V54C5P4- Quest Crossroad

Prove Your Strength complete.

You have put the sandstorm to rest and proved that you are the greatest warrior in the desert.

This historical achievement will be revered by the people in the desert and the young warriors will not hesitate to follow in your footsteps.

< Quest reward increased all stats by 3. >

< Honor increased by 30,000. >

< All tribes of the desert look up to your name. The warriors will regard you as the one who will succeed the t.i.tle, the Great King of the Desert. >

t.i.tle!

< You have obtained the t.i.tle: The One Who Slayed the Sandstorm.

It is an honorable t.i.tle given to the one who overcomes the sandstorm in the Desert of Silence.

Strength and Stamina increase by 15% in the desert.

You have gained high influential control over the desert tribes. >

At last, the quest was complete!

Weed put on all the equipment including the Sky Ruler’s Armor the moment the message alert notified him of his success.

*Clink-Clank!*

The sandstorm disappeared, but the blade-like winds were still sweeping the surroundings.

At the same time, lava rained down from the sky.

The Lava River had covered the sky in its clash with the sandstorm.

‘One wrong move and I might just die after having finished the quest.’

Only about 3,000 health points remained.

He was very close to dying, but he had Seulroeo’s Wedding Ring in his possession.

Blink!

Spouse Seoyoon’s health points are transferred.

138,861 total health points.

Berserker’s traits has been applied.

You have gained Blind Rage, Improved Stamina and Unyielding Fighting Spirit. >

The effects of the marriage vows that were imbued in the wedding ring activated.

More health points than Weed usually had were transferred to him.

† Marriage Vow

The blessed ring shares life between two people.

When one’s health points are lowered to the point of putting the wearer in danger, up to 50% of the spouse’s total health points can be transferred.

When health points decline, the job cla.s.s of the spouse who is wearing the ring will be applied to the effect.

You are capable of using your spouse’s skills up to 70% proficiency.

The effects of the wedding ring were not always absolute.

When he battled against Bard Ray in the Melbourne Mine, he took an incredible hit and died before the effects had a chance to be applied.

In other words, instantaneous death!

Seulroeo’s wedding ring served as a token of the wedding vow and could not be pa.s.sed onto someone else. However, there was always the case of it breaking or losing it, so it had to be handled with caution.

When he chased down the Hermes Guild at the Garnav Plains at the expense of his life, he was cautious and took off the ring and other valuable items prior to the chase.

But at a time like this where his health points were hitting the bottom of the tank, he had no other choice but to rely on the ring.

It was like a man having no one else to turn to other than his own wife if he were to be laid off work or got into a huge mess outside!

“So reliable, as expected.”

***

Barova and the desert warriors dropped their jaws.

“Kuk!”

“That’s….”

“A lava storm.”

It was fortunate that the sandstorm faded away.

They did not have to be careful to call him the pioneer warrior who accomplished such a marvelous achievement, and it was a life-long memory to have witnessed him pull it off in person.

With that being said, the sands retreated, but the lava surged up several kilometers into the sky and rained down all over the desert.

“Agh! Don’t get swept away or we’ll die.”

“Hurry up and flee!”

It was extremely wise to have decided to watch from afar in order to distance themselves away from the sandstorm.

The users that were standing by the sand hills hurried back to take cover.

Geomchi5 and the apprentices were in a different situation.

The lava rain was falling down from the sky, but they looked at one another.

They inched away slowly, then stopped!

They were pulling their legs back, but stopped in their tracks when their eyes met with another.

“K-hmm. The youngest one is awesome.”

“Instructor. I knew he had it in him.”

“Yes. That is the spirit of challenge in its entirety. You cannot view anything in a pessimistic way from the get-go. You must try first… It might work or it might not, and that’s the way it is.”

“That is an excellent lesson.”

Geomchi5 and the apprentices were all topless.

They scouted everyone around them and did not back away even one step.

It was raining lava, but hiding from it was deemed to be weak.

“The scenery is quite pleasant.”

“An infatuating scene indeed.”

A drop of lava fell on the shoulder of Geumchi244.

“K-ugh!”

The lava burned through his clothing and scorched his shoulder, bringing him sharp pain.

His health points were declining substantially, but not a single change to his facial expression.

“Does it hurt?”

“Ha-ha-ha. It’s relaxing!”

More lava began to fall.

If they wore proper armor, they would have been able to withstand it a lot easier, but Geomchi5 and the apprentices endured it with their naked bodies!

“Ha-ha-ha.”

“Wa-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha.”

“Chuckle-crackle.”

Just like that, 47 lives were lost.

***

“Elder. You can take this to Twell who is fis.h.i.+ng by the river.”

“That’s a bit annoying, but I’ll do it.”

< You have accepted the quest. >

Reverse thought that it was too difficult to pa.s.s the beginner training dojo.

So, he proceeded with the simple quests.

“I need to get a sword nonetheless.”

If one were to travel outside the gates, having the default iron sword was a big difference than not having one at all.

He knew that fact very well beforehand and so he stashed as much pocket money while doing these quests.

“I look forward to your help next time around.”

“Forget it. You’ll never see me again.”

Even after completing the quests, he never got familiar with the people, but he did carry out the tasks well and built up his reputation bit by bit.

“I have an emergency to attend to. Can you look over my fis.h.i.+ng rod for me?”

“Eh. Go do your thing.”

“The current is great today. If you catch any fish, you can keep it, sir.”

*Blink!*

Fis.h.i.+ng at midnight!

Fisherman Zeld is thinking of getting wasted at a pub.

Catch fish in his place until dawn.

The larger and more unique the fish, the higher your reputation will rise among the fishermen.

Difficulty: F

Reward: Fish

“I do not like fish all that much.”

“Still, try catching one. It might be your lucky day.”

“Well, I got nothing better to do…”

Reverse stumbled upon a fis.h.i.+ng quest by the river, and it really was a good day for him.

He put on the bait and tossed the fis.h.i.+ng line. Soon after, the fish began to nibble. The next step was to pull hard and land the fish.

The fish were dragged out to the surface in cl.u.s.ters and the couple that were watching from afar were surprised and approached him.

“Wow. He caught them again.”

“He’s really good at it.”

Reverse cleared his throat trying to keep calm, but his face was already blushed with happiness.

“A-hem! This is a piece of cake.”

He loved the feel of the fis.h.i.+ng rod and was even more happy that the fish were his to keep.

Rainbow carp!

Landing a rare species increased luck by 1. He fished all night long and headed for Bingryong Square.

Countless users were sitting in the square as open street vendors.

In the Bingryong Square, a variety of items were being sold, from common tree berries to expensive weapons over 10,000 gold!

Reverse sat down relaxed and opened a street stall.As time pa.s.sed he worried about the freshness of the fish declining.

Therefore, he began calling out to customers which he would usually never do.

“Hmm-hmm. Selling Fish. Delicious fish caught by the river!”

The fish was a common ingredient, but the large ones were popular.

The users that were pa.s.sing by stopped to take a look.

“They look fresh and sizeable. How much are they?”

“I’m not sure. Make an offer.”

“How about 2 silver?”

Reverse was stunned for being so happy about catching fish worth 2 silver each.

“There’s my cost of labor too.”

“Nah, that would be a bit overpriced. I will give you 3 silver at most.”

“Not bad a price… Alright.”

Each fish sold provided him an income of several silvers.

Reverse fell into a fantasy of becoming rich in Royal Road. The rainbow carp was sold for 5 gold, making him more content.

“Maybe fis.h.i.+ng is my job of apt.i.tude. There is such joy in sitting under a shade and facing the nice breeze.”

That very day he purchased a bamboo fis.h.i.+ng rod for 1 gold.

In the daytime, he completed quests and spent time at the beginner training dojo. At night, he fished.

Like the saying, “Converts are the worst”, he became head over heels for Royal Road.

Reverse sighed in regret every time he walked the streets of Morata.

“For me to have started this so late despite having invented it… This is a different level from watching through the monitor. I would have started on the first day of Royal Road if I knew it was this fun.”

***

Seoyoon was involved in affairs for governing the empire.

The new provincial lords were short in ruling the cities, so she provided the needed support and at other times devised collaborative development plans of several villages.

It was a difficult time, but she put in her best effort to establish the foundation of the Arpen Empire.

“Chwiik!”

The Orc lord Seechwi!

She who had treated Seoyoon for a long time made a visit to the Earth Palace.

“Seoyoon! Chwiik!”

“Yes.”

Seoyoon replied and smiled brightly.

It was because she knew how hard Seechwi tried to break down the wall in her heart.

“You’re so beautiful when you smile like that. Chwiik!”

Seechwi snorted in joy.

“The reason I came here. Sh-chwiik. I think I have to. Chwiik. Head to the east. Sh-chwiik!”

“By east you mean… Orcland?”

“Yep. Chwiik!”

“Isn’t it dangerous there due to the Red Dragon?”

Seechwi wasn’t planning to go for no reason.

‘Red Dragon… Just maybe, there is a secret relating to the orcs.’

In Orcland, the regions were a mixture of barren lands and gra.s.s fields, and the rest of the lands were occupied by the orcs.

For the Orcs, there was a saying that was pa.s.sed down as a legend.

– We will become extinct. Chwiik. Only by extinction, Chwiik. We will be liberated from the curse. Sh-Sh-Chwiik!

A curse bestowed on the Orcs!

No one knew what it was exactly, but there was a crucial concern for Orc users.

‘The Orc is really fun in the beginning. Fast growth. What after that, though?’

The Orc does not become stronger after a certain point.

They cannot build intelligence and form societies, let alone find jobs in architecture or the arts field.

Orc towns and forts were merely villages built by stacking rocks.

Many races in the Versailles Continent had potential and the Orcs were regarded as the abandoned race.

Too many Orc lords realized the harsh reality and left for vacations.

A self-inflicting insult was widely spread among them that the Orc race was great for tanning by the beach.

“Red Dragon. Maybe it is not a coincidence. Chwiik! Something. Chwiik. I want to try… If something happens to me.”

“Yeah. Don’t worry. I will certainly help.”

(To be continued…)