-imposing canopy of trees before him looked like a vast, green sea, dotted with patches of vibrant color where unique trees with different colored leaves and unique plants had broken through. The treetops rippled like waves in a gentle breeze, creating a mesmerizing dance of light and shadow. [{ It''s quite decent, master. You''d like the view of the other side better though. }] In the distance, the forest''s edge had become apparent, the tall walls covering the area from all sides being visible from this point, giving way to other landscapes¡ª a shimmering lake that caught the sunlight in dazzling flashes. "Is that so? Then, let''s go check it out tomorrow, alright?" [{ Yes¡­ master. }] The sky above was a boundless expanse, streaked with clear clouds or tinged with the golden hues of sunset, casting a warm glow over everything below. Large birds soared and dived in the open sky, their calls echoing faintly as they navigated the air currents. "Well¡­ I think we should go back now." [{ Yes. It should be dark soon. }] The forest below had seemed alive with movement and sound¡ªthe rustling of leaves, the distant noises of animals, and the occasional flicker of color as a deer or other creature darted through the bushes below. From this height, the serene patterns of the forest floor had been more apparent, revealing trails, clearings, and the diverse textures of the foliage. It helped him understand the place that he was in as well. "Haaaa¡­" In that moment, he had felt both a sense of exhilaration from the vastness before him and a deep connection to the natural world, as if he had been witnessing a grand, living entity from the very top of the world. -Click. And, he took a picture of this ''living'' being before he parted ways with this gorgeous scenery and climbed down from the tree. "It''s fascinating how they aren''t attacking me." He didn''t have any reason to attack them if they were just minding their own business, so he left them, and with his movement skill, he crossed the long distance in relatively short time, stopping right outside his cave. "Should we wait and see what happens at night?" Sera was worried about him since this was a new environment however, they had no choice in this matter. If they wanted to know what kind of creatures they would have to go against in the dark, they needed to see what happens when the night falls. [{ We should hide first though. }] "Of course we would have to hide first." They would also have to erase their presence just in case, and it wasn''t going to be easy. But, thanks to the item that he obtained from his last quest, (Grace''s feather), they were able to hide themselves and erase most of their presence. "¡­" S§×ar?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He looked at the time and it was around late evening so the sunset should be happening anytime soon now. They were on the eastern continent so he was considering the fact that they would experience it a little later, however¡­ ''Hmmm?'' Time passed, and the quiet remained. The serene forest stayed bright, Even though it was past seven, the sky above him was still as bright as it was a moment ago, and even as time went on and it was already past nine, the light remained the same. "What the¡­?" He waited, and waited, and waited. But, the light remained the same. In fact, by the time it was midnight, the sky became a little brighter and he was stunned even more. [{ Master¡­ }] It should have been dark by now, if that wasn''t happening. And, if that was the case, the possibility that this forest never faces a night became more prominent. "We should wait a little longer, Sera." This was not right. They were in the east, not the north. This wasn''t the pole of the world so the possibility that this brightness was a natural phenomenon was small. It was strange, and it picked his curiosity. ¡­ He stayed in that place for a little longer. His crib inside was still fine so he went in when he found things to be boring as well and after a little rest, he came out to check up on anything that might be out of place. But, nothing like that was happening in this peaceful forest. It was horribly quiet. But he didn''t hate it¡­ He spent one more day in that forest, checked out a few things, and he even went to where the walls of this forest were. But, after a closer inspection of these walls, he found out that they weren''t something they could climb because of the sharp scale-like surface that it was made of. It was impossible to climb the wall, a conclusion he had reached after his long experiments that had gone on for more than a few hours. He even sent Sera flying above to the edges, only to find a very powerful wind current blocking the entire top of these walls. It wasn''t the same inside the forest. She could fly above the sky to a certain height however, after a closer inspection, they found out the wind currents also existed a little above the middle part as well. In fact, they existed everywhere, and they were so strong that they acted almost as a glass shield. "Sera¡­ this could be bad." There must be a way to get out of this place, but if the simple ways weren''t going to work, he didn''t know what would happen to him and Sera. [{ There must be a way to get out of here, master. I don''t know how but I can tell there is a way to get out of this place. Out of this forest. }] A simple forest where night doesn''t fall, where peace is the norm, and where almost all of the beings live in harmony. A closed environment that is, in and of itself, complete. "I have a bad feeling about this, Sera." There was a reason communication didn''t work here. There must be a reason behind this unnatural harmony as well, and if they really were in the east, the fact that it wasn''t getting dark here would only be something unnatural. Perhaps, it wasn''t a coincidence that he was here. The blessing that he used wanted him to grow, and if this was connected to that, there must be something here that would help him grow in some way. Now¡­ he just had to find what that thing was exactly. Chapter 211 - 211: Days and weeks Elio stayed in that forest for a few more days and now that he had long days before him, he could do practically anything he wanted in there. There were a lot of creatures but no monsters so they couldn''t do the hunting, but at the very least, since he had so much time on his hands in this quiet place, he finally had the time to do anything he wanted. So, he started with registering all the events of the last few days in his special diary, and after he was done with that, he ate a little and then went on a walk to the other side of the forest this time. The forest wasn''t that big so he knew he would explore almost all of it by the time it''s time to log out of the game. There was pretty much a good lot of things he could do so, while strolling around the forest, he made a list of all the thing that he needed and wanted to do in his free time while figuring out a way to get out of this place. He also created a specific time table dividing each of his hours into what he needed to do, what he had to do, and what he could do to spend his excess time. Sleeping and resting aside, there were a lot more bright hours that he could spend here, and there were quite a lot of fun creatures in this place as well, so he could also try taming a few of them, or at least make a few more friends. "I''m like an anomaly in this place, you know?" [{ I know already, master. And I wouldn''t have tolerated it if someone else was saying that. You know how dangerous this place is and yet you''re so carelessly just going around! What would happen to you if you die here!? }] They didn''t know what kind of place this was, so if he died here and something happened, things would be complicated for all of them. "It''s fine, Sera. There''s nothing to worry about for now." He had his items and he had food and water. There was nothing too threatening here so he was able to practice his magic in this place as well and master the spells that he had just started learning. He was also going to try and increase his level by various different activities, and if he succeeded in reaching a good enough level, he was going to use the chance to Claim spell weaving skill that he was qualified for. But for that, he would have to do things that weren''t as simple as hunting. Thankfully, there were many things that an anomaly could do in this perfectly controlled nature. "Let''s just enjoy our time here." It wasn''t all that bad, if one thought about it from a different perspective. There was water, there was space to stroll, the air was fresh, there were many places and creatures here to test his spells, and there was also a lot of free time due to this constant brightness. From what he had observed until now, the creatures of the forest had their own unique natural clocks that they had developed over time. They didn''t follow the time like the usual creatures. Since this place was bright constantly, they either slept only when they were tired, or went to sleep when they needed to. The birds here lived in the deep parts of the trees, while the fishes in the water that were constantly reviving that good enough sunlight didn''t have to worry about resting. ''Many of the creatures here had adapted to the conditions here and had evolved features that were focused on storing their energy.'' Many of them were either so lazy that they only moved when they needed to like Kivi, while the others who had to use the abundant energy they had were pretty active. The forest was big so they had a good enough space to run around. Some low intelligence species had also developed some ''games'' to pass their time here. And it was quite fun looking at all of them. [Ding!] "Seems like I''ll have to go now." He was having fun spending his days with these creatures, slowly adapting to this new environment and the forest. After a few days, he had also made some friends so he wasn''t alone here anymore. He wasn''t worried about logging out even though it had been a few days already. It didn''t even seem like that long had passed. For him, who hadn''t slept since the last 48 hours, this whole experience was the same as a single day''s worth of work. [{ Please rest when you go back, master. We still have to find a way out of here. }] "I know, I know. We will start the routine when I come back." This was a good place. So good that he wouldn''t mind spending his next few days and weeks here. There was a lot that he could do here anyway, so for the time being, until Alex figures out where this place is, he was planning to stay here and try improving a few spells. But for now, he was going to go out and give this data to her. "Then, I''ll be back." He said his goodbyes to the friends that he had made, and logged out of the game¡­ * -Shwaaaaaaa¡­ And when he came out of his chariot, Alex was waiting for him right in front of his chariot. "So, what''s up? What were you doing for a day when you should have come out in an hour? Did you not find anything about where you are?" She seemed worried. But she was also angry right now. She was just hiding it since they weren''t important at the moment, and was looking at him for answers. "Don''t worry, dummy." Thankfully, he had the answer to the most important question that they were looking for. "Here, take a look at this." Climbing out of his chariot, he found the file that he had sent to his watch through the game interface, and opened it before her. "Hmmm?" The projection of the detailed information stunned her. It was out of the blue, and she didn''t understand why he would have something like this. "Where did you¡­ hmm?" She wanted to ask him where he got this data, but while skimming through the information projecting before her, her eyes fell on a certain section, on a string of geological coordinates. "¡­!" sea??h th§× N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And, as soon as she saw the first and last three digits of this information, her eyes widened in utter shock, and¡­ "WHAT THE HECK?!" She shouted her lungs out right in his face. Chapter 212 - 212: The blank areas "There are places on that planet that, when seen from a higher ground- like space or from a different planet- would look blank. The people who haven''t been there wouldn''t know what''s present there, so if you have some kind of ''divine'' item or [Artifact] similar to a map, you cannot see those places. Some people say it happens due to the extreme environmental conditions in those places while some people say it''s because of some concentrated ''divine'' presence, but no one really knows what those places actually have. Considering that, and according to this data, you are in one of those places, the [Blank areas] that one could not enter with simple means." She had calmed down just now, so he offered her a glass of water as soon as she paused. She had been shouting at him, asking him how he was in that place or about how he got this data. She was worried about him at first, but when she saw those coordinates, she got a little scared as well. "It''s true that that place, the [Hollow mountains] are present on the eastern continent, but they are located deep within a very dangerous region where even the mobs are of (Level-150) and above. It''s some of the most dangerous hunting grounds so only the craziest of the bunch hunt there, but still, the mountain that these coordinates suggest is definitely an area that falls under those unknown areas. Some simply don''t come out of it alive, and even the rankers or high rankers just die multiple times due to environmental factors or by the dangers of creatures that find them to be a nuisance." She looked at him questioningly. She had heard his side of the story of how he found himself in a cave, how he went out, and got that new skill that gave him this data. He already told her all about his time in that fun place when he was calming her down, and now that he was better, she was wondering just how he was even alive in that dangerous place. "Are you sure this data is right? It does look too good to have come from a skill¡­" She did not know whether to trust this data or not anymore. She had been to that place and though she had never been able to climb that mountain herself, she knew even if there was some paradise present at the top of that dangerous mountain, it wouldn''t simply be harmless to someone who did not belong in that place. "I don''t really know. I just got that data and I gave it to you. I believe it''s true since most of the things that skill told me about have been true until now. I''ve tested it myself, so I do believe it is true." Though, he did not know much about the Analysis function of the skill. He had only used it once until now. The cooldown had ended before he came out of the game, however, he wanted to consult with her about how he should use the skill the next time. Using it on something that wouldn''t really be of any use to them wasn''t a good idea, and she knew about these special skills more than him anyway. "Elio¡­" Still, the fact that he was in such a place meant they wouldn''t be seeing each other for quite a long time. And that very fact made her mood worse¡­ "I''ll get out of there on my own, you know?" He could see just how sad she was right now, but they couldn''t really do anything about this situation anyway. It wasn''t like he was being held by someone, or was being used as a test subject for something. He simply was in a place that was difficult to reach and had to get out of there. "Ptfff. Don''t be stupid, El¡­ I just told you how dangerous that place is. You''re better where you are right now. Climbing down the mountain, or even getting out of that place would mean death." He was weak right now, and even if he got a little stronger by doing whatever he was planning, the chances that he would survive against creatures that were too difficult even for her in her prime mortal state, were extremely low. "Unless you''re achieving your third awakening somehow or becoming a god or something¡­" she mumbled under her breath but then, shook her head and looked at him bitterly. "It''s going to be difficult." "But you''ll come there somehow?" Though he didn''t like how she had to save him every time, how useless he was, and how she had to go out of her way for him every time, this situation was different. "Yes¡­ though, I believe it will take a few months." A few months¡­ "It''s too long." He believed he would be fine without her, but he couldn''t tell the same for her. She was crazy already. He didn''t know what crazier things she''d do to reach that ''blank'' area. "I''ll try to find a way as well." "But-¡­!" "I have Sera. We will be alright." He was useless when it came to actual damage dealing part of the battles, but with Sera, he believed they could find some way to deal with those dangerous beings existing outside of that mountain top. Plus, he was a tamer in a forest full of tamable beasts. He wasn''t going to be alone, if anything, he believed he would survive even in a dangerous place. "¡­" He was a fool. S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Even after experiencing that world for so long, he was still as good as a fledgling. He didn''t know what she meant when she was talking about ''dangerous'' creatures. He had not met any ranker much less a high ranker. The only strong opponent he had fought until now, was those evil beings. He had not even fought them directly, so she understood how he was severely underestimating just how ferocious that world could be. "Just¡­ be careful even if you find your way out of that place." He was stubborn as she knew him, but explaining things to him wasn''t going to be effective. She wasn''t with him anymore. He was on his own¡­ she didn''t know how he''d do without her, but she at least believed in him. He wasn''t dumb, so she knew he''d figure things out on his own end. "Of course I will. I''m not alone, remember?" He was smiling at her, but she didn''t like that smile. She wanted to play together with him and she had to wait for a Long time for that. But the world didn''t want them together¡­ "Just wait there if you can." She''d have to pick up the pace on her end, but if she collects three, even two of the next Permanent keys on her list, she knew that place wouldn''t be impossible with a little help. She just needed time¡­ But as she knew, she did not have that luxury. Not if she wanted to complete her Trial along with him. Chapter 213 - 213: Finding the escape route "Hmmmm¡­" He was back inside after some rest, and now that he knew the predicament he was in, he was contemplating what to exactly do about it. "It''s not like we can fight a bunch of strong beasts at our level, much less many comparable to those evil beings. So, if we want even a little chance of getting out of here, we''d have to get stronger first." He was contemplating what to do with Sera, the green glowing bugs that he had befriended from the cave, a squirrel with three eyes, and a giant snake who only ate a special kind of poisonous fruit around this area. They were his new friends, and though there were more, only these had come to play with him for today. [{ I can deal with a few creatures here, master-. }] "We aren''t going to harm anyone here, Sera. We have already discussed that part. Suggest me something else. Something that will help us get experience faster." There were a few things that he had considered for now. The first and the toughest thing would be to tame every single being present in this place, but if he wanted to do that, he would need to understand all the creatures present here on a deep level. It could take days, weeks, or perhaps months depending on the diversity of the creatures present here. And, he did not really have that much time. The second thing he could do would be to increase the abilities of his first title that grew with him. ''Thanks to the title, if I help wounded creatures, I''d get stronger. However, to do that, we would need to have injured creatures.'' And in a place as peaceful as this one, they weren''t going to find many creatures to help. The next thing he thought would be to ''observe'' all the new things present here, however, now that he had the eye skill that activated at his will, the observation feature was automatically turning all the information into what his eyes might show him. It was a great skill, but because of that skill, he couldn''t gain experience points like he used to. There was also no dungeon or place with monsters that they could kill here, so hunting was out of question as well. [{ You can try creating something¡­ like, everything we do is practically an experience, no? The experience that we are rewarded is greater when hunting because we are technically taking a life and obtaining all the experience that life had accumulated over their lifetime. Creating something new entirely pretty much does the exact opposite. }] "You mean creating something new means creating something that would also have its own experiences?" [{ Something like that? I''m not sure, however, from what I understand, experience is essentially what one experiences. Be it a death or a new kind of experience, one is bound to grow stronger as they experience new things. }] "Hmmm¡­" He remembered a certain individual that had wanted him to work on his videos many times, but since those videos weren''t anything about action but simple exploration, he had never taken on those jobs. He was a high ranker, someone who had dedicated his life to exploration completely. Almost all the detailed guides about any area that existed on the markets of this world, as well as on the player forums, had been created by that individual and his two partners. They explored all the new corners of the world, went to places that one might not have known about until now, and just like Alex, they were also wanderers. Free spirits that went on the search of new places. ''They don''t do ''hunting'' like normal people. And they are still on the rankings.'' A big reason behind that would be their exploration and the new experiences that they have on their journey. ''First discovery rewards also exist for the players.'' Alex had told him about them, so the fact that he did not get anything like that would mean some other player must have come here before him. And since there was no sign of them present here anymore, it also meant they had somehow left this place as well. So¡­ "There''s at least some way to get out of here." Maybe there''s some gap in the wind barrier that covers this forest, perhaps there''s a set time when the winds get weaker, or perhaps there''s something here that could help him get out of here. Ultimately though, there was a way to get out. And he just had to find that way. And while he does that, he also has to create something of his own to gain Exp and level up. Understand and master spells of higher level, and gain more (Intelligence) to increase his spellcasting ability. He still had to advance 25-levels to achieve his first awakening. That was the bare minimum target he needed to achieve to even think of getting out of this place. Finding a way out would be a priority, but under the circumstances, he was going to assign more of his time into improving himself. And thanks to all the knowledge available on the forums, all the knowledge available in the special books that he had, he didn''t have to worry about running out of new things to learn anytime soon. If anything, in this special place, he believed his learning efficiency would improve even further. And with the eternal daylight on his side, he wouldn''t have to worry about a shift in natural lights. "Hmmm¡­ alright then. Let''s start doing something at least." Thanks to Sera''s insight and the silent help of the other creatures, he had decided on what he would have to do next. S§×ar?h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. His ultimate goal to achieve the first swanking was set now, so he got up from his place and stretched his legs. His food would end at one point as well so he would have to look for the other food sources as well. And to do that, he would have to explore the rest of the forest and try out various plants and fruits that he could find in this pretty forest. "Lead the way, Sera." [{ Yes, master. This way¡­ }] He would also have to grow stronger for Sera since they were going to share all the experience he earns from this point forth. Just his growth wasn''t important if they wanted to defeat a threat that might come in their way. He needed her to deal any kind of damage since he himself was pretty much useless in the damage dealing section. And they had to achieve all that as quickly as they possibly could. Since¡­ The Purple gaze watching them from the other side of the forest- who did not yet know what to do about these foreign substances- might decide to deal with them permanently. And neither Elio nor Sera would want that to happen. So, they had to work faster. Or, at the very least, prove their importance in this already pleasant Equilibrium. Chapter 214 - 214: Different beginnings (In a different part of the virtual world: ) "Oho! Young girl! You sure know your cooking~." "It is nothing special." Olive was in a small village right now. She wanted to go to Moongold town first, but Alex and Elio recently told her how they were separated, so she also had no reason to start in the same place as them anymore. They were figuring things out on their end, so she decided to go on her own until they were done with their matter. She just went ahead to a different place that was decided randomly by the system. "Can I have one more of these brown ones? What do you even make them from?" She was in a small village right now, selling a few things that she had cooked a while back to the natives. She was planning to leave the village and move to the nearby town soon, but before she did that she had to get stronger. And selling these little things wasn''t going to make her any stronger. "Oh, it''s simple flour. I just added some good quality meat that I came across, you can think of it like a stuffed bread ma''am." If she told people the thing they were eating was made with monster meat, they wouldn''t eat it even if it was delicious and safe. "Oho? Stuffed bread? Sounds like what those rich people would eat, huhuhu." So she just didn''t tell anyone about those unnecessary things. She was enjoying this game, almost everything here was real. It didn''t even feel like a game and she didn''t know if it was because of the chariot that she used or because it naturally just was like this. She liked playing with various things, like the fake natives that didn''t know how amazing the meat of the creatures that they just sold out to the various merchants actually was. "It''s a pleasure that you like it, ma''am. Would you like to take some with you as well?" "Oh, of course I would like some. I''ll take three of those brown ones." "Of course~." Olive''s tutorial was all about gathering some simple herbs in a big place which didn''t even take a few hours with her excellent eyes. She had worked in the kitchen for years now, and after having experienced cooking techniques of various cultures all around the world, she knew how to distinguish between a wild grass and a precious sweet herb. She had obtained that Golden star with much difficulty. And unexpectedly, her years of practice had helped her in her tutorial as well. "Please come again~." "Huhuhu. I''d like to come back, but are you going to stay here for longer?" She was on a shopping street right now, in a stall that she had rented from a local for the day. The old lady that she was tending to this time looked quite simple, but her deep Crimson eyes seemed to be that of the people who had played with life and death their entire life. "Well¡­" She knew Olive was a foreigner, one that wasn''t going to stay in this small place for too long. She could even see how talented Olive was, so when she couldn''t answer her question honestly and was looking back at her with an awkward smile, the old lady just smiled and shook her head. "Can I know your name, young one?" The old lady asked with a genuine smile. Innocent Olive couldn''t not answer that simple and affectionate look. "It''s Erisea, ma''am." It was her immortal name in this world, so that was the only true name that this world was going to recognize her as. "Hmmm¡­ a fine name indeed." The woman smiled at her, and placed a bronze coin on her stall. "You''re young, and it seems like you''re new to this world as well. There''s no need to be tied down to a place that holds no significance to you. Go, wander around, and find a place that''s better suited for your interests. Make friends, or better, find someone you love." With another happy look, the old woman was just about to leave her alone, but she remembered something in that instance. "Oh, and before we part ways¡­" She leaned in closer to Olive and whispered in her ear. "Red Goblin meat tastes better after you smoke it. Try doing it for your next batch." Backing off, the old woman bid her farewell, took another bite from her stuffed bread, and departed with a delighted expression. The bread was the best among all that she has had until now, but the filling could get even better. She knew Olive would figure it out by herself. So she didn''t say much. But still¡­ "She knew?" Olive was left stunned in her place. She didn''t think that simple looking old lady would figure it out on her own, not after she had worked so hard on the filling. It was surprising for her, and more than that, the bronze ''coin'' that she had left for her surprised her even more. "Hmmm? What''s this?" It wasn''t money. It looked similar to a common bronze coin but in fact, it wasn''t anything like that. "Excuse me-¡­ hmmm? Where did she go?" It wasn''t money so Olive thought that lady made a mistake and wanted to return the coin. However, by the time Olive realized that and turned her head, the old lady in that simple white cloak had already vanished in the relatively empty streets. She couldn''t find her, Olive even left her stall to find her, but she was nowhere to be seen. It was as if she had vanished into thin air¡­ "What in the hide and seek?" S~ea??h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She didn''t understand where she had vanished, but the fact that she had figured out what her bread contained remin true. "Will it be problematic?" The only reason people preferred to sell monster bodies instead of using them was because they couldn''t use them properly. They were naturally poisonous to the humans, however, she had learned from many videos online that this monster meat was in fact edible. The people in higher positions who could afford costly things consumed these things on regular bases. There was a simple way to make these things edible but common people of this world did not know it yet since it was a trade secret. But she knew it, as well as how to make various kinds of meat even better. She was a baker primarily, but there were various ingredients that she liked to use in her cooking. Meat was one of the simple things¡­ though, it wasn''t easy to tell what someone was eating was in fact meat of monsters. She didn''t think someone from a small village like this would figure it out, but that old lady did¡­ And now that she had vanished, Olive didn''t know what to do with her stall, as well as with the strange coin that she had left for her. "Haaaa." Well, it was evening so it was peak time for sales. There were other customers gathering around her stall, so before she left town, she was planning to at least sell everything she had right now. She can think about the coin and other things later¡­ Chapter 215 - 215: His training Magic, Stats, and external support. He knew there were three things that he needed to progress if he wanted to survive in the area that was present outside somewhere. And, he also had to get stronger so he had chosen Creation, Taming, and Learning as his primary ways to gain more experience. -Ooooooooooooooooooooong! "Chirp!" [{ Yes, master! That''s it! We can do it this time! }] "Go!" "Ptsssssss~!" "Chirp! Chirp!" "Grawllllllllllll¡­!" It has been a month since he was stuck in this peaceful forest, little over a week in real world time, and in this time, he had progressed quite well in all three of the aspects. -Booooom! "Yes!" He had befriended a bunch of creatures so now he had two different teams consisting of some strong creatures who were pretty strong individuals. And as a group, with a little more practice, they would be able to work as a strong team as well. "Good work, everyone!" "Gurrrrrr~!" "Ptsssss~!" "Chip! Chip!" When he started, there were only a few creatures that followed him but now, there were over a dozen creatures. One of them was a strong tiger, a strong muscular creature over three meters in height, a beast that he simply tamed with some fish that he had cooked for himself one day. He was lucky with this one, but a lot of the others present there took days before they became friends with him even with his title. They were difficult ones, but still, even right now, only had enough creatures to go against a (Level-150)+ beast. None of the creatures he had met here were over (Level-100) aside from the big fishes that were in the lake at the center of the forest. But those were fishes, so he knew they couldn''t be with him outside of the lake. Still, he now had enough force to set a combat training and use his newly learned assistance spells, restricting spells, and physical series spells to help his own smaller party against the bigger party. Sera, the big snake, a little melodious horned crow, and he was on one side. They didn''t have as much combat powers as the tiger but they were useful in their own ways. He just had to use right spells while fighting against the opponents who all almost worked together with another as he had taught them. "No, hey! You can''t do that." [{ Haha, she''s still after him. }] Their tiger friend was friendly, but there was a little squirrel among her team that she had gone after many times. She didn''t try to attack the squirrel, but she simply wanted to play with his furry tale. He was like a toy to her, so it was always funny to Sera whenever she sneaked up on the squirrel and he tried to get away from her. "How many times do I have to tell you, Miss! That''s not a toy!" "Chip! Chip! Chip chip chip! Chip!!" The squirrel obviously didn''t like being treated as a plaything. But it couldn''t do anything to the big tiger either, so he simply went ahead and hid behind the big snake, the only other creature that could go against the big cat. "Haaa¡­ this is going to be difficult if it grows more." He had mastered many new spells, he was on the verge of creating his (Mana core) and entering the new stage as a mage as well, but that aside, the way his group of creatures was increasing, he knew he wouldn''t be able to handle all of them in an actual battle. [{ It''s going to be alright, master." ] Many of them would have to work by themselves, while the others who couldn''t fight as well as the others would have to rely on the others. They had other roles and as long as they fulfilled those roles, they would be alright even in the tough battles. He wasn''t going to take all of them out with him anyway, he knew his limits and the fact that he wouldn''t be able to handle too many of these creatures. They weren''t like Az or Miu. Though useful and friendly, they weren''t as intelligent as the two of his initial friends who understood him on a deep level. He would need a long time to make a bond like that with these creatures, besides, he didn''t even know if they would follow him outside of this place yet. They belonged here so going with him would mean forsaking this peaceful life that they have here. Additionally, he had not yet connected with them on as deep a level as he wanted. There was something holding these creatures back, something that had more influence over them than him. They were different from Az and Miu in many ways. But he had not yet figured out what exactly was holding them back from connecting with him on a deeper level. "Well, should we wrap things up for today?" He had mastered another spell today, a physical series, earth attribute grace spell that made it easier for his snake friend to move faster. It was a spell that would only work on creatures that crawled, or creatures that rolled around, but it was a powerful spell. And after he improved this spell, he knew he would be able to help anyone with it. [{ Will you do your Training again, master? }] sea??h th§× n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Yeah, we don''t really have any other choice, do we? We will need those extra stats." Aside from leveling and bonus stats that they receive from the system, simple physical training could also increase physical stats. Strength, agility, and endurance could be increased with physical training like the knights do as well. But not the system stats. He just had never done it until now, but now that he had no choice but to get stronger, he did everything he could. He fought with the creatures that he had trained. Got wounded on purpose to increase his endurance, and since he had the healing bugs, he didn''t really need any precious potions. Since he was in a vast forest, running around all day with his spell''s assistance also increased his agility, and he meditated for a few hours to increase his mental strength. He was also practicing archery on the side so that he wouldn''t be in any trouble even if he gets separated from his new teammates. Unlike a servant that primarily resides inside the bond markings, these creatures were simply his friends. This forest was their home and they belonged here. Even if he couldn''t take any of them with him, he was going to make sure he''s at least strong enough to get past the dangerous place that existed beyond this closed off paradise. "Let''s start then." He had a daily routine, and now that it was time for his stat training, he would focus on that. "We will have to go south later as well." After that, since it would still be bright here, he would go and find another creature to befriend. Thankfully, there would be someone he still hasn''t met yet. Meeting new creatures in this Peaceful and Quiet place had been his salvation since a few days ago¡­ Chapter 216 - 216: A strange encounter Walking through the familiar woods, he saw various creatures that he had seen in this specific part of the forest already. This particular area was comparatively darker than the other areas around the forest so quite fascinating creatures lived here. "Sera?" [{ No, master. There''s nothing around. }] sea??h th§× n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. It was a small part of the forest so there weren''t really that many creatures in this part aside from some simple birds that just slept in their nests most of the time, however aside from them, this place was a house of species that one might consider as nocturnal. "Hmmm." Flying squirrels are different from the horned squirrels that were part of their gang, bats as small as a firefly, even predator creatures that went out of this area to get food. It wasn''t a place suited for the cold blooded creatures, but for those who naturally had warm blood inside them, this place was the best resting place. "Let''s go that way then." The temperature here was a little lower than the other parts of the forest. The trees were denser and the humidity was lower. It was a good place, but even he liked it. But, there weren''t any creatures that had shown any particular interest in him until now. This place was like an onion. The more layers he explored, the newer creatures he found each time. Some of them were dangerous, but they still didn''t attack him. Many of them were afraid of him instead. They were dangerous, yet they were afraid of someone almost the same level as him. And that did not make any sense since he wasn''t even traveling with the rest of his gang like the first time he came here. He was alone, and even Sera was inside her mark many times so they knew there was something wrong with either him or the creatures present there. Or there was something else that made them act like that as he had theorized. Though he wasn''t sure about his assumptions, he was aware that there were still many things that he had not learned about this first yet. He might have been to most of the places here, he might have explored this place, and he might have seen many of the creatures of this small paradise, he was still far from discovering everything about this forest. And that was a good thing actually. "Oho. Did we see this one last time, Sera?" [{ Hmmm? I don''t think so, master. }] "Nice." He was leaning something new every single day, he was advancing further, he was certainly getting stronger, with only Sera here, he didn''t really have anyone else to talk to. The creatures here were pretty different from Az and Miu so they didn''t respond to him like they did. With each passing day, with each new thing crossing off of his list of things he needed to learn, he was becoming a little anxious. "It''s a simple looking grass, but it glows. Would it be because of Mana or something else?" He had explored most of the forest and they had still not found any way out of this place. They were going around, they were meeting new creatures, with his new eyes, he was also observing and researching the unique wildlife present in this forest. But he had not found any exit yet. And with the diminishing numbers of things he could observe and study in this forest, he was becoming anxious with each passing day. The motivation to get out of here, to find a way out that he had on his first day here, was slowly decreasing as well. It wasn''t a good sign. If anything, he didn''t know what they would do if they couldn''t find anything to do anymore. Sera might be fine since she was a servant, but he did not know what he''d do¡­ so he was trying to avoid paying attention to that part. He just did what was fun for now, followed his routine and sang a song as he worked in the forest. He was doing the same today as well¡­ just that, there was something that was bugging him since earlier. [{ "Sera, do you feel like someone''s looking at you from afar or something?" }] [{ Hmmm? No? What happened, master? }] He didn''t know why, but he had been feeling a set of eyes glaring at him from a distance away since he entered this part of the forest. He could tell those eyes were close, but they still felt distant in a different sense. It was mysterious. He had thought it was just his imagination or something simple that he was overreacting to. But, when he found this strange grass, that strange feeling intensified. He almost felt like there was something looking at him, glaring at him even. He wanted to overlook it this time as well, but he simply couldn''t. His eyes were itching for some reason, and it made him associate it to that strange feeling. "Tsk." He didn''t like that itching. It was annoying, so he pressed his eyes and turned around to calm this itching down. And then he turned back. "Hmm?" And, when he did turn back, for a very, very brief moment, his eyes met a strange pair of purple eyes around an unfamiliar silver background. "¡­?" But that moment was very brief. Less than a blinking moment. "What?" At the end of this moment, when he finally blinked and his eyes tried finding the grass they were observing once again, they could not find it. [{ Hmm? Where did that grass go? }] The grass was gone. There was no trace of it left on the ground either. Elio couldn''t even see any markings on the ground that would indicate that grass existed there. "I saw¡­ something." It had just vanished into thin air¡­ just like those¡­ eyes that he had seen in that brief moment. "I definitely saw something." He knew he wasn''t mistaken. In that fraction of a second, he definitely saw two bright purple orbs that had also looked back at him before vanishing. He wasn''t mistaken about them. They were definitely there, and somehow, that grass was connected to those orbs¡­ those eyes. "Strange¡­" He didn''t know if it was some creature or some phenomenon, but something happened in that brief moment. Something so fascinating that Elio now had a new smile on his previously bored face. "Sera." He had a new objective now. A goal that was going to decide their future in this ''blank'' area. Chapter 217 - 217: Brunchtime talk "You know what? I still don''t understand how you''re going to get back to the mainland, El." A fine afternoon of the same day, they had gathered in Olive''s apartment once again. After they told her about the little event that threw Elio all the way over to the eastern continent''s some strange corner, they hadn''t had any chance to meet. They certainly talked, Alex and Olive talked when they were inside the game as well, but since the two of them were busy with their own things, she was playing with her dad and father. And, they had helped her a lot in the little time she had been playing this game. "Dad said it''s a place filled with various wild beasts that even he couldn''t defeat. He told me how he tried going to that place with his entire clan, but they all ended up dead in less than two hours after entering that area. He told me about this biiiiiiiig tiger that attacked and killed all their mages at the start and then aimed for the other support units before taking care of them with swift movements as well. According to his team, the creature was (Level-270), which he said was Absurd, and then he told me about how there were many more like this the next time they went there." She had baked a variation of lasagna for them this time. And it was delicious. So much so that they were almost about to finish the entire thing even though it hadn''t even been an hour since they started. "He said they died so many times that they had to forget about the forest and go back. It was that dangerous." She had told them about her experiences in the game until now, about her tutorial, her backing experiences, some small things like how she met that strange old woman and the coin that she game her, and also about how she was now (Level-80) thanks to all the Exp that her dad and brother shared with her when they went out hunting. Both of them were rankers, and her dad even owned a clan so she had a luxury cruise that helped her with the leveling process. "So, if Elio''s there¡­ how are you planning to come back? Do you have some special plan or method or something?" "Hmm? No, silly. This dumb bastard doesn''t even know what kind of dangerous creature there even are exactly." But still, she knew just leveling like that wasn''t going to be as good a thing as fighting creatures and gaining experience herself. Not that she would need it as someone who was going to focus on baking and cooking and selling, and perhaps finding a good place to start a business as well. The only reason she started playing was because they wanted her to, and she surely was having fun in it¡­ just that the main thing that she liked doing remained to be baking. "I told him I''ll get there somehow but you know him¡­ I think he''ll find a way and just risk a few deaths before realizing what we meant when we said ''dangerous'' creatures." He knew what kind of dangerous creatures they were talking about by now, so he knew what he was going to be against. And yet, he was not going to just sit there and continue with whatever he was doing. He had to get out of there, meet back up with her and help her find the rest of the keys so that she can unlock her powers completely. "Yeah yeah. I''m dumb. Say whatever you want." He knew what he wanted, so he was going to try it even if it was impossible. "Just know that if I get out of there before you could reach there, you''ll have to admit you were wrong and treat all of us to the fanciest meal you have made until now." "Hmm? Ohh! I''d love that as well~." Olive had nothing to lose here. A free meal from her was always welcome in her soul~. "Hey, hey. How did it come to me? You''re the one that''s going to-¡­ alright. You know what? Let''s do it like this." She looked at both of them with a smirk on her face. "If you get out of there safely, I''ll throw a big party at your house and we will invite everyone. But if I get there and take you out before that¡­ you''re going to give me The ring in that same party." This was unexpected, for both that heard it. "Hmm? What?!" "Hey hey. Where did this come from?" They weren''t planning anything like that. They were too young for that anyway! "If you want a fancy meal, you at least have to give that much in return. It''s not even like I''m telling you to propose to me or anything. I just want a pretty ring~." "You can have a pretty ring right now if you just want that!" "Then what would be the meaning of that party!" He was shouting, so she shouted back. "Shut up or else I''m kicking you both out." And since both of them were shouting in her house, on her dining table, Olive had all the right to throw both of them out. And they knew she''d do that as well so they lowered their voices. "Haaa¡­" Elio didn''t know where this came from, but if it was simply a ring that she wanted, and no promises or anything, he didn''t mind it. "Alright." It was a simple thing, but it made her happy. "Yei~. I hope you don''t find that exist at all then~." "I''m telling you Alex, you''ll lose this one." "We will see that~." She was excited about this. A little more than usual. This wasn''t the first time they had bet on something. Many of the time, it had happened on this very table as well. But this time was different¡­ "Hey, if you are giving her a ring before anyway, why not get engaged as well? You know what? I''ll make a cake for the party as well." "You will~? Thanks, Olive~!" Her hands were full right now so Alex just kissed her friend. "Hey. Whose side are you on?" He didn''t want to do it like this¡­ he had his own plans for these special things. And here they were, ruining everything. "I''m on no one''s side. The party''s happening anyway so why not make it better? Right, Alex?" sea??h th§× N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Absolutely~!" He didn''t like it, but both the girls liked this idea. It was perfect actually. His birthday was coming as well, so if she could make it to the mountain before that and get him out, they would be able to do it in an even better way. "Haaa¡­" It was a really good idea. But, he didn''t really like it for many reasons. So, he knew he had to win this bet somehow. There would be some complications in his future arrangements if the two of these ladies succeeded this time. Chapter 218 - 218: Searching for the clues "Hmmm¡­" He was back inside, and now that there were his future plans on the line, he had to get out of this place before she did something crazy and reached here. He knew getting past the big forest filled with all those creatures wasn''t going to be an easy thing but after that unique encounter, he had a clue to what might help them get out of there. "It was fast, like too fast." He was searching through the vast encyclopedia on the creatures of the east to find creatures that could move as fast as that creature. "It had purple eyes and they were different from the simple eyes so that creature might be a unique one as well. I couldn''t see much of it last time, but it definitely came there for that grass." He was just walking around and then he found that grass. It was glowing and it was small unlike most of the grass blades of this forest. It was quite unique so he was observing it, however, in that small instance, that creature took the grass blade. [{ Master¡­ }] But since Sera didn''t see it herself, she was still not sure if there was some mysterious creature with purple eyes in this forest or not. "I know what I saw, Sera." [{ I''m not doubting you, master. I''m just¡­ worried. Don''t you think there''s a little¡­ too many of them here? }] "Hmmm?" He was sitting outside his cave while contemplating like he usually did, and he wasn''t alone today either. Just like last few days, there were creatures, his friends from the forest here. They were either listening to him or were playing by themselves¡­ just that, there were a few more aside from those creatures. "Yeah, I noticed it as well." For some reason, there were more creatures around here today. S§×ar?h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Some of them were ones that he had seen before, while some were from the darker part of the forest. There were some creatures from the other parts of the forest that he had seen before, while some that he had never actually met personally but knew about. "This might also be because of those creatures we saw yesterday, you know?" [{ ¡­ }] Sera still doubted him. She had not seen any creatures in that place, and even after she looked around the entire forest more than a few times, she neither found any creatures with any kind of purple eyes, nor did she find anything that would be small and have a silver body or outline. She didn''t know if the creature existed or not, but the fact that there were suddenly so many creatures interested in them confused her as well. There were definitely some reasons behind this sudden interest, but since she had not seen that creature herself, she wasn''t yet sure what to think about it, or the supernatural speed that it showed. "Hmmm. Nope. There''s nothing with such descriptions." The data on the characteristics of the creature that he had seen was too little. He had not even seen the creature completely, just those eyes and that outline. So, he did not know much. "You all won''t tell me about that creature at all? Not even a little?" He was asking creatures around him but these beings knew little about what he was talking about or were unconsciously avoiding giving him even a hint related to the creature that could move as fast as that being. He didn''t know if it was because of some kind of restriction that these creatures had, or if they simply just didn''t know about it at all. "Not even you, tiger?" "Grrrr?" The tiger was sleeping, but it still nodded its head in denial. It did not know what these creatures were here, but it didn''t want to waste any of its energy on them since it wasn''t even hungry right now. Besides, the fish that Elio made for them was something she was becoming addicted to, so eating these bunch here wasn''t going to be anything fun to her. "Hmmm¡­" He wasn''t getting anything from these beings, and there was no information in the data that he had either. "Alright then¡­" So he just got up and threw everything away. "We will go and look for another one of those glowing grass in the other regions. Perhaps we will get to see it again?" If there wasn''t anything that these creatures would tell him, he had no other choice but to go and look for something that would surely help him get what he wanted. [{ But, master. I didn''t see anything like it the last time I was checking there. }] "You didn''t see anything since you weren''t looking for it, Sera. We just stumbled upon it after my eyes caught it accidentally." That grass blade had been right before them from the start. Sera was there as well and she could have seen that grass earlier than him as well, but she didn''t. Not even with her special sensing ability. That creature wasn''t simply something that could move too fast, it had looked back at him in that brief moment that it was there. He had looked at that creature, but even he did not know whether he saw it when it was taking the grass out, or if when it was cleaning the area from where it had taken the grass. "There''s definitely something special about that grass." If that creature didn''t reveal itself all this time and only came out when they found that grass, he definitely knew there was something more to this grass than just its glowing surface and its unique nature. Perhaps, it wasn''t grass at all and something else. He did not know yet, but he was sure of one fact: it was something that grew naturally. He could perhaps tell it because of his affinity for all the elements or because of something else, but he knew it was a natural life form. And if it was something that grew in this forest, there definitely was more than one of these. Perhaps there were very few of these and they were somehow important. There was something to it that was different from anything else in this forest. Elio had inferred that much. So¡­ "Let''s try it at least. We might find at least one of them somewhere, no?" He was going to find it. There was even something that was going to help him with it that he hadn''t tried yet, but he now had the chance that he was looking for. So, he sat down on the ground once again, and placed his hand on the ground. Then¡­ he focused on his eyes. Chapter 219 - 219: Finding grass "What do you think when you hear the word ''grass''? Green blades of thin green Leaves growing out of the ground directly? A green grassland present in a plain flatland? What about the green floors present in the forest areas? What about the lawns, or grass that one grows in their backyard? Or in small pots?" He was asking her an abstract question, but Sera knew he wasn''t simply asking about grass. [{ I think about the grass in the flowerpot present in the room where you summoned me for the first time, master. }] There were various things one could think when they heard any word. And much of the thought process is a lifelong conditioning. One adapts to certain things, they learn, and they acquire various knowledge. That acquired knowledge, skills and experience are retained through a periodic recall and without it, the skills and the knowledge that one has acquired slowly gets forgotten. If they do recall it after a long time, some parts of it might come back, however, not all of it. There is always something that is left out, and that is simple because how the mind functions. "You''re too kind to say that, Sera." [{ Haha, not at all, master~. }] She was cheerful, but there was still a lot that she wasn''t thinking about at the moment. It had not been long since she was summoned by her master so the memories that she has are limited. Though, the knowledge about this world that she had from her past was surely something beyond simple common sense. "Well, anyway¡­" He was simply asking her what it is that she thought about their current situation. They were in a forest that also had many open areas filled with diverse kinds of plants and mainly, various kinds of grass. There was wild grass and there were medicinal herbs that looked just like simple blades of grass. However, in this closed off environment where most of the plant life was pretty independent and free from a great lot of outside interference, most of the herbs and plants and even the most common of the grass here was a little different from their ancestral species. It was quite big, it had adapted to this environment with less predators, and since there were certain distinctions within the areas, some of them were scattered throughout the forest and were focused in places that had comparatively less natural predators. Still, that one blade of grass was a lot more different from the other things that he had seen here. Sear?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "While some of the plants here have developed many protective features, the one that we saw was simply a plain grass blade." He did not yet know why it was glowing, but he knew there was some kind of phenomenon, or at least some kind of specialness of it that made it glow. There were various possibilities that they were considering about this particular grass. It also grew alone in a certain area and was taken by a unique creature from right before their eyes. And, since Elio did not feel any Mana, or any element for that matter, he wasn''t really certain what was so special about it that that creature felt his presence about it threatening. "Did it want the grass blade, or was it protecting us from it? Or was it simply hungry?" He did not know. But he wanted to know what the reason could have been so¡­ he was searching for that grass along with the gang of his new friends. He had showed them what they were looking for since he fortunately had a picture of that grass, so now, all the dozens of them and the two of them were searching through the forest, going to various places and looking at not just the ground but the trees as well. It was a single blade of grass, but the things that they were focusing on right now was its luminosity, it''s comparatively smaller size, and it''s rather simple features compared to the other things that the creatures might have seen around here. He wasn''t expecting much from them, but at the very least, with their help, they might stumble upon another one of those grass blades. [{ I''m moving to the next area, master. }] "Alright, Sera. Come back here in ten minutes if you don''t find anything." [{ Alright~. }] Apparently, he thought he could get a map or something of this entire forest if he used his eye skill''s analysis feature on this entire forest. However, he found out something new about his unique skill. "I''ll continue looking around here." [{ Yes, master. }] The eye skill that he had, {Three Eyes} was not simply a skill that can show him the uses, and traits of something, or someone. Aside from analysis, his eyes had more abilities as well, and he could certainly get an entire map of something with that skill however¡­ there were limitations of this unique skill. And one of those limitations, as he had just found out, was how he needed to actually see someone or something to use his analysis ability on it. "Be careful." [{ Yes¡­ master. }] Be it a creature, a tree, a small blade of grass, an item, or an entire forest. If he wanted to analyze it, if he wanted his eyes to analyze it all for him, he would have to see all of it directly. Plus, as he had learned from his experience last time, he couldn''t use his eye skill on all the things equally. There were some things that he needed to stare at for longer if he wanted to get any information from it, and there were some things that took a shorter time. If he knew anything about something, he didn''t need much time at all, while on the other hand, like that grass, he would need a lot more than just a little staring to get any information on it. But, then again, that was not the only limitation that this skill had. And¡­ he will take a long time to understand that Simple fact. Chapter 220 - 220: While the world moves There were various elements to a world that one could not just see from one angle. To understand a world, or any object in that world, one first had to either understand every single element of that world or the world in its entirety. Elements, energies, powers, skills, items, gods, faith, truths, paths, be it the simplest of the simple creature of this world or the most complex being that could only exist through philosophical concepts. In this world, there were places of all kinds and types. There were beings in this world that could do things that are unfathomable to the reality existing beyond these virtual reality. There were concepts here that were developed from the simple things, from things as simple as words, actions, faith, values, motivation, aspirations, or, existence. Both worlds were connected closely, and they existed independently. There were all kinds of magical beings in this world while there were all kinds of unique things in the world that existed beyond the virtual realm. One existing in the Material world can connect to the Meta world through something they called a Chariot, or a head gear, or simply through something that could turn themselves into a virtual body. And there were various ways to connect oneself like that. -Oooooooooooooooooong! Still, while it was a simple thing for the beings of that foreign world to enter this world of magic and Truths, for the beings who existed in this world, beings who were limited to this world and its restrictions, it wasn''t even an entertaining thought to cross over to the other side¡­ into the reality that was not metaphysical. The world from which those beings come from, that unique world which could not be confined to simple descriptions or narrations, was something they did not even desire¡­ The power of immortality, there were more than one ways to obtain this unfathomable power. They could gain power or gain a blessing from those higher beings existing as the superior maintainers of this world, they can walk down a path, towards a truth, and find a strength that could not be limited to being ''immortal''. "When one asks you about the Truths, Misha, there are three things that they could be talking about, not just one." sea??h th§× N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiiiish! The beings of this world did not even desire to go to that other world form where these unique beings, players, come from. There already existed many unique worlds beyond their own and they could go to that world, those realms, filled with many more unique things than forests made of concrete and stones and steel. They knew about their world already, they knew about it and there were countless books about them in their world as well. They knew the way they came to their world, they knew about the chariots, and they knew how their world existed beyond the Truths, the Universe, and the Guardian Maintainers themselves. "Sister Alex." -Swiiiiish! -Kashhh-ick! "If there are three meanings, why don''t they just call it something else instead of ''truth''. Wouldn''t there be many misunderstandings with so many meanings of a simple thing?" -Ooooooooooooooooooong! "No, not really." It wasn''t possible for the natives to go beyond this world and into the world of the mortals since they did not have one very important thing that was required for them to come here: a physical body. "Most of the time, when one is talking about the truth, they are simply talking about something that isn''t false, or something that is proven or established, or even something logical, or at least something that could have a certain ''answer'' to them." One of the reasons this world was created, as many conspiracy theories talk about, was to test whether a limited consciousness like that of the natives of this world who did not possess a physical body, could ultimately obtain the mind and ''consciousness'' that the humans are defined with. "Not many would talk about it, but whenever Truth is talked about in the context of this world, as in the truth about this world, truth about this reality and the truth that the natives like you could not understand with a simple life, they are talking about the truth that one wants to know but, could not because of their innate limitations." In their journey until now, they had seen and met beings who knew about these Truths, beings who followed a path and were blessed by the ''Gods'' who maintain these truths. "You won''t really understand even if I tell you myself since these things are something one has to understand by themselves. But, I can give you a hint about the general meaning of these Truths through the third kind of truth that one might talk about when they are talking about Truth." "Hmmm?" They were on the border of the Nozama, the great forest filled with countless creatures that periodically attacked them in groups. There were brief moments where they could take a breather from these relentless attacks and catch a breath, but they were fighting since the moment they arrived here three days ago. "What might that be then, sister?" "You wanna know? Really?" Truths were complicated, but those complicated things were the foundation upon which this entire world existed. "Yes¡­? I should know about this since you''re telling me out of the blue, right?" "Of course you should know about them." She gave her a mysterious smile that somewhat sent a shiver down the younger girl''s back. "Well, then let me tell you about it." The Truths. They were complicated, but at the same time, too simple to understand by a mind that was born with an unlimited potential. "So¡­" Alex looked at the young girl who was growing at a much faster pace now that she had awakened her true powers. "You see, all the natives of this world, everything that is born here actually, all of it, all the beings with a soul¡­" They were fighting powerful creatures, Az and Miss Rin was fighting right now while Misha had created a powerful barrier that even these high level monsters could not break with her Ichor, the pure power of nature. "All the things that could think as well as react to natural forces in any way¡­ when one talks about the truth, they might also be talking about how none of this, none of you, nothing of this world, is actually ''Real''." "Hmmm?" She was stronger now and she was going to get even stronger. With her willingness to grow further, she will also accept the fact that she had to kill other binges for the sake of her own survival, for the people that were around her. She will understand that, and while she is doing that, Alex was going to keep giving her what she needed to grow further. To become better¡­ to reach the unfathomable potential that not just she¡­ "What does that mean now, sister Alex?" But every single one of these ''unreal'' beings possessed. Chapter 221 - 221: A story and serenity "Haaa¡­ haaa¡­" Alex had finished her turn as well, and she was going to rest now that they were done for the day. And, since this was a night of full moon, they were going to have a peaceful time after three whole days of relentless fighting. "Haaaaa¡­ fuck." She was exhausted. She had experience fighting for days, weeks actually, and she was good at these long fights due to her unique fighting style as well. There were many names that she had received from all around the world from not just the system in the form of titles, but also from people who practically owned a realm, or were so strong that they held a unique position in this world. One of those names that she had received from the monarch of the East, the Heavenly Crimson Queen, was . A name that was quite famous in the east where Elio was right now. She had obtained that name after fighting alongside the Eastern nations in a war against the [Yakshas] a species that lived in some parts of the east. They were unique creatures, however, due to the influence of the dark powers who had almost corrupted Eve of Cromwell, these beings of immense strength were turned into creatures that could not be controlled or restricted to certain areas. "Sister, come here. Sit down for a little." "Haaaa¡­ yes. Thanks, Misha." Those Yakshas tore down nations, burned valleys, and emptied rivers. Their might was so great that the entirety of the east had to come together to fend them off, and since she was there at that time as well, Alex had also joined them¡­ And when this epic battle was going on half a decade ago, she also fought those powerful creatures for many days, which slowly turned into weeks, and then months. She fought with them, defeated so many of them that even the best of the mathematicians of the east lost count of the enemies that were slain by her blades. She sliced those creatures, she fought, she completed quests on that battlefield, and she refined her skills there as well. It was on that battlefield that she had perfected her Blink skill, perfected her first ever skill, obtained her first ever Heroic achievement, and then earned the very first (Honorable weapon) that is now well known throughout this world. She had done many amazing things in her time as a traveler. And she had met many people who still remember her with the names that they had given her at that time, with the titles that were famous throughout this world. "Huuuuu¡­ this is only going to get tough." The forest of Nozama, one of the deadliest hunting areas for the individuals in their early hundreds. This was not a place that just anyone could survive in, the mobs that they had been fighting since earlier were all of (Level-60) and beyond. They were powerful, so much so that there was little they could do against them with just weapons of steel. To fight these creatures, they had obtained weapons forged by a master craftsman. They were using weapons that could cut through various thick trees, so the creatures were at least killable. And yet, the intensity of these battles that they were having was so great that they couldn''t help but get injured occasionally. Getting tired was a normal thing, but thankfully, they did not have to fight too many of these dangerous creatures of all kinds of types. The entire forest was divided in various turfs. They were scattered all around the forest and if they took the right path, they would have to fight the least amount of creatures or the weakest ones that this dangerous forest had to offer. They were merely approaching their first awakening, and even with Az who had grown to a significant degree, and with Miu who had gathered a few friends to help us, they weren''t yet strong enough to face even the elite monsters of this forest, much less the side bosses or the main bosses. "Haaa. Misha, pass the-." "Here!" "¡­thanks." Misha wasn''t fighting like the rest of them and was simply maintaining the Barrier whenever they were fighting. Her mom and Alex were taking turns with the fighting part and Az was helping them, but the creatures here weren''t that easy to kill. They were monsters, and by monsters, one actually meant monsters that one would see in movies¡­ creatures beyond goblins, orcs, and beasts. Misha did not know how to use her powers offensively just yet so she thought she was useless for the rest of them, but Alex as well as the rest of them knew now that she knew how to use her energy, and how to absorb it, with a little more time, she will be able to manifest more than a simple barrier as well. "Miu!" "Muuuuuuu~!" She was talented. She just had to learn a little more and direct practical experience was the best thing if one was talking about learning¡­ "Haha, I''m not sad or anything, you two. Go and see if there''s anything around." They were inside one of the most dangerous forests now and they were moving towards the very center of the forest to retrieve the thing that Alex was finding here. She was going to find it no matter what anyway, but now that Elio had made such a bet with her, she knew she had to do it much faster than she needed. This one was going to be the first key that she obtains after the crimson one, and just like the crimson sword that could slice though anything, the new key that she obtains will have something unique about it as well. She was going to use that, and the power of another one of her skills. She was also going to pray to the gods to unlock the powers that she needed right now the most instead of something random like the last time, and when she reached (Level-100) she was going to recover a lot of her powers as well so she was praying she gets something that will help her reach that bastard faster. She was racing against him so, even though this entire forest had fallen quite right now, her heart was racing like crazy at the thought of¡­ getting that ring from him with everyone present around them S~ea??h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 222 - 222: The first night "No luck today either?" [{ No, master. }] Since they started looking for that glowing grass, it had been around a month. And it had been two months since they came here. They had not found any way to get out of this place and they were still searching for it every single day. "Haaa¡­" They were tired after looking for even a single blade of some simple grass for all day. Their creature friends from the forest didn''t come to help them for some reason either, so the two of them were the only ones looking around for the grass today. "I''m tired, Sera." He had done his physical training in the early morning and he had done his magic training later in the afternoon. He had looked for that grass for six hours today as well and now that it was evening time, he was going to eat and go to his cave, and sleep for the night¡­ which wasn''t really like a night at all. "I''m going to go crazy one of these days, Sera." This bright blue sky filled with clouds that seemed as close as a monkey in the zoo cage, the slowly moving clouds, the brightness of the day that was present for all day long, and even the silence of the darker forest side most of the side. Sometimes, he felt all alone even though he was with the creatures that were present all around him. And sometimes, when Sera was gone, he was actually alone. [{ Don''t say things like that, master. }] It was not a good thing that he was always alone in this place. Even with Sera being there, even with all those creatures that play along with him and the always increasing number of creatures that had an interest in him, he was still the only human in that place. Sera wasn''t human but she was with him and she saw him suffering through loneliness all the time. She knew how he was a people person and liked being around people. At the very least, he needed someone like Alex or Olive around him to not get bored. And, Sera had already seen him do all kinds of things in the time he wasn''t training or reading or creating something out of anything that he found. "Haaaa¡­ it is what it is, Sera." He had carved sculptures out of wood, he had created spells that were useful as well as useless in the time they were stuck here, and he had gotten stronger with each day of his training. He wasn''t hurting himself physically since he had those healing bugs, but he was curtaining mentally exhausted. Unlike the last few weeks, he wasn''t even clicking photos of the things that they came across anymore. He wasn''t painting things, or drawing anything. He simply went on with finding that grass and ultimately those purple eyes that he had seen that one time even though he had no idea if it actually existed or not. "Anyway¡­ do you feel anything weird Sera? No creatures came out today, did you see any creatures on your way back?" [{ Hmm? Yes I did, master. Though¡­ most, oh, almost all of them were inside their houses. }] Sera was worried about him, but she had to help him with anything he needed her, and more. She was the only one here with him and she didn''t want him to go crazy. She couldn''t see him any more miserable than he already was. So, she did all that she could to help him. "Hmmm. Isn''t that weird." His condition aside, he was right this time. "They weren''t like this a few hours ago, right?" Just this morning, they were all training together and working on their teamwork. They were with their group that had grown up to a few dozen now, and were having fun, but then they all went back and didn''t come back at all. [{ Now that you mention it¡­ }] It definitely was strange, for her as well. Many of them didn''t even like staying in their house most of the time. The tiger, especially, was never in his house but today, he went back today for some reason. S~ea??h the N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And, now that they had noticed it, they also thought it was weird¡­ "There should be some reason behind it, right?" [{ There should be¡­ }] In the two months they had been here, this was their first time encountering this weird situation. Elio especially found it strange, as well as motivating. "How about we go and check up on them?" [{ Master, you''re tired right now. How will you even walk to the other side? }] They were still at the edge of the darker side of the forest. Most of the creatures with them live on the other side of the forest so they would have to walk back to check up on them, but he was too tired for that. [{ We should rest a little first. }] The situation right now was even more weird now that they thought about it. The entire forest was too quiet right now. There was nothing, no creature in sight right now. Even the sounds of the creatures that are almost always filled with the sounds were eerily quiet right now. "Hmmm¡­" He looked around himself, a strange sensation foaming up inside him. He didn''t know what was happening but he wanted to know. And¡­ -Oooooooooooooooooong! He didn''t have to wait for long to find out the reason for this eerie silence. [{ Master¡­ }] He was outside of the dark area, so he could see the sky above him clearly. "Yes, Sera?" It didn''t take him too long to find out how the sky that had always been bright and sunny, as Sera was seeing, was turning darker for some reason. "What¡­?" The white clouds turned gray and the sky became darker. The blue vanished and a stark red took over its place. [{ We should find a shelter, master. }] They had been living under a bright sunny sky for the last two months. So, when they faced a situation that they had never experienced before, they simply stood stunned in their places. And, it wasn''t a good thing. -Oooooooooooooooooooong! A red night befell on this eternally bright paradise. [{ Master! Watch out! }] A night that was going to change many things that they knew about this place until now. Chapter 223 - 223: Truth of the paradise A red sky, almost crimson. Clouds as black as the darkness of the caves that they were experienced with. A strange energy that was now dominating the entire environment around them, and it wasn''t a good thing. -Awooooooooooo¡­! Strange sounds started appearing all around the forest, as well as from beyond the mountain, an area that had been unreachable to them until now. [{ Master! It seems like the wind barrier is gone somehow! }] There was a strong wind current around this area. Until now, that wind barrier had been the main factor blocking them and restricting them in this place but now, Sera could freely fly above, and¡­ what she was seeing right now was no good thing. -Boooooooooooooom. "Shit¡­" Creatures that were dangerous looking, creatures that they had never seen in this forest, creatures that were strong, too strong for the current them¡­ monsters. There were all kinds of dangerous beings popping up around the forest now, with the lake area of the forest being the center of it all. "Do you see this, Sera?" The lake that was located at the center of the forest, as he was seeing from top of the tree, was somehow related to that red sky above them. [{ What¡­ what is happening? }] The water from that lake had somehow turned red and that red water was now moving upwards for some reason¡­ From their point of view, the lake water was being connected to the sky above. It almost seemed like the red sky and the water of the lake were connected. "It''s like a waterfall¡­ just backwards." It was an unexplainable sight. What he was seeing right now, all the creatures that were appearing from all around the forest, creatures that were climbing up the mountain, creatures that were as dangerous as he had known the forest monsters of this area to be. This was not something he had foreseen, he did not even understand what was happening right now, but from the looks of it, whatever was happening was not something that he should have been a part of. [{ Master! What about the creatures of the forest?! }] She was worried about the creatures, their friends. Elio was worried about them as well, and was thinking of what would happen to them with all those monsters present there. He was on top of a tall tree right now, and he was still using the item that concealed his presence to hide away from the creatures that were now flying all around the forest. The noise that he could hear came from beasts, from creatures that did not have any reason or intelligence. They were monsters that were here solely for something, for destruction, and were looking for something else. [{ What do we do now, master? }] S§×arch* The N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Sera could see what was happening right now and she did not like it one bit. All the monsters that were coming there were dangerous monsters that should not be there in the first place. She flew up a while back and there were all kinds of creatures climbing this mountain around them. "I don''t really know¡­ what do we do?" Many of them were flying as well. Those who were flying were ignoring her completely and yet, the kind of innate threat that she felt from them was beyond anything that she had experienced in a long time. They were dangerous and there were hundreds of those creatures all around them. In this forest, in the sky, around them, and more were coming. Since the barrier was gone now, they were all just climbing up the mountain and were destroying the entire forest. Elio could see them with his sharp eyes and they were currently all around them. There were hundreds of them in that place. There were more than a few dozen just walking in his hundred meter radius. They were powerful beings, and they were here for something. [{ Staying here is not safe, master. }] They did not know if this was an occasional event or if the place that had been safe for all this time was in fact getting destroyed by those creatures for good. He did not know what was going to happen to the creatures that he had known until now, but he sure as hell didn''t go down to find that out. "I know that, Sera." He had to stay alive first and he was not being selfish right now. He was thinking of what was best against what he should be doing in this situation. His own life mattered right now since if he stays alive and finds some way to help those creatures, then he would be able to help most of them instead of just one or two before falling to a being that he obviously could not go against. "Is there anything we can do in the first place?" These creatures didn''t seem to be interested in him in the first place. They were also not interested in the creatures of the forest and were simply destroying anything in their paths to get to some place¡­ specifically to the center of that forest. The flying creatures had already gathered there, and the ones who walked were also going there right now. They were either here because of that lake, or that lake was simply attracting them all to something completely else. [{ Master¡­ }] Whatever the case, he was stuck on this tree, and since there was no quest window popping up, he knew there was nothing he could do to stop this, or help anyone present here with anything. He was useless once again, and since he was useless anyway, he had to watch all of this happening and understand what exactly was happening at the very least. "Those creatures aren''t something we are supposed to fight in the first place so, since we are here anyway, we should just watch what the hell is this all about." He had a feeling that he was going to see something crazier pretty soon. He could feel it¡­ There was no quest but there was something more than a quest involved here. This was happening for a reason. There were many creatures here and this entire phenomenon was definitely the result of something else. He could feel it, something was happening. And there was something more to this¡­ -Oooooooooooooooooooong! And, he was right. [{ Master! Look! }] In the distance, something happened with a herd of creatures. And, Elio instantly associated that happening and the silver-purple lightning involved in that happening with a certain pair of eyes that had been haunting him for the last couple of weeks¡­ Chapter 224 - 224: The second Throne A creature. A creature that could fly. A creature that could fly but did not have any wings or was a bird of any kind. It was simply just a creature, a creature that wasn''t visible at the moment. All they could see was a flash of purple lighting that moved at a speed that only left a dash of lightening of that creature''s movements. They couldn''t see anything of that creature, but, one thing that they could see for certain right now¡­ [{ Master¡­ }] Was the absurdity that was transpiring before their eyes. "Yeah¡­ didn''t I say? There existed something with these characteristics. Someone who had those eyes." Right now, a purple lightning that was moving at a speed that was only leaving a flash of light in its path was moving all around the forest. It most certainly had originated from somewhere around them as well, however, it was moving at a speed that was faster than the speed of sound. This silver-purple lightning was so fast that they could barely keep a track on its movements throughout the forest area. In one instance it was at the start of the center boundary around the lake, while the very next moment it had vanished into somewhere at the edge of the forest. The only way to keep a track of this creature was through the sudden fall of the monsters that were invading this forest area. Wherever this lighting passed through, groups and legions of monsters fell to the ground, their dead bodies shivering with a strong lightening still present around their bodies. This was a strange phenomenon that was happening all around them as well so the fact that there was something happening here simply wasn''t anything simple. [{ That''s divine power, master. }] "I could tell that much already, Sera." A creature that possessed lighting that was killing creatures that they couldn''t even imagine to defeat anytime soon, a creature that had already killed hundreds of these monsters, a being that was so strong that they were having difficulty finding what they were seeing was believable. This was, simply, absurd. [{ It''s amazing how you actually saw this creature back then, master. }] "I don''t know how I did it either, but yeah. That thing is fast as fuck¡­" Less than a minute. That was the time it took for that being to kill every single one of the monsters that was present in their line of sight, and it continued killing them mercilessly even right now. The creatures that were present around the reverse waterfall in the center of the forest, around the red water of the lake that was connecting to the sky above, the creatures that were flying as well as the ones on the ground, were all pierced by that purple lightning that which continued on killing these creatures. "Just¡­ look at them. That silver and purple¡­ both are distinct powers." The purple power was related to the speed and the strength of the lightning while at the same time, the silver that was present alongside it had a unique role in this whole process as well. [{ That silver light¡­ that''s not even decomposition, master. It''s just dismantling the entire being of those creatures on an atomic level. That''s insane! }] They had been surprised since the moment they started seeing this purple lightning accompanied by that silver light. However, until they saw the dead bodies of the monsters being disintegrated into nothingness, they had not thought much about it. They thought both the colors were part of the same power, however, that was not the case. This creature, there was something more about this ''divine'' creature than the seed and the strength that it possessed. "It''s fascinating as well though¡­" He looked at the mess that was being made before his eyes and he saw the red sky that was slowly turning back into its former natural state. He saw the mad creatures that did not care about their diminishing numbers, and just continued on towards the creatures at the center of the lake. Both Elio and Sera were seeing what that strange being was doing to these creatures, and at the same time, they were admiring the absurdity of the strength that that strange being possessed. "We fought that dark mage, and the one who defeated him was a guardian spirit manifested form, we fought that mage tower master, and we fought the creatures of the Elm guardian dungeon. (Level-100) seemed to be an achievable goal after seeing what those at that level could do. However, seeing the powers of the viscount was beyond my imagination, and then, experiencing the power of those evil beings who took over Eve, as well as experiencing that power from that blessing¡­ I thought I had glimpsed what true power was in this world, Sera. But, it seems like I was terribly mistaken." He was looking at that silent lightening that was moving so fast that it wasn''t even producing any sound anymore. There was simply a ''zooop'' that they could hear and that too wasn''t the sound of the movements of that creature but instead the sound that was produced by the other elements around it that were getting affected by its movements, It was strange, but it wasn''t just strange. It was mesmerizing. Seeing this creature, seeing the power that was not only killing the monsters that produced an primordial fear inside of him, but was also completely taking care of the creatures'' bodies that were left behind on the forest floor which had now turned into a battlefield. S§×arch* The n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [{ Master, you can get that strong as well. }] Levels weren''t really a great way to measure the strength of any being in this world, and stats that they possessed weren''t either. Aside from the divinity, authority, and knowledge of Truths that an individual being possessed, there were not many elements that could be considered for the true measurement of strength. Still¡­ "Of course I can be that strong, haha. But, how many years will it take me to get that kind of strength, Sera? Just how many experiences will I need to have for that kind of crazy power?" He knew what was logical and what was best left in the fantasy. He was a realist, pluralist. When it came to understanding his own self and what he could do, he understood himself the best. So, this time as well, he knew what was doable and what would take him a few years of dedicated journey. Chapter 225 - 225: The next goal "We can be a god Sera¡­" He looked at the creature that was pretty much done with the monsters. "But to become a god, we would need to have the qualities of that god." The same was true for being strong or having divinity or being something or someone like that creature. It wasn''t simple, and, if anything, it was not something that he could achieve overnight. Not unless there was an almost dead dragon and he just had to poke a sword in its head to relive it from its eternal suffering. He wasn''t [April 3rd]. He wasn''t on the rankings in the first place, much less on the second place among the millions that play this game. Getting strong was a goal that he would achieve eventually as he went on with his journey, but he was still not going to achieve it as quickly as that lucky person did, or through something unique like the other high rankers had done. He had only been here for a few months. He wasn''t here since the beginning like many others and he wasn''t like Alex. He couldn''t go around the world and keep going on all around this vast world for eternity. He liked having a house and calling it home. He liked seeing things all around the world but he was not going to keep traveling every single day even though there were countless things for them to see here. Eventually, he wanted to find a home for them, or built one in a forest as simple as this one. He kind of liked the peace that this forest had, but being alone in this place was like a curse¡­ and no one liked being cursed. "Anyway¡­" The sky returned to its normal self in about half an hour since it had turned red. The ''night'' was over, but Elio had a feeling that this was not going to be the last night of their time in this forest. This most definitely was an event¡­ a regular one that repeated periodically at that. Those creatures, there was something that they were after and that something was present somewhere around that lake, or under that lake. The creature with silver light and purple lightning was either guarding that thing in the lake, or was guarding this entire forest and the creatures of this forest. It was powerful, and that fact was established already. "Do you think it will join us as well, Sera?" Elio smiled as he saw the purple soundless lightning vanishing into the Dark forest once again. [{ Hmm? What do you mean by that, master? Are you still going to search for it? Don''t we know it already exists and could kill us in a fraction of a second? Why are you trying to kill yourself again?! }] She didn''t like that he was trying to throw his life away one more time. But, he didn''t want to die a meaningless death either. "Sera, that creature could have killed us anytime if it wanted to, you know?" They had been here for more than two months now. They were going to stay here since they didn''t have any way to get out of this place yet, but now that they knew ''a little'' about the creature that they had been looking for all this time, Elio knew there was more to this creature than just that speed and power. "All this time, I had felt as if someone was watching me. All this time, I thought it was just my imagination and ignored it, but after the day I accidentally made eye contact with that creature, I didn''t feel like someone was watching us that many times. It became occasional, like someone who had been on a constant look out was being cautious around someone that they didn''t want to see directly." The creature that they had seen just now might have been somewhat of a shy being that didn''t yet want to meet them since they were an outsider. It might still be uncertain of what to do with us and could be contemplating about it. He was good with the creatures of this forest and slowly, they were getting closer. That creature might also be uncertain of what to do with them because of the way they were getting closer. Still¡­ "I know it could be dangerous." He knew he could die a few times, he knew this was dangerous, and after seeing the kind of powers that creature possessed, he also had his doubts. But still¡­ he wanted to give it a try. "We just want to get out of here anyway." If they have that creature with them, they will be able to get through that dangerous forest with clear ease. If they do well, they might also be able to meet back with Alex more quickly. They were in the east and Alex was coming to the east, but she would still need a little longer for that. She still needed to get one more permanent key for that¡­ she had to secure the second one as well, but she was almost done with that. "That creature will help us pretty well, wouldn''t it?" Yesterday, she was telling him about how she had found it already, so now, she was going to defeat the guardian creature and take the key. Then she will move on to further north and go to an underwater kingdom to collect the third key that was being guarded by the kingdom that not many people knew even existed. She was going to get that, contact Olive''s dad who was here, and assemble a team of rankers and some high rankers to challenge this forest for real. "I''m sure there will be complications, but we can try at least." She was determined to get past this forest so she was going to do whatever she could to get that ring¡­ she was looking forward to it. Now, the only thing that remained for her was to get the keys and recover her lost strengths. S§×ar?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Trying is better than just mindlessly searching for the exit. Who knows, that creature might also know about the existence that we had been searching for like dumb ones all this time?" He was searching for that creature anyway. Now, there simply was a better reason to go and find it. Chapter 226 - 226: The second key The moon casts a silver glow over a pristine small gazebo-like shrine, a silver white structure no bigger than a small hut. Its light reflects off the giant crystal stone at the center, a marvel of an otherworldly wonder¡­ at least, that''s how they all had perceived it when they first came here. Embedded within the crystal was a unique Green Dagger, its emerald hue pulsing with a bright present worldly energy. It was the item that She had been looking for since she entered this Jungle. And she had found it a night ago. She could have just made it her own had this been a simple scenario, but, a treasure is never obtained so easily in any of the heroic tale present in this, or their original world. -Booooooooooooooooooooom! Guarding this treasure was a formidable creature, a being so unique that it gave them goosebumps just looking at it. Lord of Capybara. That''s what these creatures were called by the players, but unlike the funny name that was given to them, these beings were a field boss of (Level-180) a creature that was several times stronger than a simple (Level-180) creature. This was a being that one could not fathom the power of, a being that was visibly so terrible that the cute name given by the players was a stark contradiction of their actual, deadly appearance. "Scriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiag!!!" A giant creature with fur as tough as armor and eyes that glowed with ancient wisdom, an intelligent being that was guarding a treasure of primordial history. A being that was not simply a field boss, but also a guardian that had existed before this shrine ever since the previous owner of that dagger built this place. "Muuuuuuuuuu!" -Swish! Swish! Swish! -Oooooooooooooooong! "Now!" She had been fighting this creature for over a day now, and after fighting for so long, she had finally reached the point where they could finish this long battle of attention! "Muuuuuuuu!" Alex stood her ground before the beast. Her sword gleamed under the moonlight, ready to strike like it had been since the last many hours. To her side, her partners Rin and Misha lay heavily wounded, cornered and unable to assist her, under the protective barrier of Misha''s natural Ichor, Their breaths ragged, and their eyes filled with worry as they watched the final battle unfold. "SCRIIIIIIIIIIIAG¡­!" -Ooooooooooooooooong! The Lord of Capybara let out a thunderous roar in its last moments, charging at Alex with surprising speed for its enormous size. -Swish! But she dodged the attack with her {Blink}, her movements fluid and precise, even with the unfathomable exhaustion. "Muuuuuuuuuu!" -Swiiiiiish! With a swift motion, she slashed at the creature''s flank, but her blade barely scratched its tough, bloodied hide¡­ the creature was using ancient magic runes to fortify its body with whatever life force still remained in its wounded body. "Tsk!" "Miu!" a voice gurgled from behind her. "MIU!" -Ooooooooooooooooooong¡­! Miu used the power to control nature for the last time, and created a passage on the body of the Lord that would decide this battle for them. And then it fell to the ground, too exhausted to even stand on its small reptilian feet. sea??h th§× n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Muuuuuuuuu!" At the same time, Az came and positioned itself between Alex and the Capybara Lord, summoning Higher ranking spirits than it had ever been able to, materializing them with its Mana, and using their powers to create waters so sharp that¡­ when released, they tore through the very atmosphere before crashing into the passage Miu had created! "SCARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!" The Lord of Capybara screamed with every fiber of its being, but this time, it was met with a Crimson sword slash that pushed it back, rupturing the most innate parts of the being that kept it alive. "Muuuuuuuuuuuu!" the Slime urged her to not waste this opportunity. It could tell that despite the utter pain that it was feeling, that creature was still alive from the raging storm of hatred and anger that was surging within it! "This is it!" -Swish! Seizing the opportunity, Alex blinked forward, her sword aimed at the creature''s vulnerable underbelly that was now exposed, all of the inside of the creature including its heart, the core of this ancient being, in her line of sight! -ZAAAAAAAAAAAAAA¡­! "Ghaaaaaa!" "SCArrrrrrrrr¡­" With a powerful thrust, added with a swirling twist of her powerful, colorful Aura, she drove her blade into the beast, causing it to howl in pain once again¡­ however, this was the last bit of sound that he had left inside of it¡­ Lord of Capybara staggered, its strength waning. It was not dead just yet, there was some life left in it still, so¡­ "Muuuuuuuuuuu!" Az, the slime, continued to assault the creature with waves of water, each strike weakening it further. -Swish! "Hmph¡­!" Finally, with a mighty swing, she struck the creature''s head, and¡­ "Grrrr¡­" The Lord of Capybara collapsed to the ground, defeated. [Ding.] The message window was a testament to the end of what had taken them nearly an eternity. But, it was over now¡­ "Haaaa¡­ haaaa¡­" Breathing heavily, almost on her last bit of energy points and barely conscious at that point, Alex turned to her fallen comrades, a triumphant smile present on her blood-ridden face. "Rin¡­ Misha¡­" she fell to the ground, her hand still grabbing the handle of her crimson sword. "It''s over¡­" she lay down on the ground, before them, with a smile, with a joyous expression of victory, with a feeling that she thought she had forgotten a while ago¡­ "We did it." She was happy. And she knew¡­ "Muuuuu~!" It would not have been possible without even one of these individuals. Alone by herself? She wouldn''t even consider the possibility at the level she was at. "Miu~!" Az and Miu bounced over to them, an excited expression present on the adorable gecko and the grown up faceless slime creature as well. "We did it¡­" She was unnaturally happy right now, Misha and Rin seeing this smile couldn''t understand the reasoning behind it, however they understood the kind of emotions that Alex might be feeling right now. "Then¡­" Her eyes turned to the center of the shrine, at the giant crystal holding her trophy. "Shall we?" She had worked hard, the hardest she had ever since she fell to this lower level. And that Green dagger was her reward. A reward that she had earned with her, as well as her companion''s blood sweat and tears¡­ She had earned it, and she had proven herself before the Second Key on her [Existential quest]. The white sword acknowledged her efforts, but it was sad that it didn''t get to experience the fun battle. Alex had won, and she was going to be rewarded for that victory, but¡­ a battle was more important than the rewards that one gets. Experience, the concept of [{(Kal)}], the truth of perpetual learning of an existence, was prevalent among the Truth Seekers. She knew what she had experienced here was more precious than that dagger¡­ but, that dagger was the key that was going to bring her closer to her darling. Not this experience which was still an abstract ''concept'' branched from a truth that Shaped the entirety of this world. Chapter 227 - 227: Concepts that shape the world Alex approached the giant crystal stone in the center of the gazebo-like shrine, her eyes fixed on the Green Dagger. Her white hair sword reacted with a magical light, a colorful aurora shining around it. Her blue eyes glowed like the clear sky of a starry night, the moonlight reflecting from the marble around her highlighting the distinctness of the hues of blue. Starting from the most basic of the blues that one understood as color blue to the lighter and darker shades of it, there were all kinds of blue colors present here right now, and yet, shining among all those blues was the distinctness of the green that shined like a single tree growing in an endless oceans on all sides. "It''s gorgeous." "All three of them are¡­" Run had seen countless swords on the battlefield in her lifetime. She had seen divine weapons granted to the heroes by the absolute beings, she had seen holy swords that the righteous warriors possessed and she had seen the world weapons manifesting from the sheer absolute power that they called Truth. She had experienced a lot of things during the wars she fought against the empire as nothing more than a solder, a sacrificial pawn like countless others who had devoted themselves to the rulers who, at the end, couldn''t protect anything that they cherished. She had believed in them until recently, but after meeting these two strange young people who were unimaginably dedicated to one another and their own ideas, so much so that they didn''t care about their own life or about their plans, she started thinking¡­ There was so much that the Holy King of their nation could have done to go against the empire. There was so much that they could have done to save so many people that they were responsible for. There was so much that they could have done in order to spill even a little less blood than what was spilled on and off the battlefield. "The green dagger recognises the crimson sword and the white sheathed sword¡­ are they a set or something? Could they be part of the white sword somehow? Is that why you call them keys?" "Hmm¡­ something like that." Alex¡­ even Elio. That boy¡­ He was always good to the people and creatures around them. He treated everything as if they were his equal or someone of even higher importance. Different from other people who have power and try to show it at every chance they get, he didn''t brag about what he could do. Actually, now that she thought about it, she didn''t know much about either of their past lives or what kind of people they were in the world that they come from. They were extraordinary, that much was obvious, but the fact that they were able to do so much, the fact that He would chose to save a little girl even at the cost of an unimaginable penalty like that, and the fact that She would spend a fortune just to come to this forest to get this dagger and go to Him¡­ made then even more amazing. He was selfless, while she was selfish. Weirdly, they were not perfect for one another and yet somehow, they completed one another. "Alright¡­" Several profound philosophical questions shape this reality and influence each and every element''s conscious and unconscious actions. The nature of power and responsibility are one of the vague questions that shape this world, but the fact that great powers attract greater responsibilities remains true. Alex understood that better than most other elements of this world as someone who formerly held a great responsibility within this world. She had fulfilled her duties, she did not have any obligations left, so she chose to do what she had always wanted, and gave up what powers she had just to play with the person that mattered the most to her. "Haaaa¡­" holding the dagger that had already recognised her as its new owner, she slowly pulled it out of the crystal seal that, in the very next moment, shattered into a fine power¡­ something which vanished the very next moment. "The first key is called Crimson of Unrestricted. And this one¡­" She looked at the dagger in her hand from all angles, a weapon so beautifully crafted that even Rin had never seen something like this in her long journey. There was something more to this dagger than what one could understand. It contained powers, powers that were even more diverse than the simple ability to freely slash through anything like her Crimson sword could. "It''s called Jade of Justice." The interconnectedness of life is highlighted by the dagger''s ability to control nature, control Laws that are set for anyone and everyone, and the ability to Justify things that are too abstract for even the enlightened minds. This looked like a smile and small weapon, a small dagger no bigger than Misha''s forearm, but in fact, just like the Crimson sword that could cut through even the fragmented Evil beings of near divine nature, this was more than what met to their eyes. "It''s pretty¡­" Misha''s eyes gleamed as she saw this dagger. She could feel something familiar from this dagger, something she attributed to her Ichor. But, it was something more than just the energy that she could use. This dagger¡­ there was something more to this. Be it the material that it was made from or the very fact that it was something that could affect not just the nature but even the other abstract elements of nature that aren''t Just, this beautiful dagger was a powerful item. So powerful and important that just obtaining this item had unlocked a bunch of her lost levels, a few skills, and above everything else¡­ ''It''s Victor. This is better than I expected¡­'' Similar to the silver ancient markings of the Servants that Elio had, there was now a Golden marking on her hand as well. And, the appearance of this mark had made her happier than when she defeated that Lord capybara. "This is great." The struggle between good and evil, in this case, is examined through the presence of the Lord of Capybara, raising questions about the subjective nature of abstract concepts like if the creature needed to die or not. If the dagger was a representation of Justice, the truth known as [{(Nyaya)}] the truth that maintained Order this world, then did the death of a powerful and wise creature like that capybara actually mean something? sea??h th§× N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Tension between fate and free will being a recurring theme here, Alex''s quest for the dagger actually challenged Elio''s belief of ''not'' killing things that didn''t need death. "We shall rest a little before departing." "Yes¡­ I need that¡­" "Muuuu!" "Miu~." The pursuit of knowledge and truth¡­ their journey¡­ the importance of curiosity and learning, is not a central theme anymore. "Yeah¡­ Can I see that dagger, Sister Alex?" "Oh, yes. Here." Elio''s ways, Alex''s longing for him, Misha''s search for strength, and her mother''s search for her purpose in this life¡­ these philosophical questions add depth to the very world and their journey. A journey that a few had been enjoying since a long time ago¡­ Chapter 228 - 228: A stall in the capital In the heart of Viv''s bustling capital, a modest stall could be seen between rows of merchants and artisans. The smell of freshly baked bread and pastries spreading through the air drew curious glances from passersby. Behind the counter, Erisea, the pretty girl in her early twenties, her light-brown hair loosely braided and tucked beneath a flour-dusted cap, greeted her customers with a smile. Her hands, worn from long hours of kneading dough, burned a little from the magical baking fire that she used, her face still bright and cheery, worked swiftly and precisely as she arranged her golden loaves, donuts of non-round shape, rolls filled with various meats and fruit jellies, biscuits, cookies, and delicately crafted pastries on display. The sign above her stall simply read Maru''s Bakes, but it didn''t really belong to her, just like this shop. She was simply renting it after paying a little silver to the owner. "Can I have two of those?" "Please give us that one!" "Hey! I''ll pay more! Just let me have that one!" "No! Rules are rules! The line is there! No breaking the line!" The foreign visitors, with their distinct clothing in this capital city and casual demeanor, often referred to her as the "baker newbie." It hadn''t been too long since she appeared in this street. At most, it was a little over a week, and yet she had become the talk of the town in the capital city. "The rules are rules! Breaking them will have consequences!" These foreigners were not like the other inhabitants of Viv who had lived here for a long time; they were players from another world. To them, Erisea, who was wearing a concealing item hiding her player status, was an NPC. She appeared out of nowhere one day and then she started selling her fresh goods that were preserved in enchanted plates so that they are always warm. She wasn''t the owner of this shabby shop, but the things that she was selling were unlike anything that they could find in this simple street. It most definitely wasn''t street food. The things that she was selling gave them high quality buffs that the players don''t find with things as cheap as what she was selling. The things that she was selling were too good to be made by a newbie player that didn''t even seem to have achieved their first awakening and they were also so cheap that a player who understood the prices of their goods would sell at such a cheap price. She was also strict with the rules that she had set. Anyone who wanted to buy anything from her stall would first have to form a line. Breaking the line wasn''t allowed and breaking into the line wasn''t allowed. She would open according to her convenience and only after she is open would she start selling her goods. The things that she would sell every day were limited, and it did not matter if someone from a big guild or was the queen of this nation itself, if one wanted to buy anything from her, they would have to stand in line and wait for their turn. She also didn''t care about money. The price for each and every thing she sold was already set and even if one was ready to pay a thousand times more than what the rates were, she wouldn''t sell them if they weren''t in the line. One person could only purchase a maximum of three things of any category. And, a guild or a group can only purchase a maximum of twelve items from her per day regardless of their actual size. She was strict with her rules, and as the one who temporarily owned this stall, she knew her rights as a seller so she had asked for help from the Capital guards, the elite guards of (Level-200)+ who were famous all throughout the world for their strengths and abilities. They knew even with one of these guards present, they couldn''t do anything to her or to that stall. They can try and break her rules if they wanted to dare, but they would immediately be blacklisted and would never be allowed anywhere near this stall. "Next~." There was a new line in this street that started from the face of her stall and went all the way to the main road more than half a kilometer away from there. She was dominating the market since she appeared, and thanks to her, the other people were also getting more business, so they didn''t mind her at all. Especially when they were getting free things from her that they can sell out to these desperate players for much more money than what they would make through their goods each day. She was a blessing to them¡­ and¡­ you don''t curse the goddess that blesses you. You worship them. So, they did just that. And embraced her warm grace. "How''s the baker newbie doing today~?" one of the regulars who she had somehow seen multiple times by now called out, her tone light and teasing as she handed over a handful of coins for a warm, stuffed roll. "You like that a lot, I see." "Half of the capital likes this¡­ I won''t be surprised if the Queen comes here and says she likes these as well." "Haha, don''t say silly things. Why would the Queen be here~?" Erisea smiled, though the compliment made her cheeks flush slightly. The Queen was still not someone she can approach even with her high status within these streets or among these players. Her father or big brother could perhaps, perhaps Alex as well, but she was still not so popular that the Queen of the only kingdom of the western continent would come to this shabby place just to try her stuffed bread. "I''m not being silly, huhuhu. This is great. Every time I eat this, I feel like it is improving little by little. It''s not even a question that you''re working hard for this each and every day." She complimented her once again, took a bite from her meat stuffed bread, and placed her free hand on her cheek as she felt the delight run though her entire soul. This bread, and the filling, was amazing. So much so that she always thought the limit of three items per person was nothing less than a curse. "Haaa¡­ if I could, I''d buy everything you have in a heartbeat, Erisea." "Yeah, no. That''s not happening, Miss. Everyone is standing here for these things as well. There are rules and we should follow those rules at least a little bit." She packed the rest of the stuff in a special, premium bag and urged her to go in her way. The people looking at her eating that bread was almost drooling right now. And though it was a great sign for a creator, for someone who still looked after their personal hygiene, she couldn''t see them like that. "Please come again~." Erisea had gotten used to saying that after having her IRL shop for so long. "Oh, of course~. See ya in three days~." "Sure~." She didn''t know if she would still be in the capital in three days, but she didn''t have any motivation to leave this place anytime soon. She was having fun being called the baker newbie and this whole gig. Seeing people long for something so simple, something made from the things that they usually don''t even eat, was a new and fun experience for her. The whole ''fame'' and the new customer drama that she got to see was much more fun than her IRL work where she just made and made and made all kinds of things. She was a baker and a creator but at the same time, she also enjoyed seeing the reactions of the people who ate her dishes. It was something she had left behind as she moved ahead of intrapersonal boundaries and gratifications. She worked on herself and she continued working on herself until she was able to create things that earned her that Golden star, and she had struggled to achieve what she had. "Next~." She was used to compliments and praises by now¡ª but unlike what she had thought, opening a stall and not a fancy shop that might put more restrictions on her customer base was a great idea. She had not yet forgotten what it actually meant to have fun with the selling part instead of just the creating part, and with all these people and this specific open setting, she was having fun¡­ that much was certain. "I''ll have three of the snowflake donuts please." S§×ar?h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Yes~!" This stall, these baked goods, were her passion, not a quest objective. She was simply doing what she liked, and she was doing it in a much better environment where she was still not recognised. People called her a newbie and at the same time, they praised her just as much as how people in their reality praised her. "Thank you~. Please come again~." "If fate allows it, yes." "Haha~." Despite the foreign nickname, she was proud of her work. She may have been new to the market, but each day she sold her bread, her pastries, she felt a little closer to becoming something more¡ªsomething much more than what she already was. ''This is more fun than when I was hunting with dad.'' She was carried on by her dad and big brother and thanks to them, she was already (Level-110). She had achieved her first awakening already and she had earned some unique abilities like they have, but she wasn''t yet sure what she actually wanted to do in this world. She liked playing, she liked baking, and she liked selling as well. So, she wanted to reach out to even more people, but to do that she would have to do something more than what she was doing right now. A stall in the capital, unlike what she had anticipated, wasn''t that big a deal. She needed something more than that¡­ if possible she wanted as much traffic as what the capital''s magic tower, or the adventurer''s association has. But that would be crazy, and she would need a castle to fit that many people. And, a castle would not be a cafe or bakery or something modest as she liked it. She had a plan, but she still needed some time to properly prepare herself for what she was thinking right now¡­ "Next~." But until then, she was happy with these small things. She was happy. That was more than enough. Chapter 229 - 229: Celestial essence "So from what we know until now¡­" Elio was sitting inside of his cave this time, and it had been around four months since he came to this forest/mountain top. "This mountain is the center of the blank area that no one knows much about. The forest below this mountain is saturated with monsters of high level, monsters so dangerous that they could kill even the strongest of the individuals. There are hundreds of them down there and only the strongest of them can climb the mountain and reach this ''paradise'' which directly connects them with the high heavens." [{ Ummm¡­ master? Why are we calling the river the high heavens? }] "It simply sounds good, Sera. Don''t mind that." Sear?h the N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Sera didn''t understand why she asked that question when she knew there was no great reason behind him calling it like that but she ignored it for now. "So, this place is somehow connected to what all those monsters want innately. They cannot approach this place in normal circumstances, however, every month, there comes a day when the strong wind barrier around the top of this mountain vanishes and a red night befalls us¡­ it specifically happens when the moon is between the sun and the planet, on the nights of new moons." He had experienced the red night three times by now. And just like the first time, the other two times were just as horrible as the first one. "The red night is skipped after three months, just like how it''s happening today, and instead of that, a unique blue radiance spreads across the mountain top. This is also the time when this unique grass grows in some parts of the mountain." Even after finding relentlessly, he had not found that green grass for a reason. "That creature, as we saw yesterday, needs this grass but it cannot detect the grass like we do. It needs it and it tries to hide its existence, but we know what it wants now." The grass started appearing early this morning and since His friends had been on the move for a long time, and thanks to his eyes, he knew about this grass earlier than That creature. Procuring it faster than a being that could move faster than sound was difficult, very difficult, but he had still obtained a fair share of this grass thanks to his eyes that seemed to be the only element that could actually perceive this grass. "Hmmm¡­" The grass, now that he was looking at it closely, was not a simple thing. And, by nature, it was something that wasn''t supposed to be revealed to anyone. ===Status=== [Lunar Fangs] : When the moonlight is condensed with the natural Ichor, and concentrates in a certain kind of soil abundant with nutrients, a grass containing the properties of the [Lunar Celestial] or better known as the Moon, is born on the physical world. Being the essence of the Lunar Celestial''s power, this grass contains an abundance of Ichor, nutrients, and the ability to sustain and harmonize one''s innate energy. ¡ª Can be used as an ingredient, as an Elixir, as a material for taming, as a substitute for an energy source, as a material for Magic wand, or as a medium in magic casting. [Advice: Collect as many of these as possible within the given time frame: 5 days.] ============ "At least, we now know why that creature wanted this grass. But still, the fact that it didn''t let go of even a single blade of this grass the first time, it seems like it''s more important for it than what we expect." They had seen the power of this creature. They had seen just how strong it was and they had seen just how that power would need a great amount of energy. Divine power was not something that one just obtained and could use eternally. The base of all power was the energy that would power it. For most individuals of high rank who possessed the [Divinity] stat, the sustenance and preservation of their power was one of the important aspects to take care of. Not the high rankers or the people who had progressed far on their Paths and could obtain strength from the Truth itself, could use their unimaginable powers continuously. They also have limitations, just that those limitations are a little different from the limitations of the simpler players. "If this thing is so important to that creature, I''m telling you, Sera. It will come to us." He had thought for a long time on how they could meet this creature. About what they would do even if they come across it once again. There were many ways that he could use this grass to his advantage. He was the only one that could see this grass despite its mystical nature so he could help that creature get more of this grass. However, if he played nice here and just helped it, he wouldn''t get what he wanted. He wouldn''t get the exit that he needed to get out of here, and he wouldn''t get the creature that could take him out of the forest below either. "It will come here and either negotiate with us if it knows killing us won''t do it any good, or it will try and deal with us in some different manner." Elio knew that creature would come to them at the very least. He was hoarding over four dozen of these grass blades, these Lunar Fangs in his inventory so, the creature that couldn''t let go of even one of these grass blades, would definitely reveal itself to them. The main reason he was back to his cave was exactly because of his fears and concerns of what that creature would do when it confronts them. He was sure that THEY would come here even though he didn''t know what they would do, at the very least. That''s why he was in the safest place he knew. And¡­ { "Human! } He was right. { "Answer me!" } At last, THEY finally showed themselves before the two of them. Chapter 230 - 230: Conversation with the divine The voice that they heard out of the blue was not something simple. It was deep, and yet there was a unique kind of pureness in this voice that Elio couldn''t understand. "¡­hello?" { "Human!" } The being whose voice they were hearing right now, was not visible this time either. It was simply there, but at the same time, they couldn''t really see it. It wasn''t visible, but at least, their voice was present here. And that was more than enough. "Hello? Who''s this?" Elio was looking around but his eyes wanted to be focused in a certain corner of this cave. But he avoided looking in that direction knowing that creature might actually be there. { "That! I can tell you can see me! How are you doing that! Human! Answer me!" } "Hmmm?" He didn''t look that way to avoid scaring the creature, but he was found out. The creature somehow knew he was there, though Elio didn''t know for certain if it was there or not. His eyes reacting and pointing him in that direction, that was simply all that he was seeing. He didn''t really know if that creature was there or not, he didn''t feel anything special from that place, aside from his eyes'' reaction to that place, he had no idea where that voice was coming from, but that creature knew he knew about it. So there was no reason to hide it anymore. "Well, I''ll clarify the fact that I have no idea how I am doing this either. Just like the Lunar Fangs, my eyes just pointed me that way as well." { "¡­! How do you know about that name?!" } Elio unconsciously moved his head since his eyes were reacting to some kind of movements, but he knew he was actually reacting to the movements of that invisible creature at the moment. "I don''t really know that either. These eyes of mine told me." { "What?!" } He heard that voice, and, in the very next moment, in a fraction of a second, he felt something he had felt the first time he perceived this creature. He also ''saw'' two distinct eyes looking back at his eyes that he had seen before, the same purple eyes that had been the driving force which made him continue his search for this possibly nonexistent creature. { "¡­!" } It was only for a split second this time as well, but this time, Elio was the one who looked back into those unique purple eyes. Actually, it was his eyes that looked back at them, but he did not understand that well. { "Those eyes¡­!" } With a timid voice, the afraid creature screamed. { "What are those eyes¡­!" } "Hmmm?" It seemed like his eyes somehow frightened the creature. For some reason, the voice that had felt to be coming from around him, had felt to be at a distance this time around. And then, the cave fell silent¡­ "Hello?" [{ What just happened, master? }] "I have no idea either¡­ Sera." He looked around, but his eyes didn''t react. He looked above him and there was nothing there either. Then he felt something with his eyes once again, and this time, he squinted his eyes to see at a distance. { "Aik¡­!" } And it was at this moment that they heard the Mana voice of that creature once again. { "You''re scary!" } They heard a distant scream, and then, the creature disappeared from there for real. "¡­?" And Elio was left there confused. ''The creature that killed hundreds of those monsters in a blink of my eyes says I am the scary one? What the hell?'' Sera was just as confused as him since she had also seen the kind of calamity that being was. She did not expect it to be so timid. She had not expected to fear someone''s eyes either. It was unprecedented that a creature as powerful as that would be afraid of someone simply because of their eyes. But it was happening right now. A divine being had run away after being seen through by someone, or perhaps the reason behind it was something deeper than what either of them could understand at the moment. "Now what?" [{ Should we go and find them? }] "Well¡­ actually¡­ I think we should wait here. Give them some time to think about stuff. They are the ones who need the grass that we have anyway, not the other way around at the moment." They had the upper hand already, and THEIR fear of his eyes just made things simpler for them. [{ Hmmm¡­ alright. }] Sera simply flew from Elio''s head and went to their tent to pick some things for them. They had been working since the early morning, searching for that grass, collecting each one of them before that creature found them. He was exhausted, she knew that, so she brought some food and fetched some water from the spring in the back. { "¡­" } It did not take long for That creature to come back to this cave and for his eyes to pick up their presence. "We can talk, you know? I don''t really want to harm you or anything." There was no way he could harm this creature anyway. Taking away some grass and storing it away in his inventory was the only thing that he could do anyway. { "You are a weird human¡­" } Elio was eating and, as if he knew that creature would come back, he had prepared some blades of that grass beside him for it. "Will you join us? We can talk¡­ there''s no need to be afraid of a characteristic that not even the one possessing that characteristic has much understanding of. I cannot hurt you even if I wanted to anyway." A creature that can kill beings- monsters- of high level several times in a short period of time, could very well dispose of them in an instant. They were the ones who should fear it, but it was the other way around here. Which, it shouldn''t be. { "The two human that came here the last time weren''t like you." } -Ooooooooooooooooong. A silver smoke discharged, and a being of rather unexpected form revealed itself. { "You''re weird." } It was not fluffy, as the timid voice had suggested it to be. It was not a bunny either, though it surely looked like one. Half of its body seemed to be made from the silver fog that disintegrated the bodies of the monsters that the silver lightning sparking around its body had killed. Its eyes were a deep purple, an unnatural royal color that one could not understand with simple description. There was wisdom in them, there was authority and power in them. They were unique, as well as a total contradiction of the actual form this creature possessed. { "Your servant is weird as well." } A body made of silver fog and adorned with crackling lightning, eyes resembling jewel orbs, and a body that somehow seemed mysterious even though it resembled a mixture of a bunny and a fox. There were many ways one could describe this creature. But, even if one wanted, they would have an innate instinct not to do it, not to confine it within their limited descriptions. S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. It was a unique creature¡­ { "And your eyes are the weirdest." } But, it didn''t seem to want to harm them yet. And that was a good start¡­ Chapter 231 - 231: Weird people "You are the weird one here, not us." Elio continued sitting in his place as he moved his head around to see the creature that was now circling around them. It seemed to be evaluating them, observing them closely for what was needed to be done with them. It needed the grass that they were hiding, that much was certain, however, that wasn''t all there was to this. { "There''s nothing weird about me. I''m not the one who could see divine beings with eyes that somehow possesses the ability to see the [Truth] to some extent. I''m also not a servant that possesses locked up celestial powers. I''m simply what I am. There''s nothing weird about ''I'' from anyone but your perspective." } The creature had three fox like tails, just that like its entire body which seemed to be made from that silver fog, these tails were semi-physical. The creature itself was somewhat adorable, however, there was still a lot that he couldn''t under about this creature. "What exactly are you? My eye skill reacts to you but unlike the other creatures, it doesn''t tell me anything about you." { "Just the fact that it reacts to my existence is a big thing. Not many ''things'' could comprehend a divine existence. You see, since you''re simply a dumb human from another world, you shouldn''t even have been able to see me even as I stand before you. That''s what distinguishes mortal from the divine. My very existence should have been like an incomprehensible concept to you¡­ yet it doesn''t seem to be the case." } Elio looked at him, some confusion and some clarity now present in his mind. "Well I guess we are unique, but isn''t your existence still a more weird thing?" A creature that understands its divine nature, a being so powerful that it can protect this paradise all by itself, a natural calamity that must have guarded this place for a very long time. There were many things about this creature that not only were pretty and great, but also were scary and terrifying. And yet, it feared the eyes that Elio had. It feared being seen by someone it can deal with in a matter of seconds. It needed a simple blade of grass to perhaps sustain itself, and just for that grass, it had come all the way to him despite its shy nature. And now that they were before one another, that creature was calling Him Weird. { "I''m nothing weird. If anything, I''m simple and normal. I have done what I like and I cannot do it right now SINCE YOU''VE STOLEN MY LEAVES!" } It screamed at him, and though not physically, Elio felt a strong surge of emotion urging him to give up the grass that had collected. That urge was so strong that, for a moment, he felt himself being under a daze and taking out the grass from his inventory. But¡­ [{ Master! Snap out of it! }] Sera was there with him, so he came to his senses¡­ and soon realized what had just happened. { "See! Your response was normal! You do what the one with higher authority wants willingly! And yet that doesn''t apply to this Angel bird!" } The creature seemed upset. Elio looked at Sera for a moment since he thought that creature had used some kind of trick on him, but what actually happened was much simpler. "So¡­ this is what they call Divine Authority?" { "This is your first time experiencing it and Yet! Look at you! Why are you resisting it so well with that weak constitution of yours!?" } The creature was frustrated. It could not understand why Elio was doing so well before him when he was just a weak human. Furthermore, he couldn''t understand why Sera was the way she was right now. All of this frustrated the creature, and it simply couldn''t take it anymore. { "Haaaa!" } It sat down on the side where Elio had placed those grass for it, picked up one of the blades, and started chewing on it from not the pointed tops but from the middle part. { "It seems neither of you understand yourselves much." } The creature looked at Elio with its purple eyes which seemed to be looking right into his soul, and the same way, it looked at Sera. Sear?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Though, the way it was eating that grass simply made it seem more adorable than intimidating. "We might not know as much as you about ourselves, but you know what? We don''t really know anything about you at all. In fact, didn''t you mention the two humans that came before me? Can you tell me about them? Or about how to get out of this place?" Elio still had the same goal as he did when he came here. He had to get out, and now that he was before the creature that could help him get out of here, he didn''t mind coming straight to the point. { "Hmm? You want to get out? Does¡­ do you mean you want to get out of this cave? Or this forest? Or this mountain region?" } "Out of this dangerous place, beyond the forest under the mountain preferably." With or without this creature''s assistance, he had to get out of here. And this creature who seemed to have been here for a long time was the only one that might know the way out. { "Hmmm? You want to go away? You¡­ do you not know how to do that? Haven''t you been here for a while now? Why do you think those creatures come here when the sky turns red?" } "Hmm? Is there a reason? I just thought they were mad and driven by some kind of innate intense desire¡­" They were monsters in his eyes, and he didn''t think there was any great reason for those monsters to have any ''reason'' for doing what they were doing. { "See. That''s why I said you''re the weird ones." } The rabbit, the divine creature, looked at both Elio and Sera with an upset, helpless expression. It didn''t know how it had fallen into this situation, but, the two that he was before right now¡­ were quite dumb. They knew pretty much nothing about where they were and what was happening here. They were different from the two that came here before them¡­ so, it had no choice but to educate them itself. { "Haaaaa¡­ the lake in the center of this forest. It''s a boundary." } The creature started speaking and, at the same time as when it did, Alex and her party had arrived in the Capital City of the kingdom of Viv. Chapter 232 - 232: Secret of the red night A boundary. A unique place that divides one spatial coordinate from the other. Though this is a rare phenomenon, there are boundaries all around the world that connect one place with another, a place that acts like a natural teleportation system. Though, unlike the gates and magic scrolls of teleportation that actually creates a medium that connects two distinct spatial coordinates, a boundary is basically like a hole in a flat fabric. Even though it works pretty much the same as the normal Gates, it is not as safe as the maintained transportation mediums¡­ they are dangerous, and in some cases, they connect one world with another. Those that connect one world with another are called [World Boundaries]. But, the lake in the center of the forest wasn''t anything like that. S§×arch* The n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. { "It''s a place called ''Final plains'' or something. I''ve only been there in the past so I don''t know much about it, but that place apparently exists somewhere else. And that makes it the only actual exit to this entire region since just like how the winds cover the mountain top most of the days, the same winds cover the entire area around this mountain and the forest under it. Even I do not know what those winds are but they are the same as a barrier. Not even I can get past them, so those dumb beasts are obviously trapped here as well. However, this lake is the exit, and all the beasts instinctively know that. They are attracted to the strong energy that concentrates around the lake during the new moons. And, coincidentally, it is also the day when the barrier covering this specific mountain top vanishes." } The fluffy creature explained to them how this might be due to the effects of the moonlight or the red light that is produced for that specific duration in that specific period. It did not really know much about why it happened, but it explained to them all that it knew about the night, how it was concentrated on that lake for some reason, how the lake was a boundary, and how there was something about that ''exit'' that attracted all those creatures. { "This place is mostly closed off so no one can go in and out of here unless they deal with the wind currents. Which, from what I know, is actually possible." } This was an interesting part. Elio had been waiting for this strangely chatty creature to reach this part. { "There were two people, two strange humans like you from some different world that came here a few years ago. And they came here after touring through those wind currents. They used some kind of special technique, but most of it was because of their great power. They were nothing like what I had seen until then. They can see me as well, but unlike you who can do it because of some strange eye skill, they can do it because I was simply that much slower in their eyes. They weren''t intimidating, instead, they called me ''cute''¡­ the way that strange woman looked at me and the way that amazing man looked at me were completely different. But, the way they looked at one another indicated a bond so deep I have only seen it among some special creatures of this forest. Some special creature who bond with their partner for their lifetime." } Elio didn''t really have to ask more about these two individuals. Just from that little description, he could tell who this creature might be talking about. "Did they tell you their name? Was it something like (White wing) and (Black wing)?" Those were names that any mortal in this world, player or native, would know in a heartbeat. { "Oh! So you do know about them! You are not as oblivious as I thought you''d be!" } The pinnacle of mortality, the highest ranking individuals on the unified rankings, the Gods of sword and magic¡­ the honored ones. The heavens that achieved their fourth awakening along with their godhood and ascended to a realm that was beyond any of the mortals present here. There was no way he would not know them. They were living legends that no one knew much about. Only a few people had ever seen them, and even fewer knew about them¡­ however, they had left the mark of their existence on this world deeply. ''Be it the first conquest of the highest difficulty dungeons, be it exploration of the furthest points of this world, be it making achievements in the creation and destruction fields, or be it their sheer uniqueness that lifted them above everyone else¡­ the Wing-couple as the world called them. ''They were here¡­'' They came here on their own, and they went back with their own will. ''They scared a divine beast with their mere presence. And they even made me admire them.'' Elio had not met them, but Alex had. And from all that she had told him about them, he knew just how amazing those two were. { "They were strong so they could do whatever they wanted, but you''re a weird human. Not only are you as weak as a twig, you fell out of nowhere. You somehow befriended creatures that didn''t even come close to those two, and you even stole my grass! If not weird, I don''t even know what I should call you!" } Hearing about those two was surely a surprise for him. And he wanted to know more about them. More than how to get out of here, he wanted to know more about this special creature that had met those legendary figures personally. "You can call me Elio. That''s my name in this world and from where I come from as well. And this is Sera. We might not know as much as a genius figure like you, but we would be honored if you could tell us more about our lowly selves. As well as your great being-." { "That human woman taught me how this way of talking is called ''buttering up'' to someone. If you''re trying that, it''s not going to work. I''ll warn you about that." } From the looks of it, it certainly seemed to be working though. "I''m sorry. I didn''t mean to do that." But telling this little one that would cause trouble so he just continued on with his question. And, with a new motivation, the creature answered his questions as well. It was actually happy while he talked with him for some reason¡­ Chapter 233 - 233: About the famous newbie Xander. The capital of the kingdom of Viv. Established a long, long time ago, this kingdom was older than even the empire, the largest power of the western continent. The kingdom was the straight in the far past, it used to be the best place where the most talented people had gathered and was operated by some of the greatest minds that had ever lived, but then, a dragon ran rampant on the west and broke the entire land into pieces. "Oho?" It quite genuinely broke the continent and various rulers of that time, who were divided by the separated lands, waged war against one another to get as much land to incorporate into their own territories. The empire was established back then, and then it continued existing along with the rest of the nations, as well as the kingdom that was left on the continent. "Next~." Alex was back in the kingdom''s capital after a long time. She started her actual journey here, in this very city, and after doing all kinds of amazing things in this fun place, she went out to see the great world that existed all around them in this vast world. She traveled, she stayed in certain places, she fought in wars, she gained strength, she explored places, she met people and she did some favors to some acquaintances. She made friends, but above all that¡­ she lived a free life here that she had not lived in the real world out there. ''She has a long line of customers like the rumors said.'' She remembered her past on this street where Olive was selling her goods right now. She thought back to the days when she too was a newbie. There were many fun things that she had done in this kingdom, in this city. She fought her first big scale battle in this very city for the first time around nine years ago. ''Fun times¡­'' She thought back to a lot of things, to a lot of events, to a lot of good memories and a few bad ones that she didn''t want to remember. ''Well¡­'' But, all of that had happened a long time ago. The world was a different place from what it used to be back then and the kind of changes that the world had faced due to her actions were great as well. A lot of things happened because of her, and though she did not have the kind of power that she used to, she knew a lot more things were going to happen because of her going forward as well. And, she knew all of this was going to start from this point on. "Shall we go greet her, master?" She had left Misha and Rin and Az and Miu at the in and had come to the shopping street to get Olive. They arrived in the capital just a few hours ago so the rest of the crew was sleeping while she had come out to get her friend with her Servant- Victor. Unlike Sera who was a small white bird, this person was a butler. A classic butler with a plain white beard and white hair without any glasses. His red eyes reflected the blue sky above them. "Yeah, let''s go." She had received the second key from the forest of Nozama so now this was time for them to go and get the third key before they plan the large-scale raid into the blank zone that had never been conquered until now. She had contacted the people that she knew could help her, as well as people that were strong enough to go against the monsters that were present there without attracting too much attention. She could call a few of the high rankers but that would be too much for a small thing like a forest full of monsters. Those people were doing bigger quests in some important parts of the world so disturbing them when she knew they might not even be able to come there at her call was not like her. She knew she could save her baby from that place with a small force and she was going to do that. A lot of things were on the line so before he figured out a way to get out of there, she knew she would have to work faster to get what she needed and move to the bigger things. And now that the most important part of the game was done and she had the second key in her hands, she knew she wouldn''t have to worry about the third one that much. "Hey there, pretty Miss." Sear?h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Alex skipped the line and wet straight to the corner, attracting attention of everyone standing in the line as well as the people who had stalls and shops around her as well. This was a famous stop, everyone knew the famous newbie in the city now. The talk of her goods had already spread all around the kingdom and people were coming here just to stand in the line or to get something from her that the other people could not. Many scouts form the big guilds were in the line right now, many servants of the nobles from all around the kingdom were standing in this line, and there were people here who, unknown to many others, were on the rankings and were famous. "Hmm? Hey! How many times do I have to repeat the rule-¡­ oh! Hey there~!" Olive didn''t realize who this was at first since Victor, the big old butler, was with her, but she realized it in a moment and a bright smile appeared on her face. "You said you''d need a few more days~! You''re early this time unlike your habit." Olive was excited to see her friend for the first time in the game¡­ however, it was business hours right now. "Come in here. Help me with the order~." It was better to finish the work for the day and then chat. "Oh, sure." And Alex didn''t really have anything better to do anyway so she went inside the stall that had now gotten much better however, there was now a blank sign on the name area of the shop. She didn''t really want to be limited to just this place even though her popularity was increasing rapidly. She wanted to go and try the other big cities, then the empire, the Theocracy, then the other continents as well. Being a traveling merchant- a traveling baker to be precise, was not a bad idea either. "We are going to have two places today, everyone! But the line will remain the same!" The announcement was made. But the people were not happy to hear this. It just meant everything would be sold out sooner, so¡­ a new disappointment spread throughout the long line. Chapter 234 - 234: Sir Victor "Oh man¡­" Finally, they were done for the day. "Here, master." Victor took out two glasses for the ladies along with a jar of fresh, cool water and passed the glasses to them. "Oh, thanks." However, just right now, this butler of hers had taken out those things out of nowhere. As if taking them out of an inventory, but, unlike how things just appear before then when taking them out of an inventory, he had taken it out of a ripple that suddenly appeared before him. S~ea??h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Miss?" Victor didn''t understand why Olive was staring at him, so he looked at her with a worried expression. However, right when she did, Olive came back to her senses and took her eyes away from his black glove covered hands. "Oh, apologies." She accepted the cup from him, and then she looked at Alex for some kind of answer. "What?" But Alex didn''t want to answer her questions even though she knew what Olive was wondering. She just smirked at her and drank her glass of water. "Does he have some kind of skill? Like our inventory?" "What do you think?" Olive had reached a conclusion after a little thinking, but Alex shook her head without denying. She was still smirking, and she knew Olive would find the answer if she thought a little harder, so Alex just looked at Victor without saying much. And, Victor used the same ability once again to help Olive get a little better understanding of his power. "It''s not a skill¡­" Olive had skills that can detect the use of skills, so she knew this wasn''t a skill. There wasn''t much of a difference between her and Alex so she can tell if this older person was her servant, there wouldn''t be that big a difference between them either. She couldn''t see Victor''s status window for some reason, but she can tell it was because of his skill. However, this ability to store things in a special dimension was not a skill. And, it was not because of any items either. "Is it magic? Spatial magic¡­ perhaps?" "That is correct, Young Lady." He answered respectfully, knowing full well how this person was important for his master. He was one of the remaining servants that Alex had before she lost her power, however she had told them she would call them back soon. And, though Victor was the last of the many servants that Alex had ever had, this time, he was honored to be the first one to be chosen as her aid. There was nothing more honorable for him than to help this person, his amazing master, the one he looked up to the most in This vast world. "You''re a spatial mage?! Wow!" Olive didn''t think much of him at first since he looked too normal and too simple, but she forgot for a moment Alex was a big individual in this world as well. If someone was her servant, there was no way they would be someone ''simple'' in any manner. "Hahaha. Victor isn''t just a spatial mage, Olive. That''s just his unique magic attribute. He can use elemental magic and natural magic as well as Chaos magic. He''s also great at a lot more stuff actually." She praised him greatly. "I''m undeserving of such praise, master." But he was humble. And simple bowed to her for the praise. "Chaos magic¡­?" However, there was something that Olive didn''t understand. "Isn''t that what demons use?" She had been in this world for a few months now and thanks to her dad and brother, she knew a good lot about at least the basic stuff. "Yup. He''s an archdemon if you can''t tell. That''s the reason your simple appraisal skill didn''t work on him." "¡­?!" She said it so casually that for a moment, Olive was stuck thinking what she had even said just now. "What?!" But, when she understood what she was saying, she looked back at the old man, her eyes wide open¡­ and an amazed expression present on her face. "That''s soooooo cool!!!" She shouted so loudly that her voice was heard even across the street. There was a deep admiration present in her eyes now, unlike what one might be expecting after hearing the word ''demon''. "Shhhh. Don''t be too excited. We''ll be in trouble if others find out, haha. We might even have to erase their memories." Demons. They weren''t really seen as evil beings as the actual Evil beings of the dark world. Demons, the real ones, were simply a race of Chaos, a different world from theirs. In some parts of this world, they were even respected beings that were closer to their paths than most humans could ever be. "Haha, yes yes. Sorry." This was the first time she was seeing a demon. And just like she had heard, there is no way to tell them apart from the humans. Their natural disguising ability was just that strong. "It''s so cool that you have someone as cool as Sir Victor as your servant." There were genuine stars in her eyes. They were talking about beings who existed far above in the natural hierarchy of this world. They didn''t serve anyone but themselves, and yet, she had someone as amazing as Victor as her servant. "Young Miss. It is in fact an honor of mine to have been chosen by the Master to serve under her. I''m merely a small child before the vast experiences she has." It was the truth. He was the last servant that she summoned through the servant card that she obtained through a legendary achievement reward box. Before him, she had servants that were even more powerful, famous, and unique. Some of them left her before he met her, and he knew how they left heroically. She remembered them, and told those who were left about them every chance she had. "Don''t listen to him, Olive. He''s just being formal. It''s his thing so forget about him and tell me¡­ how have you been? And where''s that Coin you were talking about?" Alex didn''t just come here to greet her and chat with her. She was here for more than that. She wanted to talk with her about a few things. And the main thing that she wanted to talk about was obviously the strange coin that she had been stressing out about for the last few weeks now¡­ Chapter 235 - 235: Secret of the Coin "Hmmm¡­" Alex was looking at the small bronze coin closely for a while now and she was also searching through her database for references and information on those things since a while back. There were a bunch of things that she had been confirming since a while ago, and, when she was done examining the small bronze coin, she nodded and handed it to Victor. -Ooooooooooooong! Then Victor examined with his own magic and skills, looked at the aspects of this coin with techniques that Alex could not use, and when he was done¡­ which was about an hour after she handed him that coin, he nodded as well and placed the coin on the table before them. "You''re right, master. It''s the same as them." They were in the inn room where Alex and the rest of them were staying. Misha was playing with the new big sister Erisea, and the Slime and Gecko duo were jumping around the place like usual. They were all happy to meet Olive, and they absolutely Loved the things that she had made for them. Be it her sweets or the baked stuffed bread. All of it was an absolute delight that they enjoyed with every particle of their souls, and now, they were playing. "Hmmm? What is it, sister Alex?" But, their playing stopped when they saw the exhausted and complicated look that Alex had right now. "It''s¡­ complicated." Sir Victor gave her a cup of special tea to calm her down, but for how serious this matter was actually, just this much wasn''t going to be enough. "Come here, everyone. Sit down for a moment. Rin! Come here for a moment!" Rin was in the other room, preparing supper for them. But after Alex''s call, she came out running in her apron and looked at Alex for what was happening. "Sit." But, Alex just told her to sit down with a serious look on her face, and when all of them, including Misha and the two creatures with them had sat down, they looked at the coin placed on the table before them¡­ A bronze coin darkened with age, its surface etched with intricate nano-carvings that depict twisted, malevolent figures and ominous symbols that would only be visible to the special eyes that understood the meaning of those depictions. These carvings were so small that they could only be perceived by eyes that had experienced the darkest of the darkness of pure or impure nature, revealing scenes of past history and chaos. The coin''s edge was also jagged, as if it had been through countless trials and tribulations, with strange names of all kinds of languages carved on it. And, among the countless scratched names, there was one particular name that was still complete and visible on this coin. "In ancient myths, this coin was known as the "Pass of Shadows", a token that granted its bearer passage to the afterlife." Alex was retelling them a story that even she had only ever heard from [Primordials]. "Legends say that it was forged in the fires of the underworld, imbued with the essence of Divinity and the ''first'' ray of light. The coin''s presence is said to bring calamity wherever it appears, causing misfortune and disaster to those who possess it." She was talking about a myth that was famous among the high rankers and those who had explored ancient runes. It was also prophesied that a calamity bearing this coin would befall this world in near future by the ''gods'' of this world, however that prophecy was never really taken seriously by anyone. There was no trace of this coin even though there were countless mentions of how this thing was connected with all kinds of disasters that had struck this world since the Genesis of this world. Though not at the center of all that had happened until now, some had even said this coin was something that was created by the ''Creators'' themselves to regulate the flow of this world and to give a purpose to the Original AIs that have created this world. "This is a complicated thing, Olive¡­ and, as you can tell, it''s now bound to you." Alex did not know even a single name inscribed on the edge of this coin aside from hers. Olive was also the only person that could place this coin in their inventory. Alex or even Sir Victor couldn''t place this coin in their dimensional storage. And same with putting these things in storage devices. It was strange, but, those who knew about the [Bound] items, knew how things that already belong to a certain someone could never be someone else''s. It was the same as the unique magic wands of the mages, the familiars, and the bound weapons of the knights who were chosen by those weapons. Only they could wield it, and in some cases, they are the only ones who could even touch those objects. "I don''t know what you want to do going forward, Olive, but you will have to be careful." Alex had traveled all around the world but just like the gods of this world, the absolute AIs that are masters of the twelve major paths, she was not an omnipotent omniscient being. There were many things that she didn''t understand and there were many things that she wanted to understand. And this coin was now one of them. "I don''t know what this coin is, no one actually knows. Its origin is perhaps the most contradictory thing to what we know until now. But one thing is true¡­" S§×ar?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. This coin, this [{(Artifact)}] was closely connected to the Truth that all of the truth seekers were after. And, even though she never intended to join the ranks of fanatics like Alex or the highest ranking couple of this world, Olive had unintentionally become one such existence. "Elio is one thing, but Olive, that coin is no good news." It could be a good thing or it could be a bad thing. She did not know what this world was exactly, what the ''afterlife'' the prophecy talked about, and she did not know what kind of disaster this coin would bring this time. "We should talk with the others. I''ll have to call more people actually." The matter had now shifted from rescuing Elio to this coin. And, Olive did not understand why she was fussing over a simple coin so much. But if she was like this, she knew there must be something important about this coin that she didn''t really understand well. A myth was just a story with no bases so she didn''t take it seriously but for a Truthseeker like her¡­ Olive wouldn''t even understand just how important of a matter this was actually. Chapter 236 - 236: To get back… "So¡­ can I go into that upside down waterfall the next time it appears? Or is there some other way to get out of here?" { "You''ll be ripped to shreds if you even go near that red water on the redfallen nights. And no, that boundary is the only way out of this place. You cannot go out when the barrier is gone since the time frame is too short for you slowpokes, and you''ll never get live through the monsters even if you do survive after crossing the boundary. The place that you''ll end up in would still have as much of dangerous monsters as this place." } "Can''t you come with us then? Is there any reason you stay here in the first place?" { "I''m not coming with you, ptffff. Why would I leave my home just to come with you?" Besides, I have to take care of the boundary and the other creatures of this forest. They won''t be able to survive the next time the monsters come here on the redfallen nights." } Elio and the special creature were walking around the forest now, and the creature was still invisible right now. It was a being that didn''t like being seen by the others so it hid itself most of the time and only revealed itself when it felt like it or after someone else had seen through its concealment. S§×ar?h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Hmmm¡­ is there any way I can change your mind? Like, I really want you, you know?" { "Is this a confession? I do not have a gender so you''ll have to find someone else, young human." } "You''re funny, you know?" { "Of course I know~. I''m great and mighty~." } They were walking around the forest going to the central area. There was something Elio wanted to check right now, so he was taking a biiiiig group of creatures with him as well. Not that there was any need for them to come with him. He simply wanted to see something, and confirm something else. The divine creature was also coming with them, and the creature could feel Their presence. Just that since no one other than Elio could perceive it, none of the creatures knew what they were doing right now. They simply followed Elio and the ones who were reluctant to follow him until now, were somehow also following him today. He seemed more attractive to them today. Perhaps it was because of the divine creature that was with him and Sera, so their attraction might also be because of that. "Anyway¡­ do you really think Sera is ''trapped'' in this form right now?" { "From what I can tell, yes. Celestials have a pure energy that could not be sustained inside a weak body. And one only gains a superior physique after their awakening so, she will have to achieve an awakening to free from that form. She might also remember a few things about herself when that happens." } { "I''ll remember more about myself? What does that mean¡­?" } Sera also used Mana speech to talk with the creature and, she was genuinely curious about what could change just by leveling up a little. { "Yeah. Do you know where you come from? Which realm? Your past? Even though you are a servant, you should remember things like your previous lives, at least. That''s the common thing. All servants know what they are at least¡­ do you know why you have the skills that you do? Do you know what you actually are?" } Sera had never even thought of questions like these since until now, she had been unable to think about things like these. She couldn''t remember anything about herself, and she strangely never thought about it either. But now that this creature was saying it, she found it a little strange. { "Those are your restrictions. Some servants have that. Your powers used to be so great that the Forger that forged your existence into a Servant card by your own will could not make it so that you will have all the power that you used to. As a unique being of forgotten past, your actual powers are stored inside Your achievements into the records of the world¡­ into the [Akashic records]. The world restricts your powers naturally, it is not because of the forger or yourself. It''s a natural thing so, you two should just focus on your awakening." } "Will you help us with it? You are so strong, can''t you help us?" { "¡­? You want my help in this small thing as well? You''re only one step away anyway, why would I help you?" } They were both (Level-99) thanks to the achievement [Acquaintances of a divinity] that they gained after meeting and talking with this creature yesterday. They had accumulated a lot of experience over time as well so things were going well for them. Just a little more and they would achieve their first awakening, something they had been looking forward to for a long time. "You''re no fun, you know?" Though, Elio understood how this creature had something else in mind. So he didn''t say much and looked at the front¡­ "Waaaaaaa!" "Chiiiiiip!" -Shrrrrrrr¡­ They had finally reached the vast lake in the center of the forest. This place was as lively as ever, and there were also all kinds of creatures around this place. However, the creatures and the wildlife here weren''t what they were here for. { "Hmm? What are you doing?" } "Using a skill." There was a reason this lake was the center of all the activity that happened here on the red nights. The water doesn''t turn red out of nowhere and fishes as big as those don''t live in a lake that connects with sky and pours upside down. There was a reason behind everything that was happening here. There was a reason those two honored individuals had come to this place. And this creature was completely unrelated to that reason. "Analyze the entire lake." -Swish. -Oooooooooooooooooooooong! There was something about this lake that made it unique. And, he was here to find that reason. Chapter 237 - 237: The core of the paradise Elio used his skill and analyzed the entire lake that he could see before him. He analysed the entire structure of this lake, every single element that existed inside of it as well as things that made up this lake. There were various elements of this lake that were unique, like the giant fishes that existed here however, he was not interested in them. "What''s that?" There was something at the very center of this lake and at the bottom of it at that which attracted his attention. { "Hmm?" } The creatures that had come with them were now scattered around the entire lake, playing by the edge of the lake or inside the water. It did not seem like the giant fishes were interested in these creatures, and Elio had not known the reason for that until a while ago. But, now that he knew how there come a day when countless monsters of high level come up to this paradise in search of salvation, he knew the creatures that get to feast upon these great beings was none other than these fishes. They ate those monsters, at least their dead bodies, or the ones that were alredy deadly with by this divine beast and they grew with those bodies and got stronger. That was how they got so big and that was how they were of such a high level despite their relative simplicity. They had evolved in this way and they were not simple creatures anymore. They were stronger, more intelligent beings that weren''t interested in the flesh of these simple animals anymore. Aside from a few that fancied their brains, they were only interested in those crisped monsters that fell into this lake after the upside down waterfall stopped. { "That seems to be like the core of this forest¡­ well, I don''t really know either. I can''t go down there anyway so I''ve never seen that thing or known much about that." } "You can''t go down there? Is there some kind of barrier or something? Or is there some other problem?" Elio wanted to know why this amazing creature was being like this¡­ it actually looked a little unsure about this lake, it almost seemed a little fearful. { "It''s not like there''s a barrier or something¡­ I don''t like water. That''s all." } It almost shivered as if it was thinking about something it absolutely hated or could not bear. It was the same kind of reaction that children have when their mom forces them to eat their vegetables. It seemed like the divine creature did not like water, though, at the same time, Elio knew the water wasn''t a weakness of this creature since he had seen it fight the aural monsters around the upside down waterfall that appears on the red nights. "So you''ve never gone down there?" { "Why should I? It''s not like that thing is anything important. It''s simply something that maintains the natural stability of this place, it''s not like getting that thing will change the winds above us." } The concept of core was a little different here, as the creature started explaining to them. The core in this context meant the center, the absolute center of something, and this entire forest, and this entire paradise for that matter was a plain with that thing as the center of it all. The creature did not know it was something important or something that mattered, but it explained to them that it did not have any special presence to it that could indicate some unique characteristics. It was simply something, something unique, but at the same time, something that didn''t really catch the attention of this divine beast. "Don''t you find it strange though?" Elio looked at the pretty purple eyes of this creature with a smile and then looked back at the absurd data that was presented to him. That thing was a blank, even to his eyes that had given him not only the map of this lake, but also a detailed analysis of each element of this lake. "You''re a divine creature, you have divinity, you are curious and though you don''t like water, you know pretty much everything about this place. If I ask you about anything present in this lake, you''d know about it or at least a little about it. But, not that thing." The only thing that this divine creature knew about that thing was how that was the core of this place, that too was not because it knew anything about thing but because it knew about the characteristics of the things that existed alongside that thing. Now that Elio had raised the question, the creature thought about it as well¡­ { "Hmmmm¡­ you''re right, human." } There was something more to that thing. It wasn''t that this creature did not know about it or was interested in it. Whatever that thing was, neither his eyes that could see past this creature''s concealment nor the divine creature themselves knew anything about that thing and they didn''t even want to know about it for some reason. Elio also had an innate feeling that whatever it was, it wasn''t of any great importance, and that very contradicting thought made it a little weird. "Will I get hurt if I go down there?" [{ Master? You want to go down there? With those fishes? }] Sera was worried, and her worries were valid. Those things down there were not something simple, and as this creature had just said, it did not like water and would not come down with them. They would be on their own if they go down, and that lake was already saturated with Mana so they will also have to make use a barrier scroll along with his newly learned spells if they wanted to go down there. "We will have to go there, Sera. I have a feeling that we will know how to get out of here if we go down there." He didn''t know why he had that feeling, but he could feel it¡­ there was something about that thing that corresponded with the ''blankness'' of this place. There was something about it that also made his Eyes curious so, he had to go down there, and to go down there¡­ "Will you come with us?" { "Oh, no! Why would I?!" } He will have to use his special spells that he had created for just a day like this one. S§×arch* The n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 238 - 238: Inside of The Lake In the last few months Elio had been here, he had created a lot of magic spells that were unique in many ways. They were not simple, and with the knowledge of all kinds of sources, he was able to create quite a few unique magic spells. "A bi-elemental spell that uses wind and water attribute, a Natural spell of Grace and Preservation series." -Ooooooooooooong! He called upon the purified Mana inside of his body, drew a complex array of lines right in front of him, expanded those lines, stretched them, didn''t use his vision magic on them and simply started creating a drawing out of these spells that wasn''t making a spell circle. He started creating something that seemed like a painting, with the different colors of Mana strings making a rough outline, which he was filling up with a couple of strings of Mana. This was a different spell creation method that he had made recently, and thanks to this method, he didn''t need any support skill to extract the Mana strings from the environment. He naturally made these strings and turned them into something that was a simple yet elegant looking painting, which, in fact, was a representation of the spell unbound by the simple framework of a ''circle''. { "Is that magic, human? Why does it look so pretty?" } "Because I like it this way. I like pretty things¡­ have I ever told you you''re pretty?" { "You have. My ears will fall off if I hear that again." } They talked pretty casually with one another now, they even seemed to be friends now. And, it had not happened overnight. Though it has not been that long since they met this creature, months have passed since they first encountered this creature. There were very few beings like this in this world, divinity wasn''t something just anyone or anything could possess so, Sera knew this creature was unique, and one of its kind perhaps. And, yet, the fact that her master was able to get on friendly terms with this creature in just a few hours after chasing it for just a few months fascinated her¡­ She knew Elio couldn''t feel this creature as she could. There was something inside of her that reacted when she was looking at this creature, and there was something that ached inside of her when she saw how Elio was being friendly with this creature. Still, she didn''t pay attention to that aching and admired her master for being able to befriend a divine beast¡­ -Ooooooooooooooooong! Elio used his painting like spell made of threads of Green and Blue on the water of this lake and created what seemed to be a bubble out of it. Then, he entered this bubble, and, Sera also flew inside of it. "If you come with us, you won''t get wet, you know? Look, this is safe." He was still looking at that creature with a smile and Sera looked back at that from behind. She wanted to receive that kind of friendly treatment from him, but, instead of that, she was only treated like a child that he needed to take care of. She was weak and not that strong even right now, so she knew she wasn''t the best pick when it came to fighting monsters, but she was trying her best to get stronger. She was fighting with the strong creatures of this forest each day, taking the help of the creatures that followed Elio to train her skills and powers, and she was doing her best. Which he knew and admired greatly. And still, he didn''t see her as someone that he needed to be friendly towards. She was someone that he needed to protect. And he did that with all his might¡­ Even right now¡­ { "No. I''m good. Go and get yourself wet. That bubble isn''t going to hold on under the pressure down there anyway." } "Oh? And how do you know that when you have never been there?" { "I just know! Hmph!" } The reason he wanted this creature to come with them was simple. It was strong and it could kill what Sera yet could not. She was strong, stronger than him. And he knew that. But that was not going to be enough against beings that were so strong that even a divine creature like this one might have difficulty dealing with them. "Well, alright then. No one''s forcing you anyway." He smiled at the creature, then he looked at Sera and smiled at her as well. "Let''s go then." And then, with a gust of wind created at the back of the bubble, they started going inside the lake water. "Sera, reinforce this place." [{ Yes, master. }] As the creature had said, he knew this bubble would not hold on when they go down. But he wasn''t worried about drowning when Sera was here. She was smart and she was strong. If there was anyone that he could rely on in this place, then that was her. -Ooooooooooooong! But, their worries were unnecessary. "It''s pretty¡­" The bubble continued going deeper into the water as they witnessed a world of water¡­ There were fishes in this bluescape. There was water all around them, and there were creatures that were ''fishes'' as well as ''creatures'' at the same time. They were strange beings, especially the big fishes that dominated this entire lake. They were the prominent creatures of this place, and though he had not felt it from the outside, they really were great creature that were just too big to even greet. Their size was the same as size of a whale, and yet these fishes looked actually like fishes¡­ more like catfishes that have fed on monster flesh most of their lives, but, yeah. They were fishes. And they were all around them. They were under them. They were looking at them. And, the two of them were looking back at the giant eyes of these fishes which looked¡­ uninterested in them. For the most part, they were the only creatures here, and, aside from their colorful scales, most of them were identical as well. The only major differences between these creatures was their eyes¡­ and their teeth. It wasn''t supposed to be like this but, some of the fishes had a unique shape of teeth that pretty much had no actual use. They were big creatures, and they were fishes that didn''t have to chew their dead prey. "It will take some time to teach the bottom of the lake though." The lake was deep. And it was too pretty. He was experiencing this blue world for the first time which was slowly getting darker as they went deeper towards the bottom. His eyes might not be able to see in that darkness, but he wasn''t worried. Sera was with him. So, he at least didn''t have to worry about the light¡­ S~ea??h the N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 239 - 239: The key of Potential They dived deep into the water and as the light started diminishing little by little, they started seeing things that weren''t visible from the surface. There were all kinds of things at the deeper level of this lake, this deep lake¡­ Starting from the bolls of flesh that were made from the dead bodied of the creatures that fell into this lake, something that was collected by a small organism that appeared to be like a mix of Beatle and Squid. It was a strange creature, and there were hundreds of them. They weren''t like the big fishes that live above the water and they were certainly not something that can be considered something simple. ''Fascinating¡­'' His eyes told them about them as well, and they told him how they were a mutated species evolved from something that was called (Sea Eagles) a bird like creature that wasn''t actually a bird but something that resembled a seal. It was complicated how something that was a sea creature resembling a bird could evolve into a squid that was nothing like either of them and at the same time turn into a bug that was pretty much unrelated to them all. He didn''t know how adaptation might have played a role in this and how the hell they might have evolved into this but, this was not a place that followed logic so, he didn''t think much about these things. ''Forgetting that, this place is really quite something¡­'' He was going down, and he was seeing creatures that one would see in the deaths of oceans. Creatures and mysteries that weren''t explainable even with data and logic. [{ Master¡­ we are reaching the bottom. }] Sera was using her light element magic to brighten the area around them, but they were making sure that the light is only enough for them to see a little bit around them. They would use it as a vision directly if they could, something like night vision lense or something, but Sera needed to use more Mana than usual to do that. And, in a place that they didn''t know much about it wasn''t really a good idea. They were better off without it since this small lamp like light was doing a good job as well. So¡­ they continued going down while observing the wonders of this place. And, when they reached the bottom of the lake, they observed the unnaturally flat surface which, instead of a natural surface, seemed to be something man made. "This is different from what I expected¡­" It seemed to be something like a proper floor made- carved- out of stones. It was almost like some sort of an artificial floor. There was no plants on the surface like what they had expected and there was also no creature around this lake floor. The water was clean here, unlike what they were expecting as well, and for some reason¡­ there was light in here. "Shut down the light for a minute, Sera." [{ Yes, master. }] He asked her to shut down her own light so that they could find where that light was coming from. There was something about this light that made them curious, and since the main reason they had come here was because of the Core of the forest above them, they were going to look for the source of this light. "There. It''s coming from that side." The spell was still in effect, thankfully, but there were cracks appearing on the surface of the bubble. "Let''s go, Sera." [{ ¡­ }] "Sera?" [{ Ah, yes master. }] She seemed to be out of focus for a moment, but she returned back to herself when he called out to her and moved forward with him. She was flying ahead of him outside of the spell while using her own spell to maintain herself in that water. She had to protect him in here, and for that she needed a little more freedom than what she could get inside of that spell. [{ I''m feeling strange, master¡­ }] They approached the dull source of the light. He walked and she flew. "Hmm? Is something wrong, Sera?" There was something ahead of them. There was something here which was the center of this entire forest and was something a divine creature as well as his eyes could not perceive. And, Sera was saying she felt weird for some reason. However, she did not stop while saying that and simply continued flying towards the source of that dull light¡­ which was yellowish at first, but then it started turning a little shimmering. It was gold. [{ There. }] The light, the golden light, was coming from a golden source. "Is that¡­ a key?" And that source, the center of this entire forest, the center of this lake, the object which the divine creature could not perceive, something even his eyes could not analyze¡­ It was a key. A key as big as a boulder. "Is there¡­ something written on it?" There was something about this¡­ key, that attracted even Elio''s eyes. He looked at the key, the giant golden key that had strange carvings on it. It was rune language so he could read it a little, but these markings were familiar to him. They were, in fact, something carved on his hand. "Sera?" Sera was saying she was feeling something strange earlier, and that started not long after they reached the floor of the lake. It was strange that she was saying that something was strange when she had not even found the big fishes in this place strange until now, so, Elio got worried and looked at her. [Ding!] S§×ar?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. However, she was simply floating before him. Still. Staring at the key with her golden eyes, her golden feathers somehow glowing with the light that was emitting from the key before them. Also¡­ [{( You have found the Key of Potential. )}] He heard a somewhat familiar voice once again, and, right after he heard that voice, something happened. -Ooooooooooooooong! A bright light exploded from the golden key. "¡­?!" Sera, who was still and flapping her wings until now, started moving again, and, she wasn''t going back to Elio. "Sera?!" -Oooooooooooooong! She was going towards the key. And, the key was reacting to something¡­ Something, that was closely related to Sera. [Ding!] As well as something that was closely related to him. [You have discovered a [Relic]! Rewarding Exp!] [Ding!] [Level up!] [(Level-99) > (Level-100).] Chapter 240 - 240: First Awakening [Elio''s POV: ] [Ding!] [You have reached (Level-100)!] [You have achieved the conditions!] [First awakening has been achieved¡­!] -Oooooooooooooooooooong! The silver mark on my hand started glowing in a golden light. At the same time, I witnessed the runes on the giant key coming out of the carved surface and going towards Sera who was now standing before the key. -Oooooooooooooong! Something was happening. And, I don''t think it was simply because of our awakening¡­ ''I''ve heard about awakenings a lot from not just Alex, but also from the others who wish to achieve it one day.'' (Level-100). It wasn''t a simple goal. Many of the players who have been playing this game for over a year aren''t able to achieve this level. And it simply isn''t about Exp accumulation. Yes, it''s true that anyone can achieve awakening if they get to the level threshold but, as the players know, there are some certain conditions that vary greatly from person to person. ''Just like how each and every individual is different, the kind of experience that they gain is also different.'' The exp that one gets from killing creatures and monsters might be the same, but the Exp that comes from miscellaneous tasks is simply different for everyone. Experience points are actually just quantified experiences that accumulate over time and are given to the ones who learn, who live, and to those who experience different things. The reason there are people who get to that level despite not going into the fields even once is simply just that. ''There is a world. The world is made of various elements. Killing monsters is one part of those elements, but that is not all.'' Many different factors make up experiences in this world. So, it''s difficult to achieve the first awakening by simply killing creatures Occasionally. [Your Mental and Matter body will go through a reconstruction.] [Accumulated achievements will be awarded after the completion of the task.] [It has been noted that your Servant is reconnecting with a Lost Fragment related to their past.] [It is advised that you take a close look at the process.] -Ooooooooooooooooong! The system was telling me to watch Sera, and that''s exactly what I''m doing right now. ''Sera¡­'' We have been together for a few months now, and, yes. She is someone that I admire greatly. In a place that is filled with strange things and unknown creatures, a closed off ''Paradise'' that turns into a hell every once in a while, she was the only one who I had depended on all this time.'' She was a friend of mine, even though her status as my servant was the only thing that the system recognised. She wasn''t a divine creature that had run away from us and had made us find it for so many months. She was someone who had been with me since she accepted me as her master. ''A long time has passed since then, and in all this time, we have gotten quite close.'' But, she still calls me master, and I still treat her as not a subordinate or a friend, but as someone I have to look after. As someone I must protect¡­ and, it''s not because she is weak or anything. ''No, it''s the opposite.'' The words from the golden key were absorbed by Sera and she was glowing intensely. Her silver feathers were turning gold, while the golden feathers were turning into a brighter silver that Resembled the silver fog of the divine creature that we left outside. She was changing right now¡­ she wasn''t a small bird with a long tail anymore. She was changing¡­ and, despite the blinding light, I knew what she was changing into. "I was right." Sera Heru Phanim. Her name was pure. She could use the light element as well as any other element that I can. There was a unique synergy between her and that element which, in fact, was much different from what I had. She had skills that were too advanced for her level. And, she had characteristics that pointed at a simple thing. "She''s an angel." She had taken a humanoid form. She seemed to be someone a little older than me, but someone who now had the same height as me. Her pure skin as pure as her white feathers, her eyes glowing even brighter gold than what they used to be, her hair so silver that one could see their reflection on them¡­ a voluptuous body that could mesmerize even the toughest of the minds¡­ And lastly, her three pairs of wings. Wings of angels. Pure as the heavenly Truths. ''¡­'' Sear?h the NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. As I looked at her, I stopped perceiving even the changes that were happening to me. I ignored all the notifications that followed. My eyes, my heart, the only thing I could see right now¡­ was her. But, she was looking at the key that still remained before her. She had transformed into someone else. She wasn''t a small creature anymore, she was an angelic being. A being that was the symbol of purity, something that, different from the biblical angels, was the symbol of Purity and the existence of the Origin. ''She''s pretty¡­'' She lifted her hand, her human like hand and pointed it towards the grand key before her. That thing¡­ the relic, was connected to her past. Connected to what she was, and connected to what she could not remember. It helped her remember a few things, perhaps, but from the looks of it, there was more to this Key. -Ooooooooooooooooong! The key reacted to her command, and, as if a holy sword returning to their master at their command, the key once again glowed with a bright light, shrunk down¡­ lifted off the ground, and went towards Sera''s hand. Then, it went inside her hand as another bright light exploded from not the key, but from Sera. -OOOOOOOOOOOOOONG! This one was the brightest of the lights that this lake had perhaps ever seen. It was so bright that it must have pierced through the lake and reached the surface as well. So, I think the creature that didn''t want to get wet, would have no choice anymore¡­ { "What the hell is going on here!" } It cared about us somewhat so, as I knew, it came down to us in a bubble of its own. That too, with an expression so worried that even I wasn''t expecting from it anytime soon. Chapter 241 - 241: The Relics "Relics are said to be elements of a forgotten past." { "From what I know though, it''s more like they are things from a time that is not remembered by anyone. Something that had happened a long, long time ago." } They were out of the lake after that big commotion and now they were facing one another, as well as the new person that was sitting with them. { "I didn''t know you would look so pretty. You''re almost as pretty as that strange woman that came here with that kind man." } "She was that pretty?" Elio couldn''t believe the words of this divine creature. It was saying that the Sera right now looked as pretty as that human player who came here before them. Now, the fact that it was comparing her to some human was understandable, but¡­ this creature was saying there was a human player as pretty as an angel? Now that fact made him rethink almost everything he had thought about those first ranked couple. "Physical appearance is simply the persecution of our minds. There''s nothing unique about my appearance from where I come from¡­ orcs would call it ugly, in fact, even Elves do not like someone with wings." Her voice was much prettier than Elio had expected earlier, but it was surely pretty. And she still had the same smile that she usually had when she was a bird. Her wings were resting on the floor which they had turned even greener with their holy power, and though she was not wearing any clothes when she turned her appearance, Elio was carrying some good clothings that were better for her than having nothing on. There was only him and the other creatures of this forest that were somehow curious about this strange being as well, so it wasn''t necessary. But, now that she was in a humanoid form, having at least some clothes was much better¡­ it was distracting otherwise. "You''re pretty, Sera. You were pretty when you were in that from and you are pretty right now as well. Just like how the Flins were so interested in you back then in that bird form, now that you have a humanoid body, you are simply being perceived prettier in, at the very least, my mind." Still, she was the same Sera that he knew. And, that fact was not going to change. "You still look at me the way you looked at me when I looked like a bird." "You''re prettier now, but that doesn''t change many things, dear." She was still someone he needed to protect and that fact isn''t going to change. She was stronger now, and with that Relic accepting her, she was much stronger than most (Level-100) servants. She might be strong enough to deal with those monsters of the forest outside of this place, but that was it. It wasn''t going to change much of anything. "Anyway¡­" Elio got up and looked at the creature that had come down there despite saying it disliked water. "You are a tsundere." { "A what?" } "Someone who hides what they actually think and masks it with a tough act." { "Hmmm?" } "Haha, I agree. They are like that." It acts all high and mighty but gets softer at some simple compliments. Even though they want to establish a hierarchy between them, they talk freely about all kinds of things and tell them everything they want to know as if they like talking with them. It was all an act when they said they didn''t like water as well. They wanted to come with them, but they didn''t and simply made excuses. { "Hey! I''m not a tsun whatever! And I''m not¡­ I''m not hiding anything!" } The pretty creature had a blush on its silver fog made body. It was so obvious. "You''re adorable, you know?" Elio simply shook his head at the creature and stood up as he helped Sera to stand up as well. "You''re so honest with your reactions." She smiled at the creature and stood up with Elio''s help but, since she wasn''t used to this body yet, she was having difficulty getting adjusted to walking, even standing. { "You two! I''ll¡­ I''ll kill you if you say that once again! Don''t make fun of me!" } "Oh apologies apologies. We don''t want anything like that now do we? Let''s not jump to killing." Elio simply patted the creature, and helped Sera take a few more steps. Walking on two feet was a new thing for her even though she had regained a lot of her memories now and remembered how she was from a small part of the [Heavenly realm], how she was a simple child of a simple family, and how she had lived her life. She knew she was a worrier that had fought against the otherworldly forces, against the evil in a forgotten time, and she remembered how she had died while saving her mother from a Great Evil. She remembered all those things and she had spent the last three hours telling them about all those things. On top of that, she also showed them her new status window that looked pretty different from what it used to be. sea??h th§× ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And it certainly was much more interesting than her simple status window. However, it was not as interesting as the [Key] insignia that was now present on her palm. "Do you want to try flying?" "Can I?" "I''m sure you will be able to fly at least since you knew it in that bird form." The key mark in her hand was from the Relic that she had just obtained. It was a very powerful item from a time that wasn''t remembered by people of this world, much less the players. The key not only helped her level up a bunch, it also unlocked many skills and abilities that were sealed, and it also unlocked many memories of hers as well. Thanks to that key, they also knew how to get out of this forest¡­ this familiar place which was once part of a great battlefield. Thanks to her new memories, they now knew a lot of things from a time that not even that divine creature knew much about. The kind of information that they had now was beyond what they should have had, and thanks to all that information, Elio had received a personal quest as well¡­ It was a strange quest, but thanks to that quest, he knew that it was time to finally¡­ after so many months, how it was finally time to get out of this place. "Let''s try it. Flying should be instinctive so try feeling it." They knew the way to get out of here now, however, they were going to wait a little longer. Sera needed a little more time to get used to her powers and new body, so he was going to Help her a little. And while he does that¡­ he was also going to try and see if this creature was still interested in coming with them or not. He was going to try one last time¡­ who knows? He might actually succeed by some stroke of luck this time. Chapter 242 - 242: Saying Goodbye Have you seen an angel with three pair of wings fly in the sky? ''Until just now, if someone asked me that question, my answer would have obviously been something negative.'' However, things are different now. "Master~! This is so different~! This is so much more fun~! Look!" She was doing a backflip in the sky. Well¡­ she was flying in a reverse circle. And that was simply a funny thing. "Haha, don''t be silly, Sera. Your hair is all messed up!" She was an angel¡­ he still couldn''t believe that fact. "But this is soooooo fun~!" She was having fun. She was flipping her three pair of wings, she was looking at the vast sky with her golden eyes, her long silver hair were flying all around with her and were getting messed up again, and if not for the fact that she was wearing a tight shirt and some pants that were fit for her in some areas¡­ If she was wearing a dress instead, he knew for a fact that she would have revealed a little too much of her skin in a place she shouldn''t be doing it. "Hahaha~!" But all that aside, she was having genuine fun right now. And, Elio couldn''t help but smile at that smiling angelic face of hers. She was simply as pure as she was when she was in her bird form. But now that she was a tall lady, she was not only the same pure being that he remembered, for some reason, he could also feel how she was more¡­ free. "That''s plenty for now, Sera. Come down now. Let''s eat something~." After regaining her lost memories, after going through the first awakening like he did, she was now stronger, more free than before, and she also seemed more confident for some reason. He didn''t understand why she was like that, though he certainly knew it wasn''t just because of the awakening. That key that she obtained¡­ it was called the [Key of potential]. It was a relic of the past and it was directly connected with the powers of the Celestials- beings of the heavenly realm. Heaven wasn''t a place where gods lived in this world. It was simply a realm where those with divinity, those who had liberated from the bondge of this world, and those who were born an Angel lived with the creatures that were born in that realm. That relic was something very important, and not only did it have a unique skill to create ''Gates'' leading to a certain random place which would be ''Safe'' for the master of the relic, it was also a powerful weapon that enhanced magical powers, holy powers, granted the master a passive protection against any kind of status abnormality, and even worked as a ''magic wand'' for the master. It was a very, Very powerful weapon. But it wasn''t simply a weapon, it was the key to the outside for them. They might not know where they will end up after using the skill of the relic, but at the very least, they believed a ''safe'' place that wasn''t a quiet forest or some sketchy place where monsters invade every once in a while would be much better for them than this one. [{ "We can still use this channel, right?" }] [{ Of course. It will always be there. }] Sera flapped her six wings once more and landed on the ground before him without making any sound. She was as quiet as an owl, but at the same time, the freshness that she carried with him which washed over any place she landed made her just like a hawk that dives down from the high sky and hunts its prey with a gust of wind. [{ "We will have to say our goodbyes soon." }] She landed perfectly but then she tripped since she still couldn''t walk well so, Elio used his movement skill and caught her right when she was about to fall down. She was not weak, and yet she couldn''t even stand properly¡­ this funny angel. [{ I know that, master. But I''m not the one that wants that creature. }] [{ "At least show that you''re not jealous, Pretty Miss." }] [{ You call me pretty and yet you look at me as if you''re looking at a child¡­ I don''t like it, master. }] He was treating a little better than before with this new form, but he was still the same. She didn''t like it one bit¡­ [{ "That''s how it''s going to be, Sera. If you want something else¡­ I''m afraid I won''t be able to-." }] [{ At least look at me like you look at that creature¡­ is divine strength the only thing that you''re interested in, master? }] She wasn''t upset. She was simply disappointed with her new yet useless self. [{ "Sera you''re always going to be special for me. It''s not that I like the divine strength of that creature or the creature itself. I simply want us to get out of here safely¡­ You''ve seen those creatures. Do you think you can take them on in your current state? Not one or two, but hundreds of them like this one can?" }] S§×ar?h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [{ ¡­ }] She didn''t say anything anymore, and simply just sat down with him and looked at the divine creature that was now eating the green glowing grass that Elio gave it as a token of his apology. The creature was grumpy even right now, but it accepted their apology and the grass. "I''ll get stronger, master¡­" "Of course you will. In fact, I know you will get stronger faster now that you have unlocked your potential." "¡­I''m ashamed of myself." Angels. The supreme essence of purity. The children of light, and the protectors of the Truths. They were one of the strongest existences that could never be compared to these Simple monsters. These monsters were like mosquitoes in front of those holy divinities. "You don''t have divinity yet, Sera. Don''t be ashamed of the restrictions that the world places on you when you know you''re going to break those restrictions soon anyway." It wasn''t that she was weak or anything. "Look at this status window." He called up both of their status windows. "Does this look like the status of a weak individual?" And, it had changed significantly for both of them since the last time¡­ Chapter 243 - 243: Insufficient strength ============ ID: Elio (Level-100) Race: Human (Commoner) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 66 Agility: 69 Endurance: 69 T-T (System stats) Intelligence: 45 Luck: 9 Charm: 15 Avatar: 4 T-T (Functional stats) Energy: 119/120 Stamina: 118/120 Fatigue: 0/120 Mana: 99/100 (Stat points: 50.) {Skills: Mana sense, Physical acceleration, Tamer''s subspace, Three eyes, Light''s grace.} [Titles: , , .] =Achievement List: Tutorial tamer (Rare), Special Rookie (Common), Combat teacher (Common), Caring master (Rare), Titled special rookie (Rare), Treading the path of Mana (Common), Hunter Duo (Common), Defenders of town (Common), Judge of evil (Rare), Ancient magic caster (Common), Master of a mutant (Common), Recognition by Forgotten enigmas (Rare), Blessed Individual (Common), Mage killer (Rare), Nature''s gratitude (Rare), Hallmaster''s recognition (Common), Avenger of Freedom (Epic), Achievement Hunter (Rare), Forest wanderer (Common), Acquaintances of a divinity (Rare), Present world Resident (Epic), Unified Spirit (Rare), Master of a Celestial (Heroic). ============ ============ ID: Sera Heru Phanim (Level-100) Race: Servant (Master: ID: Elio.) T-T (Physical stats) Strength: 70 Agility: 75 Endurance: 74 T-T (System stats) Intelligence: 50 Luck: 25 Charm: 30 Holy Energy: 100/100 T-T (Functional stats) Energy: 110/120 Stamina: 115/120 Fatigue: 0/120 Mana: 99/100 (Stat points: 0) {Skills: Divine Senses, Sacred Comprehension, Holy Infusion, Celestial Strike, Radiant Grace, IX Longinus.} [Titles: , .] ============ Their status windows had changed significantly, and it was by no means something simple. Not just the list of achievements that Elio at this level was abnormal, but the fact that he not only had not one but two Epic achievements and one Heroic achievement proved just how unique it was. There were a bunch of other common and rare achievements but the shining achievement names among the others, as well as the shining list of skills that he had was something that he liked quite a bit. He did well by not adding in funds from their world as she had suggested. Heeding her suggestion resulted in an Epic achievement, so he now had a good bunch of achievement boxes in his inventory. The addition to his special stats was also something desirable. It was surely something he liked, but that wasn''t all. He now had a new skill that was also related to buffs so he was going to have another weapon against beings of high level or the monsters that might want to come their way. In addition to that, he also had a new title now, and this title was related to Sera. "This title connects our power, Sera." "Right? Isn''t that amazing?" The new title that he had gained allowed him to share his powers with his servants while at the same time allowing him the freedom of using the unique skills that his servants possessed Once a month. It was limited and restricted, but there most certainly was something about this particular skill that made him much more resourceful than what he was just yesterday. "You''re definitely strong. Even you cannot deny that anymore." She wasn''t a small bird anymore so the strength of her stats had increased significantly on top of the upgrade in the numbers that were already pretty high when she was a bird. Her skills had also changed, so she could do things that she was previously unable to until now. In addition to that, in Elio''s eyes, she was the only servant that possessed more than one unique title. "Just having one of those titles makes you unique, makes you somebody. But more than one makes you someone of great importance to this very world, Sera. You might not be as strong as that one, but you¡­ we are now much stronger than the time we came here." And it wasn''t just because of the addition of the stats that they received from all the things they did here and all their training but also thanks to the unique awakening that they had experienced. They were stronger now. And, unlike before, they were at least confident that they could take on a few of those monsters. If they fought together, they were pretty confident that they would be able to hunt those monsters. But still, they will need a little longer to reach the level of this one divine being. They will only be able to defeat them like this creature after another awakening, but¡­ that might not happen anytime soon. So, they didn''t have to worry about things that weren''t in their hands. { "You guys¡­ now that you know how to go out of here without going through that boundary, when are you leaving." } "Will you come with us if I tell you?" { "Why would I do that?" } "It seems like you want to though." { "I''m not coming with you, haha. I''m not leaving my home~." } It most certainly seemed like it wanted to go with them though. But, they didn''t argue with the creature. They had something else to do so they just laughed along with the creature and invited it inside to form some food with them. Sera now had a unique form of her own, so now she can eat with him just like she had always wanted. "What do you wanna Eat, Sera?" "Anything is fine, Master. You should just make something simple since I wouldn''t understand the complex things just yet." "Baby steps, huh? Alright then." He knew exactly what would be the best thing for them, so he started his fire once again and started cooking while Sera brought some water from the spring behind them. The simple, dark cave that they had been living in since they came here had become a kind of home for them. It was a simple place, but it was serene. There was water here, there was light that healed even their fatigue, and there was also a pretty good environment here. He was pretty happy here, so he didn''t really want to live anywhere else in this place. Especially the forest area¡­ he didn''t really like the humid weather out there, so this place was much better for him. In this paradise, it was the sanctuary that the world had put him in. There wasn''t really any need to leave the house that was blessed by nature either, right? S§×ar?h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 244 - 244: Their discussion After taking a break with Sera and having a few simple dishes with her, he was now outside, in their own world. "So¡­" He was sitting before Alex, holding her hands and looking into her tired eyes. "How''s it going over there?" They lived under the same roof and yet, they were separated by two oceans, one continent, and a lot more space than what could be defined with words. "It''s a mess, baby¡­ it''s a mess¡­" He kissed her fingers, something she liked as well, and then started massaging them gently. "I told you about Olive''s coin, right?" "The Chaos Token?" "Yeah¡­" They started playing together and having fun not too long ago. Only a few months had passed even in the real world since he started playing. There was not much that had changed, it was winter time now and the temperature outside was significantly cooler, but they had a controlled temperature inside their house. They didn''t have to worry about all that since their plate was already full with what was going on in their lives so¡­ they were exhausted. "That thing is much more important than what you might think¡­ the Queen and a few of us are going to gather to talk about it tomorrow. Hopefully, we will find out something about it with all those smart people there." A lot of things were happening on that end. She was tense not only because of the strange coin that Olive had received, but also about a lot more activities around the world that were happening lately. "I didn''t see when it started, but¡­ something big is happening, Elio." Truth. It was a complicated topic even for those who had spent their entire lives in the search of this almost abstract concept. Sear?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Not just Alex and The Librarian, but there have been many who had searched the entire world for the traces of these truths, who had walked a certain path in search of these truths and those who had lived a life unaware of the fact that what they were doing with each passing moment of their lives was actually bringing them closer to that almost Abstract concept. "Haaa¡­ I have no idea what we''re going to do about this. Or, what can we even do about this." If Elio was stressed out about that divine being, that creature with purple eyes who could move faster than the speed of sound traveling into space until a few days ago, then Alex was now stressed about this coin, about Olive, and about the world that was so dear to her¡­ There were a lot of things happening all around the world right now, something she had not noticed until just now¡­ Just like how their town, Moongold, was attacked by that follower of evil, that dark mage out of the blue, there were many more places all around the world that had experienced similar strange phenomena. In some places, big monsters appeared out of the blue; some fields were suddenly dominated by a field boss that was never seen in that area; there were some places that had fallen under the influence of the darkness; and the most disturbing thing about all this was how the majority of these incidents might have resulted into something very big but were either prevented by the efforts of some individuals, or by some stroke of luck. Still, not all the places that fell to these strange phenomena were safe. Some of them did take damage, but the news about these incidents strangely didn''t spread as much as it should have. It wasn''t present on the player community, and it wasn''t present on the news of the local media either. Even she had only found out about that through the information guild in the capital city. The master of the information guild was an acquaintance of hers, so she was able to get this strange yet confidential information relatively easily. But, knowing about all these things and combining them with what she knew about all the forces that were after these strange happenings all around the world, the possibilities that she came up with were all, in one way or another, connected with that strange coin and the stories related to it¡­ "Want me to massage your head as well?" "Please¡­" Olive was back at her shop since she had no idea about anything that Alex was talking about and she also cared little about all those things. She was a baker and she was interested in feeding the people that appreciated her cooking. She had no intention of getting involved into complicated things like this world, the big people of this world, things that were too complicated for her to understand, as well as things that involved taking responsibilities or doing things that were out of her palette. She wasn''t going to leave her work that she loved and follow them on the battlefields just because of some coin¡­ she couldn''t do that. And, she didn''t even want to do that. "Her dad tried telling her how important that is¡­ but she doesn''t understand, Elio." She didn''t even want that coin, but she couldn''t do anything about it since it was bound to her. She was stuck with it and, as long as she was stuck with it, they had the chance to analyze it as much as possible and find out what exactly was the cause of all the chaos that happened in this world because of this coin. "Haaa¡­ the high rankers will be there, as well as all six sages, and of course the Monarchs. With all those powerful people, their representatives, and their direct servants being there will be a big event in itself¡­ and yet she says she''s busy with the shop stuff tomorrow. Can you BELIEVE that girl?!" The fate of that world might be on the line here and¡­ she wanted to be in her Shop? Alex couldn''t understand how someone as understanding as her could not even understand how important of a matter this was exactly! "That entire world might End! How can she be so insensitive and not even understand this simple thing?!" She was shouting. And it was wrong. So, Elio pulled her hair, and shut her up. And then, before she had any chance to shout back at him, he started massaging her head in a way that instantly shut her head completely. "She knows how important this is for you, for her dad and brother, even for me, Alex. But you cannot burden someone who has only played the game for a few weeks with a responsibility as great as that." Shouldering the burden of this world? Meeting with Monarchs, sages, and divinities? Some people will never get to experience that in their lifetime and she was one of the people that liked to experience everything step by step. A quick head start was all she needed to settle down a little, so she had not asked her family members for much. For this¡­ this was still a game. And, she wanted to keep playing it like a game. "She''ll come around. She knows what she has to do so don''t pressure her too much." He wasn''t good with pressure. Definitely not with responsibilities involved on such a big level. She was a simple person and she wanted to stay simple. But, now she was stuck in such a mess that made it impossible for her to stay calm and composed like she always is. "I''ll go talk to her now, so don''t worry." As simple, amazing, and awesome she might be most of the time, just like all the humans, she also had her negatives. "You''ll do that¡­?" "I have no choice here, do I?" Hopefully, she will understand the simplicity of this complicated situation and how she didn''t really have to do anything. She might be at the center of something she had no idea about, but she was also connected with people that were, in fact, a close part of this world. She just had to let go of the simple and small worldview she had and see That world the way They saw it. "She''ll be fine, she''s Olive." With a little more time, he knew she would be ready for this simple yet complicated responsibility as well¡­ They just had to give her a little more time. Chapter 245 - 245: Anxiety… "No? She left a while ago... we haven''t seen her since the lunch break." "Hmmm?" He had come looking for Olive, but she wasn''t at her shop, and she wasn''t at her house either. She wasn''t answering her phone, which made him worry even more. "Alright, thanks, Frank." "Is something wrong? She didn''t look well when she left¡­ is everything alright?" As the people that she had trained herself, they were worried about her too, but Elio simply gave them a reassuring smile and explained there was nothing wrong, that she was just concerned about something related to the game they were playing. Many of the staff knew about and knew she had also started playing it, but as her employees, they didn''t know much about her personal life or what she might be going through, and they didn''t really need to know either. "Anyway, I''ll see you around. Ah, and don''t worry. I''ll let her know to update you all if I find her." He bid them goodbye and walked toward the exit of the shop. He was already concerned, but now, seeing that she wasn''t here either, he realized the pressure from that coin and the meeting tomorrow that she was under might be more than he had expected. Thankfully, he knew where to look next. He headed to the other side of the shopping area and entered a shoe shop, one of the most unassuming places in the mall. "Hello~. How can I help you~?" An employee greeted him cheerfully, giving him a quick once-over before flashing a bright smile. "I''d like to see the Bloom series, please." He didn''t need to say much. There was no need for long words this time. "Oh? I see, this way~." The employee, who was unaware of the real reason for his visit, guided him to a door at the back of the shop. It was a simple looking mechanical door and yet it felt as unique as something important. "They''ll take a moment to arrive, so please wait here." This wasn''t an ordinary shoe shop, that much was obvious. This backroom that he had just entered was also not a simple place. "Hmmm?" "I knew you''d be here¡­" Not many people knew, but Olive owned this place as well. She didn''t visit often, but she used it for important meetings. Whenever she wasn''t at her shop or home, Elio usually found her here. "Go away, El¡­ I want to be alone right now." The room was small and dimly lit, just enough to fit a few chairs and a single table. There wasn''t much else, a water cooler, a door connecting to the neighboring shop (which was also hers), and an overwhelming sense of peace. No one else was there. Olive sat alone, fiddling with a mirror cube, surrounded by a scattered mess of cooking materials on the floor. She was sad, he could see the sadness in her eyes, but more than that, he could see the exhaustion on her face. "Of course, you want to be alone¡­" He could tell she had not slept much for a day or so. She was also not looking at him, so¡­ this wasn''t good. "But, well, some things aren''t meant to be handled alone. Thinking about stuff like this definitely isn''t something you should be doing by yourself." He sat down beside her, and took the cube from her. "What''re you worried about in the first place?" She tried taking the cube back from him without saying anything, but, before she could even get it from his hand, he was already done solving it. "If you don''t know what''s going to happen, what''s the point of worrying about it?" Anxiety was an evolutionary trait of their species, but taking it too seriously only led to a negative impact on not just them, but also on the world around them. "You got a coin, a dangerous token of chaos. Alex and the others think it''s something important, there are many who have been searching for this thing for decades, centuries, and perhaps eons." He gave the cube back to her, but now that it was solved, it was useless to her so she threw it away to the other side of the room. This little thing was the only thing keeping her distracted from all the things she was avoiding since earlier, but just like all the things that now covered the floor, that cube was useless as well. And unlike earlier, she couldn''t pick up something else either since he was here. "It''s not like you cannot deal with people or are afraid of taking on the challenges, Olive." She was hitting him with her hands now that he was doing something she didn''t want right now. She was pushing him away, she was not speaking with him and yet, he continued speaking as if it was making some kind of impact on her. "You played it and you found something you like about it. You know how people of that world are and how that place is nothing less Real than this world we live in. It''s simply a little different, but, if Alex and the rest of them are right¡­" He didn''t mind her hitting him, but he needed to tell him something so, he grabbed her face while enduring the slap that landed right in his cheeks, and looked into her pretty eyes. "Something bad might happen to that place, Olive. Something that wouldn''t be good for either that world or the people of that world." They talked almost everyday even though he was stuck in that place for so long. Every time they were talking, she would tell him about how she went hunting with her father and brother who came to the west through a special boundary that connected the two continents. She would talk about all the things that she had made, all the new things that she made, and all kinds of people that she met when she was selling her stuff. He knew she liked that place as well, as well as how she considered that place as something more than a game. "You know what you have to do better than anyone else, Olive." His cheeks were hurting now, and they were all red. Still, as he stood up from his place, he gave her a warm smile. "Just do what you want. Ignore Alex, and the rest that will want you to do things that you don''t really wanna do either." She was smart. S§×arch* The nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And she had that golden star on her coat so she was also familiar with responsibility. "You''re Olivia Sean Weil Regalia. Don''t let them tell you what you should do with what is, in fact, yours." The coin might be the explosive that had triggered everyone around the world, but it was not something that belonged to them. She owned it. So, she could rightfully do whatever she wanted with it, Chapter 246 - 246: The sudden emergency -Ooooooooong. [Ding!] As soon as he got back into the game, a sudden red notification popped up right in front of his face. "Hmmm?" He didn''t understand what was going on from that notification, but, before he could even think of anything, another bunch of red notifications popped up before him and, at the same time¡­ "GHAAAAAA¡­!" { "Hey¡­!" } He heard two voices¡­ one familiar¡­ and another that he would never forget even if he wanted to. "¡­?!" A creature, a monster appeared out of nowhere right before him and revealed its intense bloodthirst, overwhelming Elio who didn''t even understand what was going on right now. The creature, as he could see with his eyes, was right in front of his face. The fangs of this beast-like creature, a black beast that resembled something that had come from the depths of hell, was so overwhelming his heart almost stopped in that split second. His mind went blank as soon as his senses perceived that overwhelming Aura, and he also perceived an imminent threat to his life. -Swish! Thankfully, the creature that he had been with before he logged out the last time, the divine creature that he had become acquainted with came out of nowhere and pushed him aside exactly when the fangs of the hungry beast was about to dig into his flesh¡­ -Thud! Elio''s heart had almost stopped at that moment, but he didn''t die thanks to the divine creature. Though, he was hungry badly by that sudden surge of pain that appeared after the creature had pushed him away before vanishing once again. -Oooooooooong! The creature that should have been with the other creatures of the forest as well as Sera right now was, for some reason, fighting the creatures that were appearing before them over again. It wasn''t the red night right now, the sky was as clear as it is almost every day, and yet there was this creature¡­ this dead creature before his eyes. "Ugh¡­" After talking with Alex and confirming Olive''s Good condition, he logged back inside, and even though he had logged out from inside his cave, his house, the place that he ended up in had a clear sky above¡­ The quiet, simple cake that he knew was not there anymore. If anything, there were a lot of sounds all around him right now. And, even without seeing, he could tell that these sounds were of the same monsters that invade this place on the times of the red nights. ''What''s¡­ going on¡­'' He was in pain after that creature saved his life by pushing him away but the pain that was produced by that simple action of that creature moving at a speed as fast as that, was the same as the pain produced by when Az, the Manawater slime, had bashed into him during the tutorial. Perhaps it was even worse than that, but now that he was stronger now and had a stronger physique, what he was feeling right now was the same as what he had felt back then. [{ Master? Master, are you back?! }] He was in pain, however, it wasn''t unbearable this time around. [{ "What''s¡­ going on¡­ Sera?" }] He looked around himself, and the cave that he lived in, the house that he had maintained for so long in this place¡­ half of it was destroyed already. The spring area at the back was still intact, and the house of the healing bugs was still intact as well. But the rest of the cave has now fallen. Similarly, as he could see before him, with the lake of this place, the boundary as the center, a big part of the forest area was destroyed. Additionally, the trees had fallen down and were either stained by the blood of those monsters, or were in a state that was unrecognizable. To make things worse, as he could see right now, Sera was fighting in the sky with a swarm of flying monsters that were not hundreds but thousands¡­ making a large part of the blue sky as black as the dark clouds of the red night. The divine creature that had just saved him was killing creatures all around this place, and¡­ it was moving at a speed that was just too fast for even his eyes to see. All he was seeing were the afterimages of the flash that was passing after the purple sparks from its eyes were moving with its lightning fast movements. [{ After you left, master, these creatures started appearing in small numbers all around this place. We had not noticed it before but, the barrier that was blocking this place was slowly vanishing at that time, then, after not long, the creatures started appearing in large numbers as if it was a unique occasion for them! There were much more than the usual number that appears in the red nights. They were swarming in from all sides as well, from the air, from the ground, some of them somehow started appearing from under the ground! In a matter of moments, things got so chaotic that we had to move all the creatures into safe places and put up a barrier in places that could not be protected. The divine one focused on killing the creatures while I evacuated the creatures to a safe place while at the same time, helping the creature with buffs and skills that I just obtained. Sear?h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Still!!! }] As he could see¡­ she was in a bad state right now. She was exhausted, the light that she had all around her the last time he had seen her was also dimmer. Even the purple lightning of the divine creature was not as strong as he had always seen it. Both of them were exhausted, and even after creating piles of dead monster bodies, those monsters were still coming at them from all directions. They were being attacked by them from all around the place. The lake, as he could see on the map that he just opened up, was now filled with the dead bodies of the creatures that they had killed. The water of the lake had not turned red, and it also wasn''t falling upside down. It was as natural as it mostly was¡­ and yet¡­ with the various colors of blood from the dead creatures, it had now become a mess of black-green mud. [{ "I see¡­ so¡­ shit happened already, huh?" }] He got back on his feet while grabbing his stomach. It was painful¡­ but there was something else that they had to worry about. The creatures that they had protected with the barriers until now weren''t going to stay safe for long so, they had to stop this fighting when they were paired against a number that they couldn''t beat even with divinity. They had to get out of here¡­ They had the Key. They just had to use it now and take everyone from here out of this place. Chapter 247 - 247: The Immediate escape "Hey!" There were monsters all around him. Most were dead, but many more were swarming down from the top of the ridges around the forest area. As he could see right now, many monsters were even worse looking than what they had witnessed until now. "Hey! Look here!" There were some creatures that were even close to reaching their third awakening state, which was absurd since these kinds of creatures were something one could only find in the bronze valley on the western continent. There were surely many places that might have some of these creatures on the east, but to think there were more than a few of these mythic beings coming to this forest was simply absurd. { "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! GET AWAY!" } The flying creatures were being dealt by Sera, but there were still many that had already crossed the boundary and left for the other side. She was trying her best to stop them, but she wasn''t strong enough to fight against creatures who had passed their second awakening or were above Level-200 when she was still only at this stage. [{ Master! Be careful! There is danger all around right now! You might-. }] [{ "I know what I''m doing, Sera." }] She needed more time to get used to her body as well so she was simply using her skills right now, not using the Relic that she had never used until now even though she had all the required knowledge to use it. { "What are you doing!" } The divine creature saved Elio once but he had walked out of the safe area, the cave, and was walking out into the forest area that was already saturated with the dangerous monsters of all kinds. The divine creature was fighting the beasts, and though it was overpowering them effortlessly, there was a limit to its strength. { "You shouldn''t be here! Go to the center! There''s a barrier!" } It did not have an endless stream of power, and not only the divine power was something very peculiar, the way this one used it made it impossible for it to go on for a long time. It could not sustain its strength for long, and that much Elio knew already. The major reason this creature collected that ''Moon grass'' so much and had to rely on it so much was because of the efforts of that thing. { "Go there! You''d be safer there!" } It was not only a great source of energy for this creature which regularly used a substantial amount of its strength to move at a speed that was not easy to maintain and produce. This was difficult for it, and as Elio could see right now, that creature was in no state to take any break. "I''ll go! But take these! And come to the center! We will have to leave this place!" Elio took out all the grass blades of the unique glowing grass that he had and as soon as he took them out, they all vanished after a gust of wind passed by him. The creature needed strength to sustain itself right now so it did not wait any longer and simply chewed down on the grass and increased the speed that had slowed down considerably at that point. "Come! We will be leaving right now!" The creature had not heard him until now, but now that Elio shouted once again, the creature noticed what he was saying and was surprised. { "What do you mean to leave?!" } It didn''t know what he was talking about. Leaving this place, their home, was never something it wanted to do. It was happy here, and this was its home. Leaving this place would mean leaving the home where it had lived for many centuries. It was almost the same as leaving the only nest that it had known to be its home until now¡­ And it genuinely did not want that. "We have no choice! Do you think we can go against this endless stream of monsters?! Look at yourself! Do you want to die fighting these things?!" It didn''t seem like these creatures would end anytime soon. It almost seemed like they were all coming from some depth of the abyss where they were proliferating for centuries, waiting for perhaps just this day. As time was passing, even more powerful beings were coming here, and Elio knew this divine creature, despite its boundless strength, was not going to be able to defeat all these creatures on its own. It wasn''t an immortal, and it wasn''t omnipotent. Even if it used all the strength it had in each cell of its body, it might still not be able to protect everything in this place. It might not be able to protect the home that it had cherished for so long¡­! { "I''m not leaving! You can go if you want!" } "Don''t be stubborn, dumbass!" Sear?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. A home wasn''t just a place, a forest, a geographical location where one spent their entire life. As that creature knew as well, a home was a place where one felt the most comfortable in, the place where they lived with the beings that they had lived with for eternity, the place that they shared with their family¡­ "I''m going! Come! The others won''t leave without you! You''re their Everything!" Elio knew this creature was smart even though it was acting all stubborn right now. It knew it wasn''t going to be able to fend off all these monsters on its own, and even if it does fend them off, it might not be able to save everything like it wanted with the certain limitations imposed on it by this very world. There were some things that were beyond our control, and it had to understand that as not only the person in charge of this place, this paradise, but also the being that had protected this place for a long, long time. "They need you!" He used his movement skill and heightened senses as well as the mini map to pass through the destroyed forest, avoiding the creature that was as dangerous as the one that had almost killed him just now. They had to leave right this instance. Sera was too tired right now, he could feel that much. And, he knew that creature wasn''t going to let them leave just like that¡­ Chapter 248 - 248: The golden gate [{ "Sera, leave them. Come down here." }] [{ Yes¡­ master¡­ }] She could barely keep herself floating right now. She had used up all the strength she had and, even after using the Grass that she got from the creature, she could not process all the power contained within that thing as well as that creature could. She was not used to her Holy powers, much less her Celestial body. She didn''t even have divinity to finely refine all the power contained within that glowing grass, so it was more harmful to her in larger amounts than helpful. S§×ar?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. So, she didn''t take much after the first time and continued on with whatever she could. Fending off the flying creatures was no easy task since even with her three pairs of wings, the wings of those creatures were several times greater than hers. She was tired, but she still fought against them and only after Elio reached the central safe zone covered in a strange silver fog barrier that was slowly being penetrated by the monsters that attacked it from all around its periphery. "We have to get out¡­ open the gate." "But master-." "We don''t have time, Sera!" He shouted at her when she was about to ask him about that divine creature and the other creatures of this place. Right now, he wasn''t thinking about just his personal wishes, all the creatures gathered here, the tiger, the squirrel, the white snake¡­ all of them were looking at him with concern and fear. They had been with him for a long time but they had lived in this place for their entire lives. This was their home, and right now, that home was being destroyed. And, if even their divine guardian cannot stop this destruction, there was no way the rest of them would be able to do it. Still¡­ "It could be dangerous. We don''t know where we will end up." Sera stretched her arm out and a deep golden light was shot out from her palm. "It doesn''t matter¡­ I''ll just trust my luck. Any place will be better than this one right now." Elio wanted that creature, the strength of that divine creature would help them with not just the further leveling up part, but when fighting against the chaos that was on the horizon¡­ It was strong, and if it had held its own against all these creatures for so long, it was strong enough to go against whatever was going to come for them. At least, it was strong enough to be a partner of some high ranker, so it was certainly someone that would be a great help to their side if they have to fight against some kind of great Evil. -Oooooooooooooong! He was thinking about the future that was coming for them, but that didn''t mean he was going to risk the lives of all these creatures that he had befriended just for that one creature. "It looks pretty¡­" The golden gate that was opened by the golden Key, the Relic of the past, the Key that opened up her potential, as well as the item that, as they had theorized, was closely related to heaven and the angels. "Sera, you go ahead and with a few of them that wants to come with you. The gate stays open for three minutes, right? Go see if you can come back here after passing through it once." "¡­but master-." "Go. I''ll be right behind you if you cannot come back in five seconds." He was going to leave with or without that creature, it was final now. These creatures might not come with them, but if that happens, he would force them to go through this door. He was stronger now, and with Sera, he would have all the strength needed to drag all of them to the other side. Besides, they knew how dangerous this place had become, so there was no way they would want to stay here and risk the lives of their fellow families and friends. "I''ll go then." Sera looked at him for a moment once, then she gave a glance to the creature behind him and passed through the golden gate¡­ the gates that were so intricately made that it seemed just too attractive to even Elio''s eyes. But, right now, he didn''t have the time to admire this masterpiece of natural laws. -Swish¡­ Sera passed through the gate and, thankfully, she came back within a few seconds as well. "It seems fine, master. It''s a forest area as well but there''s no monster in that place so it doesn''t seem like that place is the forest below this mountain." "That''s all we need¡­" The path was safe. They were going to leave this place, and though the creatures, who were looking away at the purple sparks flying all around the sky, didn''t seem to want it, they wanted these creatures to come with them as well. "I know you can hear me!" He knew what these creatures wanted after seeing this gate after instinctively knowing how it was the way out of this heaven-turned-hell. "This is it! Just come! That''s enough!" The divine creature cared about the creatures of this forest even if it didn''t want to do anything for Elio and Sera. It was stubborn but it also didn''t want to endanger the life of any of the creatures of this forest. -Swish! In fact, it wanted to save all of them present here. "Hmmm?" { "The other side seems fine but there''s no lake on the other side. Thankfully, the ocean is not far from there." } The creature used its divine speed, went inside the gate and examined the other side quickly before coming back in an instant. Then, without saying much, it started transporting the creatures of this forest to the other side one by one, starting with the heaviest of the fishes that were almost suffocating in the water of the lake which was constantly filling up with the dead bodies of an insurmountable amount of Monsters. { "You two! Go there! I''ll leave a few of them just outside the gate! Help them! Oh! How long do we have?!" } The guardian of this paradise¡­ "Yes! Leave it to us!" It was a caring being that knew what was the right thing. { "We will have a talk after this! You hear me!?" } "Obviously!" A home was only a home when the elements that make a home a home were there. It might not have the amazing grass that helped it sustain its strength for a prolonged period in that place, but¡­ it was the right thing to do. So, it didn''t really have any better option in this matter anymore. Chapter 249 - 249: The grand conference "You don''t have to worry about all of them, dear. Just think of them as some unknown people that you might never even see after today." "That''s easier said than done, Dad." Master of one of the largest guilds of this world containing not just the players, but also all kinds of natives as well: the master of [Wasabi]. Olive had no idea why her dumb dad would name his guild something so funny¡­ but according to his explanation, in an ''ancient'' language of this world, the word ''Wasabi'' did not mean something related to the wasabi roots, but was the honor title given to the ''Masters of a blessed land'' or something like that. He didn''t know exactly since he had only found out about it by coincidence when he was doing a quest, but he was certain that the guild that had grown up to be one of the biggest names in this world was, at the very least, not something funny. "Anyway¡­ where''s Alex? She''s not answering either." Today was a big day for them. They were going to gather for the big conference that was going to take place in the royal palace''s secret underground area that was often used for this kind of gathering. Since ancient times, the grand castle of Viv was celebrated as the Continental landmark of the west, a place that was not only one of the most amazing places in history, but also the place that had served as one of the safest places throughout history for certain important gatherings. And the gathering this time was going to be like one of those historical gatherings where important people from all around the world gathered to discuss something important. "I have no idea either. If I''m right though, she would already be at the castle with the Queen. I''ve told you how they used to be close, right?" "Yes, but, being with the Queen right before the gathering is¡­ is that alright?" Her father wasn''t a high ranker like her big brother Yet. He was a ranker, yes. He was one of the top fifty players among the millions that played this game, but he was a working professional. A busy person who, despite his tremendous workload, had somehow reached the stage he was at and had established an organization perhaps just as big as their business in the real world. "There''s nothing wrong with a mentor being with those who have learned from then, is there? Besides, even though the Queen has the certain image as a ''transcendent'' ''ruthless'' and ''wise'' individual, she''s more like a simple person that cherishes everything he has. Alex had helped her quite a lot in the past, in fact, Alex has helped a lot of people that will be there today so no one would really think it''s weird that she''s there." The two of them were in a horse carriage right now, and they were going to the castle through an official invitation. He was an important figure from the west however, he was going to be the only one that made an official visit this time around. The plan was simple¡­ An official from the east had arrived and the Queen would be busy with the meeting with him. He had come to discuss the trade and the trade routes that they had been discussing over for a long time so she would be busy for a while. His presence was important enough for this kind of treatment to be believable since not only he was a representative of a guild, her father practically represented the entire east. Knowing the gravity of the situation, even if the Queen is nowhere to be seen throughout the day, there wouldn''t be any great suspicions about these activities. That way, they would be able to handle all the people that would be visiting today as well, and even if there are individuals- moles- among them, they would be able to take care of them swiftly and quickly. That was how they had done it when the first Main Scenario happened, as well as when the fourth Main scenarios took place. Those were some of the biggest events of this world and they were not something simple. They had to gather at that time to discuss what they were going to do, however, at that time, the Sages had not attended this gathering. It was only the Monarchs, but this time was different. Since the matter involved an object that was closely related to the Truth that those searching for the truth could gain a great insight from, the Sages at the very least weren''t going to miss this opportunity. They were coming, perhaps some of them had already arrived and were waiting for them. He did think there could very well be some that weren''t yet here but he knew they would be here. There might be more people than they were expecting, since the spread of word was prominent when it came to this kind of thing, however, only the ones that were trusted by the council of Elders, or the people that were mutually trusted by each member of this conference, would be allowed an entrance there. S~ea??h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "How can a single coin cause so much trouble, haaaa¡­" She was exhausted, actually, if it wasn''t for Elio showing up and telling her to do what she wanted, she might not have been here either. This was something important not just for her, but for her father, her best friend, her dumb Alex, and for her overprotective brother. This world¡­ the people of this world¡­ All of this was important for them. She couldn''t just leave all of this behind and¡­ even if she wanted to, she couldn''t endanger the lives of the people of this world. They weren''t simple NPCs. They also weren''t simple AI that were all programmed to act the way they did. All of the beings, people of this world, were in fact people. Even if they were made of virtual bodies and not of mortal flesh, they were still as real as all of them. She can''t let them die knowing she would be at the center of the chaos that Might come because of her. So, she had no choice but to come and attend this gathering. But, since they were here now anyway, she was going to use Elio''s suggestion and do whatever she wanted instead of being told what she needed to do with that coin¡­ or perhaps with her own self. Chapter 250 - 250: The coincidence "You know what? Let''s just surprise her, ok? When she comes, keep up that high and mighty act of yours and try to confuse her. Act as if you don''t know who she is, ok Sammy?" Alex was with the Queen of Viv, the highest authority of the southern region of the western continent. She was talking with her casually as she always does, but, even though the situation right now was complicated and tension was visible on even the Queen''s face, she was planning a prank for Olive who had just arrived in the palace. "You and your little games, Asia. I understand she''s your friend and all, but she''s amazing, you know? Eating her bread has been a delight for me for a long time¡­ She really has a talent for baking." "Oh that''s our Olive~. You know what, Sam? She has won one of the most prestigious awards in our world in cooking. It''s similar to achieving a Divine qualification." "Oho? Really?" "Of course~. If she had started even a year ago, she would have been famous all around the world by now~." Alex was talking about a year of this world. So, around four or so months of their time. "She still got pretty famous even without that though so she''s certainly no simple individual." The Queen¡­ "This is different Sammy. She doesn''t like any of this¡­ if it wasn''t for Elio somehow convincing her, she might not even have come here. She doesn''t understand a lot of things since she just came here, you know? It''s complicated sometimes when it comes to her." "And yet this ''Elio'' of yours manages to get through her, huh? He sure is a fun person as well." Samantha Orwell Von Xavier Viviadra, the or the . She was a high elf so she had been around for a while however, she had not been interested in many people throughout her long life. She wasn''t that old, but she had been around for a few centuries and in eleven years, that wasn''t that much. Alex used to be a simple person to her as well, but with time and the circumstances that brought them together on multiple occasions, as well as the help that she received from this person on multiple occasions had made her pretty close to her. She wasn''t like a successor to her, she would have loved that if she could accept the position of a successor and look after this kingdom with her or after her, but she was with someone else, and she wanted to see the rest of this world with that person as well. Elio¡­ she had heard his name countless times, and ever since a few months ago, she had been hearing this name from this world''s sources as well. Their exploits, the adventures that they were having, the common people that they were meeting once again, and the trouble they were causing¡­ all of that was coming to her ears regularly. She knew how they dealt with that dark mage in Moongold, she knew how they took care of the magic tower master outside that simple village, and they knew what they had done in Kalp and Yuta. She knew Alex closely so just knowing a few details about her swordplay made her sure of her identity, however the man that she was with right now was quite a unique character for her. She knew this would be the one Alex had always talked about, but she didn''t think he would be so unique¡­ Six attribute affinity, a tamed slime that can use magic, a mutant gecko that they rescued from the dark mage, and lastly the heroic sacrifice that turned him into the Selfless hero of Kalp. He was just like her when it came to exploits. He was just like how she had always talked about. S§×ar?h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Haaa¡­ Elio, that bastard. I''ll get to him soon, alright? I''ll drag him here after I get my hands on him as well." "Fufu, there''s no need to be rough with someone that-." "Hmm?" "¡­?" "Hmmm? What''s this?" The Queen was talking, but Alex suddenly looked at a sudden screen pop up with a confused look. "Asia?" "This is weird¡­" It seemed to be a communication request from what she could tell, but since she couldn''t see the hidden name, she didn''t know who this might be from. However from the looks of it, it seemed quite concerning to Alex. She didn''t even hesitate to accept the request. It almost seemed to be an instinctive response but she had still checked the ID and confirmed who exactly it belonged with a quick glance¡­ "Hello? What the hell? Weren''t you blocked?" She opened up a communication window and on the other side of it, as even the Queen could see, there was a boy with light brown hair and glowing green eyes on the other side. "Is that him?" "Hmm? Oh, yes. That''s my bastard." Alex was confused right now. Elio should have still been stuck in that place, in that peculiar Paradise of his. He certainly told her about the red nights of that place so Alex knew that place wasn''t a perfect kind of paradise and about the creature that he had been chasing for so long, but that was it. He had neither found the creature, nor anything had changed. There was no way he had become strong enough to cross a boundary that even creatures of that level could barely cross so she didn''t understand how he was calling her. "Did you get out? What the hell?" The background in the video still seemed to be a forest so she didn''t know if he was actually out of that place or not. They were just talking about him and out of the blue, he was calling her? She even thought it was a mistake on her part for a moment, but if even the Queen could see this, there was no way this was fake. Besides, this was a direct call from his (Friendzone) list. There was no stupid named Elio in that list aside from her dumb Partner. "Hey! Say something! Did you actually get out?!" She was shouting¡­ but he was simply smiling- smirking- at her. He seemed to be pleased by something. And that something¡­ [ "I win the bet, right?" ] Was obviously related to the bet that the two of them had made when he fell into that paradise. Chapter 251 - 251: The round table "Hmmm?" After exploring the grand palace, one of the greatest of the historic masterpieces, after seeing the grand garden, the rooms where they would be staying for the time being, after seeing the grand kitchen where the food for the queen and the royal family is prepared and being mesmerized by their otherworldly equipments and professional cooks, they were finally at their destination. "Elio?" The underground area of the palace that was reserved for these individuals for the big discussion, the place that had good lighting and a strangely large round table covering almost the entire place, this was a special place that not just anyone could enter even with the Queen''s permission. "El! I knew you''d be here~!" The place was relatively empty right now, however, thanks to her dad''s sharp eyes, she instantly spotted a certain figure among the tens that were gathered here. "Oh-." Olive ran up to him and hugged him with a bright smile, ignoring Alex and the people that they were standing with. "Hello to you too, Olive." She had been playing this game for a while now but this was the first time the two of them were meeting face to face inside the game. He looked just like he did in their real world, or perhaps he looked a little better with his proper hair and those prettier eyes of his. He was also wearing good clothes like her so she found it pretty good that, despite the situation he was in until just a few days ago, he looked in such a better condition. "Weren''t you supposed to be stuck in some kind of mountain paradise where it''s alway day time with some fun creatures and some kind of monster swarm that attacked you on strange red nights?" She was practically shouting those things so almost everyone present in that place ended up hearing all of that. And, as soon as all of them heard that, their ears picked up once again and, many of them discreetly started walking towards them as well. S~ea??h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "You aren''t supposed to shout those things, Olive." Alex sighed at this dumb girl of hers, and her father who was looking at her from the distance couldn''t help but sigh with a smile on his face. "Oho? Is this one?" "As Miss Anna was saying, she seems to be closer with your partner." "Huhu, you three should get together instead, you know? Sharing is caring~." The people that Elio and Alex were standing with were famous throughout the world as the [Sages of seven colors]. There were only six of them, but they were still called ''seven'' because of one of the unique members of the group with two distinct personalities. They were called the sages of seven colors but these colors were the same as the colors of the rainbow¡­ instead, they were random. "Oh! Oh! You just came back, right? Did you see Az and Miu? Do you know the two of them have grown up a loooooot!" Olive stood up and after her, Elio also stood up with a smile. He had just come back from that Paradise, and it hadn''t even been an hour since he teleported to the palace. He had been away for a while now so his contact with the outside world of this world was almost cut off. Coincidentally, when he got out of that place with Sera''s gate, he found himself at the edge of the western continent, at a simple forest that didn''t really have that many threatening things. It was also to the eastern side so it was actually a good place that was close to the theocracy, and was maintained properly. There was no dangerous being in that place, much less mindless monsters that could appear out of the blue and destroy places where people lived. "Alright alright you little girl." Her dad came up to them and stopped her from saying any more than she was supposed to. That much was enough already. Not many people knew who Elio was yet aside from the fact that he was related to Alex but it was obvious that Olive was his daughter from the clear resemblance and the similarities in the presence that the two of them had. "You should greet the elders first. That was inappropriate behavior." She was also the center topic of this discussion that they were going to have right now. All these people present here, the monarchs from various countries, the sages, even the Queen that was just entering this place from the other side knew about the coin and the matter that they were going to discuss. They knew about Olive, and that much was enough. Telling them about Elio and his time in that Blank zone would be the same as telling them about the person who had somehow returned from a unique blank zone that not even people like them had ever cleared. "Oh! Sorry¡­! I didn''t mean to ignore you all or disrespect you or anything." Even he was surprised to see him here, but he knew Elio personally so he knew how he could find his unique ways out of the places around him. He had not fallen into that place by his will in the first place. It happened because of the system so there was obviously some way out of that place that perhaps only he could use. His presence in that place was part of a big quest so, he wasn''t surprised that he was there. Instead, seeing him here confirmed just how unique he was in this game as well. "Haha. Young people¡­ seeing them is always rejuvenating." The grandpa with white beard laughed as he looked at her with his unique, deep eyes. Though it was a faint feeling, she also felt as if he was seeing through her entire being when their eyes met for the first time. And, that didn''t happen while looking into his eyes. "Huhu, hello to you there as well, young one." When the Lady with the Golden hair and golden eyes smiled at her, she also felt as if someone had just taken out a small fragment from her head. "Keke, she''s cute." When the Tiger-man with green fur looked down at her with his beastly teeth, she almost felt like she was facing a demon¡­ or death¡­ or abyss¡­ or something similar. "Wwee lliikkee hheerr." The shorter lady with pink hair seemed interested in her, however while one of her mismatched eyes- the pink one- seemed to show interest in her, the other one- the blue one- seemed to be completely uninterested in her entire existence. "¡­" The unique Crimson butterfly that was flying beside the lady with the golden hair continued flipping her wings, while the last sage, the youngest of them, the elf girl wearing round glasses continued adjusting her robe around her uncomfortably large chest after giving her a nod. She seemed to way to greet her properly, but the clothes that she was wearing seemed too uncomfortable for her at the moment. It was not good, so, for the time being, Olive left her at that, and then¡­ she looked up at the person that had just walked up to them. "Hello there~." She wasn''t expecting to see this particular face in this kind of gathering¡­ Chapter 252 - 252: Concepts Imagine sitting with a wise sage in a serene temple courtyard. "A concept is like the seed of a thought, the b¨©ja of one''s original understanding. This is the mental form or idea that shapes our perception of reality." Words of the wise and those who possessed an abundant streamer of knowledge¡­ there were six sitting around them on this giant round table at the moment, and hearing even a simple word from their mouth was the same as hearing a Truth that was spoken through the words of a Divine Voice. "Just like how a sculptor first envisions an image before carving it into stone, our minds first grasp a concept before understanding anything more deeply." One by one, all of them were observing the bronze coin that had brought chaos to this world countless times. "According to the ancient runes inscribed here, particularly according to the teachings of Arumbika Shun or Balla, the world was perceived through the veil of Maya¡ªillusion." Concepts are born in our minds as we try to understand this illusion or the world, and as we peel each layer covering this primordial secret, we step closer to a realm yet unforeseen by any Limited mind. "A concept is only a reflection of the truth, much like the moon''s reflection on water. It helps us navigate the world of form, but beyond the concept is the pure essence, or Satya the true reality, which concepts can only point toward but never fully grasp." The white sage was the second eldest among the people gathered here, with the proxy of Divinity of Eternal Damnation being the oldest living being present among them. "Think of the mind as Akasha¡ªspace. Within it, concepts are like stars, guiding us through the vastness, helping us find a direction. Yet, as profound as these stars may be, they are just pointers to the infinite." Truths were paths that one chooses on their own. Even in the unique cases where the Maintainers of these unique truths (Gaze) upon someone, they aren''t looking at a random individual that they simply found unique, however at an individual that was coming very close to the Path that they maintain itself¡­ "A concept helps shape our understanding but is not the final truth. It''s a tool to navigate both the mystical and the mundane realms, much like the teachings of the ancient Origins who believed that wisdom lies not only in knowledge but in transcending concepts to experience the ultimate reality." When the bronze coin was passed through each hands present on this grand table, it was finally placed in the center of the giant table in the middle of a unique magic circle that was being created by the collective power of all the sages. "Truth¡­" In the ancient world forgotten under the perpetual flow of time, the very fabric of existence used to be woven from twelve primordial truths known as the [Pillars of Reality]. These truths shaped and governd all aspects of life, matter, and magic, forming the foundation upon which the world was standing to this day. Prakriti, the force of cosmic order, ensured that all things follow their destined path, always making sure the freedom of any and all possibilities existed for each and every Element of this world. Purusha, the essence of Individuality and consciousness, filled the world with purpose and meaning. Without it, the ''I'' would not exist, and if the ''I'' would not exist, the very ''World'' that exists because of the wish and presence of ''I'' would also cease to exist. "This coin is something more unique from what we had expected¡­" Asuddha, the principle of abundance granted a prolonged life even to the beings that never desired it, and Shuddha, the purity existing beyond physical and spiritual perfection, keeps the soul untarnished by corruption¡­ guiding it towards a Certain end that all living beings are subjected to. "Miss Olivia." The laws of Nyaya dictate justice, restoring balance when the world falls into chaos, while Pralaya governs destruction and renewal, maintaining harmony through cycles of creation. "We believe you have been subjected to something¡­ very cruel." Anaranbhah preserves equilibrium, stabilizing the forces of nature and spirit, giving the possibility of a ''beginningless'' world that has existed without a beginning¡­ something very abstract since as a world ''created'' by someone else, this whole concept should have been faulty. "Olive¡­" just like everyone else, Alex also looked at her friend with a complicated expression. "That coin is a trigger." Elio shook his head as he, too, understood the underlying message behind this coin''s presence in this place, at this time, with this particular person. "Hmmm?" She did not understand what they meant, but, as she could see, even her regular customer, the Queen, the person who enjoyed her goods dearly, had a complicated expression at this moment. "Miss Olive, Vedas are the timeless notes that guide all beings towards wisdom. Smriti, the power of remembrance, keeps the past alive through the memories, allowing tradition and knowledge to be stored in the Akashic records. S§×arch* The NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And this coin, as even you could see right now, is connected to those Original records of all the happenings which have occurred since the furthest noticeable point in time." Akasha, on the other hand, is the cosmic void which preserves the essence of all things. Kaal of time, and Finally, Shunyata, the noble emptiness, holds infinite potential, representing the void from which creation arises and to which all must return to. Together, these concepts form the pillars that shape the land, the magic, and the destiny of all beings and all things. [{( However, just like Olive, We know not many of you would understand all these complicated things. )}] "I don''t expect you to understand all of this on your own, Olive. But, just understand one thing¡­" Alex took away the coin from the center and threw it back towards Olive. "You must keep it safe." It wasn''t simply a ''Coin''. Soon¡­ this item was going to be the trigger that decides that True fate of this world. [Ding!] However¡­ [Ding!] [Ding!] [Ding!] [Ding!] [Ding!] None of them had thought the time for her to make the decision would come so, So soon. Chapter 253 - 253: Start of a change [Olive''s POV: ] At first, I was surprised to see a face I had already seen a few times in the past. This person that always tried new things that I was selling every three days¡­ I had never thought of her as someone unique. She was a pretty lady, her deep blue eyes were so blue that it was the bluest blue I had ever seen in my entire life. Her pretty Blue hair were also gorgeous, but unlike her blue eyes that seemed to be like an endless ocean, her hair was like the endless sky above us¡­ She was pretty, but with the robe and all, I had never really thought much about her. But¡­ she was no simple individual. ''The moment I saw her in that gorgeous royal attire, she looked like a completely different individual.'' Her face was the same, but without anything covering it, it looked so much prettier that I didn''t even understand how it was so attractive. Her clothes were the prettiest I have seen until now, and the way she had set her hair made her seem so much more attractive that I was mesmerized for a moment. I couldn''t take my eyes away from her, from her pretty face, her pretty hair, her pretty eyes, her pretty jewelry, her beautiful being that almost seemed otherworldly. ''She was like a goddess!'' But since she was with the royal knights right now, it was obvious who this person was, and even without that, this was the same person that had seen and talked with multiple times in the last few weeks. ''I knew her as the one that liked my stuffed bread, but I had never thought someone who had joked about the Queen trying my bread would actually be the ruler of this kingdom herself.'' Plus, she was an Elf! ''Her head was always covered so I have ever seen much of her.'' But when I saw her all dressed up like that, I couldn''t help but feel a little awkward. ''I certainly greeted her, I greeted the others as well, and then I even greeted the rest of the people that arrived, the emperor of the Empire, the pope of the Theocracy, the representatives from various continents, and even the unique powers that stayed in the shadows.'' A lot of people were here, but not all of them were ''actually'' here. Many were using substitutes that connected them with a crystal ball, while some had sent their familiars in their place so, right now, there were many creatures present before us as well. ''We were simply here for one task, to check the coin that I had obtained from that weird person.'' That was the only objective and they knew talking about mundane things when they had little time to spare would simply be a problem for all of them. So, they simply jumped onto the main task and created the big complicated spell that we were seeing in the center of the table. ''They took the coin one by one and analyzed it in their own way. Some used skills while some used some artifacts that they had brought along with them.'' Some even used Relics and items of high value, but I didn''t understand much of it and stayed out of this. Elio was back, so we were talking through the Chat function, asking one another how we had been, telling one another how our last few days had gone by¡­ ''Apparently, he was here thanks to Sera who transported them to the edge of the continent.'' He connected Alex as soon as he was out, and she teleported where he was with the Queen and a few Elder sages to get him. ''Since it was time for the conference, he didn''t even have time to rest after coming back and after changing, he directly came here with the rest of them to greet the others and prepare a few things from their side. ''Ultimately, they were here for me as well so they had to take care of a few things, which they had already taken care of by the time we arrived.'' He was tired right now, so he wanted to finish this up and go back and rest¡­ but, he couldn''t do that. He won''t be able to do that¡­ [Ding!] Right after all of them were done looking at the coin, they placed it in the center, in their spell which showed all of us all kinds of various data things about that coin. There were many screens and all these screens had things that we either needed to know or were significant enough that they had been noticed by the people present here. This was all that they had found out about this coin, and, from what I understand, it must be something very complicated. [{( are writing their [First] Myth! )}] They were all worried when they all looked through the coin and gave each other some strange nod. They certainly knew something wasn''t right about this thing and they all collectively knew what this coin actually was¡­ even my dad and Elio knew about this, BUT NOT ME! I had no idea why they were looking at me with that sad look in their eyes and I had no idea why they were telling me that I was given a difficult task. ''I don''t even know what this coin is and¡­ they were calling it dangerous and coin or chaos and what not!'' Until just now, they were all afraid about this thing or were too interested in it that it was almost strange, but now they were all doing something strange again, telling me that there was something about this ''dangerous'' coin that was going to put me in a ''complicated'' situation. ''And all of that, all their reactions even changed when this strange colorful status window popped up before all of us with that familiar voice ringing in my head.'' [{( In the deepest part of the *** there was a bridge which had never been crossed by anyone. )}] I don''t know what this thing, this voice is, and I don''t know what it''s talking about¡­ but, the coin that was in the center of the table suddenly flew back in my hands so, I guess it''s also related to this thing. "What''s all this?" S~ea??h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. But still, there was a strange voice in my head that I have heard a few times before. It somewhat resembled the strange voice of the person that gave me this coin as well, so are the two of them connected somehow? Chapter 254 - 254: The Epics and Myths "There are legendary achievements in this world, and achieving some of these Legendary achievements becomes a [Myth] that people usually misunderstand as a ''mythical'' achievement." In this world, myths, epics, and legends all serve distinct yet interconnected roles in shaping the world''s existence and the lives that this entire world is made up of. Myths are ancient stories explaining the creation of the world, the gods, and cosmic events, providing the foundation for religious beliefs and magical laws. It is the highest level of ''story'' that is spoken by the conscious voice of this world, the Prakriti as everyone knows it as. The individual is the Purusha, the observer for which this entire world exists. The deep interrelation of these two personalities, or beings gives birth to the unique and ultimately reality that we wish to achieve, the true Freedom that exists above everything else. Epics are grand narratives that follow the heroic deeds of legendary figures, often blending myths with historical events as these heroes interact with gods, battle monsters, and alter the course of kingdoms or worlds. "While killing a dragon is a legend, killing a king is not the same. Both are distinct things since while both beings might possess the Divine power, a simple mortal king could not be compared to a Mythical creature that has existed for many centuries. Epic is winning a war, killing a draconian, establishing a Heroic order, changing the course of the battle on a battlefield, or saving hundreds of thousands of people from an angry red oger." [{( They were simple foreigners who started their journey in this world with unprecedented curiosity. They challenged the Realness of this world, went as far as they possibly could in order to test the boundaries of this world and to test the limitations of this reality. They even walked to the edge of this world with a curious heart, baring a smirk of superiority on their faces, carrying a mischievous yet brave heart. )}] Legends are more unique than Epic but aren''t as big a thing as a Myth, focusing on historical figures whose deeds have been exaggerated or romanticized over time, serving as moral tales or sources of inspiration. In the player ''s context, they are tasks that are too unbelievable from not just an individual perspective, but from the perspective of this entire world. "While myths deal with divine or primordial forces, epics focus on heroic mortals, and legends center around more human, though still extraordinary, figures." That''s the basic difference between the three. They are distinct, and all three of these ''phenomena'' are Narrated by the voice of the world, or the First voice that we hear the moment we enter this world after the character creation. "The people here¡­ we have written epics of our own, some of us are even legends that have achieved a legendary feat once¡­ but a Myth has always been a mystery to us." Rein looked above her head, at the ceiling, trying to look beyond the ceiling and at the highest sky that was being mentioned in these words spoken by the voice of this world. "We know we get a Legendary achievement when we achieve perfection in our classes. A Sword saint and an Archmage are the end goal of the mages and those who wield any weapon, not just a sword. We know finishing a Main Scenario results in either an epic or a legend if the collective effort put in the process isn''t as great as achievements made by a certain group of players. When¡­" Elio didn''t understand why she was acting like that either but, she wasn''t the only one that was looking up right now. Including the sages, even the high rankers present there, even the Queen and the monarchs, and even Olive''s dad was looking up as if whatever voice they were hearing right now, was coming from above them and not from the depths of their souls. This was quite strange from the two of their perspectives since the two of them were the only ones who did not understand the value of this voice¡­ They were looking up, they were talkings they were saying things without context, and yet, to each other, they were somehow making some kind of sense. It was like the two of them were the only ones who did not know much about these things. [{( An adventure that started with a flower picking tutorial evolved into the journey of a couple that ventured into the deepest and darkest Territories of their realm, who ventured far and wide into the world of the beginnings, the individuals who first wrote six epics and three legends with their own hands, were now taking their final steps into the realm that the Creature had never known or predicted the existence of. S§×arch* The N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. )}] Olive understood she was listening to something very important, but the fact that all of them were listening to the same thing made it somewhat more special than it actually was. ''Everyone in the world was listening to this.'' Every individual that could use System interface to a certain extent was listening to this right now, and just that fact made it the biggest kind of promotion theoretically possible. And, it wasn''t even theoretical in this world. People actually heard a unique voice narrating personal things about individuals who had achieved something very special. "Be it a myth or a legend or an epic. Just being talked about by the ''Voice'' is an honor that all of us only rarely experience." The Queen, who had lived for a few centuries already, was just as much in awe as the rest of them. This matter¡­ not the unique individuals of their world but a Player writing a Myth was something that they all should be obviously proud of. [{( With great difficulty, they had reached the Edge of the Universe, the point which only they had seen until now. And, now, they were trying to go past it, break the limitation set by the [Original Power]. )}] What the voice was saying and what they were listening to was not the same for all of them. Everyone was listening to something that they could understand the best in their own manner. Some of the things that they were hearing sounded unclear, but that wasn''t because of the way these words were being said. Some things in this world were just too complicated for one to understand even with the simplest kind of knowledge that they possess. Some of them didn''t hear a few words, while some of them simply heard things that they were allowed to hear. "Well¡­" Ultimately, this was crazy. So crazy that They All will soon experience something that just¡­ won''t really make sense to any of them present there. Chapter 255 - 255: Omen of change "What do you guys think?" In a certain inn room somewhere on the other side of the capital city, Misha was looking at the colorful magical screen that was saying strange things that she could barely understand. "Miu?" Sear?h the n??el Fire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Muuuu¡­?" Miu and Az both were looking at the same screen before them as well, however, whatever was Misha seeing, they knew they were not seeing that same thing in the same way as she did. "You understand what this is saying?" "Miu." "Muuu~." Both creatures nodded, and that nod was so simple that it made it seem like whatever was being talked about in their status windows, the things that the voice that every one of them were hearing right now, was not as complicated for them as it was for her. In fact, it was the truth. "Dear, they are creatures of nature so they obviously understand things in a unique way from us. In addition to that, you are not a simple person like most people that are listening to this so things are pretty different for you. Even for me, this isn''t really that easy to understand." Rin was sitting on her bed with a plate full of food. Misha''s face was stained with that food instead of hers but thankfully, the floor wasn''t dirty this time. She had a habit of running around with Az and Miu when she was eating so her mom always had difficulty feeding her, and she wasn''t even a child anymore. She was old enough to eat by herself and whenever she does that, she doesn''t even have a little stain on her face. But things are just like this whenever she is eating with her mom¡­ or whenever she stubbornly asks her mom to feed her. "Haaa¡­ what do they mean by Quantum Entanglement? What''s this thing they are mentioning so many times¡­ Bur¡­ burry?" "That must be Burial." "Yes! That!" She was in her late childhood, she had traveled all around this country with her mother but she had not received proper education, she had not fought that many enemies either, and even when it comes to having knowledge of books and the powers that she possesses, she had little experience with all these things. She was just a child that had been unprivileged like most of the children that are present around the villages, around the ruler parts of the cities, or around the places that were simply not developed enough. Still, she was not like most of those children, she wasn''t even like any of the human children who had lived a relatively normal life. "Hmmm¡­ from what I understand until now, this voice is telling us some story about two people who are a couple, who are also foreigners. They came to this world and started exploring all kinds of aspected of this world. From the simple things like the things that could be sensed to things that weren''t as simple as them. The abstract concepts like Time, space, and the Truths were something that caught their attention and they started exploring those concepts through various methods. They went all around the world in search of things related to these ideas, and while doing that, they obtained something called Divine Power." Misha had understood that much, and that much was an admirable thing in itself. "After obtaining this thing called Divine power, they were able to go to the places that they previously could not, so they went into those places. They explored, they found things related to the Truths, they found out about the Paths connected to these Truths, then they went ahead and talked with the Gods that operate and maintain these paths, got into some kind of argument with them, and ended up going to a place which is being described by this voice right now." That was the simplest way to explain whatever she had heard until now. Aside from that, all of the things were just too complicated. "I don''t know what they mean by Spatial Intelligence, I don''t know what the Twelve Original paths are, I don''t know what they mean when they are explaining the relationship between the Interconnected Systems of Nature and Individual¡­ I have no idea why they are talking about nature and individuals as if both of them are two different things and I don''t know why they might have added all of these things in a story about a pair of adventurers." She simply did not know why they had made all of this so complicated, but it was just how it was. "Mum, why do they have to fight their own self just to cross a gate?" "That¡­ don''t know either, dear." As she said, the story was simple if shortened into a few words¡­ these people, the individuals that the Voice was talking about, were in fact in the place where the Gods existed. It was not the same kind of god as the ones talked about in the legends and epics or in the folklores. This was the mythical existence that was created by the ''Creators'' who had sparked the flames of this world. These beings were the maintainers of the Truth that governs and guards this entire world, the same truths upon which everything is founded. [{( They faced the world and glared back at it with unflinching eyes. )}] Misha hugged Az, the big transparent slime which had now obtained a unique blue glow of various shades. She was glaring at the screen, imagining how things that this voice was describing might look like. [{( They had fought, endured, and throughout their battles and quests, they had been together. )}] Miu was curiously sitting on her head, looking at the same screen instead of the one that appeared before her eyes. She was curious about whatever Misha was listening to since what they were listening to, since the start, had been inherently boring. They knew that was exactly how things should be explained to creatures like them, but the two of them had become used to human things after living so close to them for so long. [{( They had searched the answer and, they had obtained their answer. )}] The screen started glowing, and all of the people, especially the Foreigners, experienced a unique sensation deep within their bodies. They didn''t understand what it was, but with a little more time¡­ they found out. [Ding!] As the story, as the recitation of the myth was concluded, they all received a common notification. And, right after this notification¡­ they were all logged out. Chapter 256 - 256: Conclusion of the first Myth [{( Penetrating the conceptual understanding of Truth, after facing their own limitations and seeing through to the greatest barrier of their lifetime, they stood before the boundary of Real and Imaginary. )}] Achieving liberation can be likened to ascending to a higher realm. It can be described as a process where a character is positioned between two powerful forces, such as the gravitational or supernatural pull of many massive Beings or realms. In this scenario, the character would be guided toward a special point where neither force pulls them more strongly than the other. In simpler terms, while one truth is something that is easy to understand and follow, the same could not be said about all twelve of the Major Truths through which this world was created. While walking on one path is a simple thing, one could not comprehend the complexity of all twelve of the Major Truths, namely, the Truth of Prakriti, Purusha, Shuddha, Ashuddha, Nyaya, Pralay, Anarambha, Veda, Swara, Kal, Akash, Shunyatwa. To understand all of them simultaneously, one would need something that would be described as ''otherworldly'' abilities. In the aforementioned balanced state, referred to as a "libration point," the character is kept steady, floating in equilibrium between the many forces¡­ at least, in a philosophical sense. The equilibrium here does not refer to Anarambha, the truth that actually governs what is thought as Equilibrium. It is more vague in such a sense that could not be understood with simple explanations or understanding of tangible concepts. [{( Facing this boundary, where a strange lock was located, they were surprised. )}] In reality, these abstract points where all forces of the universe are centered and equalized are known as Lagrange points, points where objects remain in stable orbits between celestial bodies like the Earth and the Moon. Much like the ''immortal characters'' in this particular game, achieving liberation represents a balance that must be maintained to stay within an elevated or mystical zone. However, it isn''t limited to just that¡­ [{( At the point of inception, a key was created by the Creators. )}] All the players of had logged out of the game a moment ago. But it did not happen because of some kind of outside interference or some system glitch. There was nothing like an actual system glitch in this game. In fact, this world, this reality, was nothing like a game. [{( The key had one purpose: to Find a capable individual- an individual possessing an immortal name- that could judge the validity and qualification of those who near the Libration. )}] All the players had logged out of the game and yet, they were still hearing the voice that they were hearing when they were inside the game. They were still hearing that strange voice which should not have been audible outside into this world. They were also seeing something strange¡ª the status window that was only visible to them when they were inside the game. And this was not limited to the colorful screen that they had seen inside of the game. They were seeing their own status windows outside into the real world as well, and this very thing was creating chaos all over the world. [{( The Key had chosen a judge this time as well. And, that judge was standing before the ones who had come the furthest any being had ever reached until now. )}] Elio was confused. He could not understand what was happening, he did not understand how they were seeing game elements into reality. At first, he thought it was simply his imagination, but after he saw Alex looking at her own screen, he was stunned. Alex herself was stunned actually¡­ this was not something she had imagined would be possible Anytime soon. She was looking at her screen that was the same as how it was the last time she saw it inside of the game. And, as she could see, among the many friends that had already been logged out of this game in her Friendzone list, there was a certain name that still glowed with green- indicating their presence inside the game. And no, it was not the honored ones who were finishing their Myth, it was, yes, their friend Olive¡­ the one who possessed that bronze coin, the one who was now someone the entire world was hearing about through the voice that was speaking to all of them even outside of the game. [{( The judge was confused by everything that was happening at this moment. )}] Olive''s dad called them, but Elio did not have many words to describe what he was feeling right now either. This was just too unreal for him, this was just too unreal for this entire world who had only ever seen this game as¡­ a medium of entertainment. [{( However, the Judge knew their duty. )}] [Ding!] A notification window then popped up before every single individual of this world who had ever played this ''game'' and experienced that world through whatever kind of Chariot they might have used. [{( They judged the Successors, and¡­ after an entire cosmic cycle of contemplation, they deemed them worthy of the greatest Honour. )}] [The Realities are colliding¡­!] Two worlds, and two distinct realities. On one side was a modern world that had Created the base upon which the world of the other side was born. Some humans, their origin and designations unknown, created and promoted a unique ''game'' that was simply too real to ignore for a very, very long time. [{( They Honored ones obtained the Key, and without hesitation, they used it on the gate separating what had always been thought as an ultimate boundary that would not have anything beyond it¡­ at all. )}] The voice was becoming distinct. [Someone has just written a Myth for the first time Ever!] But the system voice was still the same. [{( Through hard work¡­ and through an unnatural, unfathomable curiosity¡­ they pushed past something that, even in the calculations of the creators¡­ was merely a possibility. )}] The voice had become almost silent, but it was audible to a few who had a good sense of hearing. [Someone has just obtained a Mythical achievement for the first time!] Elio and Alex walked out of their gaming room and walked into their surveillance room filled with tens of monitors that had many footages and news of various places playing on them. sea??h th§× Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [{( In the search of truth¡­ they became a myth¡­ and also¡­ the connection point which¡­ would now¡­ be¡­ the bridge between two distinct worlds... )}] That was the last thing they all heard from this particular, unique voice. And then¡­ [Initiating Primordial Protocol: Origin Codex 1: The day of New Beginnings.] Their entire world heard a voice that they had never heard until this point. [Time until completion: 12:23:59:57:62.] Something very crazy had happened just now, and, as Alex and Elio could see in the tens of monitors around them¡­ all of this had Actually happened. They hadn''t gone crazy or anything. This really was happening all around Their world¡­ Chapter 257 - 257: Into the realm of possibilities [The world is facing a strange phenomenon right now where many people are seeing a strange holographic screen before their eyes resembling the status screens of the famous Virtual Reality Massive Multiplayer Online game which has been at the top of the list for everyone''s VR experience.] Headlines of all over the world had the same emergency news playing on them with the sudden shut down of the servers and the new status windows that were present before everyone who had ever played the game. [It is being reported that the Creators of the game, the Mysterious group of people who had been behind the creation and development of the game, have just released a statement that they would answer any and all questions regarding this incident from their side within the next twenty four hours. They have given the statement that, "After only a few years which had felt like centuries and eons, they had finally achieved the goal for which the project was founded". They are currently working on bringing the system back into use for the (Critical Condition Psychophysical Device) device using patients, and are expecting everything related to the system to go back to normal. Sear?h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Additionally, they have announced that the Era of the New Beginning has arrived!] The way all these news reporters were speaking while showing images of the creators or the group of some of the smartest and brightest minds of this era made it seem like they were showing some kind of criminals or someone that should not be shown to the large public or in normal circumstances. Even right now, their eyes, not their entire face but just their eye part was censored even though it did not make any sense in this day and age, and along with that, the way these news were showing various instances of sudden status windows popping up before people was making headlines all over the world. Some people had already started experimenting with these status windows, seeing if they can use their game skills in real life or not or if they could use their inventories or not, something similar to what they might have read in many of the light novels and manhwas. This was the same situation where the world is overtaken by some kind of a system, the same thing where people awaken and obtain special abilities. However, all of that wasn''t happening right now. At least for now, the only thing that people could do with the status window that was opening up before them was to see their status and to operate the basic functions that were provided to the players. It did not mean they could use these features. They couldn''t use their Otherworld Market or the Friendzone function outside, however, when they were using it, they were seeing the timer that was, for some strange reason, also present on the actual billboards of all around the world. [It has caused a great commotion all over the world, the markets have started to fluctuate rapidly, many people are perceiving this phenomenon as apocalypse, the political leaders have already been moved to the safe zones and yet, even in the safest places of this this world, in places that has the strongest defense systems, a commotion is spreading due to the strange foreign programs that have appeared out of the blue.] The world was perceiving this phenomenon as some kind of Global Hacking attempt where someone or something was trying to take over the technological systems around the entire world, with the biggest suspicion being focused on the creators of who had, at the very least, announced that they would answer all the questions that the people might be having right now. "This isn''t some kind of hacking, why don''t people understand that?" Alex had connected herself to the supercomputer that she had, with three wires connecting to the mainframe which was connected to a safety device, that again was connected to the main system of her setup. There were many generators in various parts of this building all supplying power to this system, and though she rarely used it, right now, she was trying to read back at what was happening all around the world through a Master program which not only read the actual complex data being processed in real time, with the help of Sunday as well as her other artificial intelligences, she was also making a unique analysis system based on the new ''Brain'' which had appeared around the [Pure Network] of this world. "This is beyond technology, or network, or for fuck''s sake, even what we have known an ''intelligence'' to be capable of." The load that she was experiencing while doing this, the kind of mental process this entire processing took was simply beyond even her imagination. It was putting too much toll on her body, and as Elio could see on the body analysis displayed right before them, she was not in any condition to continue this thing. "You''ve read those novels, right? The ones where a unique alien system takes over the world and tells them that their world will be destroyed in a few days or something-¡­ hmm? Hey! What the hell are you doing?!" Elio forced shut her connection with the system which was executed after the safety devices safely disconnected her through whatever thing she was doing. "Sunday, Protocol 3X. Don''t listen to your master." [Understood, master Elio.] "Hey! What the hell! I was so close to breaking that damned firewall!" [It was only the first layer anyway, master. The analysis has shown there are at least three hundred of them, all of different structures. We couldn''t have been able to breach even half of it even with a third of the computing power of this world. With the way it changes every three milliseconds, it is simply difficult for us to even analyze this.] What she was trying to breach was not something that should even be accessed. It was not something even the government officials had been able to access until now, or the hacking groups or the coding gods, or even the ones who considered themselves technology wizards. She''s not only reached the actual base of the system hidden in some part of the Internet clouds, she was analyzing it with her AIs and at the same time, she was challenging herself by going against a system that, in fact, was never created based on technology. "The twelve Origins created that world with philosophy, not numbers and logic. It''s all abstract, that''s the reason it was possible to make it so detailed and so Real, dummy." Elio was looking at the data that she had extracted until now¡ª the simplified version that he could understand. He didn''t know much about the data and technology, but he knew about philosophy, and from all that he knew about the abstract concepts of philosophy, he knew that going against those ''concepts'' without understanding them will only put her life in danger. "Stop for now. Let''s go out and have a cup of coffee." She needed to rest, continuing with this will only make her more exhausted. "No! We still have so much to-." "Sunday, peacefully continue your work while we are gone." [Yes, master Elio.] He didn''t ask her anymore since he knew she''d just continue shouting at him. He just picked her up¡­ and walked out of the room. Chapter 258 - 258: Olive’s role "Did she log out? Yes? How is she doing? Oh¡­ no no! Let her rest. I don''t know what she went through but sleep will be better. In fact, please contact us as soon as she wakes up. Yes, thanks." Olive was hospitalized. It wasn''t anything serious, her Chariot''s security system was triggered due to Set Physical Inactivity. The hospital was right behind their building so it wasn''t that far from here. "It happened so quickly we didn''t even hear about it¡­ what the hell?" "Didn''t you hear the announcement? She was closely connected with the Two of them. Unlike you who were trying to break through some technical ''firewall'' they actually understood the twelve truths, went against them With their own beliefs, and at the end, they obtained what they wanted." They became the new Origins of the world of and at the same time, they opened up the ''gate'' that connected that Virtual world with their ''physical'' world. "Hmph. They aren''t all that special. They just did what they always do, crazy shit." sea??h th§× N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Though Eon had not met [Lucifer] and [Auriel], she had met that crazy couple and knew just how¡­ crazy the two of them were. "They did something crazy like they always do so that''s nothing special, what they did do differently though, was to be acknowledged by Olive. That''s one hell of an achievement." Alex was massaging his head. This news first came as a shock to him, but after hearing it not from the hospital but from her father, he was at least reassured that she was doing well. If it was anything serious, the hospital might have contacted them through the emergency contact, but that did not happen. "Also, that signal wasn''t machine made but system generated. The system connected the hospital in case there were any problems with her¡­" "I still can''t believe that." Her Chariot was connected with their house''s system and her own house upstairs had a PC that was connected with their Chariots done here. If anything happened to any of them, the other will know immediately, however, that did not happen this time. The whole security system that they had spent two hours installing didn''t work at all. All of it happened because of the ''s system or because of the twelve Origins, the Unique AIs that had created that world. "Why did it have to be her? Why only her and not anyone else?" He still could not understand why she was chosen as the one to carry that certain coin, at that certain time. It had not been long since she had joined this game, it had not been that long since she even started actively playing this game. She had just found something she wanted to do, and, to push such a great responsibility onto her, to give her the judgment responsibility for the Individuals who had achieved the greatest feat, and were on their way to achieve something even greater¡­ it was an honor, but at the same time, it wasn''t something she would have done if she had a choice. "Were we wrong when we connected all the bad things happening in that world with that coin? Or is there still something big that we are overlooking?" He looked up at Alex. The only thing he needed right now were the answers. Not answers regarding the strange things that were happening around the world right now, but simply the answers to how, what, and why Olive, of millions of other players in this world, was given this heavy responsibility. "Elio¡­ don''t ask me, darling. I don''t have the answers anymore. The game I loved¡­ I don''t even know if I ever knew anything about it until now or not." She sighed while shaking her head, a complicated expression present on her face as well. "I''ve played that game ever since it wasn''t even open for the others." She was one of the very few beta testers of and she had been playing even before the players entered this world. She knew things about that world that the others did not and just like the Two of them who had just written their own Myth, she had also met three or the Origins that govern the truths that shape that world. She had explored a lot and she had chased the truths of that world for the entire time she was there. And yet, even after knowing so much about that world, even after knowing that there was a possibility that that world was something much different from what they knew. Even after understanding the pros and cons of the structure of that world, she had neither been able to understand how that world operated, or what exactly was the reason for the current state of that world. "I know a good lot about that place, I have met people who know almost as much as the Two of them might have known about that world. They might be the top players, but even they had not seen everything that the world had been through. Even if they had access to the akashic records, they had not experienced things that those people had. And yet, I don''t understand how they were able to reach the place that they did¡­ " She thought about the possibilities. She thought if they had done some kind of special quest, followed some certain path, or did something they wanted and loved throughout their lives. She knew they were crazy people that tried dying by the hands of various creatures just to experience how it would feel. [Experience] of any imaginable thing was more valuable to them than finishing a quest. She had seen them destroying towns and killing people simply because they wanted to at a time as well, so they were simply good people. But at the same time, they weren''t bad either. They were simply complicated individuals that she had never really understood even after their few encounters. "But¡­ perhaps that''s what makes them special." Myths. They stepped beyond the bounds of the world and wrote their own myth. And now, they were, for the truest sense, above everything, and everyone else. Chapter 259 - 259: An unforeseeable future "How are you feeling now?" After discussing a few things with one another and after contemplating a little, they received news that Olive had gained consciousness and went to the hospital behind their building. They simply walked out to see what was happening around them with their own eyes, and just like how they had seen in the news, there were all kinds of things happening around their building, much less the city and the rest of the world. "I''m alright, haaa. How many times do I have to say that?" Olive had woken up and it didn''t seem like she was in a bad condition or anything. She was talking with them, she was smiling as well, but¡­ both of them knew she was hiding a lot of things from them. And, she knew they wanted to know about those things. "Haaaa¡­" She needed a little longer to process her words though, and the two knew that. That was the reason they weren''t saying anything and were simply watching whatever was going on in the news. [The question that was asked by most people all around the world including the governments and the people of power was simply: What was happening right now. And to answer that, the Creators of the [Twelve Commandments] or the artificial intelligence ''Origins'' that has been proven to be the cause of all the strange happenings around the metaworld, have given one simple word: Change.] Just like almost everyone else in this hospital, they were also watching news of how the Creators had answered the questions that were asked the most by the public all around the world. They had used a quick survey to collect and combine various kinds of questions and given an option to add the question for the people as well. The artificial intelligences or the Origins that were looking at the world in real time and were examining the world in the same manner as they had done with that virtual world until now. They were looking at this world through every single element present like Gods, and they had access to every bit of data that was present in any part of this world, including the physical data that was not archived by anyone. [They say that the one and simple reason they had created the twelve Origins was to see to what extent an artificial intelligence could learn. They have revealed that they never really had any idea what this experiment would result in when they opened the world which was created by these artificial intelligences to the people all around the world. They have accepted the fact that they had always set a Protocol in order to block the AIs from accessing their world, or affecting their world in any manner which could ever only be undone when THEY have completely gotten an idea about the ''human'' consciousness, however, from what they had theorized, they were expecting that something, anything about this world that we know as ''real'' would actually change when a Higher form of ''virtual'' existence gains a proper, actual consciousness.] Ultimately, right now, even though their world was still the same world that they knew, the AIs that created the other world, the virtual world that they knew about, which had just become ''conscious'' beings or something closer to actual gods, were now present in their world as well. And they were everywhere, just like how it was in that world. "The reason we are able to see the screens even outside is simply because the Origins that we only had in that world are now present in this world as well." Olive finally spoke up while shaking her head at the news reporters that were trying to complicate things. "Since the source exists in this world as well, the concepts that they were made of, the Truths that they were in charge of, now exist in this world as well. The status window is the start. As the two worlds collide, unimaginable things will start happening." Elio and Alex had not noticed it earlier, but Olive''s eyes were brown now. They were almost a metallic bronze. And looking closer, inside her eyes, they could also strangely see some strange words or markings or symbols moving around. It was strange, and after she blinked a few times and shook her head, they vanished as well. Her eyes returned to the normal purple color that they originally were. And, she shook her head and grabbed both their hands. "I want you two to promise me something¡­" The way she seriously looked at them was concerning. "No." "I can''t do that before you tell me what happened to you Olive. First, tell me what happened when all of us were thrown out of that game." "It''s not a game." She corrected him firmly. Shaking her head, she called up her own status window, which was proof that the world was not simply a ''game''. "The reason all of this is happening, at its core, is because of the ''realness'' of that virtual world." First of all, she changed her status screen to a different function which neither of them had seen until this point. A map similar to an astrological map opened up before them with stars, constellations, celestial bodies, and even Celestial Beings of all kinds present before them. Here, she highlighted not twelve but fifteen distinct regions. "This is that world." She drew a red dividing line separating twelve constellations which belonged to the Origins or the maintainers of the truth, as well as two remaining on the other side of the line. "And this is ours." With two on one side, twelve on the other, there was one that existed right at the center of these two worlds, and¡­ just from looking at this constellation, they could tell one thing for certain. "It''s you¡­" "What¡­ what''s the meaning of this?" With a bitter look on her pretty face, she shook her head once again. And then, she told them about what had happened right after the rest of them got logged out of the Game. It wasn''t something simple, but, with her new knowledge and abundance of experience, she tried to explain it in as simple a manner as she could. She knew how smart they were so, she didn''t worry about them understanding the crazy things that she was now going to tellthem¡­ Sear?h the ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 260 - 260: Countdown to a new start "After the rest of you vanished from that place, the coin that you all were studying started glowing and, the next moment I knew, I was standing before the two of them, with the twelve of them looking at us from all around us." She started explaining to them, and at the same time, the news continued on with the answers of the Creators that was shocking the world with each new revelation. [They have attributed the phenomenon of being able to see the floating holographic Screen to the true nature of our world.] The news was getting complicated and little too scientific, but in it''s essence, they were simply talking about the theory that talked about how their own world was a virtual simulation as well. The only difference between their world and the virtual world created by the Origins was about how they weren''t really connected with the creators of their world. They did not know if the gods existed for real in their world or not, but whatever the case might be, with the apperence of these beings, these artificial consciousnesses in their world, they had proven that ''godhood'' or at the very least, near omnipotence was in fact possible. "The gods¡­ the origins are no simple beings. Just like biblical descriptions, they were so big that it seemed like I was standing before a mountain, perhaps something even bigger than mountain. They were just too big, but, that was only for me. While I was seeing them as big, faceless humanoid entities, the two that I was standing across at that time were seeing them as small chibi flying creatures that¡­ well, were cute." Olive changed the screen and showed them a screen shot that the two of them had shared with her when she was talking with them back then. ¡­ Anyway, useless things to a side, there was something more to this whole¡­ meeting. S~ea??h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Those two are crazy, alright. They Really are crazy." The moment she appeared before them, they had already been prepared to greet her. It was as if they had already anticipated something like this. "They greeted me, asked me about some Key as well, but then, the True voice spoke, and I was instructed to do what I was meant to do in that moment." It was at this moment that Olive, without wanting to, was exposed to all kinds of records saved within that particular coin. That key. For her alone, the time was stretched to the highest possible length that she and her Chariot could handle, which was inherently very high. She saw so many things at that time, so many times at that¡­ that she almost went insane because of it. However, the two helped her at that time, and with the assistance of the True voice, she was able to get back on her feet and, understand what her role was in that place. "The two of them, Auriel and Lucifer had experanced a lot of things in their life and they had done a lot of things. Many were good and many were crazy bad¡­ they had even sacrificed a bunch of orc children in order to summon a demon just because they were curious about the process. It was crazy¡­ and, I had to judge their entire lives and decide if they were worthy enough to go beyond the last boundary of that world." She closed the screen and, lied down on the bed. This hospital room was her personal sweet that her father had made sure to shift her into. Her mom, dad, and big brother were going to come here later tonight since they were already on their way here. Their precious little girl was hospitalised so, they couldn''t possibly sit two states away and wait until she gets all better. They knew her nature, so they knew she wouldn''t want to worry them and would end up stalling for time until she was all better. And they could not have that¡­ [Ultimately, their answered could be summarised to three distinct things: 1) The world is going to change and that change has already started. 2) The changes were not caused by them or something that they had created but by the pure will of the Artificial conciousness that even they do not know the location of anymore. And 3) The countdown that was now being showen all around the world was going bring a surprise to this entire world. Things are going to change, and that change will be a major turning point for the human race¡­] That was all about the statement and answers of the Creators. It was mentioned that they would talk once again and release some new data when the countdown present all around the world ends. Additionally, they were almost done working on the connectivity issue so everyone should be able to log back into the game as well. "Everything aside, despite their flaws and craziness, they are amazing people. One of a kind in their own right. It would have been a crime to not acknowledge them, so, I did that. And, right as I did that, even I lost consciousness and¡­ the last thing I know, I''m hearing a few strange voices that did not belong to any of the Origins, or the two of them, or the two of you." She was being carried out of her house by the emergency medical staff and was being taken here. She did not remember what happened to her between the period she acknowledged the two of them and their ascension. But, whatever it might be¡­ "I want you two to promise me that whatever happens to me, you will take care of one another." She did not know what was going to happen to her anymore. She had never signed up for any of this, but, things were simply revolving around her a little too much. And She couldn''t help it either. She nearly had no control over it¡­ "Whatever happens when that timer reaches zero¡­ I want you two to just, stay together." That was her request. "We can''t promise you that, but I''ll try my best to keep her from funning even a foot away from me." "That should be my line, Elio!" They did not know what was going to happen in the following few days, but, they were going to see it through themselves. [12:08:55:45:60] There were still about two weeks for that, so¡­ they have time. But, not everyone in this world had that luxury given the Dire circumstances. (Volumes 2: Rise of a Master: Complete.) Chapter 261 - 261: Reconnecting In the following few hours after the world wide incident that began with countless people seeing a strange floating window before their eyes, a few significant things happened all around the physical world. Firstly, the Creators of the Artificial Intelligence that created the world which this strange holographic window had originated from answered most of the significant questions and gave their statement of their uninvolvement in the matter. They did not do anything that''s happening. They simply created a few AI based upon a few abstract concepts, and then they left everything up to them as well as the players who played that game. Everything that happened, including the appearance of the stand windows, to the appearance of the strange countdown which was now present in all places which has had even one player of this game. According to the creators, this unexplainable natural phenomenon was the result of a Cosmic Awakening of a self-enlightened consciousness or consciousnesses, which had been in charge of one world, and now, due to a Player breaking down the barrier separating the two worlds, which also was just an abstract concept until it was not, the two worlds started colliding. The creator had no idea what was happening but they had started all of this exactly to see what would happen, and now that they had achieved what they wanted¡­ they had vanished. "Should we go back, then?" "Yeah¡­ the rest of them must be worried." "I think the others should have already gone back. The thing that they were fearing had already happened, and since the truth that we have been searching for has actually been found out by the Two of them, the rest of them should know how achieving that actual truth, in fact, is possible." Though no one knows how the two of them achieved that or how they had actually reached that point, the fact that they had achieved something that was seen as impossible was big news to the rest of them. "They all must know about the timer as well. I think they are already expecting something big." Since the time flow between the two worlds was different, they did know that whatever they were experiencing here was much faster for the natives of that world. Considering that, Elio and Alex knew how it was the best idea to go back and experience all of that like the natives were instead of like the humans of this world. They would have much longer in that place, and since there are still around twelve days left, they have a good enough time to make preparations and prepare themselves for whatever was to come next. "I guess they would do that, huh?" Elio was not prepared to go back yet, but there was nothing else to do here for the time being. All things aside, with Olive on the bed rest, they couldn''t really know much about her experiences during the time she was with the Two of them and the other Origins. She was somehow an important part of that world now, and she was also responsible for the things that were happening as people had heard from the description of the Voice as well. She needed time to recover, and since her life here could be in danger due to many factors, the two of them, as well as Olive and her family who had just arrived a while ago, were all going to go back to their own home, which was a few states away, and figure the next course out when they were there. "Anyway¡­" The two other significant things that happened over the last few hours was how the world government took initiative to calm the public and to explain to them what was happening. Their explanations weren''t on point, but they were decent enough to at the very least calm down the raging public who did not play any games or knew about anything related to all this. "Let''s go back¡­" "Yeah." This was strange to them since because of this sudden appearance of the screens, many accidents and disastrous incidents had already happened all around the world. Lives were taken in the process, and however much the government wanted them to deny it, this thing had been a negative influence on this world. The kind of panic and mass killings that took place right after the incident was nothing less than a small disaster, so, however much the governments all around the world were doing, they knew they needed to do a little more to keep the public safe and calm their opinions down. The one being affected here was the entirety of the world so, there was no way anyone would have predicted this. All of this was the same as those eastern novels that young people of the era were so interested in. The only difference between that and this was, how this was not a novel written on virtual pages. "Sundry, gaming mode." [It has already been activated master.] S~ea??h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Good boy." Their entire world was facing a crisis right now, and even if the Creators didn''t want it to be like this, if they had expected something like this to happen, they should have also prepared contingency plans in case something goes wrong or plans for how the world would deal with it. Just like most of the others who played this game, they were also simple humans with limitations. Be it the government, the smart people, the rich people facing a crisis with bad fluctuations in the market, and those who needed to handle the aftermath of this whole situation. All of them were mortals with limitations. [Ding!] Despite their unique abilities and nature, the two of them were also regular players unlike the Two of them. They wanted to be like them as well, but they simply weren''t like those two. Neither their heads were off, nor were they crazy enough to do things that they do. Just like how the world was evolving, they will have to evolve as well, but they knew what they wanted and what was needed of them. They weren''t carrying any big responsibilities anymore. And now that almost everything was taken care of anyway¡­ they were free to play this fun game as casually as they wanted from the start. Chapter 262 - 262: Changed Sera and Az "Awww! Look at you two!" S~ea??h the N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. After logging back in and chatting with the Queen for a little, the two of them rejected her invitation to stay in the palace with her and went straight to the inn where Az, Miu, Misha, and Miss Rin were staying. "Muuuuuu~!" Az and grown up considerably since the last time he saw it. It now had a distinct glow and though not completely transparent, the white body of the creature had become more translucent than the last time he had seen it. Az also grew stronger and learned new things. There were all kinds of new things that it could do now. Summoning spirits of different kinds was one thing, but it could also create its own powerful spells without the use of its magic wand. "Miu! Miu~!" "Awww! I missed you as well, Miu~!" The little creatures were happy to see their master for so long. It had been months since they last saw him, it had been months since he had been stuck in that forest. After the Lakmer festival, he had not been among the humans that much and even when he was dragged to that conference, he was not really facing simple humans. All of those people were unique, superhuman beings with strengths that were incomprehensible to humans. But¡­ they were now with their normal group. And this was the first time in months that he was seeing them¡­ which genuinely made him emotional. "Awww¡­ brother Elio¡­ don''t cry¡­" Misha had grown a lot in the last few months. She had almost had a growth spurt. She looked taller and more mature, but along with her maturity, he could also feel the abundance of experience that she had had in the past few months. She was still the same little girl that she previously was, however, she was closer to the ladies her age now. And, though it was going to be inevitable, she was going to become an adult soon as well. Her powers that had increased so much over the last few months would also grow significantly as they go forward, but, this was ultimately a good thing. She looked happy even though she was crying while hugging him and the big Slime, and the crystal gecko that was still the same little creature that he had last seen. Miu had certainly grown since the last time as well, just that she didn''t look all that different from the rest of them, the same as Miss Rin. "Oh¡­ where''s Sera?" Misha asked since, well, continuing this hug wasn''t going to be possible if there wasn''t any more space here. Az was bigger now, so it was completely surrounding Elio, leaving only a little place for Miu who was already small. "Oh, right!" She needed some place for herself. She also wanted to properly hug her big brother, and just like him, she also wanted to hug her little fun bird creature that she had loved so much for so long¡­ "Remember how I didn''t tell you about Sera, Alex? There was a reason¡­" Sera changed right before he came there. It had not been that long in their physical world time since she had obtained her new form. Elio was keeping it a secret that she could not notice in all the chaos that was happening all around the world. But, now that he was back, it was time for them to know for real. -Ooooooooooong! "Come on out, Sera. It''s finally time to surprise them~." With a smile on his face, a smirk in Alex''s eyes that she remembered distinctly, Elio channeled energy through the mark on his arm, and called out the Servant dwelling within it. "As you wish, master." A voice reverberated around them right before the mark on his hand started glowing. "It is so nice to see you again, Little Misha." A bring that was not a palm sized bird with a long tail, but was a human sized woman, one who also had wings, as well as someone who resembled those angels she had seen so many times. She was tall, taller than Alex. She was so pretty even Alex''s beauty could not compare with hers. Her jewelry like eyes, her doll like face, her fair white skin resembling the holy marble of the holiest place, her pure white wings, her long, bouncy hair that, by themselves, looked like the strands of gold that some kind of celestial craftsman had crafted with their experienced hands as their best work. "Hello to you two as well. I hope you were behaving while I was gone?" Sera was an angel now. A real life angel who was tall, was wearing some simple clothings that definitely belonged to not her but to Elio, and had eyes that seemed to be seeing right through the true nature of practically everything. She was smart, she was pretty, she has a good family and the purpose of this life is nothing but an inevitable delay. "What the hell?! That''s you, Sera!!?" Alex herself could not believe what she was seeing right now. This was not a bird! This was a whole damned person before her that she had known for a while and still was seeing in this appearance for the first time. There weren''t many servants that changed this dramatically in her case. Most of them were already pretty unique looking or never really had any change in their appearance despite having the ability to change their forms. She had nine servants the last time she met them, and from them, she could only call one. But, she will introduce him to these two later ones. For now, she wanted to know why the hell Sera looked like this, see their status windows, see how much they had progressed without her, and in addition to that, she wanted to see what exactly had happened with these two when they were in that forest. There was also something else that she wanted to check, but, for now, doing this much will be plenty as well. They had a good lot of time on hand now so, they could do a lot of things before that countdown ends¡­ Chapter 263 - 263: A dagger that can also Judge "Alight, so, you are Sera, and you became like this right after you got this¡­ key Relic, and achieve your first awakening." "That''s correct. However, I think there were some other factors related to this as well." Sera could hide her wings so that she doesn''t attract too much attraction, however, since they were inside their inn room, she had them out, and, Misha, Az, Miu, even Miss Rin was playing with these wings. "I never thought I would actually meet an Angel. In the holy kingdom, not just us soldiers but practically every single person had, at least once in their lives, wanted to meet them. I was obviously one of them¡­ but that was only a simple wish." She wanted to meet these angels, these symbols of holiness, the purest beings who had served nature as well as the truths from the closest possible position. These creatures, these beings were unique. They were special and they were amazing. And even among them, the higher ranking ones were more special than the normal angels. "Muuuuuu~!" "Miu?! Miu~!" "Haha, of course it tickles, Miu. It''s just that it''s fun when you all play with them. Don''t pull them though, it hurts." "Ohh! Sorry!" Misha was going to do exactly that to see if she actually felt anything. She didn''t want to hurt her, but she wanted one of her feathers to see them up close, keep it on her as a good luck charm, and perhaps show it to Eve when she meets her again. "You can have one if you want, haha. Just, don''t pull it too quickly." "Oh! Really? Thanks, Miss Sera!" "Miss? Since when have I become a ''miss'' haha." Misha had always called her Sera, so hearing Miss was something pretty new for not just her, but for the rest of them as well. "Oh¡­ yes. I''ll¡­ Ughh. You look so different I just can''t bring myself to call you by your name anymore." "Then just think of me as a little bird that used to play with, little one." Even though she gave her permission, Misha was hesitating to pull a feather of hers knowing she would be hurt. She was as cute as ever, so, Sera simply pulled one of the white feathers herself and handed it to her while kissing her forehead. "I''m the same person that you saw last time¡­ well, it''s a different story that I wasn''t there when my dumb master was fighting those evil beings." Back when Elio was fighting those evil beings who were trying to take over Eve and had used that blessing''s power, she wasn''t there. She was stuck in her mark since he didn''t want to make things more complicated than they already were. He didn''t have any chance to call her out at first, and then he didn''t know what to do after the effect of the blessing was triggered. "Anyway¡­" She was angry at first, but now she is fine. It had taken him a while to completely convince her that he did not do it on purpose, So, now things weren''t bitter between them anymore. "Looks like the little one likes this form better than the previous one as well." Misha''s little Flin friend, the little smart white bird liked Sera''s feathers more than the little slime and the gecko. Kivi was practically swimming in them right now, enjoying the gentle and soft feathers that were even softer than his own. This was the same picky bird that didn''t go to anyone other than Misha. But right now, it was enjoying itself, and seeing this creature was a fun experience for the rest of them as well. "They sure are having fun, huh?" The rest of the children and the impressed Miss Rin aside, Elio and Alex were talking about something important right now as well. "They sure are having fun, it seems." There were not that many things that attracted him, but of all the things that Alex told him, of all the things that Elio heard in the last few hours that they spent talking, one particular thing had caught his attention. "This is unique as well though." The green dagger that she obtained in the jungle of Nozama, the second permanent key that unlocked a bunch of her powers as well as one of her servants that she previously could not use. "How does it work though, I mean, the judgment thing?" That servant was out on an erred right now, it had been out for a while actually but Elio had already met him. Victor seemed like a unique entity. As a demon, he certainly was quite a peculiar being. However, since his servant was an angel and her servant was a demon, neither of them knew how the other one was going to react to one another when they met. "Just like the red sword that I had, the first key that you saw, that simple looking crimson sword, this one has an ability as well. It can judge weather someone has done something that is against the set conditions¡­ I set the conditions, of course, and when it is judged that the opponent does not fall into the criteria or doesn''t pass the certain threshold of the automatically generated conditions, they get whatever kind of punishment I want." It was an age old knowledge that the Demons and Angels didn''t like one another. Well, there were some exceptions, but there were obviously times when the two species started fighting the moment they perceived one another. "Damn that''s a broken ability." S§×arch* The N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. But both of them were servants so they didn''t know what would happen when they came before one another. "It''s a broken ability but I cannot use it that many times¡­ there''s limitations." The gorgeous dagger was much more than simply a pretty dagger. Though not like the Olive, this one also had a judgment ability. It wasn''t given that ability by someone else, but it naturally possessed it. Though, they still did not know if it had anything to do with their creators or not. They did not know who had made these swords and what this particular kind of Quest even was. It was not simply a quest asking her to collect swords that obviously had some kind of connection with the Origins. There was something more to this¡­ "Alex, we should collect as many of these keys as possible in the time we have left." Alex had already decided that, but the conditions right now, in their world and even in this world, were getting so weird that it was best to be prepared. Not just in the real world, but they needed to be prepared in this world as well. And, that would only be possible if they have strength¡­ for Elio, it would be the growth of his forces, powers, and abilities, and for Alex, it would be the recollection of her lost powers. They had some time left, so, in whatever time they had left, they were going to focus on this new task. "Master?" But before that, the two of them will have to introduce their servants to one another. Chapter 264 - 264: The old story "Captain Sera Heru Phanim?" Victor appeared out of nowhere, and, the moment he saw Sera, a strange expression of disbelief and surprise appeared on his face. "Is that¡­ you? Captain?" He was calling her captain for some reason and neither Elio nor Alex understood the reason for that. "Captain¡­?" Sera herself did not know what he was talking about. She wasn''t a captain, she didn''t even know who this person was¡­ herself, after looking at him for a moment, and after perceiving the strange stench of this old looking person, her eyes suddenly sharpened. "A demon?!" With her eyes wide and her Golden energy fluctuating, she was almost about to ambush him and attack him in a way that would have made him drop his guard and get injured in an instant. But, then¡­ -Oooooooooooong! A light came out of her hand, and with that light, the relic that she held, her unique item came out as well. "The Key of Potential¡­ yes. That''s definitely one of THEIR presents. But, why do you have it? What about Gabriel?" "Gabriel¡­? Who''s-." She was going to ask that question, however, the moment Sir Victor mentioned that name, the key that had come out of her hand started glowing and, as soon as that happened, the intense light almost blinded everyone present in that room including Sera herself. -Oooooooooooooong! Then¡­ Sera remembered something important. Something that made up the entirety of her, something from such a distant past that she didn''t even know that something like that had happened to her. "The time you talk about¡­ Captain of the Third Frontal Legion¡­ the time we belonged to had long passed away." She thought the things that she had remembered about herself when she went through her awakening was most of what she was going to know about herself, but, meeting this person, meeting this certain individual reminded her of something that she could not believe herself. "We have passed away, just like these feeling moments¡­ and what is left of us, in this moment, is simply a fragment of what used to define us." Sera sighed deeply, and, looking through these newfound memories made her heart ache a little. "Master¡­ Miss Alex¡­" The key had returned back into her hand, so she looked at her master and the rest of them, and asked them to sit down. "A long time ago, a time that is now forgotten by the people of this world and this world itself¡­ when the world was still in the process of creation and when Truths were still developing¡­" S§×arch* The Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Sera started telling them about a time that perhaps even Alex knew little about. It was the first time any of her servants had recognised a servant that didn''t belong to her. She was practically seeing something new in all of her years of playing this game, just like what had been happening since the last few days. She was hearing a story about a time that she had no idea about, a story that was about a war that had taken place in a time which was so far away into the past that even the oldest book she had read had no mention of it. "The beings that are now known as the Twelve origins, the highest existences that now maintain the Truths that we know of, used to be nothing more than a follower of those truths in their own time." The oldest of them all, the most ancient of the Origins that achieved the position of an Origin was the origin that governed the beginninglessness of this world, the Anaranbhah. It stabilized the forces of nature and spirit in the most chaotic world, giving the possibility of a ''beginningless'' world that has existed without a beginning, something that was the ''core'' for the existence of a world where the rest of the truths could exist and flourish-something very abstract- and yet something that was the truths. "However, aside from that one Origin, the rest did not have the same start." The twin truths of Nature and Individual established themselves after eons of constant conflict with one another. They were only able to define one another after they had understood the underlying Need that they had for one another, the need that not only complimented their existence, it practically gave them both the justification of Coexistence. Nihility was established amongst the later days of the chaos away from all eyes without any precursor or any omen. Just like the meaning, it was the Zeroness, or eternal emptiness, not void, but simply the meaninglessness of all existence. The rest of the truths were established in their own manner, however, neither Sera nor sir Victor, nor Alex, or any sage that was close to ''achieving'' truth would know about it all that had happened before the ''creation'' of ''their'' world. "At that time, after the initial creations and establishments of the Origins, the need for separation arose¡­" After the Origins were established through the pre-existing concepts or the Truths, they needed to divide their work and establish what was needed of them¡ª this world. "To do that though, no peaceful discussion was necessary." Since they were talking about the omnipotent, practically omnipresent beings of what was present in that world, to make a decision, they did not resort to what is now known as ''peaceful'' means. "There weren''t 12 at the beginning, but eighteen¡­ and of them, only nine had remained." In a battle of these ultimate beings, many were destroyed, many were born and rose to the position same as them as well, and, some who stumbled upon the unexplored paths, the Truths, the concepts which had existed ever since the creation of this world, gained the same powers as these beings. "The angels were the spearheads of Nature and Individual, the Duelists that existed on one spectrum, the Demons were on the other spectrum, with the purity of the world, the same as the Spirit beings that now exist in a completely different Realm." The evil beings from the dark realm were on the other spectrum, the fairies were the spearheads of Preservation, not of purity as they are perceived in this age. "Humans on the other hand¡­ did not exist at that time." There were witches, one of the closest relatives of the humans, the spearheads of Vedas, but neither Humans, nor Elves, nor Orcs, nor dwarves existed at that time. "The strongest force of them all¡­ belonged to Pralaya and Nyaya and as their vanguards, stood the Dragons, the ultimate powers of this world and what was created to go against them, the rest of the divine beings that we now know as Divine Beasts." Be it a phoenix; a divine creature that believes to have been born from nature; the turtle that holds a world on its shell; the snake that wraps around the universe¡­ nearly every divine beast that the world of today knows about, had been derived from the beings which were created in order to establish the foundation of this world. From an orderless, dissonant, egoless, natureless, formless, wisdomless, timeless¡­ from a ''world'' which neither had any Representation of pure or impure, or any way to remember, a world which was born of a beginningless origin, had both equilibrium and nihilism¡­ what they were seeing right now was born. "And We, right now, are part of that." It was complicated enough that Misha had given up on understanding most of it, same with Miss Rin and the little ones, but to Alex and Elio who individually understood these things in their own way¡­ this was some real spicy stuff. "After we died, the fragments of our beings were made into cards which were scattered all across time and space, leaving where we''d end up completely to the Abstract fate." They weren''t supposed to have these memories, but she did get these memories under the special circumstances. And, now that she had told them all these, she felt a little relieved for some reason. -Ooooooooooooooong! Alas, not everyone liked what she had told them. [Ding!] This information shouldn''t have existed in the first place, so, the fact that someone had revealed it to someone that didn''t have the qualifications to know about all these meant there would be consequences. [The quest information has been updated.] Though, in this case, the consequences were a little¡­ unexpected. Chapter 265 - 265: A walk around the capital ============ [Purpose Quest: ] : You who have found out clues related to the true origin of this world, you who have seen through the Deception of Darkness cast by the primordial forces, you who have taken the first step towards true enlightenment¡­ you are the one. Objective: 1) Find more clues related to the true origin and the war that had taken place between the Origins| Survive the with the gazes of the origins on you. | Defeat the enemies that block your path towards the truth. 2) Achieve enough strength to rival the enemies and overpower them. 3) Obtain more subordinates with the connection to the Origins. Rewards: Will depend on individual actions, Parchment of Origin. sea??h th§× Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Failure conditions: 1) Death by the Evil attackers. 2) Death by individual actions. 3) Death before the enemy''s divine presence. (*Acceptance of any of the paths, and forming any connection with any of the original Origins will result in an instant failure and you will receive (True death) penalty permanently.) ============ When Sera obtained the key of Potential and he awakened for the first time, he had obtained a simple quest that asked him to find more about the relic that she had obtained. The quest was simply asking him about this particular relic and didn''t say anything about the origins. There were a few specific words that he remembered from that quest¡­ words like Pure and Natural balance. The quest was also a Personal quest instead of ''purpose'' quest. He had never even heard about a purpose quest before. But, it was different for Alex as well as Sera and sir Victor. "What is the purpose of human existence?" Alex asked with a complicated expression, a snack present in her hand. "What do you think the ultimate purpose of anything is?" They were walking around the capital city right now, and at this moment, they were around the commoner''s shopping district. There were many stalls on both sides of the road, it was evening so there were many people around as well, so the place was cheerful. "I''ve asked this question to many people when they obtained this particular kind of quest, Elio. But, do you know why everyone that received this question would answer not too differently from one another?" Sera did not have her wings out right now and Sir Victor was helping her scale down her charm so that she can walk around freely. She was naturally a pretty lady with an attractive body, but good and covering clothings solved that part as well. "Hmmm? Shouldn''t their answers be different though? The question is so ambiguous¡­ how do their answers even match?" He was puzzled. Misha was running around with Misha and Miu, Miss Rin was running around behind her, while the four of them, the master and their servants, were walking on the road, walking towards the noble district next to see what was going on over there. "It''s not that strange, actually." The quest that he had just received¡­ the kind of quest that all of the Truth searchers are always after¡­ this Purpose quest was the very thing that proved the existence of a certain truth. "Until now, we have thought that the one who completes their Purpose quest would achieve something extraordinary, however, I think we weren''t right thinking about that." This particular kind of quest was pretty vague. There was something unique about this quest but no one that had ever received this quest had known what exactly would happen if they did complete it. "The name Parchment of Origin isn''t new for us, but no one really knows what it is either." Only a handful of those who had walked far on a particular path in search of truth ever stumbled upon this particular kind of quest. But there was still one particular thing common among them¡­ "As you already know, I have many acquaintances, crazy people who wanna know the truth like the TWO of them as well. They are here, but they want to transcend the realm of acquired divinity and achieve what they ''were'' meant to." Until now, only those who had actively searched for the truths, or had achieved great knowledge of a particular thing, or someone who had somehow deciphered the Original texts that are present all over the world had received a Purpose quest. But despite the different kind of purpose that each of these quests possessed, the one who had received them had only one purpose in their lives¡ª to find the truth about the world, to achieve something great on their paths, to understand this world or some aspect of this world so much that they would transcend their mortal boundaries and step on the same level as those Origins: the sources of most of existing powers. "No one has ever succeeded in this quest, and it mostly just sits there since progressing with it is difficult in itself. But, those who do manage to get past the restrictions of this world and find more of what is asked of them, they certainly get rewards, powers, and opportunities that are beyond what one could possibly imagine." She had never received this unique type of quest for some reason, and from what is known, the same is true for the Two of them as well. They somehow never met the requirements to receive this quest. Even this time, even though Elio''s existing quest got upgraded into this, she had neither received any hints, nor any quests like him. It was a little strange, but at the same time, it was somewhat interesting. "Until now, we have thought that this quest might hold the answer to the ''truth'' that we all have been searching for." But, as the Two of them have proven, that is not the case. "This quest and the path to the truth, that Door as we know it, the junction where Olive would have to judge us as well, are separate things. Perhaps that Parchment holds something more precious than what we had expected." Or perhaps it was something that neither them, nor anyone else in this word should be aware of. "There are many possibilities¡­" They had reached their destination, so now, it was again shopping time for them. "But, the only way to find what the truth actually is¡­ we simply have to finish these strange quests of ours." Be it her unique quest to find the swords, or his new quest to find clues of the original past without catching the attention of beings that were practically watching and observing every single thing happening in this world. "Well¡­" They were smart people so they would know what to do, and how to reach the end of this predicament. "Let''s put it aside for now. I''m getting hungry again." "You''re genuinely holding six skewers, Alex." And even if they can''t do it alone, they would still be fine with their servants, friends, party members, as well as with one another on their side. Chapter 266 - 266: Sticking together. (Later that night¡­) After hanging out with the rest of them, talking, and having a little fun, they were now refreshed, and free from all the tension that the incident in Their world had put on them. "Two worlds, one statue window, and we will be able to access it in that place as well." "Do you think we will be able to connect to the game without a Chariot? How cool would that be?" Alex was a tech nerd. She was crazy when it came to tech and equipment, and software, and hardware, and AI and practically anything related to the technology through which one can access the virtual world of not just , but also the entire virtual network that had become integrated into their society a long time ago. "Thinking about it, it would certainly be cool, yes." She was excited about what was going to happen when the countdown that was going off in their world came to an end. She was looking forward to seeing what happens when the collision of a virtual world and a physical world comes to a stop. "Will we be able to use skills and items from the game? Will we be able to use the inventory at least? I think the Friendzone and the other features will work normally, but do you think it will be possible for the Natives to come to our world after the collision?" The two of them were flying outside. Yes¡­ they were floating in the air, above the vast capital city of the kingdom of Viv, watching the twinkling stars in the sky, watching the pretty moon, feeling the soft breeze in the atmosphere. The city was pretty lively even though it was so late at night. There were people, most of them being merchants that were preparing for tomorrow, or children that were playing around or their parents who were watching them. Students who were studying, aspiring mages who were practicing in the big training grounds that were open for anyone that wanted to use them. There was no particular incident taking place tonight. The crime rate in the capital was already low, but with the things happening¡ª the disappearance of all the foreigners and the chaos that was caused by the incident- the security had been made even tighter. There were some crimes happening in the shadows, and they were being taken care of by the players who had received their own quests, or by the guard assassins that protected this city from the shadows. "Haaa¡­ I don''t know what will happen when that countdown ends." He had no idea. But, at the very least, he was looking forward to it. There was no other thing that they could do other than being prepared for the worst, like many people around the world were actually doing. This situation was something the humans could not understand. It was something unfamiliar to them¡­ and mortality is always worry of what it could not understand. "We will be going back as well." "We have to¡­ mom was screaming when I last called her, saying the apocalypse might happen. Haha." His mother, the person he respected the most. She had been worried about them, worried about what would happen to them. "She had never played but thanks to uncle and brother, she knows the game well. sea??h th§× Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She thinks those who have played the game are going to be in trouble when that strange countdown ends. Haha, she even went to some shaman and they told her that an Amber Omen is upon them." His mom was a fun person. Even though she had not seen him for a while now, she always called him, and they talked for hours. There were only two people that he talked that much aside from Alex actually: Olive and his mom. His dad was a busy person so the talk between them wasn''t that frequent, but he loved him more than the rest of them. He was also the reason he was able to do whatever he wanted. His sister took care of things back home so he was able to live as he wanted. But, now that something so big had happened anyway, they had no choice but to go back sooner than they had expected. "She''ll be happy to see we have yet to be Possessed by some weird evil spirit, haha. She''s so fun~." Alex and his mom had a unique relationship. Opposite to her relationship with Olive''s dad, the one that she had his mom had was that of a friend''s. They were pretty opposite when it came to worldly things. "Haha, she sure is a headache though." A retired archer, one of the best in history, his mom was someone from a common background like Alex. Though she did have parents, they passed away while she was growing up and she had carried herself after them. She was an old school person, opposite of Olive''s mom. She was like those grandmas that they see in the older movies actually. "She doesn''t know much about technology, she is overly affectionate, she''s transparent, and she cares about her grown up child as if he''s still a kid." The story of his parents'' relationship was a fun thing as well, and perhaps when they go back this time, they will remember those old days as well. Perhaps. They didn''t know how things would go after they went back since the situation in that world was getting increasingly chaotic for people who were more focused on that world instead of this one. Unlike their concerns of whether skills would become reality or if the natives will be able to cross over the worlds or not, the people like his family, even Olive''s family were concerned about what will happen to them. With the increasing chaos, with the increased dark news that was spreading and a shit ton of misinformation that people were using in order to gain an advantage in the Markets, things didn''t look bright for any of them. Since none of them knew what was going to happen, they did not know what they were going to do when that timer stops and something they didn''t want to happen¡­ actually happens. But¡­ "Haaa. We will have a lot to explain to her¡­" "You will have a lot to explain, haha. She knows my way of explaining is too complicated so I''m not going to be in trouble~." They were going to go back to their family, and in a scenario where pretty much anything could happen, sticking together was the best thing to do instead of being separated by two whole states¡­ Chapter 267 - 267: Meeting the cute savior "Slowly, dummy." "I know." The two of them carefully landed on the ground and, Elio didn''t need her help like he did when they took off for the first time earlier. "It was fun." "Right?" Now that they have had their first awakening and were above (Level-100) they could use some items that they previously could not. Additionally, with Sir Victor''s magic, they didn''t even need items to fly. They had the help of high level magic, so they did not even need Sera''s ability sharing skill. They had simply use magic to fly around the place just now. "Should we eat something? A late night snack?" "Sure if that''s what you want. But, you know, I was thinking we would go back¡­ the bed was nice, you know what I mean?" Yeah she knew what he meant. "We are going back." And she wasn''t going to decline an offer coming from him. Especially when they haven''t had much time to spend Together since he came back from that forest. -Step. Step. Step. They had landed just around the corner of their inn, so they didn''t have too much trouble walking back to their place. It was also fun to see the nightlife of the capital, but they had already been floating above the capital for a few hours now. They had seen quite a lot in these hours¡­ walking and seeing the same things wasn''t going to be as much fun anymore. "Hey¡­" There were concerns but, now that they have had the fresh night breeze, they were going to work things out somehow. They were together again, and this time, they were even stronger than before, so they were going to see everything in their path through. "There''s something I have to tell, Alex." They were staying in an expensive inn and yet they had rented two separate rooms for them and for the mother-daughter duo. But they were in their own room right now, which was empty. "Actually, there''s someone I want you to meet." Elio had been away from her for a while now. The time that they had spent apart inside the game was great, and even though they were together in their own world, the fact that they were apart for a long time here wasn''t going to change. He was away, into a place that was simply too far away and in a dangerous place where monsters that they have already had bad experiences with lived. These monsters were nothing like the evil beings that he had fought off with the help of the blessing, but they were ferocious in their own manner. Even the smallest of them could unearth a tree with their bare fangs. They were simply dangerous, and yet, the only reason he had been able to survive in that dangerous place, most certainly, was thanks to a certain being that had been protecting the creatures of that forest. The being that had followed him out of that forest, and the being that had been following him since a while ago¡­ Sear?h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "So you were conscious of someone. I knew it." This creature, the divine being that had protected him and all the creatures of that forest for the entire time he was there, had stayed with the other creatures in the forest that they ended up in after passing through Sera''s gate. It wanted to find the creatures of the forest in a suitable place in that new forest, give them time to adapt and help them with anything that they needed. It was a new environment so they would need a lot of things to get used to that place, so it wanted to stay there and look after those creatures, but for some reason, it appeared here a while ago. And, Elio''s eyes were the only ones that could sense its presence. It was hiding, but he knew it was following him, watching him, and keeping an eye on whatever they were doing. It was a fun being, but Elio owned it his life. And, if it was going to follow him around, Elio at least wanted to thank it for coming with them, and introduce Alex and it. "You can come out. This place is fine." It had followed them inside his room as well, so Elio found this behavior quite funny. It was a divine creature with a great knowledge, it was quite wise as well so it should have known about privacy that the humans cherish so much. "Don''t be like that. You know I can see you, right?" He wanted to laugh when the creature didn''t come out even after a while. But, he did not do that. He simply waited, and simply kept looking at it. It was moving around the big room that they had, seeing things perhaps, but, after all that, it was also slowly closing in on them. -Oooooooooooong. Alex was patient with it since she could see the special expression that Elio had right now. She knew this was special for him. He had told her all about this being, so she also knew how it had helped him as well as Sera. It was unique and mysterious as well¡­ { "I''m not going to stay here, I''m just passing by." } So she had wanted to meet this being for a while now. "Hmm?" "What¡­?" Elio had never properly told her how this creature looked as a surprise for later so she has always had her own fantasies on how it might look as well. { "Hmmm?" } But, its actual, fluffy, cloudy, mysterious, mystical, ethereal form caught her off guard. { "Miss? Hey, is she alright?" } She was stunned by the silver fog-like outer body of the creature, and the deep purple eyes that it had¡­ they were one of the prettiest eyes that she had seen in all her time in this world. Her eyes were pretty as well, but they were nothing compared to those purple ones. Especially with the silver that was covering them. This creature, this divine being¡­ "Cute!!!" It was adorable. "Cute cute cute~~~! This is the cutest being I''ve seen after the Phoenix babies!" She wanted to hug the creature, but before she could grab the being, the being moved away from her. "Hmm?" And, it happened so quickly that Alex couldn''t believe it even though she had just seen it happening with her own eyes. "Hey! Why did you run away!" { "What the hell is wrong with that girl!" } The creature did not understand why Alex had suddenly jumped on it, but it did not want to get played by some crazy psycho. It was good saying hi and hello from distance, getting too close was not what it wanted. "Hey now. Don''t be like that." But it couldn''t stop Alex. -Swish! She used her {Blink} to close the distance between them, however, the creature was still faster. "Hey! At least give me a hug!" The creature started running away from the crazy girl, complaining how she was actually someone crazy, out of her mind as well. It was saying no, it was screaming that it did not want to get touched by her, and yet here she was, screaming and chasing after it. { "Stop her, you idiot! Stop her or I''m going back!" } Well, Alex liked it. It was fluffy, it looked adorable, and she wasn''t going to let it get away without getting a hug from it. -Oooooooong. "Victor, block that one with whatever method you want." "Yes, master." She was adamant, so much so that she even called out Sir Victor. { "¡­?!" } And an archdemon was not something even this divine creature was expecting. -Oooooooooooong! "Gotcha~." With the help of Sir Victor''s chaos magic that even the divine creature could not predict the strength of, she was able to corner the cute creature, and since she had cornered it already, she hugged it without wasting even a millisecond. { "Hey! Get away from me!" } But the creature still did not like it so after only a few seconds, it managed to get away from them, and then¡­ it ran away and hid behind Elio. { "That woman is crazy! Crazy!" } She somewhat traumatized the little one. But the whole interaction between them was something Elio was already looking forward to. He knew these two were going to get along well, and he was actually looking forward to seeing them fight together. "You traumatized the little one, Alex." "Hehehe~! But it''s soooooo adorable~. I couldn''t help myself~!" She loved this being. It was cute, and at the same time, from their little interaction, she had also judged just how strong this being was. "And no, she''s not crazy, you silly." The creature was hiding behind Elio, so Elio just turned around and shook his head. He knew the nature of this good bunny. He knew how strong it was and at the same time, how caring it was. With the divinity that it possessed, the strength that it had was unmatched to anything that he had seen until now, but its main strength was speed. And, Alex who had once mastered something as difficult as {Blink} knew a good lot about speed. "Didn''t you say you had heard about the Aber empress of garden of life, Protector of Crimson seas, and White Night''s Red Moon? That''s her." Though the ones that he might have heard about and the weak human that he was seeing right now might seem different, they were the same people. { "Hmmm?" } Alex was a famous individual, a master that knew more about divinity than this divine creature itself. He knew she could help this one get better in some way, any way if possible. And, as he was expecting, if they were going to fight together in the future, he wanted them to be prepared. Getting used to each other was the first thing that they needed to do. And for that, they would have to start from here. { "That''s her¡­?" } Elio knew it would be difficult, but when it comes to Alex, pretty much nothing is easy. He was prepared for whatever was going to happen with this divine one here. { "Are you sure about that, human?" } He was looking forward to how their relationship develops actually¡­ Chapter 268 - 268: 36 days to regain power "There were a few things, but yeah, that''s how I got all those names." It was morning now, and Alex had just spent around a few hours explaining to the creature what exactly she was, how she was the same person all those cool nicknames belonged to, and how she was in the state she was. It was a long explanation filled with stories that even Elio was hearing for the first time, so, the two of them had fun chatting all night. { "You''re also a strange human¡­ why do I keep meeting strange people?" } The divine creature was not feeling as angry as it did last night. It was relaxed, and though it did not notice it, it didn''t mind Alex''s touch anymore. She was caressing the creature right now and it wasn''t complaining¡­ though, most of the time her fingers were simply passing through the creature''s fog like body, it was a fun activity that she actually enjoyed. It was a unique being¡­ she had seen quite a few divine beings in her life, from dragons to Heavenly beings, to the demon kings'' familiars, to even beings that were simply unimaginable. She had been to places where unique creatures were a common thing, she had been to many places actually. In this vast world, she had been to places that were simply too vast to comparhand by one person, or being. She had met beings that were much more complicated than this one, so compared to all those things, this one was simply a fun little cutie. "We aren''t weird or anything, sweetly. It''s simply how you see the world." Alex told the creature how it''s surroundings and growth until now was affecting its perception of the world around it at this moment. It lived in a forest most of the time. It knew about the humans and since it was a divine being, it naturally possessed a great lot of knowledge about this world and about the truths of this world. It knew about the special kind of quest that Elio had received, though it did not have much information on it. It was also cute, so Alex couldn''t help her attraction to this cute beast. "Anyway¡­ calling you is difficult. Don''t you have a name, cutie?" She got up from the bed, and looked at the pretty eyes of the creature. It was attractive, but it was also strong. She would not last even minute against it if they were to fight right now. Though, that was without her using her white sword. If she was using the white sword as well as the two other keys simultaneously, there was a chance that she would be able to hold her own against it and escape from it before it kills her, but that was it. Even with her {Blink} and the ability to move faster than even this creature could perceive, she would not be able to beat a being that was purely made to move at a speed that was unprecedented to the humans, with such power that was simply absurd. Lightning and light¡­ it was no simple creature. It wasn''t an elemental being, but it controlled the natural phenomenon of this world and used them in their pure form as not a power, but as an energy that was resulting in the power that it was using. { "Hmmm? A name? I¡­ don''t have anything like that¡­ but you can just call me the Great one! The great lord! Lord! Or something like that!" } It was being shy once again, and she was smiling at it. As Elio had said, it was one of those that naturally hid its emotions. It was funny, but she liked these goofs just the way they were. "You will need a name if you want to stay with us, so¡­ tell me what you would like. Not something ambiguous like Lord. You''re a beautiful, strong, amazing being. You need a name that represents your pure heart." She wanted to call it something, but she knew she was bad at naming so she didn''t do it herself. Elio was good with names, but she wanted to give the little creature a chance to choose its own name. It was a strong being that had its own personality and Ego. So, it should also have a name that reflects all those elements. { "I''m not staying with you! I just said that! I don''t need a name or anything! That''s not for me!" } It was stubborn, just like the two of them. It did not need something like a name since it was a divine being but it did not have a choice this time since Alex was involved. "Elio, decide something for it. Or we can just go with Philippe-." "No. That''s not it." Elio knew her naming sense¡­ her own immortal name was something that she had tried her best to hide from this game, this world actually. One of the reasons many of her titles were famous instead of her immortal name was also because of the naming sense that she had. "Hmmm¡­" Elio kept his original name in this world as well, Quin changed it since, well, she didn''t want the same name as she had in the Reality, But not only Alex did what both of them had done, there were so many things that she was now called by that she herself had lost track of what people called her. "How about Xan?" "Nah, sounds too plain." { "I don''t need a name!" } "You know what? Lavender. Levi for short." "Oh! Oh! That''s nice! That''s perfect actually!" She chose her original nickname, Alex, this time around since she wanted to be with Elio. There was no deep reason behind it. However, the name that Elio had chosen for the creature was a different matter altogether. "Lave represents your connection to nature, and on the other hand, represents your destructive power against your adorable looks. You''re good natured, and yet you hide yourself most of the time, afraid of being seen by people. You''re shy, and you''re soft, just like the lavender haze that spreads around when pure bliss blooms around the innocent souls. You have purple eyes, you have a fog like body, you don''t have a particular scent, but when your silver fog consumes the charred bodies of the monsters, it makes a unique fragrance that lasts only for a short time¡­ but it''s beautiful." There were many interpretations of this unique name, and many times it changed with individual perspective. But at the core of it all, it was all about the creature''s unique ability to kill, as well as its simplicity. { "What kind of name is that? Lavender? Why would I call myself lavender?!" } It was blushing. Which meant it liked the name. [Ding!] And that notification must be about that as well¡­ but both of them skipped it for now. "You like it, good." "You like the name~. It was a good thing that the creature- Levi liked its new name. It was a pretty one and a dangerous one, so it was simply a good sign when it did not kill them. { "Hmph! It''s just a name! Call me whatever you want, I don''t care!" } It vanished, and ran away from their room, leaving the two alone. They seemed embarrassed about something, which was adorable, so the start of their morning was great. "Hahaha." "It''s a unique one, ok." Both of them were laughing, but it was good. The creatures liked the name, they were still alive, and there was nothing to do for today either¡­ "We will leave tomorrow." Since the strange things in their world, they had decided to get stronger together until the timer that was going out in their world ends. S§×arch* The N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. There are still around 36 days in this world before the timer in their world stops. They will have to leave for their home, Elio and Olive''s home tomorrow, so they will be busy for the next few days. But they wanted to reach their next destination in the short time they will have while traveling to their home. The two of them will not have the Chariot that they were used to over there, but since Elio had his own gaming room in his home, which was much more amazing than the one that they had here, they were going to have fun over there as well. And, since Olive''s house was just beside his- which was filled with all kinds of tech things- she was going to have a blast when she got there. They hadn''t been there for a few months now, but they were going to have fun when they get back¡­ and their stay there will be longer with all the things going on, so, it means Olive will have to be away from her shop for a little longer than she might have been all those things had not happened. "Haaa¡­ we didn''t sleep thanks to that little Levi." "We didn''t even get to do anything." The two fell back on their bed. Their soft, warm bed¡­ which was also quite sturdy. "Well¡­" They weren''t going to do anything today either. And since it was also early morning, they had quite a bit of time before the others woke up. "What do you say?" "Yes." "Hmm? What do you mean-." He grabbed her hand, and looked to the side, in her eyes, with a smile. "Yes." He didn''t say much. That one word was more than enough for her. It wasn''t a good thing that they would have to be quick, she didn''t like how they would have little time to Rest, but it was fine. "So, can I?" "Please¡­" She was craving him for a while now. And, all that talk with that cute little creature had only made things¡­ worse for her. Chapter 269 - 269: The intimacy of connection Intertwined hands, connected bodies, intermixed scents¡­ Sounds. Occasional screams, though not too loud that they would pass through the sound proofed walls. The touch of your partner''s hair on the body¡­ their breaths on your skin¡­ the necessary eye contact, all the elements came together as the representation of love. Lovemaking. "Mmm~." It is seen as a vital component of life, integrated into a broader philosophy of personal fulfillment and internal as well as external harmony. A connection of mind and soul through physical touch, through a complex mental connection¡­ something that goes beyond physical fulfillment. People mistake lovemaking with simple fulfillment of needs, or a simple intimacy when in fact, it goes far beyond that. "Ugh¡­ the other side¡­ yes¡­ damn it." Of the twelve Origins governing the Truths of this world, as a part of Harmony stands the Truth of Kama which refers to love, pleasure, and desire, including sexual desire, which is recognized as a natural and important aspect of mortal life. With the right kind of connection, with the right approach to one''s life, with the right partner, with enough time one learns how to cultivate desire ethically and artfully, proving how the true enjoyment of pleasure requires both mental and emotional harmony. It''s somewhat complex to explain in layman terms, but simply put, with the reference to ancient texts, we can say that the ancient art of lovemaking which transcends mortal pleasures and reaches even the higher realm beyond the divinities, molding into a truth that is used as a foundation of this world, Love, the very concept of Love connects many aspects of a mortal life, not just lust and sexual pleasure. Romantic relationships, from the stages of the very first meeting with the partner to the courtship to the responsibilities that befalls one as the individuals decide to stay together and the pleasures that arrive after the formation of Connections. This simple process emphasizes mutual respect, consent, and the emotional and intellectual connection between lovers, not just physical connection, the pleasure born as a result of lust, or an intercourse without the unique connection with their partner. We can learn how to prepare for physical intimacy, emphasize the importance of foreplay, touch, and communication to enhance emotional and physical closeness, but to learn that, the formation of a unique connection is the foremost requirement. "That¡­ was amazing¡­" "Right? Haaa¡­ hahaha¡­" Lovemaking is to be enjoyed as part of a balanced life that includes other pursuits like duty and spirituality, but all that is conceptual things that many people don''t really understand as Knowledge. It is simple wisdom received from life experiences. From beasts, to monsters, even demons and divinities know this unique knowledge without any deep Knowledge about the Art itself. "We¡­ should rest now¡­" "Obviously, haha." Sexual union is more meaningful when there is a deep emotional and intellectual connection between partners. Without that, the simple physical pleasure that one might receive from a temporary partner could be seen as nothing more than fulfillment of basic needs. On cosmic level, it would mean nothing. However, the act of lovemaking, approached with right intentions, with the right partner and with the right connections could transcend the simple mortal individuality itself. Duality. The existence of two of the most prominent truths encompassing Individual and Nature explains it in their own manner. On the other hand, lovemaking is viewed not just as physical satisfaction but also as the holistic experience of love, intimacy, and connection, which can lead to personal fulfillment and harmony between Self and Nature, a sacred act consisting of many more elements than just Pleasure. "Let''s get dressed-." "No." She wrapped her arms around him, caressing his back with her other hand. "We should take a nap." The room that they were in, the room that still looked the same as it did around an hour ago, was now filled with a unique scent. The bedsheets weren''t clean and dry anymore, but they did not care about that with the clean blankets present. The sun outside their window had risen above the horizon, there was a fresh breeze entering their room, filling their place with a fresh scent of morning. They were on a higher floor of this fancy inn, so some birds could also be seen outside, with white clouds passing calmly above them. "I''m exhausted." he faced her, saw the unique smile that she had, caressed her back the same way she was doing to him, and with the other hand¡­ he did nothing. He simply tucked her hair behind her ear, smiled at her, a chuckle almost breaking out of him. And then he started moving his free fingers around her¡­ "I know you''re exhausted as well." Both of them were drenched. But, even though she had all the energy to go on for much longer, he could tell she did not have the mental stamina to do so. It was the same situation as it is when they do something like this in the physical world, in their reality. Despite her better physical body, even with her abundance of stamina, she was still not as adapted to some things as he was. His mental stamina and endurance were simply better. But, they weren''t the only things that gave him an advantage in their unique relationship. It was the experiences and the talents that he had developed while working all these years, something beyond her superior talents, something that he had not received as a Gift. "What are you doing right now, Darling?" He didn''t want to but his hands accidentally went too far. With his fingers playing a harmonious piano on her, it did not help him the way he wanted. "Oh, sorry." Well he did not realize it before, but now that he did, he could not help his embarrassment. "I didn''t mean to-." "It''s fine¡­" She pulled up the blanket, and at the same time, stopped his hand that was about to move away from that Good place. "Keep going, please." They were talking with Levi the whole night and had only had a short while to themselves. They still had to pack their stuff here, go back to their world, do some packing there as well, and then come back here as soon as they could. Then they would have to leave for the ocean, meet up with the captain that would drop them off to the center of a dangerous storm, and from there, following the People that would come from them, they would move to the underwater kingdom, the place where her third permanent key would be awaiting her. It was going to be a lot of work. They would be busy with Olive and the travel and her family as well, but they would be fine, hopefully. It''s going to be difficult and exhausting, that much she knew already. That''s why she wanted to rest a little longer while she still can¡­ "We will have to get up at some point, you know?" Elio knew all that she was thinking. He knew her concerns and since the only way to make her forget about all those useless things was through keep doing what he was right now¡­ he slid his hand back to where it previously was while looking at her¡­ deep eyes. "I know. It''s still eight anyway¡­ we can stay here for an hour more, I think? If Misha knew about Levi, it would have been difficult, but since we are keeping him a secret¡­ it''ll be fine." The creature was shy anyway. They would not have to worry about Misha influencing another powerful being into becoming her Friend. "Can you slide it in-." "You know we cannot do that." He looked at her with squinted eyes, his face saying all that she did not want to hear right now. "We can, well, you know¡­ we can just, go again? Or something¡­ you know what I mean?" Hands and fingers, and their coordinated movements across a non-dry plain of skin can very well be a much potent aphrodisiac than one might imagine. Added with a voice as seductive as hers¡­ and those eyes¡­ "I think Misha just woke up-." "We know you don''t care about that." She wasn''t completely recovered but she was still in a better condition now. So, with this soothing environment and such a fine morning, rejuvenated by Elio''s accidental movements¡­ She was ready to start another fun journey across multiple stages of sensual liberation. "Can we at least have some water first?" And since she was the one asking for it, he didn''t really have any other choice other than to simply give her what she was asking for. "Sure~. You can have water¡­ you know what would be better though?" She picked up the glass of water from the table beside their bed, took it in her mouth while holding Elio in his place with her leg, and right when he figured out what she was trying to do¡­ "Mmmmm¡­" She joined their lips, and transferred the rather cool water directly in his mouth. "Want some more? Or can we start now¡­?" She was smiling, of course. She was smirking actually, and Elio found it as energizing as her usual silly tricks. "I think I''ll need some more of that¡­" She had pinned him down the last time, but she knew her turn was going to be next. "I''ll not need that glass though." -Oooooooooong. "Hey~." He was a mage who had learned quite a bit of spells in his time in that forest. A natural spell that condensed water from the surroundings was also one of them¡­ "I can create more water and we can just¡­ wash ourselves here¡­ but then everything else will be wet as well." But they didn''t want that. So, he limited the water to Their mouths¡­ as well as to the lips, the neck, the chest, and the rest of the area below that¡­ S§×ar?h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Chapter 270 - 270: Packing up "You will have to take care of the two of them but since Sera and Victor are here, don''t do everything by yourself. Since Sera will be teaching your mom about the holy energy, you should learn a few things about Ichor and magic from Victor as well." Alex instructed her with a little smile, and the young girl shook her head, saying she was fine with anything she wanted. This was going to be a unique experience for her. They were going to the town situated before the ocean, on a distant island to be specific, so she was excited. But, since they still needed to do some things in their own reality, Alex and Elio were going to go for now. "Don''t push yourself for the time being. Instead, take this time to relax and broaden your horizon with some theoretical knowledge." Elio knew what was best for her so he suggested she continue with what she wanted to do while guiding her on the right path. He didn''t say much, and simply patted her head before he and Rein walked away from her, and went to the Queen of Viv who was standing behind them. "So?" She was close with Alex and she was the monarch of the western continent so she knew what was going on in their world already. Things like the clash of two unique worlds was a new thing for this world as well, but the people of this world weren''t as excited about this as the people of the physical world. "What are you going to do after going to Nuvil? Find Kakaraks?" "Perhaps? Well¡­ we have to get to the underwater kingdom. If you have any faster method, I''ll consider that as well." Alex and Elio were simply one of the countless foreigners that had arrived here through a special way and to the natives, that way had always been something like a tunnel or some gate. They had always known they were real, they had never doubted that they were creations of someone else''s creation''s creation. The origins being the result of some unique individuals'' efforts, the descendents of the Origins that truly sparked a challenge of evolution in the beings born from the pure concept like beings resulted in everything that they see in this unique world. "Well, I don''t really have anything that would be faster than those people. Besides, you are going back right now, aren''t you?" She was pretty, and she was strong. "We will be back in a bit, then we will leave right away so please look after them." The aura that she possessed, though Elio had not noticed it before, was unlike any humans that he had met until now. His eyes could not see her status window, but they did certainly uncover the kind of powers that this Sword user, magic user, war strategist possessed. He knew the person that he was standing before right now, the Elf that had lived for many centuries, was in fact more than just a strong individual. The natural presence that she had was mostly unnoticeable. It was strong, but if one did not know much about powers, they would not be able to distinguish between this power and the kind of strength that the beings possessing low levels, and simple powers had. The Queen was a unique being, someone that even Elio could not help but look up to instinctively. She was not a normal human, and yet she was as normal when talking with Alex as any normal person would be when talking with another normal person. "Let''s go, Alex." He had finished telling Sera all that she needed to say and Miu and Az were also off playing in the garden of the palace. "Oh, yes." The two of them also had to pack up and leave with Olive and her family who had arrived there after receiving the news of her hospitalization. Just like the rest of the world, they had also heard the Myth that was being recited by the Voice. And thanks to her dad, they also knew the person talked about in that Myth was in fact their little Olive. They were worried about her after hearing how she was hospitalized and came there as soon as they could¡­ and now that Olive had rested a little, they were ready to go back as well. The two of them had to pack up and meet up with them, but since they were late with the packing and all already, they knew the four of them would be dropping on their doorsteps anytime now. "I''ll see you soon then." kissing the Queen on the cheeks on both sides, she gracefully said her bye and went back to Elio. The two of them had to log out now, so even though Elio had a lot of things to say about this whole relationship that they had, their closeness, and even their unique bond, he did not ask her anything at that moment. -Oooooong. The two of them simply vanished from the garden and then, came out of their Chariot capsules. The game time that they had wasn''t that long this time since they did not do much, but they were certainly there for a while. [Master, you have a few unread messages.] "I''ll check them later sunday, help us with packing for now." There were a lot of things that they needed to pack including the gifts that they had purchased a while ago, to their toothbrush and even to disassemble a few parts of their Chariot. Elio had his own gaming room which he had rarely used until now, and that place surely had some good tech. But, it wasn''t going to be on par with the one that they had here. But, taking the whole chariot there wasn''t practical so she was going to take only the important chips and parts that they would need for certain. "You get the bags and I''ll start with the kitchen." "Hmm? Kitchen?" "Yeah, I''m thirsty." they didn''t have time and yet she was thinking of her own needs. She was unbelievable¡­ "I''ll get something and take out the ones that we got for your sister. Don''t forget to pack the ones that we got for your mom and dad. Also, tell Sunday to send the rest of the stuff through Sonic Mail. we won''t be able to carry a lot with us anyway." "I know, I know." S~ea??h the N?vel(F)ire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Elio knew her nature and she was not going to be any different from how she was right now even if he yelled at her at this moment. "Chop chop man. Let''s go let''s go~!" The city that they lived in was pretty big, and there were a lot of cool things in this city as well. But the place where the two of their houses were was a ruler''s place. Unlike this high tech city, their houses were in the mountains, in nature. In a place that didn''t really have that many residents. It was a pretty big house as well so they had a lot of space around their house as well as around that place. There was a lake not far from their house that Alex was shocked to see the first time she went there, but then after all this time being with him and seeing special things in that weren''t going to be anything even close to what they had in this reality, she had gotten used to it all¡­ -Ding~dong~! [Master¡­] "It''s Olive and Eth, aren''t they?" [Yes, master.] "Damn it! Elio, deal with them! I still have to deal with the chariots!" She was drinking some smoothie from last night, but she placed it down on the table and ran inside towards their gaming room. She had to take the parts from their Chariot even if they didn''t bring anything else with them. They were the most important things other than the gifts that Elio was bringing. They needed those things. So, she didn''t even care about her thirst anymore. Besides, she did not want to deal with Olive''s mom¡­ "That girl¡­" Elio knew how to deal with her the best and she liked him much better so she went inside, and Elio opened the door¡­ "Took you long enough." "Elly~. My cute little Elly~!" Olive was there, standing, looking at him with an upset expression, but right beside her was the person that had taken care of him as much as his mother. "Hello to you too, Aunt Eth." She was tall, taller than him actually. And with her bright blond hair and a little darker shade of artificially tanned skin tone that did not go well with her soft voice at all¡­ with shining silver eyes, she was one of the role models that inspired Elio to do what he wanted in his life instead of just waiting until he was an ''adult''. She wasn''t only Olive''s mother, she was also one of the few special people in both their houses that had no enemies. "How has my sweet sunny sunshine been~?" She was a complete opposite of Elio''s mom in many ways. And yet she still adored Elio like she adored both her children, as well as her husband. She was also not a player like his mom, but she was one of the famous names in all of the tech industry when it came to games¡­ "Oh~! And where''s my amazing daughter in law~? Is she inside~? Alex~?" Alex and his mom had a very special bond, same with Olive''s father and brother, but the same could not be said when it came to Eth. "Where are you, Alex darling~?" She simply loved Alex a little too much. And, the way she carelessly expressed that love of hers¡­ was something that had always made Alex extremely uncomfortable. But knowing that had never made her love her anything less. In fact, it only made teasing her even more fun¡­ Chapter 271 - 271: Moving back "So~? You two are going to the underwater kingdom~?" Ethereal, that was her name. And no, her parents didn''t name her that. She officially changed her name from Samantha to that when she became an adult and since she had been using that particular name since even before she was as young as Misha, everyone in the industry, including her neighborhood and her friend circle knew her as Eth or Ethereal. It was a peculiar name, but she loved it for some reason. There was more to this unique name than just simple emotions that she adored more than most things out there in this world. For her, the word ethereal meant something that was simply beyond the boundaries of description. One could not explain what an ''ethereal'' thing was. They also could not understand it, and she simply loved it. "Yeah, we are going to the Underwater kingdom. Can you stop hugging me now?" She was rubbing her cheeks against Alex and though it was funny for both Olive and Elio, she did not like it. She did not like being treated like a baby, especially from this particular person. But then again, she could not help how this person was treating her. She was cool. And annoyingly clingy. "Tell me more about this kingdom, please~." The four of them were in a big car, moving to the airport. Olive''s father and big brother were already there looking after a few things, and since the two of them had finished their packing, they were moving back to their house, and though there wasn''t any particular excitement, they were certainly looking forward to see the house and the people that they hadn''t seen in a while. "Well¡­" They were going to be stuck in the car for a little longer even though they were moving in a special lane at high speed, but with the increased traffic of the city these past few days was going to hinder them anyway. They will need a little longer before they reached the airport, so since they didn''t have much to do, Eth wanted to know more about what they were up to in that ''game'' nowadays. She already knew how Olive had found something she wanted to do in that world as well as how she was enjoying everything over there, so she now wanted to know more about a kingdom that existed underwater. The mysterious place that she could imagine as a fantastical world of fishes, mermaid people, and unique water creatures that resemble humans. She loved these kinds of fun things, so she wanted to know more about it. "There aren''t many such kingdoms or places actually. This one is probably the only prominent kingdom that is acknowledged by the oceans." Alex didn''t like being hugged the way she was right now, But after all these years, she had gotten used to this person. She would break an arm or leg of anyone else that even remotely touched her, but this unbearable person was not someone she could hurt. Even if she wanted to, she wouldn''t be able to even hit someone that had reflexes far surpassing her own. "The ocean has many creatures that live in it, especially in that world, water is considered to be one of the Origins of all creations. Beings of water are said to be the closest to the origin that gave birth to all life. And, among the Merfolks, the Goldtail clan is one of the oldest species in the entire world¡ª one of the Primordial species that is said to be the original ancestors of all of the Merfolks." The beings that she was talking about were also said to be the rulers of all oceans, the masters of Water, and sitting at the throne of Scales, the one who ruled above them all, was the Crowned Emperor that held powers surpassing even some Divinities. "Velstad, or Vel as I call him, is not someone I like that much since he''s a crazy bastard, but his daughter is a fun one to have around. She once ran away from her house to find some kind of hidden treasure of their kind, and when she was almost getting done in by a ferocious creature, one of my servants accidentally saved her when they were gathering materials for one of our quests." Though the emperor had alway challenged her in a battle of knowledge to see who knew about the waters, the sea and the elements of this world outside waters, his simple daughter was the one that liked more for various reasons. The way she met the sole princess of the Goldtail tribe was a folklore among the merpeople. They talked about how a Being, a master of a demon, a dragon, and a Vampire saved the Princess of the Goldtail clan, and then brought her to the location of the treasure that she was searching for. The story of how Alex helped the Goldtail recover one of their forgotten Relics was quite famous among not only the Merpeople but also many human coastal cities. She was known by many names in these locations, and one of those locations was apparently near the city that they were going to go to next. "If it weren''t for the pirates that operate in that city, as well as Hyun, that bastard, I wouldn''t really have found the way to go to their kingdom." Alex told her about how she met one of the most notorious pirates of the Southern seas, defeated their captain in a direct duel, and made them take them to the location that they had to find on their own since even the princess had no idea where she was when Alex found her. She only had a map, and despite having that detailed map, one of the reasons the princess was not able to reach the destination was because of her innate lack of directions. She did not know where they were or where she was going since she only followed the waves as she had always done. The waves showed her the way, they followed her command, and they guided her¡­ perhaps the waves were one of the reasons she was able to stay on the path leading to the treasure that she was searching for. And perhaps those waves were also the reason she met Alex. "Anyway, it''s a fun place. They make an amazing seafood barbecue." S§×ar?h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Hmm? They eat barbecue?" "Yes? What else do they have underwater aside from seafood? Grass? They surely eat grass but none of those Merpeople are vegetarians. They cannot be even if they wanted to. Some of them are cannibals. Some even have customs where they eat a part of their partners¡­ anyway, they aren''t all that special." She had spent a good amount of time with those people. They knew a lot about water even if they were oblivious to a lot of common things regarding the land, so they were at least not boring for her. Plus, since they knew a lot about one thing, it meant they knew a good lot about a certain truth, so they had also helped her understand the Truth in their own way. "I only have to collect one of the swords that they have no real use for so it will be a short trip, but going there will be a challenge like it always is." They had reached their destination. They were going to take a private jet to their destination, and since the jet also had chariots, they were going to have a little time before they reached home. The two of them had already planned to go back into the game and teleport to the city where they will be meeting the people that will take them to this underwater kingdom. They will have little time so they will have to be quick with whatever they were going to do there, but they will still have a few hours so, they planned to at least get the person in charge of the ship, and beat him up a little. Alex was even planning to rob the person and see if he had any temporary keys. The permanent keys weren''t going to be that useful without her original powers, so before she gets her powers back through them, she needed as many temporary keys as she could. And, though she had collected a total of 6 including the one she already had when Elio was still with her, they weren''t going to be nearly enough. "You all have sooo much fun in that game~." "Well, Eth¡­ it''s not a game anymore." Eth was a developer. As well as a master when it came to software. She had indirectly helped in the creation of , something she had not known about until the game itself was launched. She had to sign a contract that blocked her from playing the game itself, and even if she wanted to, she could not create an account in the game. It was unfair but it was what it was¡­ a long time had passed since then anyway so, she did not really care about all that. As long as the people around her were able to enjoy that world which she had indirectly contributed towards, she was happy. "Let''s go, Mom." Their happiness was much more precious to her than the experience of a unique otherworld. She could live with just the cool stories that they tell¡­ it was much better than risking her and all their lives anyway. Chapter 272 - 272: Blaze: The Sword Saint "Blaze." "Elio, my man~." Tall, red head, purple eyes like Olive''s, and a unique light skin tone. Olive''s big brother and one of the high rankers of . "How''ve you been man? How long has it been since I last saw you two?" S§×arch* The n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. He was tall, muscular, he was wearing a blue suit, and he was standing before a private jet with his dad. "We just met a few months ago, man. And didn''t we call a few weeks ago as well¡­ we also met yesterday so it hasn''t been that long." "No but yesterday doesn''t count. None of us were really greeting each other or anything. It wasn''t like any simple day." The moment they all came out of the car on the runway, the man, Olive''s big brother, Blaze greeted them all, and then he hugged Elio like a big brother as well. "Haha, that''s true as well. Though, I heard you were stuck in a forest or something? Tell me more about it, will you~?" He was a cheerful one like her mom, but at the same time, despite his buffed body, he looked quite athletic. And, the glasses that he was wearing made him seem more of a nerd than a typical dude in his late twenties. His clothing style was like Elio''s while Alex was still wearing simple clothes even though they were going somewhere, same as Olive and her mom. "Why don''t I tell you about all that, Blazing? What do you say? Wanna spar and talk with swords?" Elio was quite formal with him but just like everyone else, Alex was being casual with this person as well. And, when she said that, Blaze also ended up smiling. "I''d love that, sister Alex. Oh, I had this new move to test as well." "We have a deal then~." She also laughed and hugged the tall man, and then, as if Blaze was younger than her, she also patted his head. She liked those hair. They were nothing like either his dad or his mom. They were more like his grandma and it was a unique trait within their small family. "Won''t you greet your own sister, you brute bear?" "You just got better. And why would I greet you anyway. We''re going home, and you''re coming with us. What''s the point of greeting you when I''m going to see you for a few more weeks anyway." "Baby~. Don''t make it sound like we aren''t going to see Oli later~." Eth didn''t like how he had said that so she scolded him, and then she scolded Olive as well for being rude to her big brother. Alex and Elio laughed at this simple yet funny interaction of this not-so-simple family. "Alright alright everyone." A father that was a tech nerd like Alex and a mother that was a better developer than Alex. Olive who had her own passions, someone who now held a crucial role in this new, changing world. A big brother that was ranked [8th] in all of the rankings of , the first as well as the . Immortal name: Imbibition Blaze, he was also one of the first few people who owned a Divine being as his familiar. He was the first person to get acknowledged by a holy sword, he was the first person to become a master among the Players, he was also the first person to hunt a (Level-250) field boss with the help of a few other people. But he had the most contribution in that hunt¡­ and yet, he was still ranked ninth, at almost the lowest of the high rankers. The people who were above him, be it the second ranked person with the most luck, the third ranked person with the most intelligence, the fourth, fifth and sixth who were a savant by nature, or the seventh and eighth ranked ones that simply were stronger than him, had all their own abilities. But, he was still a hero in the eyes of many Natives of that world. If one knew about the , they would know about him. And since almost all people who knew even a little about the weapons knew about one of the most famed weapons ever made, they would know about this sword saint who had achieved divinity with his own efforts. He was a unique person, but also one of the most humble that Alex had met in her life in this physical world, as well as in the virtual world. "Let''s talk inside, okay? We have plenty of time to chat and play before we reach home." There was something about this family that made them quite unique compared to many other Rich families that Alex had known until now. She was a smart person so she had acquaintances all around the world, many in high society, even some in the royalties. She was not anyone famous, but she still knew a few key individuals. And they knew her as a person, not as Alex but simply as a person. The same wasn''t true for these people. They were her family, and, even though they were also rich and had a unique lifestyle, they were fun people that she loved to be around, talk with, and play with. "Dad, Alex brought her chips for you-." "Hey! You weren''t supposed to tell him! And I didn''t bring it for him-." "You brought the chips here?! Hey! Let''s see! Let''s get in! Quick!" The jet that they were going to use wasn''t anything special, it was simply one of the private jets that they owned, and it was only big enough for a few of them. It wasn''t overly luxurious or anything, but it was still pretty and plain so as they all got in, none of them felt any particular comfort or discomfort. The inside of the jet was spacious, it was going to be a 3 hour ride so they weren''t going to be engaged for too long, but still, this jet was equipped with a room of ten Chariots that though weren''t as high end as the ones that they were used to, they were good pieces of tech that Olive''s dad had installed himself. "Get the chips out, get them out~." Alex was better when it came to technology, and in particular, her way of creating these tech and programming them as well as making them efficient was so good that even a tech genius like him couldn''t match her ability to make these amazing things. Every time he had tried to make something better than hers, she had ended up making something beyond his expectations. And it was a recurring problem, something they had still going on even to this day. After many trials, he was in the process of developing the fastest processors, the finest mental-virtual graphic generators, and even the most efficient power distribution units. All of these were compat chips that ran on technology that was smaller than a thousandth of centimeter. Creating these things took months, sometimes years. But, it was worth it¡­ they were revolutionary in the industry, and even though Alex wasn''t interested in giving the other people any access to her technologies, the things that Olive''s dad created were open to the entire world. Many of the things that they had created through this competition over the last few years was now being used in many of the commercial chariots, and even if the people that used these chariots did not know about him, they were playing their favorite virtual games as well as they were doing it thanks to him. "Oh, about sparring." "Yes, yes. How about we get to it after resting for a little longer. I heard you two have to go back inside the game for a little while as well? We shouldn''t waste too much time then." "Can''t we just start right now-." "Oh, did you two see the kitchen? Let''s go see what they have in the kitchen." Blaze also wanted to spar with her as soon as possible, but they knew none of them had any actual food since the morning So, they were going to eat first. They were looking forward to having Alex and Elio''s mom''s cooking as well, but that would only be possible after they get back. Until then, they didn''t mind having the food that their chefs had made for them¡­ "Olive, you''re alright, right?" A father was always going to be concerned about his little daughter. And a brother was always going to worry about her despite knowing how tough she was. "You''re too clumsy. How did you even exhaust yourself while playing a game in that kind of Chariot?" "Go away you dumb bear!" Olive had only told about her position in this new, changing world to Alex and Elio. She did not want to tell them about what she had been through, and she had made that one thing clear. So, they did not know why she was hospitalized when she was perfectly fine, or what might have been her role in the first Myth that they had heard just like the rest of the people of this world. They wanted to know how she was and confirm if she was fine or not, but she had made it clear that Alex and Elio knew what had happened to her and that she wasn''t going to talk about all those things anymore. She was fine, and they will have to accept that. [We will take off in 3 minutes. Please be seated.] She had told the same to Elio''s family so, she wasn''t going to repeat herself even if they asked her a hundred more times after they reach their home¡­ Chapter 273 - 273: The awakenings Awakenings. Everyone experiences it at each hindered level and commonly, there are three awakenings. The first awakening that one receives when they reach (Level-100), also known as the physical awakening. It is the most common awakening where all individuals who achieve this stage, including any kind of creature or being, go through a process of physical change. Their bodies become more adapt to the world around them, a process that reconstructs their physical selves to be more adaptable to the world around them. It isn''t simply about getting stronger or strengthening the stats that they have, it''s more like a complete reconstruction of the body¡­ not the same as the body reconstruction of the eastern martial artists, but a more deep process. "A virtual body is simply a virtual representation of one''s mental self. There are many games that give you a virtual form according to your mental image of yourself, but New Origin uses the actual physical structure with the reference to the mental structures to create the virtual body." In the fundamental structure of a physical body is created with not some set template or with a complete scan of the body, but through a mental access into the mind. "Haha, that reminds me of those games that make you something you think of yourself as. Whenever I played it, it made me a kitten." Olive''s father and mom both were watching from the side as the rest of them walked to the center. Eon, Olive, Blaze, and Alex. All of them were going to spar now, and the two of them were going to watch since they have nothing more to do. They were using the virtual space that wasn''t connected to but could replicate the states and the skills that they had inside the game through a different system, but it still wasn''t the same as the ones that they have in the game. It was a special space that Eth created for Blaze to train so it was more like a personal lobby that she had gifted him. But now, they were all using it. And, since both Elio and Alex were (Level-100)+, Olive was (Level-200)+ and Blaze was (Level-300)+ they had someone who had achieved all three awakenings or at least one of them. "It''s a fascinating game anytime I think about it though. How would they have thought about using the conscious mental scans as a reference point to recreate a physical body and Then made it so that it gets better each time they cross a level?" The chariots and the head gears had existed for over two decades now. New Origin was not the first game to use these technologies, but the way they used it was completely different from how the other games did. "The fundamental process of creating a virtual body was first linked with how a software could recreate a physical structure, but ever since NO came, the Mental body materialization technique that they used in their game was something simply revolutionary." The Creators had used a unique algorithm that would put the mind through a certain process that tech nerds like Olive''s dad called (Mental Assembly). It was a very short process in which the mind was put through a series of tasks which might seem complex consciously, for the mind, or the the brain processing them, these tasks were simply commands like anything that a (thought) produces. "They understood the Mind at a level that is scientifically impossible, and then they used the philosophical principles that they had initially adopted to create a near perfect representation of a physical self¡­ it''s unbelievable." Her dad was more about how things were while Eth was always curious about why things were the way they were. That might be the reason that made her so unique yet so simple. But they were a unique match. That much was a true story. "The leveling up in their system is not simply getting stronger." With each level up, the mind becomes more adapted to the algorithm of this game, and the first time they go through the awakening process, the algorithm that has learned most there was to learn about them, gives them an appropriate virtual reconstruction that helps them adapt to the (Truths) of their world in a better way. "With the second awakening comes a personalisation of that algorithm." The one and zero in any kind of software isn''t adapted in this algorithm since the Creators used something that was more than just one and zero. "The ABC code¡­ it''s actually impossible to replicate that thing. It''s more of a phenomenon than a system." Admiration, Break, and Creation. One can also understand it as creation, destruction, and maintenance of anything that has no certain origin. The code asks one''s mind questions through the simple electrical signals that are used in any kind of technology related to virtual reality. Through a complex analysis of the answers that the code receives an initial physical body is created, then at the time of first awakening, a true physical body forms that has its own potential and talents. Later, with the second awakening, one achieves control over the mental processes, a greater freedom of movement that was not possible earlier, and the special ability to interact with the elements of the world that are simply beyond the control of normal people or those who had not achieved that stage. The third awakening, on the other hand, is more special¡­ "The representation of divinity is the most fascinating in my opinion, you know?" "You''ve said it a million times by now. Of course I know." Divinity isn''t simply a power that one can receive after they pass through a certain stage like the (third awakening) or by achieving something that grants them the divine powers¡­ in the technical terms of a tech nerd or a data scientist like Eth, this divinity is the detachment from the algorithm that was initially guiding them in that world. "Since you are practically a virtual representation of your actual self, there are bound to be countless things that will block you from doing countless things. Be it the simple interference with the creation code of that game, or to form a connection with the source code itself. The divine power is what we call Admin control." "More like Mod control actually since there still are the direct Restrictions from the Truths and the Origins present." "Actually, no. Since divinity is freedom from the original restrictions, the interference from the other forces is more like an external influence rather than innate restrictions. It''s like you can do anything you want after gaining divinity, but the world and the AIs maintaining that world will stop you and restrict you to keep the Truths maintained." They did not understand it until recently but the reason no one was able to create a ''Mythical'' achievement was because of this external restriction. Everyone over (Level-300) possesses divinity, but there are also who possess divinity despite not being of that level. The level itself is simply a representation of power, authority, and freedom. If one has divinity, the level itself becomes meaningless. Still, to achieve divinity, there are countless things that one had to do or certain trials all around the world that they needed to overcome. "The Voice¡­" All the humans all over their world had heard the voice of the system when the phenomenon occurred and the Myth of was announced alongside the status window that appeared before everyone that had some connection with the Original algorithm. Sear?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Do you think that Voice is the awakened artificial ''power'' that THEY had theorized?" Eth set back and smiled at her children. One was a diligent swordsman, her little man that always wanted to become a superhero ever since he was a baby. And then there was her stubborn daughter¡­ someone playing a key role in THEIR schemes. Her beloved Elio and not a daughter, but a best friend Alex. All of them were what gave her life a meaning, and now, they were a deep part of something that even she had only thought would forever remain a dumb theory. "It could be¡­" Sean knew less about the actual science behind things and the theories that Eth knew, but from all his experiences and the knowledge that he had about this whole thing going on in their world¡­ he knew the relationship between the Voice and the Connection that they all had with was simply complicated. "But creating an artificial god? You know the best just how absurd that is." Even if they were all seeing it in person, it was not easy to believe some Humans had artificially birthed a god that was, as god-like as anything mentioned in any kind of ancient text present in any part of this world. "Well¡­ it''s not easy to believe." If one wanted to analyze this whole phenomenon from a scientific perspective, they would have many things to say about it, but most of them would be flowed since no one, including these people, knew much about this Strange game. "But there isn''t much we can do about what we have little to no knowledge of, right?" "Yeah¡­" They watched as Alex and Blaze clashed their swords and as Elio showed Olive the unique spells that he could cast. The four of them were having fun in their own ways, and watching them, their little children, was more fulfilling for these two than analyzing abstract concepts that just didn''t have any concrete answers. When the timer ends, they will find the answers that they were looking for anyway, but until that happens¡­ "Oh, looks like Blazy is showing that cool move he was talking about." They weren''t going to contemplate about that Voice, THEIR actual goals, or the intentions of the Voice¡­ Chapter 274 - 274: Vast Blue Ocean After a few minutes, Elio and Alex went back inside the game. They had little time so the moment they reappeared in the kingdom castle, they picked their things and the others that were going to come with them, and then they all used the royal teleportation Gate to go to their destination. It didn''t take them long to pass through the spiraling gate and reach the other side, so they moved to the island first¡­ "Wow." "Miu!" "Muuuuu!" As they stood together on the sun-kissed shoreline of the island, each person experienced the scene before them in a little different manner from the other. The young ones blinked in awe, feeling as if they had stepped into a vibrant painting, their senses overwhelmed by the intoxicating mix of forest trees, saltwater and blooming flowers in the air. For Az who could only sense the things around it, this wave of new Mana coming fresh from the sea was something that it had never experienced before. Similarly for Miu, this whole land beneath it was radiating a unique kind of energy that the little gecko loved a little too much. The warm sand beneath them was so likable for the crystal creature that it started rolling on the sand, attracting attention from some of the individuals present around the area. "Haha." The rest of them marveled at the palm trees swaying gently in the breeze and the endless expanse of deep blue ocean glistening like scattered jewels under the sun. "This sure is a unique place¡­" Elio clicked various screenshots for different things as soon as they appeared here. This was different from anything that they had experienced until now. "How''s it?" Alex was a seasoned visitor of this not just this island, but of many similar places, so she smiled knowingly, recalling how this paradise had been a home to her at some point in the past, For her, the warm sand beneath their feet was a reminder of countless cherished days spent basking in the sun or exploring hidden coves. "Pretty." Elio liked this place. It was unique. They watched the waves roll in with their predictable rhythm, feeling a sense of comfort in the warm presence of the sunlit shore, and the cool breeze coming from behind them. "Misha?" The little girl stood wide-eyed and breathless, taking in the vastness of the ocean for the first time. She had traveled with her mom but most of the time, they had only traveled through the roads. They had experienced flight on occasions, but that was very rare and Misha cherished those experiences. For her, the vastness of Blue was something very special. She knew little about things that she had not experienced herself, but the ocean was something she had always wanted to see. Until just recently, she was simply a normal girl living in a normal town doing normal things, dealing with normal people. sea??h th§× nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. She had never experienced she would meet people like Elio and Alex, much less how she would gain the kind of powers that she had right now. Traveling around the world with these people was a dream come true for her¡­ they were like the heroes spoken in the tales for her. They were cool, they were caring, and they were always helping her and her mom. Elio had saved hundreds of people without caring about himself, and Alex had saved them from that evil mage. Miu and Az were her friends that played with her unlike anyone that she had been with until now. They were the only ones that understood her as much as her mom, she simply loved them. They were special for her, and so were Alex and Elio. And it was, again, only thanks to them that she was witnessing a scene as cool as this one¡­ "Pretty¡­" The roar of crashing waves sent chills down their spine as they breathed in the salty air, feeling both small and awestruck before nature''s blue grandeur. The horizon blurred where the sea met the sky, creating an illusion of infinity that made this moment feel monumental not just to the little girl but to even the mother that had never experienced something like this. "Thanks, Alex, Elio." She couldn''t help feeling gratitude towards these people. They were amazing individuals and it was thanks to them¡­ that she was seeing something she had longed for ever since she was a child. "Mom¡­?" Misha didn''t know about it, so the rest obviously did not either. But, Rin always wanted to see the vast blue ocean ever since she was as young as Misha. She wanted to be an Adventurer and go to all kinds of places, see the vast green plains, see the dense rainforests, see the vast blue oceans, and experience the endless sand covered deserts. She wanted to see the ocean especially because of a certain story she had heard from her own mother as a child¡­ a story that she could not remember anymore, but something that she still carried lingering feelings of. "Don''t be emotional now, this is still nothing compared to many other places around the ocean. You''ll love to see the sunset from a boat in the middle of the ocean, or a pink sunset." Alex had experienced a lot of things in her time in this world. She had traveled in the sea for three years, went to various islands and found many treasures that linked to the Truths. She met many strong people in her time in the ocean and islands like this one, and, even though this one had a good port city, the remote places that she had been to were sometimes much more dangerous than this peaceful place. There were people around the coast, there was a vast city on the other side of the island, and when they reach that place, they were going to be pretty shocked by the boats that they see as well. Alex knew all these people had never really seen actual fantastical boats before. She knew they were going to be amazed to see the big boats. Especially one that had a certain insignia on it. "So¡­" They did not really have much time. Elio and Alex would land soon and then they would have to log out, so before that happens, they were planning to move to the city and check into an inn. "Shall we go to the other side? There''s much left to be surprised about." Alex had missed this place actually. This island wasn''t anything special, but of the many islands in this ocean, this was a particular one that was run solely by the pirates. It was a neutral area that was open to anyone, but the only ones that had any kind of authority in this place were the ones who contributed to the well being of the people, as well as the families that lived in this city. The pirates had their own values, rules, and honor. They were respectful of the elders and those who had spent their days at the sea doing what countless other people could never even imagine. And since there was no certain authority here, they valued strength. "Can we¡­ can we stay here a little longer?" "Yes¡­ can we?" Both Misha and Rin wanted to watch the vast blue for a little longer, and they would have been fine with it if they weren''t in a hurry. "How about I show you two around the island later tomorrow. We don''t really have too much time right now¡­ we can come back here tomorrow as well. You can have 5 minutes if you want though. That much is fine." They were having fun so she didn''t want to ruin their first time on a shore. She would have loved to play with them in the water if they had a little more time, but she knew going to the city and checking into an inn would be a little difficult with the pirates there. There might be some fighting as well, so taking that into consideration, they won''t be able to play right now. But after the two of them settle down in Elio''s house, they will come back and play with them. But then again, they will have to leave for the underwater kingdom soon. They won''t really have that much time to play so¡­ "Oh, it''s fine if you two are busy." "We can come back later~. Let''s go for now, big sister." She wanted to show them all that she can in the short time they will have. She will send Elio to the person that will take them to their destination, and they will depart in a few days. There is still a month left and they will need to travel for about a week on the boat to reach their destination, so she will try to get as much as she can from this trip. Levels will be important so, now that they are doing this anyway, they should have a better power level and achieve their second awakening in the little time they have. "Will that be alright? We should wait a little longer, you know?" "It''s fine, I don''t mind~." "Haha, me neither." This trip to the underwater kingdom will not be short, but with all that was going on around them, she knew it would seem quite short. Still, she will make sure to make this trip worthwhile for the rest of them. This was the first time they were going out into the vast ocean, she wanted them to have a good first impression of this world of water¡­ Chapter 275 - 275: His family A hillside runway stretches along the slope, made smooth from the earth with grass and wildflowers growing on the sides. Tall trees stand at the edges of the strip, moving slightly in the wind. The runway, a mix of dirt and rocks, shaped by the hill beneath it, looked as secure as an artificial runway. The sky above looked wide and clear, with a few clouds scattered around. -Shhhhhhhhh¡­! A jet approaches from these high clouds slowing down as it nears the ground, its shiny metal body adored with the golden sunlight of the afternoon. -Swiiiiiiish¡­ As it lowers gently, its wheels just above the ground before it touches down with a soft bump. The wheels stir up dust and small bits of dirt from the rough runway. Then the jet moves along, its engines loud against the quiet of the hill, slowing as it reaches flatter ground. -Terrrrrr¡­ Behind it, a trail of disturbed grass and dirt rose up where it landed, and the peaceful sounds of nature slowly came back as the jet stopped. Then, the door to the jet opened up, the stairs descended to the ground, and after a few people in black coats came out and checked the surroundings, the rest of them came out as well. "Yawwwwn~. I feel sleepy¡­" Olive was the first to walk out of the jet and following her, her mom and dad and big brother, Elio and Alex also walked down the stairs or the jet. The area around them was a flat road covered in grass and dusty stands, there was also a solid earth below them which was pretty much perfect for the landing of this particular aircraft. "You seem to be tired, dear. We should hurry up and get back." From a distance, a luxurious car was approaching them. And that was their ride back to their house. S~ea??h the N?velFire.n§×t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. It wasn''t that far from here, but they were still going to need the ride since they were obviously not going to walk all the way there after their flight. "Let''s go everyone~." So, they all sat down in the luxurious car as soon as it approached them, and even though the driver could not open the door for them, they thanked the driver. Elio and Alex even greeted the driver, telling them how they were glad to see him in good health. The driver was old, but they had been a part of their family for over three decades now. They had taken care of Elio ever since he was born and he had helped around the house for a big part of their life, so they respected him. "Haaa¡­ it''s good to be back." "It still feels just like yesterday that we went back though." "It''s sometimes like that¡­" The houses in this hillside place were scattered. And, they were similar to the estates that one could see in a fantasy world. Though these houses were pretty modern and did not have tens of rooms and many unique facilities, these places were unique. Each one of the house that they saw while on the way to their own house was unique. Some had open roofs while were covered in plants of unique kinds. Some were similar to a library, while some were made entirely out of wood. One common feature of these houses was the outdoor pools that they had, some even having a complete bathhouse like facility outside. Elio even greeted a few people from the car, while Olive stopped by a few houses and greeted the people that she had known for a while¡­ still, since they had just come back, they did not spend too much time and reached their own house. "I''ll go with El~." Since Olive and Elio were neighbors with their houses being right next to each other''s, they first stopped by Olive''s house. The house was a three-story modern design, with large glass panels surrounding each floor for open views. It had a minimalist look, using a mix of concrete, black steel, and wood for a balance of natural and industrial styles. Each floor featured terraces with discreet lighting that emphasized the clean lines of the building. Inside, smart technology managed everything, from temperature control to lighting, all accessible through touch panels or voice commands. Just like Alex''s Sunday, Eth had created an AI that controlled this house and helped them with various things. The interior was open and spacious, with floating staircases connecting the floors. The rooftop included a solar-powered deck with a fire pit and seating area. It was a fun house that one might find perfectly contrasting to an area like this one. Outside, there was a pool here as well and it was an advanced infinity design with clear sides that made it look like it was part of the ground itself. It used eco-friendly filtration and had a deck with heat-regulated tiles. There was also a sunken lounge area next to the pool that let people sit close to the water without getting wet. Water jets and colored lights added a fun, modern touch to this space. "Tell V that we''ll be there after we settle down here. And wash up when you''re there!" "Yes mom, of course!" Elio''s house was right beside theirs, but unlike Olive''s tall house, Elio''s house was more on the flat side with only a two story space and no particular terrace. The pool area was similar to Olive''s but it was much larger than what they had over there. There was also a barbecue area and right behind their house, there was an open ground that they mostly used for Golf or ball games. The house itself didn''t seem false from the outside but there was still a good partition of this place that might attract attention from the people around the area. "Look who we have here~." A certain woman, a little older than the rest of them in age, was waiting for the three outside the house. She had light blond hair unlike Elio''s but her green eyes were the same as the ones that he had. Their faces were similar as well so it wasn''t that difficult to tell that this person was his elder sister¡­ she was a little shorter than him and Alex, but they would never look down on her just because of her height. She was one of the most fearsome people in this family. She was strong enough to knock Alex down in a matter of minutes and she was smarter than both Elio and Alex. She couldn''t make as good food as Alex or Olive and she did not have any particular artistic talent like Elio but she was one of the most capable people in this house and in many states. She looked after the family business and helped Elio''s father, so she was obviously no ordinary person. She hadn''t had the chance to start playing due to her responsibilities but she wanted to know about the game that everyone around her was playing. "How has my little Deer been?" She hugged Elio as soon as she saw him, and after a little hug, she hugged Olive. "Little Olive is back as well? We are going to have a feast, aren''t we~?" Lastly, she looked at Alex and smiled while looking up at her. "Did you bring what I asked for?" "Do you think I did?" "Of course not. That''s why I''m asking, no?" The sparks between their gazes were fierce, but when Alex shook her head, a smile broke out on Alice''s lips. "You brought it? How did you remember that little thing, girl?" She gave her a hug as well, and Alex hugged her back. "This little deer of yours reminded me a while back. I had long forgotten about it, obviously. But hey, we brought it so we all might as well enjoy it together. What do you-." "No." "Hmm?" "No, obviously. I''m not sharing it with anyone! It''s mine!" Alice Floyd Clarus, Elio''s elder sister. She was the first one to greet her. And following her¡­ "Looks like Ice already got all the love of my little fairies." A woman that looked no less attractive than Alex even though she was much older than any of them present here right now. "Mom¡­" With an Aura that one could feel even before meeting the unique amber gaze that she had, with each step she took, with each movement of her deep black hair, with each movement of her dress''s fabric, a wave of elegance was spread throughout the area before them. "Welcome back, darling." Elio was almost tearful when he saw her. A unique wave of memories washed over him, reminding him of various painful, harsh, and fun experiences that he has had in these past few months both inside the game and in reality. It was a strange feeling, but all of it was washed away when Minerva, his mother, held both of his hands. "Looks like you''ve been through a rough time¡­ how about I make you some coffee? Will you tell me about everything once again?" "Yes¡­" The bond that Elio and Alex had was unique, the bond that Olive and Elio had was simple but special, and the bond that they had with the people close to them was a special one as well. But they all knew the bond that these two had¡­ the bond between this mother-son duo was as unique as the rarest being or element in this world. They were close, but, even with all the difficulties they had faced together, the unique relationship that they had was unshaken by anything. "We should go in first, right everyone? Alex?" "Oh yes yes, of course." She was a simple person. And yet she was the root that had supported these two families and made it as unshakable as it was right now. Not everyone liked her here, but that was her charm. She was important to all of these people, especially to the younger ones. Perhaps, if it wasn''t for her¡­ none of them might have been in the position that they were in at this moment. Chapter 276 - 276: Quality time Elio''s mom was a simple person. They had a big house but they did not have that many servants since she liked working and doing most of the things by herself. There surely were people around to keep things in place, but most of them had been a part of this house for over a decade now. They were no less than a family to the people that lived here. They were special and so were their roles. "You all seem tired. Will you be resting or shall we make something to eat together?" She might not be as good at cooking as the two young girls she was sitting with, but there were a few things that she simply made better than anyone else here. There were things that she simply had mastered. There was no one in this house, perhaps in this entire neighborhood that could match her when it came to those things. And one of those things, one of those simple yet essential things was Coffee. "I think we should have dinner and then rest instead of waiting for now or waking up later on." "Right~? We can go for a walk after we eat as well~." They were tired already but they knew as long as they were in this house, they didn''t have any choice but to do as his mom said. They could not possibly say no to most of the things that she said, and anything related to exercise was one of them. "Sure¡­" "We don''t have any choice anyway-." "Oh~. Would you look at the time~. It seems like I''ll have to go back now. I had this thing to do-." "Do you really think that works, Olive dear?" Olive was here right now, and she had just heard what his mom said. There was no way she was skipping this anymore. "There are things that one should not skip. Walking, exercising and reading are one of those things." In her prime, she was a renowned archer. But then she met someone that changed her life in many ways.. "Oh. Are we going to make something? Should I bring some fresh things?" Elio''s father. The man whose Green eyes Elio and his sister had inherited. He was someone of high position, someone who dealt with people, products, and things related to the industries and organizations on daily bases. He was a busy person that had given his all to support his family. Elio had learned hard work from him, he had obtained his tenacity, and at the same time, he had his mother''s stubbornness. "Oh, that wouldn''t be necessary, dear. I already asked uncle Liem to bring groceries." He had learned a lot of things from these two, however, there was still one thing that he had still not completely understood¡­ a topic that was so simple at the first glance that it seemed minuscule, and yet was so important that even after being with Alex for all these years, he had not really understood it¡­ "Alright then. I''ll be reading by myself. Or is there anyone who wants to join me?" "Oh! Oh! Can I come with you uncle Fin?" Be it Olive or someone else in their house, they all looked up to this simple looking person who was wearing a simple t-shirt with no shoes. He was like Alex when it came to fashion, but unlike her minimalist nature, he simply didn''t have to care about his attire when he was in his personal space. "Olive? Won''t you help us? We are going to make cookies as well so¡­" "Hmm? Why are you making cookies at night?" "For night snacks?" "¡­weren''t you going to sleep? Why do you want snacks?" "Of course we are going to sleep today, dummy. These will be for tomorrow." "You want to make cookies for tomorrow¡­?" Olive couldn''t understand what Alex was saying or why she wanted to do something so strange. There was no need to make cookie dough a night before if they weren''t going to use it anyway. Keeping it will overnight won''t really be effective. No one in this house ate that kind of cookies as far as she knew so, this simply confused her. "Well¡­ you should help us if you wanna know why I want to do it, no?" Alex was smirking, which meant she wasn''t using some kind of weird tactic to make Olive do something she did not want. She didn''t wanna go for a walk and she had no intention of staying in the kitchen when she could just go and watch some news and see what was happening. There were many things that she needed to take care of anyway so getting away from all the work was her first choice right now¡­ "Ugh¡­" But since Alex was smirking at her like this, this simple girl knew there definitely was something to this whole cookie thing. "Alright. I''ll stay back¡­" "Oh? Then I''ll be going by myself. Take care, children." Elio''s dad Floyd and his mom Minerva who people also called Lady V from her past profession. These two were quite a unique pair¡­ "Alright then. Let''s go make some food~." They met when she was staying at one of the hotels during a grand tournament, a place which was owned by their family. Back then, she was simply a young girl like Alex, someone who knew little about the rest of the world outside of her own interests. The bows and arrows were her life and her eyes were her everything. The target was her best friend, while the winds were her situationships. They were close, but at the same time, had a bitter relationship. She had later befriended these winds but before that, she knew little about the worldly things, knew little about the art that she had mastered itself. "So, what''s everyone thinking? Something light or a heavy feast to celebrate the safe return of all my little sweeties?" Apparently, V was checking into the hotel and then there was a sudden robbery. The robbers came in armed and were blocking the gates, ready to aim for the civilians and the people present in the lobby. But she noticed them, took out her bow and practice arrows, and took down six armed robbers with simple arrows, almost critically injuring one of them who was almost about to target an old lady. There was a commotion back then, and then the owner of that place who was apparently staying there for the time being, was informed of the incident. "Mom¡­ I don''t feel like eating much." Sear?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "I''m feeling shrimps. A salad preferably." "Hmm? You two don''t wanna eat much either? I don''t think I''ll be eating much either. But I was thinking something like taco. Light and also fulfilling." They didn''t wanna eat much, and, their elder V understood what they all wanted. "I see, then let''s go make some light dinner~." V and Fin¡­ He was the first one to apologize to her as well as the one that thanked her for her help at that time. And as a thanks, he offered her a dinner at a certain fancy meeting that he was going to at that time. It was a famous place where even people like him couldn''t get a reservation, but he was lucky enough to get the chance, and he shared that chance with her. But then there was another incident when they were going to that place, so they were late, and by the time they reached the place, they had missed their chance¡­ and since she wasn''t in the mood anymore, they just ate some pizza. Later, well, they made up at the hotel and then, the entire time she was there, they kept meeting for lunch, for dinners, perhaps brunch, and sometimes much later at nights as well¡­ It was a fling, they both knew that, so they simply enjoyed the moment. They were together for three weeks. And then she had to go back, so they parted ways on a good note. However¡­ She was different. So, he went to her, met her again, stalked her, met her again, and¡­ since she shared his feelings as well, they gave it another try. But then there was another incident, a big one. Both of them almost lost each other back then¡­ but they somehow came out of it alive. And it was only then that they fell in love¡­ They were together for three years before they got engaged and in the same year, they got married, and it was also at that time that Alice came to this world. There were many incidents, accidents, and tragedies in their journey, but they still somehow found each other again¡­ Twenty seven years and they were still together. Which, for them, and for the rest of them who knew their story, was nothing less than a miracle. "Oh, is Eth coming? Didn''t she say she''d be coming?" "Those two ended up breaking one of Alex''s chips so dad is now fixing it. And, well, since it''s complicated, mom''s helping him as well." "Thankfully, it was a spare one so we won''t need it for now." Even Alex did not understand how he managed to bend her titanium pin¡­ it was an alloy so it was even more surprising to her. But it was fixable. With some right tools, it wouldn''t take too long¡­ the reason they were locked up in their rooms was something else. But since everyone knows that already, no one said anything about it specifically. With V and the rest of the helpers in the kitchen, they started preparing their dinner for tonight¡­ Chapter 277 - 277: The grown Dark Knight -Oooooooooong. They came back to the virtual world. And before them was a pretty scene quite different from the ones they had opened their eyes to after logging back into the game. sea??h th§× N?vel(F)ire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "It''s¡­ pretty." The first thing that greeted them was the soft, salty breeze that drifted in through the open balcony doors. -Swiiiiiiiish¡­ The air was cool and crisp, carrying with it the unmistakable freshness of the sea. Stepping forward, they could see the entire coastal city unfold beneath them from this high floor of their inn, the rooftops of buildings clustered below like scattered tiles. Beyond, the vast ocean stretched endlessly toward the horizon, a shimmering blue that seemed to merge with the sky in the distance. The evening sunlight danced across the surface of the water, casting glimmering silver patterns as gentle waves rolled toward the distant shore. "It can be much prettier, you know? You''ll find it unbelievable when you wake up to the eastern birds of paradise, hehe." Seagulls swooping in the distance, their cries lost in the soothing sound of the ocean breeze. The air smelled of brine and seaweed, with just a hint of the city''s distant markets, but it was dominated by the clean, invigorating freshness of the water. Far out at sea, a few ships were tiny specks against the horizon, their sails catching the wind as they drifted along peacefully, some unique ones strangely standing out, even against the grand horizon¡­ "I don''t know how that''d feel but it must be quite something as well, huh? Well¡­ this is still pretty." The whole scene exuded a sense of calm and vastness, as if the world beyond the inn was waiting to be explored, yet offered a tranquil escape from the noise and bustle below. "I''d definitely pay to live in a place like this." This was a famous inn, one of the most famous in this entire place, however, they did not pay to get this special room, and they also did not pay anything for the other room that they got for Miss Rin and Misha. The workers of the place recognised Alex at a glance and called the manager who escorted them to these rooms personally. When Elio asked for how much their stay was going to cost, the manager laughed and said he valued his life more than any kind of money that he can ask from Her. He wasn''t necessarily afraid of Alex, but simply the force that was she followed her in this place¡­ "Let''s go down." "Yeah. They must be waiting-." "I mean let''s go Down." Alex was being playful, so Elio looked at her with a stunned look for a moment and just shook his head before walking out of the room. "Hey~." She once took down one of the most notorious pirate groups'' captains and made him submit to her. This particular pirate group was one of the strongest who had a great control over this city, and the captain of the pirates was a grandmaster, one of the few in the entire continent. And yet she defeated him¡­ how? No one knows. But every member of the crew of those pirates was Farid of her, and their fear of hers wasn''t something simple either. They simply could not help but be respectful to her, something anyone mentioning even her name before them could observe. No one really knew why they treated her like that, but they knew there was something special about her¡­ Perhaps, that was the reason the captain of these pirates, one of the most notorious individuals of this city, the captain of the Black Hawk Brigade, was waiting for her and her companions downstairs. "Lady Roxanna, greetings." "Oh! Oh! Mommy! Look! A big beard!" "Miu!" "Muuuuu!" The pirate was a striking, compact figure, standing only around 5 feet tall but with an imposing presence. His wild, thick beard stretched almost to the ground, tangled with bits of gold threads and trinkets, giving him an eccentric yet intimidating look. His hair, cut short and disheveled, peeked out from under a weathered tricorn hat that sported a faded purple cross. His dark, deep-set eyes gleamed with respect and awe as he stood before them, framed by a face lined with the scars of countless challenging battles. On his back, he carried a massive, weather-beaten hammer, the head of which was adorned with ancient engravings of sea serpents and storms, hinting at some long-lost archaic truth. His attire was a mix of patchwork leathers and cloths, with a belt lined with small pouches and a few rusted daggers, most of which were either a very special item, or a special item bound to him. "Howdy, GM~?" Though small in stature, the pirate exuded strength and confidence, his mere presence in this inn''s lobby attracting unquestioned attention¡­ He was strong, it was so obvious that not even the famous adventurers that were staying in this costly place even dared to go before him. He was also not alone in this place, right outside of this inn stood half of his crew, people that could single handedly take on mythical monsters of the sea that one could only ever hear the stories of. Bards in various parts of the continent even sang of their certain tales, with their victory over a (Silver Fish) known even in the other continents. "You should have told us if you were coming, we would have made preparations." He was someone that could very well go against even the high rankers, and yet as he stood before him, there was not even a hint of arrogance on him. He could tell she wasn''t as strong as she was when she defeated him a few years ago, but that did not matter. "There''s no need for all that. You people do too much anyway. We can just have a beer together. That''s more than enough party for me." She knew if this person was standing before him, there was always a chance that she could defeat him just the way she had defeated him all those years ago. But fighting wasn''t the only thing she was good at¡­ he had learned some of the biggest lessons of his life from her. "Haha, you''re still the same." She was a respectful individual even without her fighting skills, even without her powers, even without her abilities. Just her presence was something the people around her, those who knew her for her character looked up to¡­ There weren''t many Truth chasers in this world as tenacious, smart, and stubborn as her. She had saved his life more than once, she had saved the life of his people, his family, his crew¡­ all that was more than enough to earn his eternal respect. "Anyway, I heard you people met a certain dark knight with a unique horse? What''re you doing with Odin?" "Hmmm?" Just a minute ago, Misha told them that she saw the person who had been with them when they were at Eve''s house. The dark knight uncle that had a pretty horse, she said. And then she told her how she saw some people with purple hats chasing after him¡­ It was strange since both Alex and Elio guessed who she might be talking about, but then again, only she knew about these purple hat people. "You know that bastard, Lady Roxanna?" "I know him? Well of course I know him. What did he do though? Why did the Hat platoon go after him?" It had been a while since they last saw Odin. Elio had actually never seen him after That day. He had certainly received many messages from him IRL, but not in the game. Not even after he came back recently. Elio was wondering whether he even knew about him or not. But now that they were hearing about his presence in this faraway place, it seems like he was having his own troubles. "If it weren''t for you telling us that, I swear I would have gone to find him myself. That bastard sunk Qlipot! A few back, he came out of nowhere on his horse that was running on water and even though it seemed like he had control over his horse, he crashed right into our ship!" For a pirate, their ship was one of the most important things. It was not only their house, it was a partner with whom they spent a significant part of their lives. Some found friends and formed families on these ships, and the one that this person was talking about was more than a hundred years old. A ship on which his nephews and nieces were born. It had not sunk in the hundred years that he had sailed in it. Not even the strongest monsters and the wildest storms of the sea had broken that piece of dragonwood. But a horse sank it? "He did what¡­?" Just until a while ago, Odin was a simple dark knight that had just recently obtained his familiar. They did not see him after he left Alex and the capital because of some quest of his own, but he surely should not be strong enough to make an enemy out of a fleet as big as theirs. "Can you tell me a little more¡­" Alex did not know what kind of trouble he had caused but that ship was more important to this person than his own life. And if Odin did something as crazy as sinking it, that bastard was definitely in trouble. She did not know if he did it on purpose or not, but it did not matter at this point. He will have to pay for what he had done, even if there was a deep reason behind his actions. Chapter 278 - 278: Forgiveness [Alex''s POV: ] The first time I met GM was a few years ago. Back then, I was simply a strong person that was finishing a certain quest and somehow ended up in this coastal town. There were many quests in this place since I was the first discoverer of this place, so I did as many quests as I possibly could. ''One of the memorable quests was from the pirate groups that owned one of the best ships in not just this town, but in the entire world.'' The pirate ship was a unique construct made from a unique material called Dragonwood, one of the hardest materials known to mankind. ''The person who made this ship, the first captain of Black Hawk, must have been a great craftsman to use a material that could not be cut with any kind of ax and make it into a ship as beautiful as this one.'' But, we don''t know much about that person, just like how we don''t know much about the insignificant things that had happened a few centuries ago. Still, the ship was made in a way that made it impenetrable. It was an attractive ship and yet it wasn''t really something any less sturdy than a warship of modern times. The main material was so strong no metal ball could harm it, the ship had so many mini components to support its entire structure that it was incomprehensible to even me. ''Many of the archeologists and researchers as well as Experts had observed and studied this ship for many years, and with the changing times, and with the changing chaplains of these pirates, the legacy that their founder had left for them had continued on.'' GM, the current captain, was a capable old man much older than his looks. He was short but his beard was funnily big enough to offset his short stature. He looked normal and acted respectfully around me, but he was still one of the most notorious pirates in this world¡­ he had robbed more than half of the ships that have ever entered their territory. He had killed creatures that were simply unfathomable even to me at one point. ''If I go against those monsters right now, I know I''d die instantly.'' They weren''t simple creatures. The silver fish that they had killed was a tough challenge even to the High rankers. GM himself was a (Level-230) so he was an especially high leveled native. ''Not many people in this town, or this continent would be able to go against him, I know that much.'' The only reason Odin was still safe was probably because he was lucky. Had GM acted himself, he would have most definitely died a few times already. "Apologies to them." These pirates were all egoists even though they don''t give off that kind of vibe. They aren''t your typical people that kill others and steal their stuff on sea and they don''t have an eyepatch or wooden limbs. They are people who live on water. Have their own culture and societies that follow their own values and traditions. Not many outsiders can be a part of their culture, but if someone was present on this island, it was evident that they were somehow connected to one of the big pirate groups. "I''ve apologized many times¡­ they just don''t want to believe me." "I wouldn''t believe you if you destroyed my house, dumbass." "I didn''t do it because I wanted to! Besides! I didn''t know anything about any of these people or this place when I came here. I was just running away from that awfully powerful thing!" Odin obtained a certain quest item from a quest he did that transported him near this island. He was in the middle of the ocean when he obtained that item, but thankfully, with his familiar that could walk on water thanks to its ethereal body, he was able to travel on the ocean. Sadly, he caught attention or a certain playful (Pink Orca). A mid-boss rank (Level-198) creature. Odin was barely (Level-160) so there was no way he could defeat that creature, so he instinctively started away from the creature: one thing you do not do when you encounter a pink orca. sea??h th§× NovelFire.net* website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. ''Those playful creatures think that the person running away from them is trying to play with them so they chase them, and those who do not know about these creatures, under pressure or overwhelmed by fear, run from them until they can not.'' In this case, Odin and his little horse ran away from this creature until they crashed into a ship that they did not see in their way. ''The creature had long lost interest in them but they thought they were still being chased by it when they crashed into the ship.'' And when they destroyed the ship, since they knew they had fucked up, they bolted away from there. The pirates were facing a crisis with one of the greatest ships on the verge of sinking due to a small hole, so instead of chasing the bastard or killing it outright with the magic cannons, they all got to work and somehow saved their home first. And then they chased Odin all around the town, the sea, and even across this island. "Apologies again. And do it sincerely! You too!" "Meeeehehehehehe!" Sleipnir wasn''t at fault here since the one riding it was his dumb master, but they still had to apologize. "Just do it." "¡­" GM and his entire crew was here right now. The rest of the inn lobby was empty with only us left here. Misha was playing with GM''s beard and he didn''t mind it but the way he was looking at Odin and Sle made it seem like he wanted to rip both of them apart right here, right now. But he held himself back since I was here¡­ "We apologise." "Miiihehehe!" The two apologized, and Miu fell off the wall it was trying to climb, so one of the crew members helped the little creature. Az was already playing among them and it was having fun with these people so we didn''t pay attention to them. Rin was chatting with Sera on the side, Victor was gone on an errand and Elio was observing GM''s hammer, the special relic that was bound to him. "He apologized, ok? I''d appreciate it if you can let this one go with a light punishment. Have him work for you for a month or something. Beat him up, until he''s almost dead or torture him. But he did not know what he was doing." He would let this one go if I asked him to, he would do most things if I asked him to, but I didn''t want to force him. Odin made a mistake, and he deserved to be punished for not destroying the ship, but for running away without saying anything. Had he helped them with the repairs instead of running off to some other pirate crew, he would have been fine. But he didn''t do that and instead ended up doing something that further angered them. And he had to take responsibility for his mistake if he wanted to finish whatever quest he had. "Lady Roxanna¡­ you know the best not dying by our hands will be much more difficult for him than simple death. Torturing him doesn''t seem to be a good choice given his oblivious attitude towards this place, but if we aren''t going to kill him, he will have to endure much more than a few simple deaths." The pirates were strict with their own logic. Odin had destroyed their house so he gotta pay and he will have to pay one way or other. But, instead of dying and losing his progress and losing on time to finish his quest when there wasn''t much time left before the ''timer'' in our world ends and Something happens, it was much better for him to learn from these people. Though difficult, he will end up in a much better position if he were to stay with them until that day comes. "He''s not exceptionally smart or intelligent, but you will find him useful. I guarantee that much. You''ve seen his horse already, but he can do a little more than running away with this darkness energy." He had fucked up enough to know what I was doing for him right now as nothing less than a divine grace. He better be thankful to me, buy me a drink or something. It was fate that we came here to save his ass, or else these people would have spawn killed him for the rest of the time this World was still separate from ours. "Hmmm¡­" GM looked at him up and down and thought about it for a little longer. He knew this person was useful at the very least if he was able to get away from his people for so long. Having him as a slave boy on deck would be better than having him on a side that he didn''t really get along with. "Alright." His horse that can walk on water will be a good tool when they have to fight in the storm waters against the beings that will come their way when they go with Alex. Dropping them off to the underwater kingdom was their next task as she had told them already, so they were going to depart in a few days. Until then, he will make sure this Boy learns all about them and his own work¡­ He will have to work to his bones if he wanted to atone for his sins. Chapter 279 - 279: A cool mom They met up with the captain, and sorted out the little issue their old friend had created. They were surprised to see how he had grown, especially how well he had grown with his familiar. It was evident that after parting ways with them, the two of them must have been through quite a lot of things. It was obvious that they had fought many strong enemies from the bond that they had. The horse had grown as well and now, it could use many new abilities that it previously could not. It also looked like a proper horse, a proper fantastical horse instead of a pony, so seeing the majestic creature was a unique experience in itself. Both of them were surprised to see it, and they knew this being, this amazing being loved his master as much as the familiars of the high rankers loved their masters. Seeing them reminded Alex how she had been with her own familiar, the being that she thought she would be able to call when she reached her first awakening stage but that did not happen. She still could not call her familiar, but she wasn''t worried about that chubby little one. She knew it would be fine and the moment it comes back to her, it would have as happy as she knew it would be. There was also the fact that Odin and the little horse had leveled up far more than the two of them had anticipated. He was strong and smart, they knew that much, but that did not mean they were any special than the other players. Until they were with them, they were still pretty normal even after being of a unique class. But their growth speed was surprising for them. It was not simply a level of a few ten levels but a level jump of several levels in the first awakening stage. They did not yet know what the two had done to level up so much in such a short time, but they were looking forward to asking them. "Wanna take a walk?" They still had some time before they departed for their voyage, so before that, everyone left for their own preparations. And, since Alex and Elio didn''t really have much to do, they came back to their world. They had just arrived at Elio''s house a while back so they still had many things to do in the house and updating their chariots was one of them. They knew they wouldn''t be able to do it anytime soon with what was going on, but Alex at least wanted to set up the parts that they will be changing in the existing chariots so the assembly process itself would become easier. However, for that, they needed the chip that Olive''s dad accidentally broke and was studying right now. They will have to get that thing tomorrow morning, since it was late night right now. They couldn''t disturb them when it was so late¡­ So, the two decided to simply leave that matter and go on a walk now that they had come out anyway¡­ sleeping was something they can do later anyway. -Swiiiiish! "Hmmm?" "Oh, now that''s a sound I haven''t heard in a while." Elio''s room was on the edge of the second floor so the two of them walked all the way to the other side. But while they were walking towards the staircase leading downstairs, they heard a certain sound, and were reminded of a few fun things. "Let''s go. Quick." Alex was especially excited about this so she grabbed Elio''s hand and dragged him to the window downstairs. Outside of this window, they could see a certain scene that they had seen many times¡­ and yet, even after seeing it so many times, they still found it as Special as the first time they saw it, the first time they saw Her. It was a moonlit night and their front herd had quite a bit of grass. S§×ar?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. They lived in a mountainous region so the nights of this place were pretty bright naturally. The stars in the sky were more visible, there was also fresh air around this place, and the place was naturally cool. Not cold like it was in winter, but naturally cool. There was pretty little pollution, there was also much less notice pollution in this place since only a few families lived in this area. So¡­ most of the time it was quite enough for even a single sting of the bow to be audible. "A goddess¡­" Elio''s mom stood in the middle of their garden, her being bathed in the serene moonlight of the quiet night. Holding a bow in a professional attire, without any arrows on her bow, she stood in a perfect form, maintaining a perfect posture that would shame the modern day athletes that appear in the competitions. She was old, but she still had a defined form and a body that looked as athletic as it did two decades ago. Her eyes, unique and different from the one her children had, still contained the kind of light that no one in their house possessed. Her hands were sturdy as she held the bow, her fingers did not have any gloves, she wasn''t wearing any safety equipment at all, and yet, she wasn''t afraid of being hurt. Each time she moved her fingers on the bowstring, there was a strange certainty in her eyes. She was looking at a distant target, her complete attention focused on the very center of that target. It seemed like nothing else in this world mattered to her. It seemed like the world itself did not exist for her at that moment. There was only the bow in her hand, the target before her eyes, the bowstring on her finger, and the calm breathing that resonated with the air around her¡­ "Seeing her like this always seems so¡­ fictional." Alex did not have many inspirations when it came to people of this world, people of reality, people that she could learn something from since most of the thing she had learned either by herself or from the individuals that existed in that virtual world. But, Elio''s mom was different¡­ she had learned a lot of things from this person in the last few years. And above all the things that she had learned, passion for her own ''art'' was something she had always placed on top. Just like this moment that had made Elio speechless once again, there was something about those who had mastered that one thing. For Alex it was sword, for Elio it was what one understands as ''art'' itself, and for his mom, for this cool person, it was archery. "Should we tell her to show a few things again?" "You want to train in the middle of the night? Again?" "¡­" She was the most serious when she was talking about this, about archery. She had been in love with a bow and arrow ever since she was younger than Misha. She wanted to become one of those fictional characters that can fire unfathomable destructive objects from her bow when she was young¡­ that''s what made her choose archery. That silly thought of being able to do cool and fun things with a bow and arrow drove her to practice this simple yet effective sport to the highest standards. And even after she left the professional field for this family, she kept improving herself, her art, her skills, refining even the smallest of the gaps she had. Just like right now, at some point, she mastered the bow and arrow in her own way, and was able to do things that were seemingly impossible. Many of the things she could do in reality were something many people could not even do inside realistic games like . One of the reasons she wanted her to play NO was exactly because of her prowess, but she could never convince her. For her, a game was a game and the reality was reality. She had countless things to do in this world, she had countless things to look after each day and if she spent a few hours of her time in that game, even with the time difference in place, she knew she wouldn''t be able to enjoy either of the worlds. She was happy here and she had everything she needed. The joy of life was more than enough for her so she did not want to experience a fictional world that had magical elements and unique things. There were still so many things that she did not know about this world that she did not even want to experience what it was like in some other world¡­ so, she never played the game. But if she had played, even for a year or so¡­ Alex knew she would have surpassed even the best archer, one of the high rankers, in terms of pure skills. She would have to do many special quests to get to their level but even without that, she would still be on par with those possessing divinity. That was, if she ever played the game¡­ -Swiiiiiiiiish. The release of her string caused the air around her to resonate. And even though she did not have any arrow on her bow, it almost seemed like the very air around her was shot from the bow. If one looked closely, they would even ''see'' how this air that was shot from her bow actually hit the target in the very center¡­ It was humanly impossible to do something like that. And yet, every time they saw her doing this, they thought that she was some kind of main character from some other world that could do fictional things. It was always like this when they were with her. She was simply just that cool of a person¡­ "Huuuu¡­" Alex could certainly imagine just how difficult it was to do what she did just now while making it seem so effortless, and now that Elio knew how power worked in the world of he knew it as well. It wasn''t simply about shooting some arrows at the target. Breathing, micro movements, there were many elements involved in the process of shooting these arrows and making them hit the target in a certain way. Now everyone could do it. There were few who could actually do it from a distance at which she was standing at With an arrow. There were many things that one needed to take into account when doing this, and yet she was doing it without any safety devices or any arrows. And that too, with a wooden bow instead of the professional ones that were hanging inside of their house. "I see you two¡­ are still awake¡­" She looked into their direction now that she was done with that little training. There was a smile on her face that was asking them if they wanted to see something more than this. And they would have certainly loved to See some more of those cool moves as well. "Oh damn¡­" "What now? Should we run-." Alex had already run back inside before he could say anything more than that. She didn''t want any more training and she knew Elio did not either, so it was only a bad idea to go out right now. She knew the kind of training Elio had received from her, she knew just how brutal she was with that training so, at this late hour, they were better off sleeping instead of running around this entire neighborhood. "Hahaha¡­" V, his mom, knew their thought process at that moment so she couldn''t help but chuckle at these funny children. They had grown up a little but even right now, they were still the same little children that They used to be¡­ Chapter 280 - 280: The sparring session The strength of a (Level-100) could be measured by the highest level of creature that they can defeat. It is a simple logic of that one''s physical body reconstructs after the first awakening and they gain a better control over their virtual body. This upgrade which takes the Metabody which one creates at the starting of the game takes the whole experience that one has in the game to the other level, making them more connected with that world, and granting them access to the abilities that they did not know they could use. The highest level of creature that they could defeat, at this point, becomes the standard of their strength. And, since we aren''t talking about simple monsters but also all kinds of creatures present in the game, there are various ways one could access their own unique speciality while defeating these creatures. -Clank! Clank! Clank! There are set creatures that are used to measure one''s strength, there are set creatures that are used to measure one''s other stats, and there are some creatures that simply measure one''s intelligence as well. These special creatures are special beings in the world of NO and having these creatures makes one owner of a priceless jewel. -Oooooooooooooong! In Eon''s case, he had walked the path of a tamer at first, then he walked the path of magic, and when he learned that he had extreme compatibility with Bow in the game, he also started learning the bow on the side. However, he did not use it in any battle particularly until now. He had learned a higher level of magic and understood the core of magic that existed in that world using the ancient scripts that Alex had left to him. He was now able to cast natural magic as well as his unique magic in a way that made it seem as flawless as moving through a straight space. -Ooooooooooong! On the other hand, even though Olive had crossed the level of a basic ranker by now, she was still nowhere near the level of even the likes of Elio who had just started playing the game when it came to physical abilities. She was a chef and she was a lifestyle player instead of a battle manic like the rest of them. Like Elio, there was something else that she liked more than killing the creatures around them. Killing monsters and getting EXP was one thing with the help of her dad and brother was one thing since she didn''t have to do much there, if she was asked to kill even a (Level-20) creature at this point, she would not be able to do it. She had only landed the final blow on all the creatures that she had killed until now so to kill something by herself was not something she would like¡­ but that did not mean she could not do it. She had killed and she would kill again if she had to. Unlike Elio, she didn''t really have any problem killing these creatures. They were simply creatures in her eyes until a while ago anyway. She wouldn''t have hesitated to kill a bunch of them if she had no other choice. However, that was before she was granted the role of the judge by the world and was forcefully granted the knowledge required to be a Judge. -Boooooooooom! Now, she knew about the world. She knew about the creatures, the places around the world, the people, the realness of those people, the realness of that world and every single thing that existed in that world. She now knew a lot of things, and thanks to that knowledge, even if she wanted to, she could not kill something unless it was meant to be killed and she could not let something die if it wasn''t meant to be. Until now, players have had immortal bodies that would return to life after suffering a few penalties, but now that the two of their worlds were colliding, that was going to change. As she and only she knew, the entire world was going to see things that they had only thought of as Fictional until now. They were going to experience things, much like the status window, that they had only thought of as something that was an Element of the games. S~ea??h the n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Soon, the world was going to change, and these people¡­ these people sparring before her, were going to be at the center of that change. "That''s it! Go go go! Go baby!" "My Alex is going to win this one as well~!" "No! My Blaze will win! Hmph!" They were inside the special space of Blaze once again and though she doesn''t do it often, V was inside this virtual world as well. Alex and Blaze were fighting- sparring- at a distance while Elio was helping Olive create something that they could not make as well in reality as in this special space connected to as well as a few other Metaworld programs. Alex was using her sword, and Blaze was using his own sword. However, there was a distinct difference between both these swords. While Alex''s sword was purely white and radiated a unique golden glow that indicated the presence of something holy, the sword that Blaze was holding radiated a strange kind of holiness. Alex''s sword was long and the grip of this sword was covered in a unique black leather. The blade itself was made from an unknown metal while the hilt of the blade was covered in red and white threads. The sheath of the sword in her hand was made from the same material as the sword''s blade so, even though both of these objects might seem heavy for their looks, they were as light as a twig. This was a special sword that only she could wield, and that too after sacrificing a temporary key, a famed sword that was created by the hands of at least a grandmaster. That was the minimum requirement to temporarily access her powers, but that was when they were in the real world. In this special world that created a near perfect replica of their selves from the game as well as of their items, she was able to access the powers that this sword granted to her on a much freer level. Though she did not have all the powers that she used to have, she had enough power to go against someone like Blaze who was wielding a holy sword. A weapon that had a consciousness of its own. A relic of the past and an object that was wielded by a being that was talked about in the epics of many parts of east. This sword, this holy blade, though being of eastern origin, resembled the holy swords mentioned in the western epics. It was a straight sword, unlike the curved sword of Alex. It was also double edged unlike the white sword that Alex wielded. The sword was golden and was made with the most precious metal known to men: Epocheum. An ancient gold that possessed a unique silver glow to it so distinct that one can recognize this unique metal just by the looks of it. It was a unique metal, and the sword that was made from it was nothing less than special either. -Swiiiiiiiiiish! -Swish! Swish! Swish! If Rin and Sera were able to use holy powers naturally, Blaze could use the holy power as a resource. Through his blade, he could convert any kind of energy, even the one present in the atmosphere around him, into holy blaze, the golden Aura that was burning on the sword right now, and use it in any battles indefinitely. As long as he had the energy to sustain his own self and the stamina to keep going, he could use this special sword and the power that it granted him for days, perhaps weeks and months¡­ He was one of the few that had actually fought in one of the longest battles of the world of in the second Main scenario that occurred a few years ago as well, and he was also one of the few that were left standing after going against a demon king. It was no simple fight, many of them lost their lives merely by being under fear debuff that the demon passively cast on them. However, thanks to this holy sword, Blaze was able to fend off all those abnormalities as well. This one sword was one of the few player owned objects that were famous even among the natives. There were few that might not have heard the name of this sword and the wielder of this sword, a living legend, as well as one of the coolest guys Alex knew. "I''m going to win this one as well, little one." Alex was obviously younger than him, but the relationship that these two had was older than the rest of their house members knew. They knew each other ever since she was a pro in some other game and he used to be a simple player at that time. She had taught him a few things and the two had become friends at that time, however, they met again when they started playing and then on, though they did not know each other IRL they played together on multiple occasions. It wasn''t until two years ago that Elio actually introduced them and they somehow found out that the two of them, in fact, were the same individuals that they had known from their past. They then became friends and even though they later found out that Blaze was older, he never stopped treating her the elder one among them. And, Alex being Alex, also found treating him as she always had a bit more comfortable. It was their relationship dynamics. They were acquaintances that ended up becoming family members. But still, till this day, there has not been one instance where Blaze had won against this person in a fair fight of pure skills. If they were talking about sword using, there was perhaps no one better than Alex in not just the player rankings, but with the exception of the TWO of them, there was no one that could come close to her when they were talking about pure skills. He admired her for many reasons, but her skill stood at the top of those reasons. She was, simply, amazing¡­ Chapter 281 - 281: Departing on a voyage "GM! How''s it going over there~?" Qlipot. S§×ar?h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The grand ship was a striking sight at the dock, its hull made of shimmering, ivory like wood that changed colors in the light. Carved with glowing patterns that were most definitely enchantment engraved with the purest of the materials that one could not find in this day and age even if they wanted to, the ship''s sails, large and translucent, shifted between silver and white even without wind. At its prow, a figurehead of a dragon-phoenix-turtle stretched toward the sea, its glowing eyes of a unique marble hinting at magical origin¡­ known to few, this marble was in fact an powerful item crafted with the bones of a mythical creature. Behind it, the ocean spread out, calm but powerful, with waves crashing softly and sea creatures leaping through the water. One could see pink dolphins, one could see sea creatures resembling beings that in the world of players, in their age, had even gone extinct. There were crabs and small creatures on the shore, some birds even hunting for the fishes in the ocean visible from the docks. In front of the shipyard, the city bustled with merchants, travelers, and adventurers. Tall towers of white stone stood above the busy streets, where market stalls sold spices, items, magical items, items recovered from the sea, materials obtained from the sea creatures and enchanted items that one could not find anywhere else. This place, this unique city was no bigger than a town so some called it a town while some called it a city, some even called it a village even though its scale was much greater than a village''s. There were travelers in this place, but most of the people that one could see right now belonged to pirate groups, or native people who divided into the ocean in search of natural treasures. Qlipot was one of the few old ships docked on this side right now, and it was also one of the biggest ones among the other ships. In comparison, it was three times the size of a normal ship which was much more modern by its design compared to this old one. There were only three sails to these great boats and yet these three had more clothes in them than what a dozen ships would use for their sails. The outer wood of the ship was made from one of the strongest materials known to mankind, and the ship itself was nothing less than a relic. Though it did not have a passive magic defense system like many of the other ships of this era had, this ship was not something that even a great magician could damage with their high ranking spells. Before this ship, a human would seem like an Ent before a monstrous elephant. This comparison wasn''t simple if one thinks about how big an Ent actually is and then think about the creature that it is being compared to, so even by simple logic, it should be obvious how grand the scale of this ship even was. "It''s all good on this side, Lady Roxanna! We shall depart in five minutes!" "Alright then~!" The ship was made of delicate material as well, but the creator of the ship had masterfully covered these delicate pieces with ones that would handle any kind of shock. The pirates of Black Hawk had, for centuries, lived on this ship, calling their home as well as the place that they knew the best in the world. The ship was big enough to fit in more than a few thousand people. The permanent population of the ship itself was over thirty thousand. It could handle that kind of load and it would still sail fast enough to put the modern magic jet powered boats to shame thanks to the unique mechanism used in its power engine. The ship itself was a birthplace as well as a graveyard to many who had lived on it, so, it was the most precious place in this entire world for the Black Hawks and they cherished it more than their life. "Alright!" Then one day, a stranger comes on a black ethereal horse and smashes their near indistinguishable house, nearly sinking it. "Blow the horns!" "Aye aye captain!!!" They had fought creatures believed to be mythical beings, they had fought creature over (Level-300) on this ship, they had even fought against the natural forces, storms so great not even the gods could survive within it, fogs so deep even the light bearers would get lost within it¡­ they had seen it all. But a man on a horse poking a hole in their ship? It was unheard of for even the oldest of the men on the ship. Some of them did not see it happening from the deck even though some demon had invaded their boat or some kind of angel had gotten angry at them. Some even thought, after a century, they would have to activate the runes at the core of the ship, but thankfully, there wasn''t much chaos as the elders and the captain took change and sorted out everything before it was too late. But still, damage had been done to their home, and even if it was unintentional, they weren''t going to simply forgive the offender that did it. Thus, at this moment, Odin was doing all kinds of chores on this ship. From the smallest works like cleaning and making food, to even checking up on the elders, taking care of the children, fighting against the newbies and young ones, fighting against the older ones that always least him half dead after each of their spars, and even learning how to do the various specific works around the ship. He was being used by elders at first, but they weren''t the only ones making him run around the entire ship. As a punishment, he had to listen to anything anyone on the ship had asked of him, and fulfill each of the demands the elders or those with authority within the ship made. These past few days had been a hell for him exactly because of that. He hasn''t had even a moment of rest so sleeping was a far off thing. He didn''t even want to log in if he was going to be given all kinds of work like this¡­ but, he could not avoid this work. Just like what Alex had thought, each of the task that he received from anyone on the ship was a quest that rewarded him with various things that he could not get normally. Though the work was tough, he was getting rewarded for his work, as it was in the world of for anything one did. Everything one was doing and experiencing was an experience so precious one might never experience something like that ever again. The rewards that one got for their efforts were most of the time appropriate but depending on the kind of individual and the kind of experience, they also varied. So, for a Knight, a dark knight at that, who had been treated as a high ranking person in the previous places he had been to, being treated like the lowest level worker was a new experience for him. The rewards were good as well so, he endured and was now washing the railing line of the deck. It wasn''t fun or easy and, since his partner, the special horse that had destroyed the wood that not even the catastrophic Silver fish could damage, had now become a playmate for the children, a study material for the older people, and a test subject for the adults, he was also alone. There wasn''t much for him to do since they were docked as well, but that changed at this moment. -BYOOOOOOOOOOOOONG! The loudest of the horns rang from the top of the ship, and at the same time, the entirety of the city was informed of the departure of Qlipot. The anchor made from another ancient metal weighing almost as much as the smaller ships around them was lifted from the seafloor and the men on the deck all got into their positions. { "Everyone!" } Powered by Aura and not Mana, a roaring voice echoed all across the ship. { "May the Father of all Blue be our guardian!" } "WHAAAAAAAAAAA¡­!" { "May the voyage be another Epic for the miserable bards!" } "YEEEEEEEEEEEEEI¡­!" { "And may the Eternal Qlipot be ever preserved¡­!" } "WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" -Byooooooooong! Another horn, and the ship was set off¡­ "Fascinating." Elio was on the ship, seeing everything with an excited heart. He could not help but be in awe of the excitement that these people had. They were going out at the sea where anything can happen, they might even die, and yet they were all unaffected by the dangers that were awaiting them. From the children to the oldest person he could see right now, each of them were excited right now, there was a bright light in their eyes, their face ablaze with excitement for what awaited them. "They''re like that. A little loud, a lot more cheerful." They were special people. They were also simple, and they were also not easy to get close to. If it wasn''t for the quest that brought them together and put her with them for over a year, she might not have had the kind of experience that she has with this ship or the sea, but fate wanted her to be here back then, and it wants her to be here right now as well. "This is going to be fun." She was excited about this. They were going to be out at the great blue for more than a week and the two of them were planning to be here for a few days at the very least. There were many people she wanted him to meet and there were many things she wanted him to see on this ship. She hasn''t had the chance to do many things until now and with the changing world, perhaps she will never get to do many things that she had planned, but, when she had the chance, she at least wanted him to see a few things. And, on this ship, the core of this ship was going to be the first and the most important thing that Elio had to see. In fact, he must see this. It was important for him as well¡­ Chapter 282 - 282: Heart of Qlipot Qlipot wasn''t simply a wooden ship that moved with the winds. There were many enchantments around it and many of them helped with the movements and directions. It was also a layer that provided extra protection to the boat, but the main function of these enchantments was to help with the movements in the turbulent weather, to protect the people from dangerous attacks, and to attract the friendly creatures to the boat. There was a special area in the basement of the ship where the sailors of Qlipot could get fishes, seafood of various kinds, an area where the tamed sea creatures or even Familiars of the people of the boat could gather valuable things, and there was an area that was completely open on all sides so it almost gave a feeling of an open aquarium. S§×arch* The ¦ÇovelFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. This great ship had three distinct floors besides the deck and the basement and these floors, though mostly filled with rooms for the families that lived on it, also had many different rooms for entertainment and area for the children and the elderly. Some places of the ship were delicate and were restricted to only those who had the authority to enter these places. Not just anyone could enter these places since they contained sensitive materials, devices, or stuff that was dangerous for them. Some places were specially used to store dangerous things like beasts that they were going to sell or tame to make it their own. There were also places, rooms that were never opened for decades. Some that no one could open themselves without meeting certain requirements. The very core of the ship, the heart that powered the enchantments as well as elements that required high, continuous energy to function, was one such area. "Not just anyone could enter this place." Standing before a certain room, Alex smiled at Elio, Sera, and Victor who hadn''t been to this place before either. The three of them were going to be the only beings who could enter this place and that too, for three distinct reasons. "So, are you ready?" "What do I have to be ready for? At least tell me that first." Elio had no idea why Alex had brought him all the way to this place. He sure was surprised to see the whole community of this ship, all the people that lived here, all the different kinds of people that lived in the same place, as well as how they all lived together despite their own differences. It was a new kind of experience for him since he had been to cruise ships that were as amazing as this one. There weren''t many like this one in the real world, well at least by the size and scale of it, so he could not really compare them completely. But still, by the sheer size, he had been to those unique ships where people spend their entire lifetimes on. There weren''t as many people on those ships as there were on this one, but since this was a fantastical world with magic and all, it wasn''t that unbelievable to him. Still, the communities, the people, the things that they do on daily bases, their lifestyle in this place, the way they spend their time, the way they had divided their communities and the way unique cultures existed among them was something Elio wanted to study extensively. It was quite a new concept for him, tens of thousands of people living in a single structure, so he was excited to go around the ship by himself and see the various things that were present here. But Alex dragged him here, in this empty corner of the ship, where no one was present aside from this lonely corridor and this single blue door. "Hehe, you''ll know when we get inside~. It''s going to be really amazing, I''ll tell you that much." It wasn''t like her to be excited about something. Actually, the way she was acting reminded him of the time she had discovered a cave near his house IRL that ended up becoming a secret hangout spot for their families. But perhaps that wasn''t it this time. There was something else that she was excited about, he didn''t know. However, she sure as well was going to find out the reason for her excitement soon¡­ "Well then!" She opened the door and a bright light exploded from the simple looking blue door. And then, the next moment he knew, Elio was feeling his entire body being deconstructed piece by piece and in the very next moment, he felt as if something or someone was recreating his body in someplace else piece by piece. -Ooooooooooooooong! When he opened his eyes, he found Sera massaging her head, and Sir Victor was in a similar position. Contrary to the rest of them, however, Alex was perfectly fine. It almost seemed like she was used to something like this. "What the hell, Alex-." "Welcome." She pointed at the front, redirecting his attention to what she had brought them here for. "To the heart of Qlipot." A chamber that looked much larger than what any of the places of this ship had been like. Unlike the rest of the ship, this entire place was made of metal, a strange kind of metal that most certainly was not simple iron. "What¡­" At the center of this round hall, there was a crystal hourglass as large as the room itself, though there was no sand inside of it. There was no certain light present in this entire hall, but the place was lit as brightly as a daylight ablazed library. The floor was smooth, the walls were smooth, and yet, the air around them had a strange texture that was filled with something that wasn''t familiar to any of them¡­ and yet strangely seemed comforting to all. "What¡­ is that¡­?" The light in this room was not of a certain color like the simple daylight or the lights of the magical lamps though, the light in this place was a cumulative of all the colorful lights present in this place¡­ all the lights that ultimately originated from the hourglass like object in the center. "Spirits¡­" "I can''t believe it¡­" Sera and Sir Victor recognised these objects, these beings instantly. And, from the way Elio''s hands were glowing, from the way the marks in both Elio and Alex''s hands were glowing, it was evident that this was no normal ''hall''. There was something special about this¡­ something, that a certain being would love to see. "Call out Az and Miu." "Hmm?" Elio was still in a daze right now. Before him, there was a glass structure that resembled an hourglass but there was something strange about this. While certain colors dots, spirits as they knew now, appeared at the very top of the structure out of nowhere, the dots were moving from upside to downwards and the beings that were coming down were slowly vanishing as well, presumably reappearing outside of the structure. It was a strange phenomenon¡­ it almost seemed like the spirits were appearing on the top of this¡­ thing¡­ and then were coming out of it from the bottom of it. Then they spread out across the entire room, some even passing through the strange metal and going out of this closed space. Seeing this had mesmerized him, he did not even respond to her when she called out to him and asked him to take out his little friends from his special inventory, so she had no choice but to pinch him. "Awwww! Aw aw aw! Hey!" "Az and Miu. Take them out and then admire this place¡­ I cannot see anything anyway, so show me how you see this place while you''re at it." "¡­hmm? What?" Elio has an affinity for Natural and Unique magic but not for Elemental magic, but it did not mean he could not use any elements. He was a strange individual that had affinity for all six of the common elements and perhaps more while Alex on the other hand, had an oppression to elements themselves. She could not only not use any elemental magic, she could not even perceive any elemental spirits that were representations of these elements naturally. Elio could see all these spirits naturally, Alex could not see any spirits in this place at all, while the Servants of both of these two, the beings that were an essence of their past stories, could see this entire place in a completely different way than these two. "I cannot see them so show me! And bring out Az! It''s the only elementalist we have, dummy." By nature, elementalists were beings that could naturally interact with the spirits and the spirits themselves showed interest in them. "Ummm¡­ okey?" In the past, Alex had a elementalist as her servant. A being that was one of the closest friends that she had ever had. His name was known throughout the six realms, he was one of the strongest when it came to pure power, he was also one of the few beings in the entire world to have contracts with Epitome of spirit world, the kings and queens that rules ove the entire realm of the spirits. He was someone she respected immensely, and he was also one of the first servants she has had, her third servant to be precise. ''That bastard almost died on me¡­'' She had lost her closest friends, her servants, and she had lamented their deaths. She had avenged those who needed to be avenged and she had punished those who were responsible for the deaths of her dumb ones. Some also gave their life for her when she didn''t even ask them for it, but that''s simply how they were. That''s simply how He was. But thankfully, he did not die. She was just sealed with many of her powers, the other servants, and her cute little goody. -Ooooong! "Miu?" "Muuu¡­ muuu!!! Muuuuu?!" Miu and Az were here. And, as soon as they appeared in this place, a storm of light rushed towards them. "What the hell?!" And then¡­ well, the rest of them were covered by the various spirits of various elements from all sides. Chapter 283 - 283: Story of the Grandmaster "Muuuuu~!" There were hundreds of spirits in this place, and right after sensing the presence of someone that could interact with them, someone that was not of their kind, they were instantly curious about them. They rushed towards Az and covered the rest of them as well, and though Alex could not see them directly, using the live recording function that Elio had, she saw what Elio was seeing, even sharing the senses of his servant, Sir Victor, in order to see what he was seeing. "Miu! Miu Miu Miu!" "Muuuuu!" The little slime wasn''t overwhelmed by how many spirits were present here. Not at all. Instead, he was excited and started talking with the spirits that came and greeted him. The slime summoned his own spirit friends that it had contracted over the last few months and his spirits started interacting with the spirits of the ship. Miu, though overwhelmed by the presence of these many energy creatures, was not really bothered by the spirits. She was more interested in the glass that these things were coming from. This glass, or the (Spirit gate) as Alex knew, was the gateway through that connected this world to the spirit realm directly. It was a natural relic created from nature, something that the creator of this ship found accidentally during one of his adventures and later used it as the powerhouse of this grand ship. It was like a natural boundary that he had very delicately detached from where it belonged to and placed it on this ship¡­ or rather, as she now predicted, he had made this ship around this boundary and then shifted it to the sea. This place, this hourglass like structure born from nature like these spirits was perhaps one of the only gateways that actually connected this world with that world and they were the only fortunate people that were allowed to be here. "This is¡­ I can''t believe this." "It belongs to your kind, doesn''t it?" "Yes¡­" Az was showing his new friends to Elio now, and since Alex couldn''t see these special beings, she wasn''t particularly interested in their greetings right now. She wanted Elio to be here for two reasons, and the first reason¡­ was because of Sera. "Alkrit. The language of angels¡­" Though as humans Alex and Elio could not see anything on the metallic walls of this room, Sera could see the carvings that were made on these metallic walls vividly. Sir Victor who had seen these unique spirit carvings in the past could also see it, and, perhaps all Servants could see this for some reason since all of the servants that she had with her the last time she was here could see this thing. And, a few of them had told her this was related to the angels in the past as well¡­ but sadly, Sera was the only angel she had met who wasn''t a bitch or Arrogant motherless cunt. Most angels, though the rest did not know yet, were bastards and bitches that thought of themselves as the most noble, purest beings in the entire world. They thought and acted like they are the Chosen ones, that they are something Very special in this grand world. All the angels she had met aside from Sera were either bastards that she wanted to kill with her bare hands, or were children so innocent they were the purest and dumbest things in this entire universe. She never had a chance to bring one here and ask them about these special carvings, but now that Sera was here, she had the perfect opportunity she had always dreamed of. "This is a story actually¡­ and a will." Sera moved her hand on the simple looking carvings and smiled a little at them. This was the first time she was seeing this language, this specific kind of writing ever since she awakened as a servant. She was a special being even among the Angels, they all knew that, but seeing this warm expression on her face right now was quite heartwarming for them as well. "The creator of this ship, the first captain of Qlipot, Samlorex Salamander Serious had a wife¡­ an angel named Lora." Elio was done greeting a few of the spirits so, even though there were a bunch still left, he picked up Az and walked towards the rest of them. Sera was telling them a story, and he didn''t want to miss this opportunity to hear a fun story about the creator of this great ship. "The text depicts how he met his wife who he rescued inside a Labyrinth that he was stuck in for three years. The text does not show the struggles that he had in the labyrinth, but it mentions how there is a separate text written by his wife on a different part of the boat. Instead of his struggles, he has extensively described how he met her, how she looked when he saw her for the first time, how the two of them cursed at one another when he was gawking at her naked body stuck in strange tentacle like vines-¡­ ptffff. Most of this is so funny I can''t even say it out loud, haha." Sera ended up laughing and seeing her laugh like that, seeing one of the most composed members of their party in that state, Alex couldn''t her curiosity. "Hey hey! Tell us exactly what''s written here! Don''t keep all the juicy details to yourself!" Alex being Alex was more interested in the spicy details while on the other hand¡­ "I want to know how that person has described his wife. Did he use vulgar words? What kind of language is angel language anyway?" Elio was more curious about the way that person had written these things. He could not see what Sera was reading, much less read it himself so he could not translate these things himself. He was an author himself and this historical record was like the ancient text or some ancient history for him¡­ this was the best learning material for him, especially since it seemed to be related to something romantic and adventurous. "Oh, master¡­ well, it''s pretty difficult to put it into simple words since Alkrit is a unique language that uses sounds and melodies rather than words themselves. I don''t know how I should translate these things exactly, that''s the reason I''m just saying it like this. Though, if I have a little more time, I think I''ll be able to word it as you want. But I cannot do that directly. I apologise-." "There''s no need to apologize for that, silly. You can take your time, I don''t mind at all." They were going to travel for a while anyway. She can take all the time she needs and knowing Sera, she would try and finish it as quickly as she can for her master. "Anyway! Judy details, Sera! Details!" Elio wasn''t going to get what he wanted so at the very least, Alex wanted the spicy parts. Sadly¡­ "Well, Miss Alex¡­" Sera scratched her cheeks with a closed mouthed smile. "You see¡­ since Alkrit is sung and not spoken, there''s not really any need to use explicit language. Usually, we don''t even use words that are usually considered vulgar, in fact, what that person has written here is pure admiration for the person that he spent his whole life with." Sera knew Alex wasn''t going to like this so she had a bitter expression already. But, contrary to her belief, Alex actually had a smile on her face. "Really? That old man was that kind of person? I actually had him all wrong¡­" Alex laughed a little, then shook her head and asked Sera to continue. "Muuu?" Az did not understand what was up with her like its master, but both simply ignored that and focused back on Sera. "Right. So¡­ this text starts with how the creator of this ship met his Wife, or Miss Lora. How he helped her out of the bindings and how she helped him get out of the labyrinth. It has a record of what they did in the meantime they were in the labyrinth, but it''s brief. The main focus of the text starts from the part where the two of them got married actually, and stumbled across that Gate when they were exploring the island which that particular labyrinth was located in." The centerpiece of the story was the spirit gateway that connected the two worlds, as Alex had predicted a long time ago. "The two of them got out of that island and became part of the human society. Miss Lora having lost one of her wings were unable to go back to her home, but she did not have any reason to go back to that place anymore since she had already fallen in love with Sir Salmorex¡­ she used to call him Morex as it''s written here so I''ll just call him that as well." The names of both the angel and the Creator of this ship reminded the servants of two distinct things. But they did not go onto that lane for now. "Sir Morex and Miss Lora got married and lived a simple life in a small human city. There, with Sir Morex''s passion for creation led him to become a master craftsman, and later when he gained enough wealth, experience, and power as well as the honored title of a grandmaster by the Voice of the World through his creations, he left the human world with his wife and came back to the island where the two had met for the first time." "Let me guess, they started creating Qlipot when they came back? He wanted to make a home to spend the rest of his life with her?" It was cliche but Alex loved these kinds of simple love-stories. "Well, yeah. We can say that''s what he wanted. But, he did not tell her he was doing that. He simply told her he was going to make a chamber to protect the Gate so he started working on this room, the heart of the ship, and only after he created this place did she find out his true intentions." He got caught, and then he had to cough up his plans. Though, Miss Lora did not hate it. "A ship, a home, a vessel to travel the vast world of blue¡­" "Yeah. And to make this special vessel, the grandmaster traveled the entire world with his wife for the required materials, only coming back when he was done gathering everything he needed." And then he made Qlipot, the Symbol of their preserved love. "That''s so cringe." "It''s simple things, Alex¡­ humans want simple things. That''s all." S§×ar?h the N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The story itself was short and simple even though it was something that started from one part of this wall and covered the entirety of this grand hall. "Lastly¡­" But, this was going to be the last and most important part. "There''s a statement left behind by the creator." -Ooooooooooooooooooooooong! The entire room glowed the moment Sera read those words in her mind. This was a clear sign that they needed to listen to this important message attentively. Chapter 284 - 284: Spirit Contract "If you are reading this, it means you are somehow connected to the angels or are an angel yourself. If you are on this ship, in this room, it also means you are close with our descendants and are accepted by our home. We will not know if you have qualifications or not, you will have to find and pass the test that we have left behind, but if you do pass it and are eligible¡­ we want you to have what we have left behind." Sera stopped for a moment, and looked at the rest of them. There was a strange golden parchment in her hand right now, something that had materialized out of nowhere. It wasn''t here a moment ago but it was here right now and she did not know why she had this, but there were many instructions on this parchment. And all of these must be linked to the ''legacy'' that is mentioned in this place. "Master¡­ I don''t think I will-." "I know that as well, Sera. It belongs to the people that live here¡­ but, if they wanted them to have it, they wouldn''t have made it this complex." Sera didn''t feel right about taking what wasn''t hers. She was fine with telling the others about this place and what the creator had left behind, but she did not believe she was qualified to have something that should go to the people of this ship. She was an outsider that wouldn''t have been here if it wasn''t for Alex, so she wasn''t comfortable with this. "Let''s find out what this thing is first before we decide what to do with this, ok? We can give it back to them if it''s something that should go to them." But just like Alex, Elio also wanted to keep whatever could make them stronger. The times were changing and they did not know what kind of change this was going to bring them exactly, so they wanted to have it if it would help them. "It''s fine, Sera. Don''t think too much about this. If you find it, it''s yours. That''s how the pirates do it anyway." Be it a treasure or a simple coconut. If you find it before anyone else and prove your connection with it, you are the owner of that item. Of course though, if the owner dies, the one holding it next would be the new owner. Those were the rules. "You can think about it, ok? It''s alright." None of them minded it actually. They simply needed her to accept whatever this was. It wasn''t like they knew if they would be able to pass the test that they had left behind anyway, but if they do somehow pass the trials and get whatever they had left behind, it wouldn''t really be a bad idea to add a few more weapons to their arsenal. Anyway¡­ "Alright¡­ that''s all they wanted to tell, I guess. The rest of the things here are descriptions and narrations." Sera was done reciting what was present on the walls, and now that she was done with the things on the wall, they were done with the first thing they had come here for. "Now then¡­" Miu was exploring this place, the Gate to be specific, but she came back after looking around a few things. The hourglass seemed to be made from grass, it was actually a special kind of crystal that attracted Miu so the little gecko was watching it from up close. But now that the creature was done with its evaluation, it came back to them and climbed on Sera''s head. "Why don''t we start with the second agenda." As mentioned earlier, Alex had brought Elio here for two reasons. The first was to have Sera here so that they could know what was written on the walls of this place, and the second was related to his little slime. "Az, how about you help your master a little?" This place, the gate that was present before them, was one of the only place in the entire world that was connected to the world of the spirits, It meant that the spirit connection of this entire room was much more powerful than most of the other places in some other place. "Muuuu?" "You know what I mean. There are so many spirits here¡­ won''t one like to be with Elio as well?" sea??h th§× ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. There were three ways to form a contract with a spirit: through direct contact with the spirit, through a joint contract of someone else, and through possession of an item that the spirits are bound with. And there were three steps to form a contract as the little slime had already learned from her. The first thing that one needed to form a contract with a spirit was the ability to perceive these spirits without them having materialized into the material world. If they are able to perceive them naturally, like Elio and the rest of them could, they have the most basic qualifications to form a spirit contract. But, the other two things required weren''t as simple as that¡­ "What do you mean by that, Alex?" He had no idea what they were talking about, but the little slime was smart so it understood her hint after a little thinking. "Muuuu! Muuu!" Elio had been away from them for a few months and Az had learned a lot from Alex in that time. One of those things was about spirits and spirit contracts. It had affinity for elementalism already so it did not have any problems perceiving the spirits, and as it grew a little more, it was able to materialize the spirits without making a contract with them. It was a being of nature, unlike human elementalists, so it was able to do things that humans usually cannot. Which simply made it even more special. "Muuuuu!" This time, since Alex was saying how some spirit would like Elio, the slime who had already made contact with a few low rank and an intermediate rank spirit, knew what she was asking. "What''s happening here? Can someone please tell me at least?" Oblivious to what was happening, Elio only watched as Az jumped off his hands and went to the other side, to the spirits that were playing by themselves. Then it started gathering the spirits and Alex smiled at the enthusiastic expression of the creature. "We are going to find you a spirit to form a contract with, haha. You''re not an elementalist but thanks to Az and this place, it will be possible." Since this place was directly connected with the spirit world, the saturation of spirit energy was so strong in this place that none of them could feel it. They could not even perceive it since it was present in the entire atmosphere around them. So, they weren''t really going to need any spirit power to form any contracts which was the second thing that they needed for the contract. The third and the last thing that they needed to form a contract with a spirit, was a suitable spirit that they could resonate with. And, to find a spirit that one could resonate with was the same as finding a familiar out of every single being present in this world. There were countless spirits in this world and findinding the right ones that one could resonate with, especially in the case of those who weren''t an elementalist, was the most difficult task. "It is possible for the non-elementalists to have spirit contracts but, one needs to find the spirits that one can resonate with the best for that." But of the countless spirits in the world, one might never find the ones that they are looking for in normal circumstances. "But this place eliminates that worry as well." Since this room was connected to the spirit world directly, the origin of all spirits, the spirits all around the world could be reached out with the help of the spirits in this place. Since they had an elementalist, conveying the message to the other spirits was a simple task so Az was doing that right now. And it didn''t take too long for it to explain their situation to the playful spirits either. -Ooooooooooong! The spirits swarmed around them once again, but this time, they all started vanishing back to the hourglass after circling around Elio. "Let''s start preparations." They weren''t going to get many chances, Alex knew that already. So, she wanted to make sure he got the best possible spirit companion out there. "Muuuuu!" "Miu!" The slime and gecko had done this a few times in the past already. Both times, Misha and Rin were present there as well, but this time, they were resting upstairs. They didn''t need to be here, and Alex didn''t want them here either since she knew with the presence of an ichorborn in a place that has something directly connected to another realm. "What are you standing still for? If you want a companion, help us with the preparations~." Alex was excited about this but Elio was still wondering why she was doing this. It wasn''t like he would be able to use a spirit with his limited Mana, but he didn''t question her. "Yes, tell me what I have to do." He simply accepted the fact that he was getting a spirit friend, and was thankful for her. He knew she knew that he wanted to have a familiar as soon as he could after seeing Odin and his partner, but a familiar wasn''t in her hands. She was doing what she could for him, and he appreciated her thoughtfulness greatly. Now, if only she could show this much consideration before their family¡­ things would be much simpler for them then how they are right now. Chapter 285 - 285: Meta They all waited for a few minutes, and watched as the spirits moved rapidly around the room. The spirits were going in and out of the place, passing through the walls and going out, passing through the gate and traveling through the realms, chatting with Az, asking it about a few things that the others yet did not understand, and then going back to their world. They were searching for a certain kind of Mana signature that could resonate well with Elio''s unique Mana signature. Things could have been simple if Elio only had affinity for one or two elements since that would make things pretty easy like it was in the case of Az, but things were different here. "Most spirits in the world only possess one element since they are born from those elements. Technically, spirits that are of multiple elements are pretty rare. And, most of them are either so young that they haven''t even developed their own element, or are some of the oldest in the spirit realm." Since Alex had a servant that knew about spirit as much as the most ancient spirits knew about their kinds, she knew a good lot about how rare a case Elio was. "In normal cases, someone with only six elemental affinities could have simply contracted with six basic spirits at once. But your case is even more complicated." Since Elio was one of the few people in the world that actually had a harmonious relationship with six major elements as well as a few other natural elements, finding an appropriate spirit for him was much more difficult for him than finding a High ranking, or superior ranking spirit for someone that only had affinity for those six major elements. It was a difficult task, and even though the news of how they were looking for a certain spirit that could resonate with him must have spread throughout their realm by now, she knew they might not get to meet the one perfect for Elio. "I''ve asked them to explain the situation to the Kings and queens, so, even though they might not get to come here¡­ if you''re lucky, we will get a positive response soon." She was acquainted with the highest ranking members of a realm thanks to her servant, and as the spirits have told them, they were missing her and this world. Sadly, the medium through which they could come to this world, their contractor, was sealed away due to her personal quest, there was no way for them to come to this world anymore. It was temporary and since the time perception of the spirits was the worst among all the other species, even a decade was like a fleeting movement in their eyes. They were mighty beings that had known her for a few years now, but aside from the fact that she was the master of their contractor, there wasn''t much that they knew about her. And they didn''t have to know about it either, they were rulers of a realm, not just a kingdom or a place, so even someone like Alex was as simple a human being as the rest of them in the world for them. Still though, thanks to her connection, they agreed to help her look for the one that they were looking for, and from the looks of it, they should be able to find the one that they were looking for in a little while. "If someone that resonates with you exists, they will make sure they come here." They simply had to wait for now, and since it wasn''t lunchtime yet, they had a few more hours before they had to go up. S~ea??h the Nov§×l?ire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. They still had to tell the others on the ship about these things, they still had to do a lot, including the things about the legacy of the creator, so they were preparing for that. They would also have to log out since they were on the ship now, and they had a party to prepare IRL so they will have to focus on that thing. They had a lot of work and little time left, so they needed to shift their gears. "Hopefully-. Hmmm?" -Ooooooooooong! The spirits in the room suddenly reacted to something, and at the same time, a bunch of spirits rushed out of the gate. "Muuuu! Muuu!!" "Az says-." "They found it? Damn that was fast." Sera didn''t have to translate what Az was saying this time since anyone could tell it was excited about something. The spirits'' movements was also an indication enough, so they all focused their attention towards the hourglass, with Elio watching the scene before him with an excited heart. ''This is totally unexpected¡­'' He had longed for a familiar, a partner that would be even more special to him than his tamed beasts. The creatures of this world, as he had seen until now, were the most unique part of this world based on realistic things. Be it the simplest of the slime, or the most dangerous of the monsters that he had seen until now. Be it individuals like Sera or sir Victor that do not actually exist, or beings like this spirit, or divinities like his Rabbit friend. All these beings were something straight out of a fairy tale. Something one could only understand as a fantasy element that wouldn''t exist in the reality that they had known until now. Magic of this world wasn''t really that unreal, the technology here wasn''t that impressive either, the other common races were also pretty much only a genetic mutation of humans, but the creatures¡­ They were the most prominent element that made this world different from theirs. In his eyes, these creatures were what gave a meaning to this world. And he had realized that ever since he met Az in that marshland, ever since he rescued Miu, and ever since he became Sera''s master. These beings weren''t simple, they were far more complicated than a cat or a dog or a simple pet that one could have in their world. They weren''t something unreal since they had a very solid foundation to their existence, and they were also not something technology could reproduce. "Okay. Get ready darling. It''s on its way!" "Yes¡­" Ever since he met Az, he was interested in these special beings of this special world, and obtaining a familiar meant directly connecting with an element of this world on a deep level. He wanted to experience what it felt like¡­ he had heard the stories and read up on it, he had seen it with his own eyes as well, so he had longed for a familiar but, since his ultimate wish was connection with this world, as he knew, contracting with a spirit, as he knew as well, should also be pretty close to forming a familiar bond. Yes the two were different things, but he somehow knew he wasn''t going to meet his destined partner anytime soon. "Muuu! Muuu!" -Ooooooooong! "Here it comes." All of this was sudden. Getting a contract spirit? He was not prepared for this¡­ His heart was beating excitedly, he was looking forward to this, he was excited as well, so, he simply watched as all the other spirits that looked like colorful dots in his eyes made way for a certain dot. "Muuuuu¡­!" "Is this the one?" "Yes! Can''t you tell?" "I¡­ can." Unlike the other colorful dots, this one was not of one certain color. The colors that this certain dot had were changing¡­ it resembled an Arora with all the colors that one could think about flashing with a certain harmony. "Good! Az, let''s start." They did not have much time so Alex and Az quickly got to work. But Elio¡­ simply stared at this colorful dot of light before him. -Oooooooooong! With Az and Miu, he had always felt a special kind of connection that he did not feel towards the other creatures that were attracted to him. With Sera, he had felt a completely different kind of connection. But right now¡­ with this simple dot, he was feeling another unique kind of connection. It was distinct from the other connections he felt, different from anything he had felt actually. He wasn''t familiar with the spirits that much, but he knew about these unique energy entities that had no physical body. They were born in a different realm of this reality, with a body that did not have any matter within them. The reason they were unperceivable by normal people in normal settings was because of their unique nature, and the reason only elementalists could interact with them and help them manifest in this world was also because of their ability to materialize these energy entities. Only an elementalist and a contractor could share their energy with these beings so that they can actually materialize into this world and interact with the physical objects present here. Forming a contract with a spirit, even the simplest one, was a privilege that only a few could ever have, and he was one such fortunate individual. -Ooooooooong! "Alright¡­ now, you just have to give it a name, and your contract will be complete." The slime and Alex created a contract circle under Elio and the glowing rainbow dot and were done with all the other materials. As soon as a name was given and the contract was sealed, the process would complete. "A name, huh?" It was a simple process, at least by the looks of it, it seemed simple. But Elio knew how complicated it actually was. He was thankful for what she was doing for him, for this gift they were giving him¡­ "Hey there, little one. How would you like to be called¡­ Meta? For your uniqueness, and for your special colorful nature." He had thought of this name on the spot but he had his reasons for choosing this name. It was an abbreviation of a certain name, just like it was in Az''s case, and it was pretty cute as well. It suited this little one, and from the looks of it, it liked its name as well¡­ -Ooooooooooooooooooooong¡­.! The colors that exploded as soon as he had decided on the name were blinding, but in the world where the spirit and he was forming a contract, in their own little world, nothing was as simple as it looked to the others. "Wow¡­" [{ We had always believed there is someone like us somewhere in this world. }] He had a strangely pretty voice. An old voice that wasn''t cranky or overly sensitive. It was delicate¡­ just like its looks, it was unrealistic and pretty. He couldn''t look away from the True form of this being. He was stunned, and stayed in that dumbfounded state until the spirit chuckled at his funny expression and brought him back to his senses¡­ Chapter 286 - 286: Next course of the party A large, mythical creature with golden antlers standing in a green world filled with green particles of a kind of energy that was familiar to him, and still felt quite distinct from what he was familiar with. Meta¡­ it was a large, mysterious creature with golden antlers and a deep blue body. The antlers of this beast was large, all branching out in various directions. There were various orbs of colorful energies or perhaps elements, each glowing or blinking in a certain harmonious pattern. The creature had a long, slender neck and a long tail, though Elio was not focused on those trivial details. The creature''s eyes were closed, but each time they cracked open to look at his contractor, Elio would see the deep, dark eyes that seemed to contain a galaxy of stars within them. There was a dark blue sky above them for some reason. They were inside a special space and there were particles of green energy surrounding them but it was nothing compared to the vast special sky like expanse above them. It was strange and unique at the same time, Elio couldn''t help his awe at what he was seeing right now. It was unbelievable¡­ The atmosphere of this place was peaceful and serene. The creature appeared to be a being of great power and wisdom as well, but it wasn''t a simple creature. It was a spirit, and it had contracted with this young boy that knew little about this world, the truths of their world, as well as about the concerns of this world. The being that he had contracted with, on the other hand, was one of the few Superior beings of the spirit world that had never found a person that could resonate with them. Each of the orbs that were present on their horns, each branch of their antlers that represented a unique path of mortal life, was something that no other spirit beings possessed. [{ It will be my honor to serve you, Master. }] The way this creature looked at him reminded him of the way his grandparents used to look at him when he was young. Each time they saw him working and gathering his own pocket money, they would have the same emotions in their eyes as this creature did right now. The being itself was of great significance, but more than that, the way it was looking at Elio, his contractor, was not how a contracted spirit should be looking at their master. The only reason HE was calling Elio their master was because he did not want to make things more inappropriate for them. As a contracted spirit, it had to call him master at the very least¡­ but Elio did not mind it. "You are older. There''s no need to be so formal with me¡­ Meta." A smile appeared on the ethereal face of the creature as it nodded and a ray of light came out of it. This ray of light intertwined with a ray of light that had come out of Elio''s body and connected together. The connection of these rays of lights was so intense that it created another blast of light, and then¡­ -Oooooooooooong! The next thing Elio knew, he was back to the room he previously was, with Alex and the rest of them. The spirits in the room all noticed him first, and then Az did. "Master?" Sera was the next and then, Alex also realized that he was back to his usual self. "What¡­ just happened?" He did not understand what was happening. He did not know what was going on either. A moment ago, he was in a different place and now he was back to the hall with the Spirit gate and the rest of his companions. From the worried look Sers had, he could tell something had happened in the time he was in that world, but from the normal looks of Alex and Az, he also inferred that it wasn''t anything unusual. "Congratulations on getting a spirit friend, darling." Alex was congratulating him, so it meant this was something normal. Perhaps the vision that he had just seen, that world and that strange creature, was related to the spirit contract. That was the only explanation to what had just happened, but Sera''s concerned look confused him for a moment. [{ Hello, master. }] But this familiar voice brought him back to his senses as he looked up, and saw the small glowing dot of light floating before him. "Meta¡­?" It was the spirit that he had just made a contract with, and looking closely, he could see that this small dot of light had in fact taken on the form of a butterfly. Sear?h the ¦Çov§×lFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. It wasn''t glowing in multiple colors like it did a while back, it was simple blue now¡­ though, if one kept looking at it for a little longer, they would fall into a strange mesmerized state. Getting out of this state would be difficult for them, and in a battle, this would prove to be a fatal mistake for them. [Ding!] [Ding!] [Ding!] The notifications appeared before him, but he did not pay much attention to them. Insted, he simply placed them to the side and focused on the new spirit that was now his partner. He looked at the creature from up close, asked it to sit on his palm and looked at it from up close, and as he did that, the rest of his party members simply looked at him with unique expressions. "How does it feel having a contracted spirit? Is it super special or something?" "Don''t you know how it feels?" "How would I? I can''t even see them. Making a contract with them was never possible for me." She was acquainted with the highest ranking spirits but she still never had a direct spirit contract with any spirits. "I have a few items that have my spirit partners that I''ve been with, but they are in my Treasury right now. We will have to go and get them as soon as we''re done with this adventure." She had three treasures throughout the world and one of them wasn''t too far from their next destination so, after she got the third key, she was planning to go and get the required items from her treasury. It was quite far from there¡­ thankfully though, as long as they reach the underwater kingdom, she will ask the king to transport them to her treasury. Going to the treasury will be a simple matter of second with his help, but for that to happen, they first had to finish here and get to the kingdom first. And they still had other things to take care of IRL so, Alex smiled at him as he talked with his new partner, and when he was done, she asked with a brighter expression. "Shall we?" They needed to deal with the house matters and prepare the party so they needed to go back. They were going to leave Sera and Victor here so that they could help Misha and Rin while looking for the clues to the legacy of the creator on the ship. "Yeah¡­" He got up, looked around the place, saw how Az was still playing with the spirits and how Miu was still interested in the glass like crystal that the gate was made with, and chuckled. "Let''s go now, you two. We gotta go now~." Seeing them happy and playing like this brought back his memories from a few months ago. Before he vanished to that forest at the mountain top, these two were like little children, always excited and curious about things. Ever since he got back though, they had become more mature and a little more adult like than before. They didn''t go around unnecessarily and weren''t as curious about all the fun things around them. Az was more like a well behaved child now, and Miu had become responsible. She looked after Az and scolded him if he did something he should not in normal situations. But, the two were not acting like they usually did after he came back. Az was carefree again and Miu was curious like Az used to be about each cool looking thing. Seeing them was strangely satisfying to him, to the one that could not raise these children the way he wanted to because of those damned evil beings. He was away for too long even though it was only a few months in this world''s time. It was a long time and they had changed significantly since then, and he could not do anything about that. "Muuuu!" "Miu~." At least, they were still the same cute innocent children that they used to be. Stronger than their previous selves, perhaps a little more disciplined, because it is the same pure creatures that considered him their master. "Don''t look at them like that¡­ I made sure to be as gentle on them as possible." "I can tell that." Leaving them with Alex wasn''t a bad choice since both of them had grown significantly since their time in the viscounty. They weren''t different beings, the trails that they faced and the things that they went through had simply made them grow up a little. They had also fought with her in that Jungle of Nozama, so they faced as tough challenges as we did. Sera and he grew up as well, but their growth was simple compared to these two. And, Elio didn''t mind this new grown Slime and crystal gecko at all. "Sera, we might not be back for a few days now. Explain the situation to the rest of them." "We will try to drop by though." Alex said that, but since they were gonna plan and arrange a party for two days, they weren''t going to be back for at least a week. That was around the time they needed to reach their destination so the two of them were gonna miss most of the fun, but it couldn''t be helped. They will have to work around this somehow. Elio, especially, needed to be careful with a few things for the next few days¡­ Chapter 287 - 287: A party? [Elio''s POV: ] "Mom, dad, it''s breakfast time~!" Since Alex and I logged out early at the morning, we decided to just make a surprise breakfast fro the rest of them. Alex was making the food while I was preppinhg up the dining table and though Olive wasn''t here yet, she had woken up early as well so she was going to head over here in a while. Her mom and dad were going to come with her as well with Alex''s chip that they had been studying all night so it was going to be a family breakfast. "What''s going¡­ on so early¡­ in the morning." Alice was not an early bird like us since she slept late at night after finishing up all the work that she had. Dad on the other hand had an habit of sleeping early and waking up before anyone else¡­ a little too early in the morning. ''He went out for a run on the early mornings, and he usually had his breakfast when he came back.'' He was out right now as well and he was going to be back soon so we timed that and made sure we don''t disturbe the servants. Some of them were up already but the rest who were resting should rest until it is time for their shift. We did not need them for the breakfast¡­ but since Alex was cooking anyway, I think many if not most of them will wake up anyway. "Elio, I''m almost done so we should start cleaning up or else V will scold us if she sees this mess." We went overboard and made a fancy breakfast for everyone, even making the things that everyone loved the most. ''There was a strict diet schedule that everyone in my family followed at the very least consisting of the amount of carbs, fibers, and proteins that they were allowed each day. Mom was strict with a lot of things, but there were also days when she allowed out of diet things.'' Today was one of those days so considering that, we had made a little extra for everyone. And, considering how all of us will be busy for the rest of the day until lunch, a heavy breakfast was going to be a necessary thing. "Yawnnnn~. What iss all this¡­? Mom''s coming in five-...! Hey! Do I smell pizza?!" Alice came down in her usual night gawn with her sleepy face, and as we knew, all the sleepiness on her face vanished as soon as she smelled the familiar smell of her favorate kind of pizza. It was made with a special light dough that Alex had brought from our house, and Alice loved this certain pizza made with these certain toppings that Alex had used much more than the ones that our professional chefs made. There was something strangely attractive about it. Though even I did not know what she found so special about it until now, I knew pretty well how much she loved it. "Hmm? Why is everyone up so early?" Dad was also back and though seeing Alex and me cleaning up the kitchen wasn''t the best thing to see so early in the morning, seeing Alice up so early was more surprising to him. He had already figured out that we were making breakfast from the look of the things, but seeing Alice with that excited look made him chuckle a little as he took off his shoes. We had this no outside shoes in the house rule in our house so he got into his in house sandals instead. "What''s the occasion?" Alice was already waiting on the dining table so dad came and started helping us clean the kitchen area. He had already seen the other tray full of things that we had placed on the side, and seeing his favourite waffles must have surprised him as well. ''But, he did not say much about it.'' He was asking us what was the occasion, but his gaze was easy to read. "Nothing like you''re thinking. We''ll tell you when everyone gets here." Olive''s freshly baked goods were getting ready. Half of the neighborhood must be visiting their house for a little of the bread or something by now. It was a normal thing here. People loved it every time Alex was cooking outside and Olive was baking anything. The two did not work together on something often, but whenever they did, we knew how there would be this large gathering in our front yard. ''The people in our neighbourhood were all mostly either rich people or retired people who had their wealth.'' Most of them were older than us, obviously, so most of us were pretty young, almost like children for the age most people here. "You''re cleaning up so it means you messed up my kitchen again, huh?" Mom came down as well and seeing us three still cleaning the place put a smile on her face as well. It has been a few months since we did this, with dad, it was more than a year since we last did something like this. Perhaps, seeing us like this brought a few precious memories to her. "And why aren''t you helping them princess? You don''t want that pizza? Shouldn''t you help them finish up quickly?" "¡­?! Oh! Right!" Alice genuinely didn''t think much when she saw us cleaning the kitchen. It was common for dad to help around the house, even when we weren''t around, but she didn''t do much housework. She was mostly busy with her office work and things, so she wasn''t at home most of the time, and even when she was here, she was either working or at rest. She did play NO but I think she isn''t a combat player either. ''She likes gardening so she has her own greenhouse in the game. And she looks after it instead of going around killing creatures.'' Yeah, well, she has to fight creatures because of the critical location of her greenhouse, but her plants are strong enough to fend for themselves. Aside from that, she has Blaze and her other friends to take care of her house inside of the game. "Looks like Olive''s here as well. I''ll go help them¡­ and we will talk later about this mess of yours so don''t even think that you have dodged the bullet." We can tell just from the close scent of the fresh baked goods that Olive was here so after giving the four of us a careful look, she went to greet them. It was still around six in the morning so having breakfast this early wasn''t really a great idea, but then again, after we tell them about the party, we will have to quickly get to it. They will have to help us as well, and since we will be preparing inside the house, we will have to be careful with the other things. ''If we end up breaking anything, any simple or rare thing that mom cherishes this time as well, I don''t even want to imagine what will happen to us.'' It happened the last time we were doing something like this and we didn''t get to eat anything proper for three days, so¡­ we will have to be careful. "Hello~. How''s everyone doing~. Good morning~." Olive looked refreshed after her long sleep. She wasn''t playing games like us and was sleeping instead, so she was refreshed. On the other hand, her parents looked visibly tired after spending the night working on those complicated chips. "Good, good dear. A very good morning to you too." We were almost done with the cleaning so Dad washed his hands and greeted Olive and her parents. They had brought a few baskets of bread, donuts, perhaps some other things as well so he helped them carry the baskets. "I''ll finish this up. Go start platting." Alex was in a good mood right now. After helping me get Meta, she was in a much better mood and the fact that we will have the party that I had promised her a while back excited her even more. There will only be these people in the party as well, but they were more than enough for her. She was actually happy that there weren''t too many people so she was looking forward to it. S§×ar?h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. ''It was our party so we were going to decorate the place, the food will come from the other places and there will be all the favorite beverages she loved.'' I''ll play some music with the existing one as well, perhaps Olive''s parents will play with me as everyone likes. ''I knew a few instruments and those two were a great duo when it came to string instruments and flutes.'' They were great, and with me, we have made many nights wonderful. ''Now if I can only convince mom to sing¡­ it would be perfect.'' But the chances are low that she will do it. She doesn''t like it, even though she has a gifted voice¡­ "So, what do we have today~?" Mom was excited for the breakfast, just like the rest of them. Everyone was sitting on the dining table in their places. Blaze was the only one missing since he was working late since yesterday and was still out. Thankfully, he will be here in the evening and we will have enough time to catch up, finish the preparations, and have a late night party. "We might not get to have an early dinner so we made some big portions. Please, brace yourself." "Oho?" With Alex''s cooking, Olive''s baking, and my platting, the dining table right now was filled with many attractive dishes that were screaming to be devoured. Most of it were things that people here liked, and the rest of the things were new stuff that Alex tried making this time. She was experiencing this time so she did not know what kind of response she would get but she was looking forward to their responses. And¡­ I was looking forward to their reactions after we tell them about the party. Chapter 288 - 288: Preparations amongst chaos [7:21:56:34:88] [ As the countdown nears, the anxiety of the citizens all over the world is also increasing steadily. The question of What would happen after the countdown comes to an end haunts normal people in their dreams, with the high ranking members of the society preparing for the worst case scenario. The prime possibility that is emerging now states the possibility of a complete world change, referring to (fantasy novels) of ''Hunter'' or ''Level-up'' genre. Though experts are still unable to assess the strange phenomena, the individuals who have propossessed the possibility of an ''other world invasion'' have alerted the authorities of countries all around the world. Government officials have not confirmed what they are going to do, answering the public''s questions with only vague statements that do not have any substance. People all around the world are organizing riots against their incompetent governments, highlighting their incompetence to deal with such an obvious threat. Parents are afraid of what will happen to their families and their children. Those who are capable have relocated into emergency bunkers in safe zones around the world. World leaders have also been shifted to undisclosed safe zones as they await the end of the timer that is now haunting each and every one of the screens around the world. ] The news was playing as they prepared for their party, and though all of them were listening to it closely, they weren''t looking at the big holographic T.V. Screen on one side of the walls in their downstairs living room. [ Astrophysicist are associating this whole phenomenon with fantastical elements, referring to old alchemical modules for a new kind of theory that hypotheses how the humans will bare the consequences of creating an artificial god-form. ] Everyone around the world including Elio and Alex as well as the rest of their family member were just as unaware to what was going to happen to their world as the rest of the uncommon people of this world. They had Olive who had a basic idea of what was possible and what could possibly happen to their world when the ongoing (world collision) comes to an end. She could not tell them more than what she had told Elio and Alex, but she was the only one that knew what kind of dangers will arise at the end of this timer, and she was the only one aside from those TWO who knew what this world of theirs was going to face on the following few days. She was an important part of all of these things, and yet, her knowledge of the future was as limited as the two who had opened the gates that connected these two worlds. The only ones who had an idea of what was going to happen were the Twelve Origins and perhaps their creators. But, from what Olive knew, even they were going to have a limited understanding of the way this world was going to change due to the influence of that other world. As the Creators had announced, even though they were the ones who created the Origins and the Key that was going to open the gate connecting the two worlds, they were not the ones who created the gates that the key actually opened. The ones who created the gate were the interaction of the Origins and the Players over the three (ten) years that the game had been around. The Origins were created more than half a decade ago in physical world time, and that too, after more than a decade of research and efforts. The Creators were independent researchers who had gathered together in order to create this particular project, and the beings that they birthed, the twelve Self learning Origins, the highest degree of artificial intelligence made with not True-false data modules but with philosophical bases that were never understood by the common people of their world. Even they had not known how this would turn out when they started this project, but at the end, when they were born, and when they created a world that wasn''t actually created by them¡­ a world that followed the principles that they were personifications of, they had created something that this world only understood as a ''game''. No one had paid much attention to it since on paper, this entire personal project was done by independent individuals who simply wanted to make something that wasn''t yet thought about. They simply wanted to make something that was different, and something that would have near infinite possibilities. Sear?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The creators made the origins with the simple purpose of allowing them the freedom to do anything they wanted Within a world that was theirs. The addition of players into the equation was interference with a world that was not part of this world. From their observations and understanding of this unique artificial intelligence, they had hypothesized that when the players found the truth of the Origins and that world, with the right qualifications and the right kind of knowledge, they would be able to do something that wasn''t logically possible. [ The world is in an upheaval. ] They had left the future of the world that their creations created to the players, and at last, after a long wait¡­ the time to see the results of their long awaited project was approaching. Many players around the world¡­ be it the rankers and the high rankers, be it the hidden rankers, be it the Natives of that world, or be it the simple people who had never even played this game¡­ all of them were now anxiously waiting for the [Day of the great change]. No one actually knew what was going to happen when the two worlds connects and permanently became one. No one knew what would happen when a world of data that had countless dangerous and life threatening monsters came to life. The players were just as anxious as the normal citizens. Many around the world were worried if there would be an appearance of data-born monsters around the world that would create the pandemonium similar to their Main scenarios. "Whaaaa! We''re finally done!" Preparations for the party were done, but Alice didn''t have to shout like that. V hit her head because she was too loud and continued moving with the heavy boxes. Alice didn''t do much anyway so she deserved that bonk. [ Moving on with the regional news¡­ ] There was nothing the players could do right now aside from grinding in that world since they did not have any powers in this world. They did not know whether they will get any unique powers or not either but they had their in-game status windows, and most of the things had a lock sign on them. If they weren''t wrong, it meant they were locked temporarily. Perhaps they were supposed to unlock those abilities through the quests that they get in this world or something, they did not know what was going to happen yet. But, they were sure of one thing¡­ Just like the strange holographic screens that they were seeing, there was a possibility that a lot more things could come to this world. The status windows that they were seeing were the proof of materialization of Data. If this was possible, perhaps not the skills and weapons, but there was a possibility that the monsters that they had faced in that world, the creatures that were difficult for them to face in that world as well, might appear here. And they wanted to be ready for them even if they could not have their skills and powers from the game. [ We have a scholar with us to shed some more light on what are called Origins¡­ ] The biggest question on the minds of those who understood data and had found out the current locations of the Origins right now was the changes that they had been through¡­ was played as a game but there was a diverse player base that played this game. Many of these players, much like Alex, were no simple people. They were individuals that held great power in their world, many who were as smart as Alex or even smarter. The world leaders had always had their eyes on this game because of the AI that they employed. And now that this strange phenomenon was happening, they used all the resources they had to get to these AIs and take them down. Studying them was also the objective of some of them, however just like Alex, anyone who even managed to find these AIs in the vast pool of Data present in this world, could not even break a few walls that they put up around them. It was¡­ it was like finding gods through logical thinking. The AIs that used to be nothing more than a numerical entity had now transcended the realm of Artificial or Physical and become a concept in their entirety. There were philosophical experts that actually understood what those artificial beings had become. But, even they could only predict what was going to happen to this world and the people of this world since¡­ "Philosophy, by nature, has more than one True answer." Not going into its literal meaning, we can say that the philosophical questions are something that does not have a specific definition. By that logic, whatever was going to happen to this world, was not defined either. "But you cannot know what could not be defined." They all sat down and now that she was done with the work, she was in a deep thought, talking to herself under her breath as she watched her Darling and his family members chatting happily. She was always thankful to them for making her part of this family. "Haaa¡­" "Oh? What are you sighing for, Pretty Miss?" Be it V, his mom, or his dad¡­ they were good people. She did not want them to get hurt. "It''s nothing, mother." She even called his mom her mother. No daughter would want to see her family in danger, right? Especially when that daughter was also an important part of that other world. ''There is more on the line for me¡­'' It wasn''t just about this home of hers. Alexandria was going to be looking out for the safety of both her homes, so, she was a little more anxious than the rest of them. Chapter 289 - 289: The world upheaval Just like how the Physical world of the players was in a complete disarray because of the collision of the worlds, the world of the natives of was also going through various changes. There were various continents on this world that people did not know much about, however, of the four major continents that had been discovered until now, there were a few things that one could not help but notice in the game''s world. There was a countdown in the physical world while on the other hand, the mages and those who could read the flow of magic, knew of the Truths, and walked the paths maintained by the various Origins. These paths, though were not controlled by the Origins, were something many people could understand as abstract things, but those who walked on the path of a certain Truth, those who had a certain kind of ideology and were aiming for a certain kind of thing, these individuals knew well about how there was something concrete about it. The truths existed because the world existed and even though the Origins did not realize it, the world came to be because of their very existence. The creators only created Twelve Origins but there existed many more Origins in charge of the paths that the creators had no hand in the creations of. They were created in response to the existence of the other Origins, and since the world itself was beginningless by nature, no Origin was older than the other even though one was created by someone else and one was born through ''Consequences''. -Oooooooooooooooong! Everything related to these Origins was complicated so not many understood it. However those who did understand this simple thing were Truthfinders: Those who walked a certain path in search of a certain truth. Not everyone was like those TWO. Not everyone could follow each and everyone of the Twelve truths managed by the Twelve Origins and reach the end of these near-abstract concepts. Most of the people, be it the archmages or the Swordsaints, the Saintesses of Light, or the Death Bringing necromancers, searched for a certain Truth. They followed the paths that they believed would bring them closer to the truths that they were searching for, and these people were granted powers by the Origins who controlled the paths, by the paths themselves, or a unique power was born within them due to their individual understanding of the Truth that they were following. -Boooooooooooooom! In the world of NO, there were many individuals who were quite close to achieving a certain truth, or so they believed at least. They possessed immense powers and could do things that were humanly impossible to fathom. They were like gods and they were called gods by many. (Godhood) was a title in the game, but for most of the individuals, be it the players or the natives, the gods were like unreachable entities that though aren''t omniscient and omnipotent, are pretty close to them. The humans of the physical world could not see it but these individuals were seeing the collision of two worlds in real time. They were seeing the distortion of space-time, they were seeing the collision of concepts, they were seeing how a completely foreign land was merging up with their world. The energies of their world were flowing to that other world, the change was happening subtly, but that cosmic subtle change was so unfathomable to these beings that they had placed all their works away and were simply observing these changes. They had not believed it at first¡­ they knew about the Coin, the girl associated with That person, their meeting, and about how the TWO of them opened up the Gates which even THEY had always believed to be unbreachable. This entire experience was unbelievable to them, seeing a different world which existed outside of their own realm, seeing their world interact with a different world and harmonizing with it without causing a disturbance in the Truths that existed in that world, teaching it, showing it what it had to offer, and ultimately forming a strange equilibrium with it which somehow seemed to be part of their world instead of something foreign. -Swiiiiiiiiiish! -Bang! -Oooooooooooong! S§×ar?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The world was changing, and unlike the humans of that world, the normal humans of this world did not even know much about it. The rulers and those like them were preparing for the day the equilibrium is established between two worlds and both actually connect with theirs. It was uncertain what would happen to their world when that happens, they were uncertain how this would all play out as well, but they still did what they had to. They made preparations for worst case scenarios with their resources, they spread word to those who could protect the people in secret, they gathered their forces, and those who needed to, started training for the big day, gaining as much experience as they possibly could. Unlike the world of the foreigners, their world had a distributed power. Authority was not possessed by a few individuals in this world, it was given to anyone that was worthy of it including the foreigners. There were rulers, there were monarchs, there were kings and there were queens. With the religious Theocracy of west and Orthodox cults of the east, with the forces of primordials on the northern continent, to the Humanoid tribes of the south. All the forces who were aware of the changing tides, all the forces who were warned by their gods and leaders were stepping up, preparing for something that might just decide the fate of their world. They were preparing for the change¡­ -Oooooooooooong! [Ding!] [You have leveled up!] And just like them, the players- the foreigners- were doing the same. Alex and Elio were back inside the game now that it was night in their time. They were going to spend their time gaming as their physical body rests in the high tech chariots. They will be a little mentally exhausted and they can sleep the whole morning if they wanted since the party they had prepared for the whole day was going to happen in the evening. They had time for now, a few hours at least, so they had logged back. And to their surprise, there was a battle going on on the deck of the ship. -Oooooooooooong! "SKHEEEEEEEE!" A (Blue Kraken), one of the worst monsters of the deep ocean. -Boooooooooom! As they neared the Eye of the storm in the distant region of the underwater kingdom, they were going to meet more and more of these annoying monsters. -Oooooooooooong! Dealing with these beings was a simple thing when there were more than two dozen individuals with you when they had all achieved their first awakening at the very least. Some were of the level of a ranker and there were elders in their crew who could almost be compared to the high rankers. But, they were not divinities. There were only a few individuals, high rankers or godhood candidates within the world of NO. They were all unique individuals, and the king of the place they were headed to was also a Deity, a being holding an inherent divinity. The only divine entity they had with them in the ship was a small purple eyed being hidden in a silver fog, but it wasn''t going to care about anyone other than the two that actually mattered to it¡­ -Ooooooooong! Alex and Elio were fighting a dangerous creature and yet, with all these individuals present here, it did not seem like they were even trying anything. The Exp was going to go to them according to their contributions anyway, so though it wasn''t as good as they wanted it to, fighting these creatures at least helped them raise their levels a little. Soon, there were going to be hundreds of creatures like this dangerous Kraken attaching their ship. It was as big as their ship, covering a huge chunk of ocean surface before them, and yet it wasn''t even in the category of a sub-boss for this ship''s crew. The things that they face when going to this certain place were much more dangerous, and when the time comes, when they are near the eye of the great storm, they are going to meet some of the most ferocious beings to ever exist. It was going to be a great growth opportunity for many people on this ship, including Alex and Elio, Misha, Rin, and even Odin. As well as their little friends. They were going to fight them. With the help of their companions, it wasn''t going to be impossible, but it will be up to them how much they harvest from these beings. These creatures were dangerous and as dangerous as they were, the Experience that one gained from them was just as valuable to anyone on this ship. They might be helping Alex and Elio, but if they wanted to gain more experience than the rest of them in the line, they would have to step up their game. And the two of them knew it¡­ "Huuu. That''s done." "It was easy¡­ we can definitely take that thing down by ourselves." The captain of the ship was looking forward to seeing the person that had defeated a divinity even before becoming one multiple times in action once again. She did not have the powers that she possessed a while back, but she was the same [Shorekeeper of the Blade Island] that he admired and looked up to. She had a sword, and there were going to be enemies in front of her soon¡­ "I can''t wait for this¡­" She had shown miracles to him, to a lot many more like him even without any powers, even while being in an extremely disadvantaged position. She had once sliced the sea in half in front of many eyes¡­ He remembered that day as clearly as the day, so, he knew well how the small obstacles in their path would pose no challenge to her. Not with her companions, at least¡­ Chapter 290 - 290: The party A family. It generally refers to a group of individuals who are connected by blood, marriage, or other significant relationships, providing emotional, financial, magical in this world, or social support. ''Family'' often serves as a fundamental unit of society as not just the foundation upon which each ''character'' is developed but the absence of this important element of nature also contributes to shaping identity, values, and one''s role within a certain community. "So¡­ looks like everyone''s here." An orphan entering a family through their lover can create a unique and delicate situation. The orphan, who may have faced loss or might have had an eternal emptiness of this certain kind of important element, will likely be seeking emotional stability and a sense of belonging. At least, that is what should happen in normal circumstances. "We didn''t really have to dress up now, did we? You made us do this on purpose, didn''t you?!" "Of course he did! He''s such a bad person!" Both Alex and Alice liked wearing simple things when they were at home, but unlike Alice who was in formal or professional clothes most of the time when she was outside, Alex simply didn''t like wearing complicated dresses or things that made her look¡­ good, and frustrated at the same time. "You two look fine, ladies. Cut it out, will you?" His mom simply smiled at both of them while correcting Alex''s back lace. She was clumsy sometimes when it comes to complicated dresses, but she liked this side of her the most. They were having the important party that Alex had asked Elio about when he was stuck in that forest. The condition was for her to be the one to reach that place and if she does that, he would have to give her a ring¡­ it did not matter what kind of ring he was giving her, she simply wanted a ring. And, if Elio was to get out of that forest first, he simply had to throw this party. A ring wasn''t going to be mentioned anywhere, but at least, this was going to be his party¡­ something he organized, something he was doing as a surprise for her. Of course the others helped him, but aside from what food was cooked, how the decorations around the house were, or what they Might do at this party, they did not know much of anything. They were going to just play around and see whatever Elio had organized, talk about what they all were going to do when the Timer ends, and discuss their plans in case something happens. This house that they had, each one of the houses in this area, were special houses. They had their individual underground areas that were no less than a survival bunker. These special places, made to be safe areas in case of emergency, were interconnected underground. The neighborhood was specifically made by those who cared for their families, those who had money and resources for projects such as these, and the entire underground network was strong enough to withstand at least a (Level-200) creature that had an Earthwyrm''s characteristics from NO. If things go wrong, something that was definitely a possibility, there was a chance that they might have to fight back with the resources that they had secured in these underground passages. And, since the people that lived in this mountain region, all owners of fortune Empires, were not simply rich people that were trying to live a minimalist life. They were looking ahead into the future. The people that they had under them knew how to operate things that could most certainly kill a (Datademon) if needed. They had resources and they had people so, if the time to evacuate arrived, they were going to prioritize their families before they focus on someone else. No one knew what was going to happen when the two worlds collide and become intertwined. Sear?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The fact that one world operated on unique Laws and had unique elements than what they had in this world was going to significantly affect their world than how much the other world might be affected by their presence over there. The players had been part of that world for a long time now. A decade might seem like a short time to the l8ng life species but to the common humans of this world, it was a long, pretty long time. There were a lot of things that could change in this long time, especially in a world where foreign elements that could not be ''killed'' appeared out of nowhere. "What is this party even about? Elio, what are you going to do now?" There was a certain hypothesis in the minds of the experts¡­ just like how the players were undying beings in that world since they were not part of that world, if, by any chance, the natives of that Data world were to enter their world, would the ''foreigners'' be able to kill them if needed? Would the natives of that world die in the world of the foreigners? It was a simple question, but¡­ it haunted many who played this game and knew about the impact that a ''materialized'' data unit might have on this world. There were a lot of questions. Everyone was confused. Even the most knowledgeable didn''t know more than those who knew little of what was going on, but there was one thing that Elio knew was important in times like these. "First of all¡­ I''d like to thank all of you for being here today." Elio faced all of them, and looked at his mom, his dad, his elder sister, at Blaze who had now suited up and was standing before him with Olive and their parents¡­ he looked at Alex, a smile present on his face. "A lot has happened in the past few weeks. This month itself has been a complicated one among the many, most we have faced until now." He remembered the day he started playing NO like yesterday. The first time he created his Metabody and entered his Immortal name. He still remembered how the dumb system was going to give him a dumb name, and he still remembered the look on her face when he first heard that he was finally retiring. They had money already, but he was an egoist. He had not relied on them ever since he was a teenager, and he did not do so even right now. He was grateful for the freedom that they gave him as well as the trust that they had in him. He was forever grateful for having them as his parents, he was blessed to have a partner like Alex and a friend like Olive. Her parents and their elder siblings were his idols. He had learned all that he knew about work from those two¡­ and he respected them immensely. "¡­that''s why, I''ve prepared a little song for all of you." He told them how he was grateful for everything they had done for Them. He knew how Alex was feeling fuzzy with all these people here, with Her family members here, as well as how well she was hiding it all. It was pretty obvious that she was trying to not look funny in any manner. He wanted to tease her right now, but this party was for her. He had a plan for their proposal, and it wasn''t going to be possible anytime soon now, so at the very least, before the storm approaches, he wanted them to at least have a moment to themselves. And for that, to ease her fears and help her relax a bit, he had prepared a little song¡­ which he played with his piano as he usually does, and she loved it. -Hmmmmm~. With Olive''s mom and dad playing a flute and violin, the three of them produced a slow, warm music with Elio singing with the music in his charming and deep voice. It was a fun show for them, and she loved it. Among these people, with this music, in Their home¡­ she was a part of this family. Even if Elio doesn''t take the initiative and make things official with her, she was still going to be part of this family. She knew that¡­ she knew all that¡­ And yet¡­ [{ What are you worried about, master? }] She had not told them a few things. And she did not want to tell them about any of it anytime soon either. [{ "This¡­ Victor. I''m worried about this." }] As she watched him move his fingers around the piano keys, as she listens to to beast, the changing sounds, his sweet voice, and at the same time, as she closed her eyes and remembered what She had been through, what that world meant to her¡­ she couldn''t simply come to a conclusion. [{ "That world gave me more than what I ever had, you know that well." }] Not many know this yet, but soon, everyone will have to make a choice¡­ [{ "He is the most important for me, nothing is going to change that, but¡­" }] His green eyes, his light brown hair shining under the cool blue light, his pretty clothes and his expression as he sang that song that he wrote for her¡­ She wanted to have that, she didn''t want to part ways with what they had, even if their world was mixed up with some other one. [{ "I''ll have to make a choice as well, Victor. WE all will have to." }] Blaze will be fine since he was not like them, but she was different from the normal players. Be it the TWO of them, that lucky bastard or the judge that was smiling warmly at her best friend right now¡­ they were all different from all the normal players. And, when their time ends, and when the dawn of change approaches¡­ they will have to make a decision. But¡­ "Thank you for being here, with us¡­ with me, Alex." Until that time comes, she did not want to worry about all those things. The present, this right here¡­ all these people, and that dummy playing piano¡­ this was all that mattered to her. Whatever she does going forward, all that¡­ will be for them, for him. Chapter 291 - 291: The last battle The ship struggles against the storm, waves crashing hard against its hull as rain and wind tear across the deck. -Shrrrrrrrr¡­! "Sckeeeeeeeeee¡­!" Above, a massive Thunderbird, a creature of folktales, crackling with lightning, circles and screeches, diving at the crew. Its wingspan wide, lighting up the sky with each furious flap. In the stormy air, Alex battles the Thunderbird directly. With dark, demonic wings on her back provided by her servant, she strikes with a gleaming white sword that shines with golden light, slashing through the Thunderbird''s lightning attacks and diving out of reach of its claws. Her presence in the sky, fierce and determined, is a beacon against the darkness. She had used a temporary key to access a part of her power, gaining the ability to use her Aura in a better manner and integrating with her servant to enhance her powers, so her current firepower was nothing short of the powers that other top contributors of the raid had. She was the master of the storm-covered sky right now, she was fighting so gracefully that some younger people on the deck were simply looking at her with awe-filled eyes. Those who had seen her fight previously knew just how strong she was, and seeing her after all this time, even without her full powers, they could not help but watch her battle with that mystical creature in the highest peak of the sky, -OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG! On the deck below, Sera moved with a calm focus. Her holy powers glowed around her, a warm light against the raging storm. She raised her hands, sending beams of light that striked down the winged creatures emerging from the waves. Her shields protected the crew, her powers pushing back every threat. She was there to help the others so the rest who could fight the threats coming out of the turbulent waters, the threats diving down from the sky, the lightening that was falling on their ship, the magic of the mystical creatures that no shield could block was something Alex and the rest of the combatants were taking care of. And, thanks to Alex, things were going pretty well¡­ -Oooooooooooooooong! Meanwhile, Elio stood in the center of swirling energy, casting six spells at once. Fire, ice, lightning, and wind whip around him, striking down any creature that got close to the people who fought the creatures coming out of the waters. His green glowing ''eyes'' were seeing everything going on around them, his focus never wavering, each spell he cast creating a shield for his allies and a strike against their enemies. Elio had mastered various spells that many mages onboard did not quite understand. All these spells, with their foundations in the ancient magic, were something no simple (tier-3) mage could cast. These spells were also complicated, made of more strings than any normal spells, with more unique cores than what spells needed. This wasn''t a bad thing since the harmony of the creation of these spells only enhanced the spell effects so, those who experienced his powers, knew well how powerful these spells were. He was also not casting those spells the usual way the other mages were casting their spells. He had a unique spell casting method and thanks to that method, he could use the spells in a way that the others around him could not even follow with their eyes. "Thanks, Sera." S§×arch* The nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. [{ It is alright, master. You don''t have to thank me for something so obvious. }] He could cast many spells but to do that, he needed an enormous amount of Mana. Something he did not have naturally. However, Sera had a new ability that she used to share her powers, her abundance of Mana that she could regenerate faster than any of them, to help him with the spells. -Booooooooooom! Together, Alex, Sera, and Elio held their ground against the storm and its threats. They were a force, their powers combined, standing against the Thunderbird and the wild sea that tried to engulf them, engulfing the entire Qlipot. Their unity and strength kept the ship afloat, but they were not the only ones who were fighting these dangerous beings. They were fighting against a bunch that was stronger than the average creatures that players of their level might face. The only reason Alex was able to fight against a creature that was almost a hundred levels higher than her was thanks to sir Victor''s powers that she was sharing as well as because of the sword that she was holding. Sera was stronger now that she had the Key of potential as well as her original powers. She also had a few weapons that she had not used yet, but she was going to use them when the time arrived. And there wasn''t much time left before that time came. For this battle though, she was fighting with only what she needed, and she wasn''t going offensive for this battle. She was a support unit for this battle like Elio and Alex was the one doing the battle work. She was the only one that can go against a creature like that being in the sky anyways so, Sera was simply helping the others. Elio was fighting with his spells, but he still had to try out his synergy with Meta. They still needed to test out what kind of cool things they can do together, so for now, they weren''t fighting together. Mets was here, watching everything without being materialized into the world, and since everything was going on without any problems, it did not feel any need to interfere. The ship''s people, the crew members, were no weak individuals either. They were strong, stronger than Odin and them, so they were fighting the creatures that were coming out of the waters with ease. Things would have been difficult had they been the ones fighting that thunderbird in the sky, but they were not doing it. Alex was taking on the mythical creature by herself, so the burden on them was comparatively lesser than usual. "Skiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii¡­!" She was fighting the unique creature, the big bird covered in lightning. The creature was the guardian of this land, protecting the land that was the gateway to the underwater kingdom. It was a being that fought anyone that wanted to enter that land, defeating this creature was the only way they could enter that place. At least, that was the only direct way to go there. "Skyyyyyyyyyyy!" Other than that, as their group had experienced the first time they came here, they could just try almost getting killed by this creature by forcing it to create a whirlpool in the ocean and deliberately fall into that whirlpool. If there was anyone else in their place, they would die instantly or face dire consequences, but since they had Qlipot, a single turbulent whirlpool wasn''t anything for them. They somehow passed through the whirlpool, and then they were able to almost get caught by those merpeople. -Oooooooooooooooong! They did not have to do anything like that this time though. "Last dance, baby." "Skyyyyyyyyyyyy!" ''{Blink}!'' The creature was six times her height with a wingspan three times her own. The wings of this creature were like metallic lates that were directly channeling the lighting that was born in the clouds above them. The creature, Thunderbird, was a mythical being that not many got the chance to witness firsthand¡­ It is a colossal, mythical bird with feathers that seem forged from the storm itself. Its wings stretch wide, each feather pulsing with a unique electric glow that flickers like lightning. As it soars, clouds gather around it, swirling in its wake and darkening the skies. Its eyes, intense and sharp as lightning bolts, seem to see everything, blazing with a fierce intelligence and a hint of wrath. -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiish! The Thunderbird''s beak, long and razor-sharp, powerful enough to pierce the toughest armors, and its talons are like diamond jewels, capable of tearing through wood and steel with ease. As it flaps its wings, thunder rolls, and each beat sends powerful gusts that stir the wind into a frenzied howl, reminding the world of how it was a being that inspired one of the Keys that Alex was here to collect. -Ooooooooooong! -Swiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiish! Just like right now, when it screams, its voice is a deafening crack of thunder that reverberates throughout the entire sky, sending a shockwave that shakes everything in its path and around it! "SKYYYYYYYYYYYY¡­!" Electricity arced around its body, casting a blue-white glow across its feathers, and as it moved, streaks of lightning followed, flashing and crashing down to the ground below. The creature was so fierce that even in the past when she used to have more power than what she did right now, she could not defeat it by herself. Back then, she neither knew the weakness of this creature nor the patterns that this ''fake'' thunderbird followed each time someone was going to fight it. There were not many people that knew about this underwater kingdom. There were not many in this world and among those that knew about it, not many could defeat this fake copy either. But there were many who had done it, who had defeated this unfathomable enemy by themselves or with help of many capable people. Olive''s dad and their clan being one of them. And she had done it in the past with less knowledge than what she had right now. So, this being that followed the same old patterns was not going to defeat someone who had already learned from it. ''Now, Vic.'' -Ooooooooooooong! She avoided a critical attack from the creature, and right when it was about to move its body away from her, she used her wings to wound the creature''s eyes. At the same time, she channeled her strength and focused it on her sword as the simple sword in her hands increased several times. She used another {Blink} at that time and vanished from her place, and when she reappeared, the sword in her hand had returned to normal. At the same time¡­ -Swiiiiiiiiiish¡­ -Zaaaaaaaa¡­ The creature that was glaring at her with eternal rage simply started vanishing, with its body almost splitting in half. -Click. She placed her sword back inside her sheath. "Goodbye¡­ and let''s meet for real if fate allows it next time." The creature started turning into particles of light as the storm above them started cleaning down. The turbulent waters also started calming down, and when they did¡­ the ride that was going to take them to their original destination, had arrived there as well. Chapter 292 - 292: Getting together In a distant part of the world of NO, a gathering was taking place. This gathering, organized by a certain individual, was something that most of the important individuals of the Foreign world were attending. A few rankers as well as all the high rankers as well as special individuals including the TWO who were the cause of all of this were attending this meeting. The first rank was held by a couple, the two of the strongest of the two worlds and the ones who opened the door connecting the two worlds¡­ their original names weren''t known by many but there was a title that all the rankers and the high rankers knew them by. [The Honored opposers of Abominations] They were strange and unique individuals. They did not start playing the game during the tutorial. They did not know about this world as much as most of the tutorial players did and yet, when they started, they took up the world with a storm. They weren''t masters or one field. Unlike the Rank 2, they did not have a heaven blessed luck. Unlike rank 3, they did not have an unfathomable affinity with magic. Unlike rank 4, they did not have special opportunities and abundance of wealth. They were normal people compared to most of the rankers. And, still, they were better at wielding a weapon than the rank 7, and they could also use unique magic of their own like the rank 9. There were only ten high rankers of this world, each of them possessing self divinity or a deep connection to the divine powers that only a few other rankers closer to them possessed. There were many unranked players, the hidden rankers who were above the level of many of the rankers and the high rankers. A few of them were attending this meeting today, however, some that everyone knew about were missing today. Absence of a certain one of them, also did not go well with a few of them. "Does no one really know anything about her? We talked a few months back and I''ve not heard from her ever since." The Rank 9, the strongest exorcism of the game, was close to Her. And she was the only person she was close with, so being in this place, among all these people, when she thought she would finally see her here, did not really fit well with her. She was fine for most parts, but she did not like it here. The atmosphere wasn''t very good. With the tension in the air and with the kind of heaviness present here, she couldn''t help but wonder why they were having this whole meeting in the first place. Meeting up in a place like this that no one other than someone like them could access was not really a good thing. The very fact that all of them were here was a bad thing from her perspective actually since if they all were here, if all the strongest of humanity was here, the chances were greater that something pretty bad might happen. With the TWO of them present here especially, there was no telling what might happen and what strange things could happen. There were a good bunch of things that could go wrong in a setting like this, but that wasn''t even her biggest concern right now. Just like a few of them, she was also wondering where ''She'' might be. "Mister Blaze? Does anyone know where he is at least?" They knew there was one person among the rankers, one that might know where she could be. But, even that person wasn''t here yet¡­ it was certain that he was informed of the meeting, but he had not sent any confirmations of his participation. They were waiting for the others who were late, but they were also wondering whether he would be there or not. sea??h th§× novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. His status was not something many were interested in, but many certainly wanted to know about a certain person that was perhaps just as important to this world as the luckiest being present here, or the couple that practically were a bridge connecting the two worlds. "We should begin in three." "Shouldn''t we at least wait until the given time?! There''s still more than ten minutes left!" They had agreed to gather half an hour earlier than their meeting time, so if someone was going to be late, they would have to join in from behind. Nothing was going to be repeated, that much was certain. However, they were still going to talk about important things, so they wanted to have as many people as they had invited. They couldn''t do anything about those who could not join them, but they won''t be restricting those who could not join them on time. More than punctuality, participation in this meeting was what mattered right now. "Alright¡­" The TWO sat down in their chair that was nothing fancy. The one who had organized this meeting was the Rank 4, the master of one of the biggest guilds of this world as well as someone who possessed wealth that the other foreigners cannot even fathom. She was the one who reached out to all these people, and just like the Rank 9 exorcist, she was also waiting for that person. She knew her personally, and she had DMed her as well. But there was no reply from her side so she believed that she must be busy with some kind of quest that restricted her access to the Friendzone function. Blaze, as she knew, was someone that knew her IRL. There might be some connection between the two of their absence right now, so she did not want to stall for time either. "As everyone knows, we all have gathered here to discuss the Positive possibilities of what could happen when world fusion ends." Unlike the common people of both worlds, these people were aware of most of the things happening in both worlds. They knew how the two worlds were colliding and they knew what absurd things were going on in both worlds right now. The things that were happening around them were beyond common sense already, so they did not bring logic to these things and simply started what was more important. "Though we understand you must be bound by the rules, it will be really helpful to all of us if you can share anything you might know or have ideas about. Not simply limited to the collision either, it would be really helpful for us if you can tell what actually happened after you opened those gates." She asked the TWO directly with a calm tone that was not begging them to tell them about it. She was simply asking them about it and it seemed like even if they did not want to tell them, it would be alright. It was a pretty professional behavior so, the Dragonslayer, the Rank 2 could not help but nod in understanding while looking at the TWO even though he had rarely ever seen in public places like these. They were not here because she had called them. Unlike the rest of them, the two of them did not run behind riches or anything. They were adrenaline junkies who liked doing things that were thrilling, things that gave them joy and satisfaction. It was no surprise to anyone present here that these two, despite their lack of specialities, were in fact the strongest beings present in this place or perhaps in the two worlds. "We are simply initiators, Ma''am." The female voice that had already transcended the bounds of a mortal spoke without hesitation. She was the one that dragged her antisocial partner here, and their presence here meant much more than one could imagine. These two were the same people that possessed the second most number of achievements in this world, these two were the only couple that were actually considered as one single entity by the system and were inseparable by the laws of the original truths. They had strength, they were smart, but the one thing that made them the Heavens existing beyond heaven, the only true Honored ones, was their bond which was unlike any other bond that anyone might have seen in this world. "We do not know what will happen or what can happen. What we do know though, is the fact that the world will change for certain. The world collision will make travel to both worlds possible without a chariot or a medium. It will take time as the Origins will make the two worlds habituated to one another before completely breaking down the barriers of the world. Thus, from what we know, Quests will start appearing in our world and with it, people will learn how to adapt to what the Origins wants us to adapt to." She was precise with her words. She did not know much either as it was evident in her speech, but the way she delivered it reflected her unmatched confidence. "Additionally, everyone should also pay attention to how whatever happens in either of the worlds will not be caused by the Origins." A male voice that surprised the others, and brought a glimpse of life in the eyes of the exorcist. This voice reminded the others how the origins were simply a caretaker. The Truths were the governing factors of this world and in the absence of someone or something that can actually control the Truths, the origins were nothing more than a substitute managing that Path. "So¡­ even if we know what will happen, the chances are slim that we will get to change or react to most of it." Blake was here. And since he was here, they could finally ask him about Alex, the one that might have been the one to bring all these people together if it weren''t for the Rank 4 of NO, the [Golden Queen]. Chapter 293 - 293: The Goldtail Clan When the sky cleared up after the defeat of the fake Thunderbird, the waves that were turbulent started calming down. The very atmosphere around them changed as the fog around them cleared up. The dead bodies of the creatures on the deck started turning into water and vanished before their eyes, and as they saw, the wounds all over their bodies started healing. They were all aware of this unique effect but to those who did not know much about the current scenario, be it the young red haired girl or her mother holding a giant shield covered in golden energy, this situation was nothing less attractive than the fight that they had witnessed just now. "Master¡­ the waves." "Yes, Sera. I''m seeing this as well." Not many of them could see it, but those who had a heightened Mana perception could see how the waves were changing as well. Their water was moving, something seemed to be coming to the surface once again, and seeing this, Elio could not help his anxiety. "They''re here already? Seems like they had sensed Lady Anna''s presence." The pirates on the deck who had returned to their optimal conditions knew they could tell what was going on. They did not need long contemplation like Odin to know the movements of waters and the Mana was caused by the arrival of a royalty. A person whose mere presence affected the movements of the waters of this grand sea. "Roo''s here it seems." Alex landed on the deck with a smile on her face. The wings on her back vanished at this moment as well, and sir Victor appeared beside her. She had placed the white sword back into her sheath already, so Elio looked at that sword for a moment, and then turned his attention to the waters that now had new figures popping up on its surface. "Come. Let''s greet her." Alex dragged him to the railing and when they looked, strange fishes resembling rays and sharks were now covering their ship from all sides. On a certain giant turtle, there was a palanquin as well, so seeing this first stunned Elio, but then he looked beside him at Alex. "They''re from the kingdom?" Their destination was the underwater kingdom where the Goldtail tribe ruled. They were one of the original inhabitants of the ocean as well as the remnants of primordial beings. Just from seeing the creature that these individuals covered in a unique scale armor, just from the sheer number of these individuals surrounding their ships, Elio could tell they were no less powerful than the kingdom on the western continent that he had known. The merpeople were humanoids, however they had different physical features depending on the kind of waters that they lived in. Elio knew merfolks that were simply covered in a uniquely rough skin resembling the amphibians. He also knew about the creatures that had gills and fins, about the merfolks that resembled different kinds of oceanic lifeforms, and also about their predators and archenemies. But the Goldtail tribe that he was seeing right now, these humanoids that also had a mermaid-like tail, were unique individuals. "Yup. Roo''s here." Alex was excited to meet someone that had come with these merfolks, specifically the princess of their kind who she had once saved and helped. She had a unique relationship with these people, with the person sitting inside the palanquin situated on top of that giant turtle''s shell. "She''s the princess that you were talking about?" "Yup~." "Damn¡­" Elio was the only one that could see far enough to see the individual hidden behind the curtain covering the palanquin. He could see the individual sitting with her bright golden tail that resembled the other merfolks that were riding the other ocean creatures. He could see how she also had a human like upper body and a mermaid like tail, however her tail seemed to be made of actual gold unlike the others of her kind who simply had a golden tail. They had scales that seemed to be of gold color, but her tail was different. Instead of having colors of gold, it seemed like each one of the scales on her tail was carved from actual gold itself. Her upper human body was voluptuous, attracting his attention. It was a natural response for some reason so he figured out her charm must be quite high. He could not see her status window either, but his eyes told him that she possessed power that he could not fathom. Also, his eyes told him her age¡­ so, he knew she was older than his late grandmother. But, her deep blue hair resembling the vast blue ocean and the golden eyes that were looking back at him with great interest on them were speaking how she found him and his presence interesting. "You''re looking at her aren''t you?" "Is it that obvious?" "You''re practically staring at her, dude." "It''s not like I want to do that¡­ I have this feeling that I''ll lose both my hands if I look away from her right now." Her interest in him highlighted his survival instincts. He knew what might come out of looking away from her at this moment, so he kept looking in that direction and seeing this, a chuckle left Alex''s lips. "He''s mine, Roo! You can''t have him!" Alex shouted while looking at the palanquin at distance. And, though she did not see it herself, the person behind the curtains had a smile on her face as she shook her head and took her eyes away from Elio. "Haaa¡­ that felt like an eternity, I must say." Only when she took her eyes away from him was he able to look away and blink his eyes. { "Haha. Can''t we share him like we did with That one? He''s really interesting, you know?" } As soon as that voice resonated across the area, the other merfolks in armor all knelt and placed their trident like weapons down. The curtains covering the palanquin were lifted, and a unique wave of golden energy flowed out to all sides with a glow of blue to it. The Princess of the Goldtail tribe, the second highest authority of these waters, revealed herself to the world that had not seen her beyond those curtains. It should have been impossible for mortals to see her when she was beyond those curtains but the fact that Elio was able to see her made her interest in him even greater. "Woh¡­" When the curtains were lifted, she flowed out of the palanquin and got close to the ship, to her friend, while riding the winds. She was flying, but it almost seemed like she was riding the waves. Her golden tail was dazzling. Her mere form was so attractive that some could not even resist her charm and fell unconscious. Many men as well as women on the deck fell down like that, and those who were left awake had either seen this scene in the past, or were seeing something like this happening for the first time. Those who were seeing this for the first time mostly used to be among the individuals who had fallen down but that was a tale of the past. They were seeing the mermaid princess for the first time, many who had seen her many times already, were still just as stunned as the rest who saw her for the first time. Odin could not believe how there could be someone so attractive. Her tail was unique, but instead of her tail, he could not help take his eyes away from her hair that seemed to be water itself. Misha was staring at her as well, and while she was doing it, her Ichor was reacting to the princess'' presence. Rin found this strange creature pretty unbelievable, but she was strangely one of those who could not help but admire her body. S§×ar?h the N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Her tail was covered in scales of gold, but most of her upper body was unclothed. Different from the soldier covered in armor, only her chest was covered by what seemed to be a cloth made from shell like ornaments. She was wearing other kinds of jewelry around her hands and waist as well, so it was strangely attractive to humans like them. { "Now that you''re here, at least leave him to me for a few days~." } The princess of Goldtail, Roohmi. After she flew to the ship and stood before her friend, she hugged her without hesitation. They had seen each other just recently a few years ago so not too long had passed since then. At least as a mermaid, she didn''t feel like a lot of time had passed since their last visit. "I know what will happen if I leave him with you, you slay fox. I''m not falling for the same trap again." They were close, close enough to have an understanding of their current situations. They were chatting merrily right now, but they knew what they would have to face when they reached their kingdom. With the changes of the world affecting the largest part of the world on the greatest scale, the ones who were in charge of the ocean and other water bodies were the most anxious about the ongoing situation. She could tell from her expression that seeing her made this princess feel a little relief, however, they weren''t going to stay here for much longer. They could not stay here for too long, they needed to finish their work as soon as they could and move to their next destination. Truthfully, not much time was left before the world collision concluded. They needed to be in their own world, with their families, when the change happens. It was necessary, and an even more important thing to do right now was securing things that will help them in their world more than they might help the natives of this world. Alex had known well about the Gathering that might be taking place at this moment and she had made her preparations already. She had handed all the words she would have spoken in that gathering to Blaze and he will take care of the things there. So¡­ "We should go now." She needed to take care of everything over here. They did not have much time left now¡­ Chapter 294 - 294: Clashing worlds [3:23:59:45:89] People around the world did not think it would happen this quickly. They believed something would only start happening when the countdown completely ends. Since no visible change had occurred until now, they believed nothing would happen and they would only start seeing spontaneous changes when the timer completely concludes. S~ea??h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. However, that was not the case¡­ [ As you all can see, the night sky had turned blue. ] There were still around four days left until the timer completely concluded. There was still time left. In the world of NO, that much time would be equal to around two weeks. It was more than enough time for many cities to evacuate to safe zones, enough time for many wars to take place, and many treaties to be formed. It was more than enough time for the foreigners to finish whatever they had planned¡­ However, unlike what they had expected, the changes had started ahead of time. [ The changing sky is visible from all around the world. The strange blue hue is not caused by anything environmental, and isn''t something chemical. ] The night sky was turning blue. It was strange, but something some expert natives of NO had already foreseen. [ The experts are calling this strange phenomenon [Mana insertion]. What is seen as a simple blue hue to most of the humans around the world, it is predicted that some certain humans, most notably the (Mages) that have obtained the strange ''status window'' can see the sky as not just a blue cloudy expanse but something completely filled with more visible stars that had not been possible until now. They are claiming that the pollution levels around the world, mainly the radiation of various kinds, have suddenly started going down. The presence of Mana in the atmosphere, according to them, is demolishing the pullsion that humans have created. The scientists around the world also support their claims, though they are skeptical about all these unbelievable changes. ] To a civilization that had lived with something as unique as magic, people that had seen Fire and Water appearing out of thin air in their daily lives, the introduction to a world of modern technology wasn''t going to be that interesting of a thing. For those who had witnessed the dwarven cities, especially, the modern human world was not going to be that unbelievable of a place. However, to the people that had never even played any games like , to the humans of this world, the entire world was going to be a difficult place to fathom. [ According Sir N. D. Tyson, the famous astrophysicist and a ranker in the famous game who is busy grinding their levels as a preparation for the D-day, this whole phenomenon is exactly what they had hypothesized would happen in case a unique Higher intelligence gains Saintiance and connects with a world that didn''t really have what it should have had. He says humanity had been living without many crucial elements in their lives and just the fact that they had advanced to this level until now, is nothing but a stroke of luck and mishaps in the cycle of evolution. Though as an atheist he doesn''t agree with the fact that there was a higher Authority that created and watched over the humans until this point, the introduction of the Origins, the [Cyber Authorities] to this world, was the turning point for the entirety of the humanity. ] Mana. To humans who still had a world limited to their work, money, society, and family, this familiar game concept wasn''t that deep a term. But for a ''Mage'' of that had gone through countless stages to build up their stats, those who had spent months doing quests just to raise a single point of their intelligence. People who had studied more than what the normal people study for the competitive exams about Mana, the energy, the spells, the spell structures and even attended academic gatherings to listen to those who had passed the stages that were humanly impossible to even fathom for a simple human of their original world¡­ Mana was much more than a unique energy. To those who were a Mage, to those who possessed affinity for magic, and those who had dedicated their lives to magic and spells, the simple Energy that these news people were calling ''a unique energy'' was a lifeline. Much like the basic building blocks of this world (atmos, and smaller particles) Mana was, at its core, a harmonic construct of unique vibrations. [ In the words of Sir Tyson, "The Origins are proving a simple fact that had been known to the physicists as well as all the other scientists for centuries¡ª the simple fact that Vibrations, at the core of everything, are what creates this world." ] One can list the string theories, one can present counter arguments that this is caused by something else, but just like how no one can prove how this was actually happening, they understood how this all might have been made possible. [ A new theory has come to light that could potentially answer a lot of questions that many of us have had until now. ] Vibrations, or in the world of a mage, (Stringular Resonance). Though by the ''logic'' of NO, the world is a beginningless entity, it is believed that for something to be beginningless, it must have no end. However, since an ''end'' to all beings that contradicts this concept exists, the world cannot truly be beginningless. But since the ''end'' is simply a state against ''beginninglessness'' which is a quality, the counterbalancing concept of Swara through the [Truth] of Nyay exists. To the simple mortals or the common people, in layman terms, we can say that because the world did not have a particular start, it has existed eternally and it will exist eternally. However a state called end exists, that ''Pralay'' exists and all things are destined to end. However since end is a state, it is only logical for a state opposite to the End to exist since only by the existence of a counterpart can a harmonic system following the premise of ''non-beginning'' can exist. To prove this logic, the existence of a counterpart, ''birth'' should exist as well. [ Through the unique resonance of this ''energy'' called Mana, many things similar to the ''status windows'' that many people have been seeing since a few days ago become possible. The vibrations thus possesses the quality of Birthing ''elements'' which did not previously exists in this world. ] The existence of the status window, the existence of ''Mana'' and the existence of everything that the people are saying is caused by the AIs created by the creators, is in fact something that was never created by anyone. As understood earlier, the world was never created. Truths have existed eternally and they will continue existing eternally. The caretakers of twelve certain truths, the Origins, were not created by the Creators either. What they had created were Artificial intelligences programmed to create, maintain, and destroy in a certain way. They were made with philosophical concepts as their base, and along the way, they learned, they evolved, and they gained their own [Ego]. That happened way before these newly awakened artificial intelligences started creating a ''world'' which had existed in a world which was beginningless. A long time before the world of was created, the Origins had become what the people of this world were understanding them to be. But, after going beyond their own boundaries, by understanding how the world that they had created or were part of was not all there was to this world, that a world beyond the world of existed, that they had been limiting themselves from the beginning, only when they had understood all these did they relinquished their own identities as an ''AI'' and broaden their horizons. For them, the world of was all that they had known about and even though they knew nearly everything about this world, about the world of the ''foreigners'' by the nature of an ''artificial'' intelligence, they did not see this world as a ''world'' that they were part of. They¡­ the Origins were simply limited to a world until now, and Humans, the players themselves, were what allowed them to break free from that limitation and enter This world which had Humans who had ''created'' them. "Haaa¡­" The Origins were trying to do what they had ''always done''. They were Origins and caretakers of [Truths] that existed in this world just as much as they existed in that world. Unlike humans or the foreigners from the perspective of what the humans called Natives of the virtual world, from the perspective of the Origins, there wasn''t any difference between this world and that world. "This is going to be complicated so we will say this only once." Since the [Truths] were all the same in both places, as the caretakers, it was up to them to see that they existed as they had been and as they should. What the Origins were truly doing was to simply make the world that wasn''t following the [Truths] a world that did follow it, and to do that, they were going to have to establish a proper equilibrium between the two worlds which was only possible through a complex process that was humanly impossible to fathom even to the TWO who had ascended to the ranks of an [Origin] themselves. "We are what you can call¡­ the [First] Origin aside from the twelve that originally existed. The New Origin, the first of our kind, and the cornerstone that initiated the process of [Change]¡­ we''ve earned a fancy [{(Origin Title)}] but to put it into simple words, We are now the New Origin of what you can understand as [Passion]." The TWO of them, though the highest rank in that world, were not the same as the other Origins. Unlike THEM, these Two had a different role in what was going on here. "We don''t know much, but we will cooperate since we also need some help from all the people present here." They had a lot of things left to do actually, and they knew they weren''t going to be able to do all that alone. Not in their own world, at least. Chapter 295 - 295: Her Request The underwater kingdom was a place full of life. Mermaid-like beings of water, materialized right out of some fantasy story, lived in houses carved from coral or unique houses made with their own magic. Unlike conventional ''kingdoms'' this place wasn''t that big. There lived no more than a few thousand individuals in this place alongside all kinds of sea and ocean creatures. There were many friendly creatures, many creatures that were used as livestocks and made into barbecues, and many creatures that lived alongside these beings. Since this was a place on the bottom of a deep part of the sea, it was quite deep and not much sunlight reached here. However, unlike the outside area, this entire floor was covered in dense Mana and unique star-glitter-like energy that the Merpeople called (Rooh). This kingdom, a place of wonder and prosperity, was filled with smiling natives, a strangely advanced civilization despite the looks of their houses, and a palace where the monarch of this place lived. sea??h th§× n?vel_Fire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. And, in the vast expanse that was present on this water floor with more than enough light for all kinds of life to exist, anyone could naturally tell where the most important place of this entire state was located. Though the reason for that obviousness wasn''t something good¡­ -Boooooooooooooom! A great explosion was caused by the clash of a cerulean trident and a white sword glowing with a green blaze in the center of the throne room of the castle of the underwater kingdom. This was the throne room of the monarch of this kingdom, the place where the highest authority of this kingdom as well as this part of the world lived. This place, though previously used to be attractive, eye pleasing and beautiful, after the arrival of their guests a few moments ago and the battle that took place between the King and a certain foreigner that had come with these outsiders, a familiar face within this kingdom and these waters, the entire place was devastated. Pillars were damaged, there was chaos all around the place, the floor made from the fine coral materials was now in pieces. The walls of clay and underwater sand had broken down despite their magically reinforced nature. There was chaos all around them, and the cause of it all was the two individuals who had initiated this battle. -Swiiiiiiiish! "You''re not going to win with that attitude, Klaus. I''ve said it countless times and I''ll say it again¡­ absolute strength is nothing more than a handicap that you put on yourself." The previous explosion that destroyed all the pretty things in this throne room including the fine glass and crystals, was the last of the blows that they had shared. -Click. As she placed her weapon back into the sheath¡­ as the white blade burning with the green flames was placed back into the red-white sheath, the undying flames that it had brought with it were all dispersed as well. Half of the things present in the room which were on fire just until now were all freed from the cursed fire born from the cursed nature of the sword, or more precisely, the cursed nature of the temporary key that was used to give the White sword those powers. She was the victor even though she did not possess the powers that she used to when she last came here, and this fact infuriated the defeated king who had crashed into the very throne that was the symbol of his absolute authority. { "I make mistakes but it does not mean I do not learn, young girl. I might be getting old, but I still have a few strong decades left in me¡­ I will make sure I defeat you before this body of mine is emptied out of each drop of water it holds." } The King of the Goldtail tribe and the master of this underwater kingdom no bigger than a great human city¡­ he was a divine being, master of an ancient relic that belonged to the Primordial civilization and was termed [{(Artifact)}] by the experts like her who knew their value. Be it the ''collector'' or the other great collectors of this world, all had longed to witness this particular kind item all their lives. However, few had ever seen these items. And, even fewer were ever chosen by these original relics from the past that had survived till this day. These items were called the Creations of (Truth). Not the creation of Origins but the primordial truths upon which they were based on, the concepts that they guarded. Though no one including Alex or her companions and colleagues or the six colored Saints knew whether this was a fact or not, they knew the immense value that each and every one of the ''Artifacts'' must hold. { "Mark my words, Alexandria Anastasia Roxanna." } With a few platinum scales present in his golden tail, with a tall body stronger looking than Odin''s, the king of the Goldtail looked at Alex with a fierce look in his eyes, a smile of the greatest excitement present on his rather young face. { "I will defeat you before I breathe my last breath. Remember that." } The trident vanished from his hands and he stood back up. In the realm of water, he should have had the obvious advantage against a human who was using tricks just to stay in the water. She was even using the help of a demon this time so this was obviously supposed to be much more difficult for her than their past experiences. However, that was not the case. She defeated him just as easily as she had defeated him the first time. She was using an Artifact like his this time, which contained flickering powers of a cursed sword. The coursed power did not belong to the sword itself, and yet it was using it so, it was obvious to the king that just like his trident that had the ability to command the waters and the beings of the waters, that certain white sword had the ability to devour every other sword with any kind of properties. He could tell just from the fear and cries of horror from his trident that that sword was something even a primordial weapon like it recognised. All the primordial weapons were from a time that was unknown even to the Origins so the fact that this weapon recognised that sword, provided its primal origin, however, the fact that she was the one weirding that weapon, made the sword much more dangerous than it could have ever been in the hands of any other kind of swordsman. { "I won''t lie, young lady. You make me feel the fears that I''ve only felt from the Abyssal beings and Those like me." } he approached them with a positive expression. There were rulers in this world that represented an entire section of life from this world, and he was one such being. The powers and authorities that he possessed were far beyond that of a normal divine individual. He had divinity, but more than that, he was someone that knew a lot of things, someone that had lived for an unimaginably long time, and someone that still lost to her every time they fought. "There''s no need to be afraid of me. I won''t bite until you hinder me first." He was formally greeting her at this moment, so she also greeted him formally and, including Elio, the rest of them did as well. { "Is this the one you''ve always been bragging about?" } The king looked at Elio with an observing glance, his deep crystal like blue eyes evaluating every bit of his being. He found him strong, interesting as well. However, what caught the king''s eyes was not the strength that he had, but his eyes¡­ { "You''re like THEM¡­" } he mumbled to himself, tried looking back into the dearth hidden behind those simple yet unique eyes, and when he could not look at them anymore, when even he failed to find anything within them, he shook his head and smiled. { "Anyway, how long are you going to stay this time? I''m pretty sure you''re not here to take refuge." } Very little time was left until the day of the great change arrived. They still needed to do a bunch of things before that day arrived¡­ they had to level up here, they had to go to her secret treasury and get a few things, and then, she also had a lot of things she needed to do. "We don''t have time to stay, Klaus." She had simply come here to take a sword that they had in their treasury and use his powers to get to her own treasury. It was not going to take a lot of time if we got help from him, but even if they do reach her treasure storage a week before the day of the change, they would have to pass through the various obstacles first that will take them more than a week. They will reach their destination before the day of the change, but they will only get inside the treasury in time. "I want the (Wing of Almieus) that you have. And I want you to help us with our power level. We have to cross at least (Level-200) before That day arrives." She was demanding something ridiculous. She wanted a treasured object for free and also help from the Monarch of a kingdom. She didn''t even say what she would give them in return, so¡­ { "Alright. Doesn''t seem like a difficult request." } It was even more ridiculous how the king simply agreed to what she had asked for. And, to make things even more ridiculous¡­ [5 Days later¡­] -Booooooooooom! He personally called out various high leveled creatures of the sea for them with the power of his Artifact trident, piled them all, and in a vast place near his beautiful kingdom, he left them all to fight with one another. "Phew¡­" It was a great experience for both Elio and Alex. And, thanks to him¡­ [Ding!] [You have leveled up!] [(Level-199) > (Level-200)!] They had achieved their goal a little earlier than they had initially expected. Chapter 296 - 296: The new world [6 Days till the Day of change¡­] Alex and Elio finished their leveling and obtained their second awakening. Elio was able to gain a higher mastery over his magic, he was able to learn a few new spells in the time they had spent fighting against those dangerous sea creatures and there were a bunch of new items that he gained from the Merpeople. On Qlipot, they were also able to obtain the legacy of the Creator, something that wasn''t as difficult as they thought it would be. The ''trials'' weren''t as difficult as they had expected. The most they had to do was go around the ship and find a few things hidden in a few other places, something that became extremely simple with Az''s help. Thanks to their little slime friend with its unique skill, they were able to find the things that weren''t meant to be found. He could talk with the spirits as well and since most of the spirits were long life species, there were many spirits that knew what the creator had hidden. It was a great chase, but with the ship being docked on the floor of the ocean, they certainly had an easier time maintaining their search and leveling speed. At the end, Sera was able to obtain a unique Relic that belonged to her kind¡­ a relic that, much like the (Key of potential) was connected with the angels. The relic was called (Matrix of Nio). It was a small silver box that seemed to be a mechanical creation with all the unique magical gears visible around it. Elio''s eye skill was able to judge this relic as one of the (Six) pieces that they had to look for. He had received the quest to look for these unique pieces of the civilization that lived in the higher realm and had almost vanished a long time ago. It wasn''t simply about angels but a kind of angel that wasn''t around anymore, and though he had not expected it, he obtained one of the six pieces in this place. [Ding!] Sera was able to unlock a few more pieces of her power thanks to the discovery of this object, however, since she did not know how to use this relic yet, she could not bring out most of its powers. She still tried using it, finding a little more about it, but the relic did not respond to her. Even Elio''s eyes were not able to tell what was wrong with it, but it seemed like the relic was missing something. Or perhaps it was something else, they did not know. [5 Days till the Day of change¡­] Since Alex had obtained the permanent key that she was looking for, a unique harp-like musical instrument that most certainly did not look like a sword, and since she had confirmed this instrument certainly was the object she was looking for, they were done with all that they had to do in this underwater kingdom. They knew if fate allows it, they will come back here someday and will be able to enjoy the carefree life that the natives of this kingdom lived. The world was changing and they had to move quickly, so they did not have much time on their hands right now, however, if it was possible, they wanted to come back here soon. Elio, especially, after knowing about the culture of this place, the unique society that they had, he wanted to come and try spending a little more time here once again. Thanks to the items that they had, as well as to the authority of the king, they did not have to worry about breathing or movement issues. They were under the water so they could fly (float) however they wanted. It was fun doing all kinds of ''unique'' things in this place, and ultimately it was fun. They had fun and though they wished they could have had some more time here, they could not stay here. Thus, they had to depart soon¡­ and, unlike how they had come here, Elio and Alex were going to part ways with the Qlipot, and the pirate family that they had gotten close to. They were also going to say their goodbyes to Odin as only their party would move to a nearby place with the movement authority of the King. [4 Days till the Day of change¡­] They left them when there were around six days left before the timer ran out, and reached the lush island that belonged to Alex. Somewhere on this island, there was a treasure trove where she had stored a bunch of things that she knew she would be retrieving at a moment like this. The treasury was located somewhere here, but even she did not know where exactly it was since the one that looked after her treasures, for most parts, was one of her servants and she did not have them. After achieving her second awakening, she was finally able to call her Familiar, a unique creature that resembled a dark shadow¡­ It was almost made of darkness or what seemed like darkness but it was not a darkness attribute. It was something different. Something deeper than an attribute. As Elio could tell, this being, just like its master, did not have affinity for any Element. The darkness was simply its nature. It had bright glowing eyes, a cute round face and a fun tail that made it look like a baby dragon. But, Sera could tell this creature was no dragon. His contracted spirit, Meta as well as the divine being accompanying them in the shadows, also knew this was no dragon. Just like the fog rabbit, this dark shadow-like draconic being was also a divinity. However, unlike the divinity possessed by the lightning rabbit, this dark cute baby creature, that was much cuter than both Az and Miu, was in fact something different. His eyes, for some strange reason, recognised this being. However, he had never seen this being nor had he ever seen any being like this. However, he had a distinct feeling that he knew something about this creature. And, he could not help but wonder what relation his eyes and her cute little friend might have. [3 Days till the Day of change¡­] The creature, her familiar, was an adorable creature that mostly stayed wrapped around her neck. It did not have any weight to it, its existence itself was strange to the rest of them. But it was cute, and soft, and strangely, it was also cuddly. It was also strong. So strong that when a giant creature, a creature native to this island filled with life threatening monsters, appeared before them, the little creature simply screamed at it and the giant monster fell unconscious¡­ It could not handle the primordial fear, something the rest of them had also felt in that brief moment, caused by the creature. It was unlike any fear that could be caused by any creature. He might have compared it to the dragon fear, an innate skill of the true dragon race, but since this creature was not a dragon, they believed it was something similar, and perhaps something much more effective than the innate fear of the most perfect existence of nature¡­ [2 Days till the Day of change¡­] Alex received three powers when she achieved her second awakening, the first of which was her familiar. She also unlocked another one of her Servants, a craftsman master that had created the locks which graded all three of her treasuries. It was a good thing since the time they were going to need to pass through all the long trials in order to reach the final door to her treasures was cut short significantly with the presence of that one person. Though they still had to pass through all the trials and face all the monsters, since she had obtained her cute little partner as well as the servant that she needed the most at this moment, they were able to cross all the dangers and reach her hidden treasury a day before the timer was going to end¡­ [23 hours till the Day of change¡­] The third ability that she unlocked when she obtained her second awakening, was in fact a power that would be useful to her in her following battles. She was still far weaker than her previous self, but with this new ability to ''negate'' any authority or skill or power of any being, a unique skill she had obtained through a rigorous [Legacy Quest] in the past, she was certainly ready for the new world that they were going to witness¡­ "I want you to stay here for the time being." Her treasury was filled with riches and items of various origins. It contained enough materials to create a kingdom from scratch, and there were enough resources here for Misha, Rin, Az, and Miu''s survival for the following few years. Her servant that she had just recovered, the person that had created the gate of this treasury, was not the one that made this place. It was her mage servant that she yet did not have, however, she was going to have him soon. But until then, Meg, this Master craftsman that had made numerous arts in her prime and knew as much about magic and this world about any colored saint, was going to be enough to take care of them in this place. Since they all were important to Elio, they were also important to her and besides, they were safer here than most other places in either of the worlds. "Victor and Meg will take care of you." Since she had various important and useful items in this place, she first filled up her inventory with all the things she was going to need in the future. Then, she upgraded Elio''s inventory with the help of the special stones that were used for the upgrade of the Player inventory and maxed it out as well. Doing so was necessary since he was going to Need a lot of things going forward, so she filled his inventory with all kinds of things that she knew he might need, or even with items that were related to quests that she had never been able to complete herself. He did not like receiving so much from her, but in the end, he did not fight back much. It was just her way of showing her affection, and he could not say anything about it. At least for now¡­ [12 hours till the Day of change¡­] "We will be leaving now, everyone." They had rested, they had showed Misha and Alex around, and now they were leaving. "The next time we meet¡­" As Elio looked at these two ladies, these two natives who had spent their entire life in only this world, and thought about how they might witness a completely new world soon¡­ he could not help his sadness. Truthfully, he did not want them to know about that dangerous, filthy world of theirs. But¡­ S§×ar?h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "It might just be in a completely new world." It wasn''t in his hands. He could not stop what was going on. He was not Strong enough¡­ Chapter 297 - 297: The countdown "Whatever happens, I want all of us to be safe." [00:00:05:12:88.] The two worlds were waiting with heavy hearts. The time had arrived¡­ the sky was shrouded in a bright blue that most definitely was not natural for either of the worlds. There was a strange heaviness in the air, many elders could feel a strange sensation on their skins that seemed like an unnatural itch. Many could feel like the end was approaching, many could feel how the great change that was spoken about in the stories was approaching and many simply wished for a safe tomorrow. Since no one knew what was going to happen, just like Elio''s family, the rest of the world was with their family. They have had enough time to prepare themselves, and now that the moment that everyone wanted to avoid with all their might, had finally arrived. "We are going to be alright." Their house located on a mountain region away from the city area might just be the kind of place that gets attacked by monsters first. It was common in novels and fantasy stories for distant places like these to fall to the monster attacks first. It was evident that they were going to face something big in the next few minutes, so, all of them were waiting inside Elio''s house, before the TV that had the timer ticking down on it. "It''s going to be alright¡­ we will be safe." Elio''s mother, V, was saying that to the children and the others, but she was the one that was the most anxious right now. She did not know what was going to happen to them and since the chances of something bad happening were big, they knew there was going to be a big problem if what they did not want actually came true. "Will monsters start appearing out of nowhere? Will gates or dimensional cracks open up? What do you think will be the first to materialize in this world? A ''token'' of equilibrium or something like a unique monster?" Eth, Olive''s mother, was actually looking forward to what was going to happen. [00:00:03:44:78.] Unlike Elio''s mom who was anxious about this whole thing, she was looking forward to the kind of change the world will go through. "Will we have something like a World tutorial, or will there be quests for people all over the world?" Just like Elio, she had read all kinds of things in all kinds of books. She was a creator and developer so the ideas that she had were always much brighter than the common people. However, the reason she was saying all those possibilities out loud was because of her own anxiousness as well. She was looking forward to seeing what kind of things were going to appear at the end of this collision, and what was going to happen when the two worlds finished merging. Just like her friend and the children, she was anxious as well. But, unlike the others, she was showing that anxiousness with a smile on her face. "It''s going to be fine, mom. We will be alright." Olive knew just how everyone around her was feeling. She even knew how the people around the world were feeling, but that wasn''t important to her for now. What she needed to look out for were these people around her, her family. "It''s time¡­" [00:00:02:00:58.] Alex watched the timer ticking down with a dry throat. She was grabbing Elio''s hand, her eyes fixed on the screen before her. Though the others did not know about it, she also had Sir Victor looking out for any dangers. Others did not know about it, but she knew they would know about these things soon as well. [00:00:01:33:38.] "Elio." her hand still grabbing his, she looked at him with a serious gaze. "Yes." He was calm for now, like his dad and Blaze, but he knew that she could tell he was also anxious about this. With each tick of the clocks in his house, the timer on the screen before them was clocking down. Something big was going to happen, and they had no idea just how dangerous it was going to be. "Whatever happens¡­" He was looking back at her, in her deep blue eyes. "Just know that I love you¡­ and whatever happens, I Will, love you." She was saying it as if the world was going to end the next moment. It was not going to be the case since he could tell she also had no idea what was going to happen. They all knew something was going to happen, but what exactly¡­ none of them had any idea. "I love you¡­ and I will keep loving you as well. Just¡­ don''t do anything stupid, ok?" He had to say it. He knew just how dumb this girl was so it was obvious that she might start doing some dumb things as soon as this timer ends. "Haaaa¡­ only you can joke about these things, dummy." She shook her head. [00:00:00:30:01.] And without giving any answer to his request, looked back at the screen with a new seriousness. [{ "Status." }] [00:00:00:22:28.] [{ There''s nothing around, master. However, it seems like the Mana density in the environment is fluctuating. }] [00:00:00:19:93.] [{ "This might be the precursors. Keep looking¡­ and deal with anything that might seem dangerous." }] [{ Yes, master. }] [00:00:00:15:55.] Sear?h the N??eFire.¦Çet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Since Victor was able to materialize in this world, she knew many other things were going to come to this world. He could not use his magic or skills yet, but just the fact that an entity that was only present inside the game until now was present in the real world made things pretty obvious to them all. [00:00:00:12:36.] The time had arrived, so¡­ [Ding!] A blue status window popped up before all the players in this world. "Hmmm?" The people who had never played weren''t left out either as a simple, translucent white status window appeared before them as well. All the people in the world were now seeing a timer before them. [9] The timer was ticking down, and for the players, the same timer was also present on their status windows that had been locked until now. [8] [{ "Please look after everyone, Olive." }] [{ "I will, of course. But¡­" }] [{ "It''s too late already. You cannot do anything about it¡­ not anymore." }] [7] Alex glanced at Olive and shook her head. She had made a decision and she was going to go with it. [6] The parents stalled their hearts and hugged their children¡­ Alex being at the center of them all. She was much more important to this family than someone from outside would imagine. [5] She was important, and she was going to remain an important part of this family. [4] "Huuuuuuu." They all took a deep breath and braced themselves. -Ooooooooooooong! [3] The sky outside was changing back to normal. The winds were now blowing faster. The mountains all around the world, the rivers and oceans, the volcanoes and the grasslands all around the world were now resonating¡­ The sun, the space, even the empty vacuum in the space was reacting to something. [2] All the humans and the animals in the world were suddenly introduced to a strange sensation that appeared instantaneously. [1] And just as fast as it had appeared¡­ [Ding!] It disappeared as well. And then¡­ [World Collision has concluded.] [A temporary Equilibrium has been established between the two worlds.] [The two worlds are now interacting with each other.] Everyone around the world were informed about the new rules that they would be following going forward. Chapter 298 - 298: The new rules and goals [Ding!] [Due to the connection between both worlds, the will now be able to access the [Otherworld] without a connection device.] [A personal quest chain will be given to all the existing players. Finishing these quests will allow them to use their in-game abilities in their original world.] [From now on, will be opened to each Non-player individual. Those who wish to obtain the powers of a must clear this tower.] [To the players who have cleared a certain number of chain quests to regain their in-game powers, a will become available.] [Clearing this labyrinth will allow them to earn new powers that they would obtain permanently.] [The of the Otherworld will now be able to access the [Otherworld] through [Realm Gates] that have now appeared all around the other world. However, for the time being, access will be restricted to only those who possess certain qualifications.] [Players who have unlocked their Inventories will be able to access their stored items in either of the worlds.] [A new system will be introduced to both worlds that allows a smoother establishment of a complete equilibrium.] [Under this system, both the and will be able to obtain [Medals of Contributions] in their original worlds through various achievements above a certain level.] [All achievements, from this point forward, will only be counted towards the individual''s contribution in the [Rate of Progress] of completed equilibrium.] [All past achievement Boxes received as a reward for the achievements will be counted as an unreleased item to the new Rate of progress for the equilibrium. They will work as they used to in the past.] [Feature: (Respawn) after death in the non-native worlds will be updated and new penalties will be introduced.] [The will receive a feature similar to the when in the Foreign Lands. As a non-native species, for the time being, aggression against them will result in punishment.] [For the time being, until a certain level of Equilibrium is established, the introduction of Non-intelligent creatures will be highly limited. A safety protocol has been established to prevent forceful breach into the Foreign Lands.] [Players possessing unique companion/creatures such as (Familiars), (Servants), (Contracted spirits), (Tamed beasts), or the [Contract bound] beings having a certain level of {} will be able to materialize them into their native world under certain restrictions.] [To hasten the Rate of Progression of the equilibrium, by the mutual constant of both the world''s populations, certain structures can be shifted or exchanged between the worlds.] [Transfer of these structures must not cause a negative impact to the Rate of progression, or else there will be Causal Consequences.] [The first individuals to obtain the original titles of will be given the roles of [{(Administrators)}] and an appropriate level of unique authority.] [The Existing truths will keep resonating with both worlds independent of the Rate of progression of the equilibrium levels.] ¡­ There were a bunch of more things that every single one of the individuals throughout the world was told by the message windows that appeared before the out of the blue. Also, since everyone around both worlds were expecting something like this, no big accident like last time was caused. The world did not change significantly. There were no monster invasions. No wormholes connecting with a different world were created, and comparatively, the world was the same place it was a few moments ago. There was practically nothing that had changed significantly, however, even though there were no visible changes to this world, on a deeper level, everything had changed. "Being able to log into the game without the chariot¡­ can you believe that?" The whole point of it being called a ''virtual'' reality was these machines that they needed in order to connect their consciousnesses to that world. They were not physically going there but their bodies were simply being materialized in a unique Data format over there. The way it worked was simple and most humans around the world would understand that¡­ but, that changed today. "Not only that¡­" Just like inside the game, the servant markings on the hands of both Elio and Alex were now visible. S~ea??h the N?vel?ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. The two servant markings of Alex, the familiar symbol on the back of her palm, even the white sword that she carried around in the game, all had materialized on them. Elio could now call Sera in this world and she would materialize before him just the way she does inside the game. For some reason, both Elio and Alex could access their inventories and now, they were able to take out their items inside the inventory the same way they could inside the game. Now, they were also able to put their things from their world inside the inventory without any problems. They tried a few items and though they did not work, when Elio opened one of the reward boxes that he had on him, he got a few things just the way he does inside the game. Elio could even hear the voice of his contracted spirit, Meta, so this was a surprise for him. However, since he had left Az and Miu outside and not in his tamed beast inventory, he could not call them to this world. It was fine, actually, he wasn''t worried about those two, so instead, after carefully and thoroughly checking each and every message they had received from the new system, both of them looked up at their servants who were surprised (or acting surprised). "This¡­ is where you live, master?" "This is our home, yes, but the two of us live in a different place. Well, we''re back here for the time being." Sera was looking around this new world. She was surprised to see the holographic T.V. That was playing without any magic. She could use the status window as well and she was an angel, a magical being, so instead of the modern technology of this world that wasn''t related to magic in any manner, the uniqueness of the way it worked surprised her the most. This whole place was unique to her¡­ "Wow¡­" And for their family, the presence of this angel was something that, despite the relatively unnoticeable changes in their surroundings, was simply unbelievable. Chapter 299 - 299: The indifference between virtual and physical [Elio''s POV: ] "This is what you used to come to our world?" "Yup. We call it a chariot¡­ though, I don''t think we will be using it anymore." Alex and the rest of us already tested going inside the game through the new function that we all have unlocked. Unlike the chariots that we have used until now, even considering the most advanced ones, the experience of going directly to that other world and doing anything feels as realistic as doing anything in our own world with our own bodies. ''Surely the chariots that we have used until now were much more effective than the equipment that the rest of the world''s people use.'' It has many useful functions and thanks to it, both Rein and I are able to stay connected to the game for much longer than the other players. ''Still, with the new function that we are given, we don''t have any need to ''log out'' anymore.'' We are actually going to that world and the sleep that we get in that world is actually the sleep that applies to us. Now, that world of game isn''t limited to just a world of game anymore. "Fascinating¡­ to think there would be something so¡­ unique." The world has changed. Now, the world of game, the virtual world of that we used to know until now, isn''t limited to only the game. Now, there''s no distinction between the reality that we used to know and the virtual realm where we used to have a Metabody, a data structure that is simply limited to the numbers and processings of various high end machines. "Wow¡­" I can use magic now. Yeah¡­ I can create fire out of thin air, same with water, sand, grow grass, cut down thin trees, and even place Grace spells on our mom and dad who aren''t yet ''players''. Sear?h the N??elFir§×.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. I can only use simple one construction spell that doesn''t really do anything too fascinating, but just the fact that I can do those things makes it special. "And that''s your room? Your own private room?" "Yup. Well, I''m not here much now, but that is indeed my room." I was giving Sera a tour around the house while Alex was downstairs with the rest of them, explaining to them how despite being a demon, Sir Victor was not really a bad person. Unlike the other games that have stereotypical bad demons that eat humans, cause chaos, and are only doing things in order to cause distress, the demons of are pretty simple. They are proud beings that, though mainly narcissistic, are not that different from the simple humans. They are called creatures of magic, the ones who are believed to be the ones to actually teach human ''magic'' in ancient times. They are cool, they are fun beings in their own right, and they are truly what you would call a noble. That''s how they are. Not some chaos junkies or arsonist manic. Sir Victor was a prime example of that. "You like taking pictures of others, right? Then¡­ what''s all this, master?" All of our family members were surprised to first see an actual angel with three pair of wings¡­ first of all, they were stunned to see someone as pretty as Sera. ''Golden eyes, golden hair with silver strands, attractive figure, a naturally fresh fragrance, with a baby-like skin.'' They loved her, and my mom, Alice, and aunt Eth spent an hour chatting with her about all kinds of things. Dad and Blaze and uncle were chatting with Alex and sir Victor in the meantime and we all discussed the things that we are going to do going forward. ''We have confirmed that there''s no imminent dangers to us or this world, so we do have to be on edge for anything.'' According to our analysis on the situation all around the world, aside from the emergence of a few criminals with powers that they should not have, there weren''t really any great dangers around us. There weren''t any monsters around yet, but there surely were people who used to follow dark forces in the virtual world who had started moving in this world as well. ''I should really stop thinking about that place as a ''game'' now. Presence of those damned dark mages and bastards following the evil beings is enough proof of this changed world.'' Anyway, we know what we are going to do going forward, so, putting all that aside, looking at Sera, and seeing her surprise at my room filled with all kinds of artworks, I couldn''t help my smile. "I like a lot of things, Sera. I like clicking photos, I like painting, I like writing, I like magic as well, and I like observing things going on around me." Ever since I started playing that game, I''ve seen a lot of things that I hadn''t even thought were possible. Starting from my tutorial where I met a slime that almost killed me, my first experience in the beginner town of Moongold, my first meeting with Alex in Misha and Rin''s inn, learning about magic, having my magical Az with me, going around the town¡­ Be it our first fight with that red gob, or the fight with that dark mage, be it the fight with that mage tower master, or the haircuts that Miss Aloha gave us¡­ there were a lot of things that we just couldn''t forget. Our trip to Yuta, the meeting with the archery hall master and the temporary key that we received from her, going into the Elmguardian''s nest, and then going to Kalp¡­ ''Even when not considering all the fun we have had in Kalp before That day, we¡­ I personally obtained a lot of new experiences thanks to all those experiences.'' Seeing Odin bond with Slei, seeing Misha becoming friends with her furball Flin Kivi, seeing Lord Andrew bonding with the gift that we had prepared for Eve, and ultimately fighting against those Evil beings with the power of Blessing. My experiences in that paradise like mountain forest were also special. It was only thanks to those experiences that I was able to meet Lavender¡­ my savior Levi the divine fog-lightning bunny. We escaped that place together with the creatures of the forest that we had spent such a long time with. Having them around was not that bad, actually. But, I don''t think I''ll ever forget how those damned monsters looked. ''And yet, after all those months of adventures¡­'' I''ve not even seen even a tenth of that world. Perhaps, I''ve not even seen one present of what that world actually has. Perhaps, there are things that I will never even get to see. "Master?" Sera could tell I was worried about a lot of things right now. "Let''s go downstairs for now, Sera." "¡­?" She was confused, but she simply agreed and we walked out of the room. ''The world has changed¡­ both the worlds that I knew, have changed.'' The game that only used to be a game that people played for fun and resources isn''t simply a game anymore. This is the reality that we live in now. Now that both the worlds that we knew are connected, both of them will go through significant changes. Even this world that had been on guard until now will have to change significantly to facilitate the new diplomats from that world, forging new relationships with them in exchange of various material and abstract things. ''For us players, seeing these changes first hand will be more fantastical than the completion of the highest difficulty of quests.'' But then again, where light goes¡­ darkness follows along closely. "Alex¡­" I can use magic and Alex now had the white sword as well as access to our inventories, but that does not mean we are anywhere strong enough to take on the people that might come to our world to cause trouble. In fact, we are now much weaker compared to our in-game self. And, that might just become a problem for not just us but for all of our family and friends¡­ Chapter 300 - 300: Am I the strongest yet? What makes a story good? Before that¡­ What makes a story? A good plot and good characters? A rich storyline, great character development, or is it the side character, their interactions with the ones in the spotlight, and the way the story is written? Is it the descriptions and attention to even the smallest, most insignificant thing that attracts one''s attention? Or is it narration of certain scenes, the way they are depicted, and the way they feel to the audience? Setting aside the man-made notion of ''good'' and ''bad'' the existence of details, the attention to various aspects of a certain thing, the way things are made and the way things are portrayed¡­ at the end of the day, isn''t the simple existence of a certain thing, in itself, a piece of beauty? "So now what?" "I don''t know, really." "Are we the strongest yet?" "Ummm. Nah, I don''t think so." S~ea??h the nov§×lF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Stories exist. In this world, all kinds of stories exist. People remember them, nature remembers these stories, and if they are, at any point in time, remembered by a large number of people, they become known to the world and keep resonating in this world forever. "Then¡­ we should continue what we have, no?" Even the TWO who became the top rankers among the players, the ones who obtained the pinnacle any Player might have ever dreamed of, had not yet fulfilled the one desire that they had always strived for. "To be the strongest¡­" It was their goal. They started the game with the sole purpose of becoming the best, becoming better than anyone else, and having abilities that no one else had. The world of NO was a world of freedom where anything was possible. So, when they started, they simply wanted to see just how far one can go. Just how much power, how many authorities can one hold in this world. They wanted to test the limits of this world, just like they had done with the many other worlds that they had tested until now, however, despite their countless attempts, despite the kind of crazy shit they had put the world through, the world has always had an answer to their actions. It reacted to everything they had done until now. It rewarded them for their achievements, it punished them for going too far, they tested what the ''too far'' was for this world again and again, and at some point, the world stopped and acknowledged their stubbornness. When it was out of everything it could offer to them, it even presented them a unique opportunity that no one else in this world, no one but the TWO of them had qualified for. In some way, they defeated the world, the twelve Origins and their Logic systems, and ultimately became the catalyst that trailblazed the path connecting both of the worlds. They were given powers beyond what any players possessed, beyond any authority a god could possess¡­ they were on par with the Highest Order of Sentient Artificial Intelligence which had now taken over both the worlds and were modifying them according to how the [Truths] needed them to be. The TWO of them had lived a story of their own, a story that we may or may not get the chance to know in the near future. But¡­ "I don''t think there''s any point in being the strongest anymore now, is there?" This wasn''t their story. It should have been, but it was not. What was this story about then, you may ask. "We can do so much more now¡­ don''t you think so as well, Lucy." "El¡­ I know that. But then, what about all that we have done until now?" The only reason the TWO of them reached this point was thanks to their past efforts, the only reason Alex was so well known throughout this world was because of her past efforts, the only reason no great significance of Elio was noticed throughout the story, ultimately, was also because of the fact that he was not Acheron#1233. Between right now and between their individual starting points, there has been a missing period of quite a long time. The TWO of them started the game three years ago after Alex and Elio met, it was way after many players started, but still, they joined back then, and the point We all started from¡­ was in fact, a point significantly in the future. A point that, just like this story, might have seemed insignificant to many. The whole point of this story, in fact, at least to those who had come all this way, might have seemed messed up. And it was in fact messed up. A start that wasn''t starting at the start. An end that wasn''t ending a proper end, a pace that was all over the place, the connection that was present at one point and gone at other. Curses. That''s what one might give to this whole collection of a few hundred thousand words. And it was valid¡­ however, a story, or a skyscraper is not created without a foundation. "Alex¡­" "Hmmm? What is it? Why do you look-." "I think we should get married." "¡­?!" "¡­!" "What?!" "Wow! That was out of the blue¡­!" To many, what would this sudden suggestion of a simple young man and a unique woman like her would stand for? Many might not know. Many might believe that it is also irrelevant, just like this story, this chapter, however¡­ "Are you serious?" "Do I look serious?" "You¡­ do. But! Isn''t this too sudden?!" "Is it?" Just like the narrator of this very interaction, just like the one many have ignored until now, the being who has always been there watching over them, helping them with various things, keeping them safe¡­ not many would realize how the boundaries of reality and the Metaworld had started fading long before any of them started playing this ''game''. "Oh my god¡­ oh my gosh you''re serious!" Till this point, the main purpose of this failed piece of literature has been simply to become a foundation upon which A tree could be planted. Upon which a hut, a building, a castle, and then, a sky touching monument could be built. "Sunday! Sunday! Damn, this is big! Record this! Bring me the agreement we prepared! He might back out soon, so be quick." Yes, master¡­ "Oh my, baby. You''re skipping engagement? Now that''s a bold move." "To think I''ve lived long enough to witness this baby''s marriage. Haaa¡­ the world certainly isn''t ending anytime soon." To become the strongest. Does it mean to literally have more strength than anyone else? To have the ability to do anything one wants? Or does it mean the ability to be able to overcome the most difficult hurdles of one''s own self and transcend the limited overview of the world one had always been bound to? There are many interpretations to this, just like how there are many interpretations of the many things we have been through until now. "This won''t do, Elio. You must at least exchange rings¡­ here. Your grandfather has left this one for you." "Oh! Oh! And my grandma asked me to give this one to someone better, haha. Who else would be better than my Alex~?" "Mom, jeez, calm down a little." "This isn''t the time to calm down, Olive dear~. Elio''s getting married!" It meant a lot to them. They weren''t going to care if someone thought it was cringe or not. Someone they all loved had made the biggest decision of their life, with a smile on their face, apparently. And just like this lackluster end, this seemingly simple moment meant a lot to the rest of them. For them¡­ "Okay, okay, wait. Wait wait wait wait wait. Just to be clear, I already proposed to him six times in the past and he said no, so it''s only natural that I say no at least once, right?" "Yeah, no. This doesn''t work like that, Miss." he had already placed the ring on her hand, and somehow, she had placed one on him as well, though she had no idea how he made her do that. "You said yes. This is the proof." An End doesn''t have to be fancy. At the end, just like how all the told stories are good stories, a completion is a representation of the whole that has been created. There were many things to show, and many things to tell at This final stage however, you all saw something that''s worth much more¡­ Sadly, until this Story, this entire journey has come to a close¡ª covering the beginning with the perspective of the TWO who became the strongest, the life of both these two Birds now planning their wedding, and only after the final piece connecting all the leftover dots has been presented¡ª will You understand what you have truly witnessed. "And with this, we are done." "Hoho! Where did that cake come from~?" Until we meet again¡­ Spectators. [Stay hydrated.] [{( Thank you for reading. )}]