V56C3P3 – Legendary Artifact

There was a huge commotion on the discussion boards as well.

Each broadcasting station was live streaming Weed’s adventure but in some situations, there needed to be a bit of confidentiality and hence they delayed the feed by 3 minutes.

The viewers went wild since the appearance of the Dragon Slayer Axe.

After hearing that Weed had to uncover the Crown of Lightning, they were about to go on a riot.

– Aaaagh!

– G.o.d of items has blessed him. This is G.o.d’s work.

– So awesome! He’s completely looting all of the dwarven treasures! Sick!

– But, Weed isn’t a dwarf. He’s a human.

– Dwarf race quest. Flex. Weed’s about to bleed them dry.

The players watching the stream were even more excited.

‘The legendary equipment of the dwarves. These will do nicely as the crown of Arpen Empire’s emperor.’

Weed was outright tempted.

A collection of great equipment was said to be the most transparent thing in this world.

“Yes. I will certainly find it.”

< Quest has been accepted. >

Weed decided to gather some information from the dwarves of Treestub Village.

“Where’s the Crown of Lightning?”

“I don’t know.”

“How could I find this crown?”

“Uhh… You have to look for it. Weedhand, who brought back the Brazier of Sacrifice. I am certain that you would be able to find it.”

“So, the Crown of Lightning…”

“First time I heard about it.”

“…”

None of the dwarves in this village had useful information.

Weed remembered the dwarf who first spoke to him about the crown.

He was a particularly short dwarf but with a thick lower body!

Gomfhand.

He was a warrior and an excellent blacksmith, a renowned dwarf citizen with a high reputation in Thor.

“I wish to know about the Crown of Lightning.”

“I want to tell you but… It will be dangerous.”

Weed smacked his lips and answered.

“So you knew after all. I am ready to sacrifice my life for our kin.”

“If that is so, take this.”

Blink!

< You have obtained the dwarven secret map. >

It was an old scroll made out of deer hide. The corners were worn away over time, but it had drawings of mountains and an X mark in the center.

“Our dwarf ancestors created this location in preparation for battle against the dragon.”

Gulp.

“So, this must be the treasure storage?”

“I am not certain but you could think of it like that. We stocked all the equipment crafted for the dragon hunt.”

“Including the crown; loads of equipment…”

“However, it was overtaken by monsters. The proud dwarf warriors will a.s.sist you, so you must take them back.”

Weed took a closer look at the scroll.

‘There are no cities or villages on this map. I guess that’s to be expected…’

There were neither markings of rivers or seas. There were mountains coloured black and some were especially darker.

‘Maybe this is showing size and alt.i.tude by gradations? The terrain looks like Argoldia.

It was one of the 10 forbidden zones.

It was a region located in the desert terrain of the Central Continent, comprised of rocks and sand. Versailles was vast but these rugged deserts were rare.

‘If it’s Argoldia, that’s less area to search. Though it’s one of the forbidden locations, it’s not the early days of Royal Road now. It’s not an absolute danger zone. The quest will be difficult and I have to get into the mindset. The pinpoint location will be not too difficult to find since I have the map.’

Weed looked at the map and made calculations.

Since this quest had the fate of the dwarven race and the equipment to be used in the battle against the dragon on the line, it would be a great challenge.

‘I have to a.s.sume that high-tier monsters inhabit these forbidden locations. They told me that they were overrun by monsters, so it’s likely that the monsters may be armed with the dwarven gear.’

The Goblins, for example, utilized human made items very well.

The higher the tier of the monster, the better they recognized quality equipment and used them as their own.

‘So, I have to lead the warriors and defeat the monsters. Seems pretty self-explanatory.”

The quest being a race quest, he could not receive help from human players.

Oberon and the dwarves could provide some help, but strategically that would only mean a few dwarven warriors added into the mix, which wasn’t too significant.

‘I gotta do this solo. Yep. That’s the plan.’

***

Reverse was blissful stepping out the gates of Morata.

< Awakening of the sword!

Your incredible talents in swordsmans.h.i.+p is showing prowess.

Swordsmans.h.i.+p becomes stronger and quicker.

Novice restrictions allow up to 54% increased rate in proficiency. >

“Hahaha. Now we’re talking.”

He obtained a good sword into his possession from the auction site.

He also equipped a leather armor that boosted health points, defense as well as Agility.

From head to toe he wore the best equipment for his level.

“This is a great vibe.”

Reverse felt the exhilaration from his gear and sprinted towards the nearby rabbits.

Ta-ta-ta-tap!

His movement speed was 30% quicker than before.

He dashed ferociously and cut them down in a single swing.

< The rabbit was killed. >

< You have obtained experience. >

“Hu-hu-hu, one hit.”

Reverse was now comfortable killing rabbits that were once a ha.s.sle to hunt.

He was much faster, with stronger attack, making his hunting speed at least 5 times more efficient.

“Yes, this is how it should be. I need to hunt speedily like this.”

He focused on hunting in front of the gates of Morata and the time that pa.s.sed so slowly when he hit scarecrows was ever so quick now.

< You have gained a level. >

It was so exciting to move around.

Experiencing growth while hunting was more satisfying than eating the most delicious food in the world!

“Excuse me… Do you want to hunt in a party?”

“Party?”

There were even other players asking him to hunt together.

In the eyes of fellow novice players, Reverse looked to be an amazing swordsman with rapid movement.

“We are going to the eastern forest and hunt foxes or wolves. You seem to be a swordsman. Do you want to go with us?”

A group showed up asking him to go hunt in a party.

Reverse rubbed his chin and checked the status of each player.

Having looked through so many novice equipment on the item trade websites, he could a.s.sess them roughly.

They were equipped with common gear that were a little over level 15.

“Sounds good, I’m in.”

Reverse moved along to the eastern forest with the group.

The wolves he had trouble with before now took significant damage each time he struck with his sword. One careless move got him bit or scratched, but most of the damage was mitigated by his armor.

“You’re so strong.”

“This is just the basic level.”

Reverse continued his party hunt and drenched in the joy of being the carry.

The results of spending cash was reflected on his gear and the more he fell into Royal Road.

‘This is fun. To an insane degree…’

After about 30 minutes, they settled to rest.

They started a campfire and shared some fruits from their bags.

In Morata, farm products were abundant and delicious, commonly carried around by novice players.

“I heard Morata is going to fall. Is it true?”

“I don’t know. I heard when Castle Wapen falls, Mistress will be the next target. After that is Morata.”

“It will be devastating if Morata gets ruined.”

The players chumped on their fruits as they exchanged conversations.

It was only 18 days until the doomsday predicted by the scholars of Gra.s.s Porridge Cult.

As a result, it created commotion among the players of Morata and many did not believe it.

‘On that day, Kaybern will appear for real.’

Reverse frowned while digging into his fruit.

The date that was calculated via his AI and the date predicted by the scholars were identical.

In order for Morata to avoid being targeted, they had to sc.r.a.p 5.2% of the city’s territory.

Then 2% more on the following week; 8% on the week after.

If they destroyed Great Landmarks or commercial facilities, they would have to destroy less area, but that did not seem feasible.

If the dragon appears, I have to move to another location. I wonder if it was a bad decision for me to start in Morata.’

Although he wasn’t there for long, the thought of losing his homeland planted thoughts of regret inside him.

“Wouldn’t Weed-nim protect Morata?”

“Mmm. He did retrieve the Brazier of Sacrifice… Maybe he could win against the dragon.”

Reverse considered their words as false hope.

‘Brazier of Sacrifice. It will be impossible even with that item.’

Weed’s success of the lair raid increased the expectations of players.

Especially, the Northern players were creating a public sentiment to defend Morata.

‘He can’t pull it off with those measly dwarves…’

Even though Reverse was a novice, his a.s.sessment skills were on par with Weed and Bard Ray.

‘If they fight well, they could deal some damage to Kaybern. Even so, it won’t be enough to kill it; not worth betting the fate of the dwarves…’

***

The alliance of dark gamers.

They were making huge profits after Kaybern threw the world into chaos.

Monsters were everywhere and hunting was much more accessible and, correspondingly, so did the danger level.

– I want to go to Puhol Waterpark. I am looking for an escort.

– Looking for a weapon. Only ones that I can equip.

– Can someone carry me for 2 days?

– I need people to join me in a dungeon for a quest. I will pay hourly wage when we depart from Morata.

The dark gamers sold their loot and took errands to make money.

Even among them, the debate about Kaybern was a hot topic.

– It’s so prosperous nowadays, but Kaybern is quite worrisome.

– The clients are afraid to hunt. There are also a reduced number of tourists.

– Did you see the lineup at Puhol Waterpark? All the people that should be out hunting are just dozing off.

– I do see less commissions coming in. Market price on equipment declined slightly as well.

– The Central Continent players are streaming over to the Northern Continent, so that is no surprise. However, they too will need gold to spend, so the price of gold would remain the same.

– The equipment needs to be sold for higher value. I can’t make decent profits with just errands and gold.

– Seniors. Magarita Village is being invaded by monsters. Could you offer some a.s.sistance?

Every day in the alliance of dark gamers, the information about village destructions and monsters were updated.

The dark gamers that were making high profits in such a short time were also feeling the state of the world.

– The villages and cities are being destroyed one by one. Just by the fact that the village we pa.s.sed through some time ago was overtaken by monsters… Our jobs are disappearing.

– People are migrating to safe regions, so won’t the jobs stay consistent?

– They will crowd up and get destroyed… Let’s say in the future the vital cities have suffered greatly. It would be a huge predicament.

The dark gamers were concerned about the state of the world.

They wished for this Kaybern alert to be relieved soon, but the dragon would not be easily defeated. They, who hunted far more monsters than anyone, knew that fact very well.

(To be continued…)