Chapter 82
As the sun rose the next day, news about the sudden appearance of eleven guild members at the open market of the kingdom of Solnara Cererindu soon faded, as rumors spread that the players used a flawed transfer scroll with undetermined locations, which was the reason they were teleported to the marketplace. But considering it's a common occurrence, as many players reported getting transferred miles away from their supposed real destination in the past
As the cathedral magic tower confirmed these matters, many illegal manufacturers of these cheap transfer scrolls were circulating the kingdom; these were defective scroll products that were sold illegally in back alley dealings. The guild members were never documented, and no reports reached higher officials; just after a day, everything went back to normal.
The velvet knight finally reached their dilapidated guild base. To their surprise and reluctant annoyance, the young maidservant named Rhiel joined them until they reached their base at the far poor district of the kingdom. That thanked her and politely asked that they go back to their home base, but the young maidservant continued to follow them until they reached their rundown base.
RhIel just smiled and told them, Er, master ordered her to accompany them until they are safe and await further instruction from her, so she will wait for that instruction to come to her, but until that time comes, she will stay with the velvet knights and assist them in any way she can. The young maidservant was very persistent and never left their side; she saw their base to be dirty and needing tidying up, so she took the liberty of cleaning the place.
Bai Xifeng was suspicious of the maidservant, as she never heard that the left holy archmage advisor and protector of the kingdom ever had any attendant serving her, as she was known to move independently even since getting appointed by the king himself. The velvet knights could not force the maidservant to leave, so they just closed their lips and never talked about the events that happened at the Anchorage Castle.
The Velvet Knights base was once their predecessors base; sadly, due to wrong management and neglect, it had fallen into disrepair. The current members of the Velvet Knights were determined to restore it to its former glory and make it a place they could be proud of once again. But seeing how their families outside the tower are financially struggling, they had no choice but to take on risky quests just to put food on the table.
Their senior members that ruined the guild were now hiding, and many just left and joined other, more financially stable guilds. Those that remained were family members who were in need of medical and financial help and remained because they lacked the experience points to clear any task and couldn't transfer to another guild.
The Velvet Knights name sounded extravagant, but in reality they never finished all the tasks they took. They are more known as scavenger players; they usually abandon tasks as long as they can salvage any material that can be sold. They now hold the words that their benefactor, after two days, will travel toward the growing village outside the gate entrance and seek an audience with the war forge. Doubt and hesitation still linger in their heads, but what can they do? They can only trust Netherborn to fulfill his promise to obtain the refined potion from the lotus plant.
The Velvet Knights were poor, but they never let other guilds see them as they are; they created a façade that they were told to stay in a low profile and never flaunt their material achievements with the rest of the players. It somewhat worked, but not all guilds believed this was the real reason. One of the guilds was the Brilliance Guild. Being their members were rich and influential people, the Velvet Knights used all of their hard-earned gold just to illegally enter the watchtower as soon as the aerial cargo ban was lifted after the death of the evolved drake.
As Lirael Schafer, sub-captain of the Brilliance Guild, had many altercations with Bai Xifeng, as many rich single male players saw Bai Xifeng's elegant charm as much more appealing than Lirael Schafer's upper-class status. This led to tension between the two guilds, with accusations of unfair advantages being thrown around. Lirael Schafer was spoiled and never backed down from trampling those she thought were inferior to her own family status. The only player Lirael Schafer never dared to challenge was Charllote Lzarus, as her power and status far exceeded her own.
Meanwhile, Dane returned back to the 400-meter-tall circular mountain range of Lúthien; the place where the evolved drake died was now silent, and the flame that nearly consumed the ruined city was gone. The soil of Lúthien was really fertile, as the grass that was burnt and trampled by the monster that followed the drake grew again. The conditions of the area were created to be the main source of farming, but because of the countless open scenarios attached to the area, many failed to protect the place. The towering mountain range was an impregnable wall isolating the vast open flatlands—miles and miles of unobstructed farming land wasted as nobody wanted to invest in reviving the land until now, as Dane wanted to establish his own guild on the land.
The construction of the war forge wasn't in his plan, but he didn't expect that Siglorr Bouldergrove and his clan would build a war forge near the gate community village. It was an unexpected outcome as he passed and gained Siglorr Bouldergrove's trust and friendship, but the plan he told was already in motion; he just needs to gain permission. ,
This quest can't be cleared by force, as there were so many internal matters he needed to consider. The scenario relating to Duke Elleena Rothchester will soon come to full bloom as the person that orchestrated his child's and husband's death will make his move. The scenario will activate the moment somebody claims or finds the remains of her late son's body.
Back when the Arcane Crusade was still a game, players that excavated the gorge floor accidentally found items that belonged to the duchess. The scenario gradually activated as those individual items reached the open merchant market of the kingdom of Solnara Cererindu. The duchess's head steward, Custodia, will be the one that will start the scenario, as she will be the one that will gain the item, and after confirming its authenticity, she will summon the kingdom's best adventurers to help her find the remains of her late son. As they delve deeper into the mystery, they will uncover dark secrets and face dangerous challenges that will test their will, whether she overcomes it or becomes deranged.
Dane is contemplating his approach toward the quest. His first plan was to pretend to be the duchess's lost son. But this was an awful way to clear the quest; obtaining the title in a dishonorable manner will never be tolerated by Dane parents. So Dane planned to let the Duchess see him personally and conduct her own investigation while he insisted he wasn't his son and he just looked like him, and he made sure to inform everybody serving the Duchess that he has no intention of claiming the title of her son, a straightforward and honest approach, and just wait to see what Duchess Elleena Rothchester and her servants will decide.
Dane knew that honesty and integrity were important values to the Duchess, and he hoped that by being transparent about his intentions, she would see that he was not trying to deceive her. Ultimately, Dane was willing to accept whatever outcome came from the duchess's investigation, as long as it was done with fairness and respect.
Dane was lying on the same hill where the spirits that attached to him came from. He doesn't know why he felt calm on that small hill where a single tree was seen standing on top of it; the shade coming from the tree was comforting, and the tree had a fairy spirit living inside it. It was the same fairy that protected the souls from getting corrupted. Dane summoned a serpent, a horned owl, and a fox, which were out and could now move separately from the main host body; the formless armor was no longer just a copy of the fused skill set. It is now a certified skill. The skill sapling made adjustments so the tower's main system won't see this to be an anomaly again.
The script Dane used to separate the system was no longer active and was deleted to safeguard the host integrity and hide the fact that Dane had used the back door to create a copy of the formless armor, and with the help of the grimoire codex book, he gained the ability to cast different spells that relate to the skills he gained: fire, lightning, healing, and assessment. All five skill slots are in full use.
As he regulated his chaos mana energy toward the young skill saplings, his power level was still level zero, but his stats were all maxed out to level 100. But it doesn't mean his stats will never surpass and break through the level 100 barrier,
Dane knows there were players that already reached this state, like the two Arch mages serving the king of Solnara, Cererindu; their skill seed has already activated. Dane knows there are many more residents of the first floor that have already accomplished this feat. Fighting them would still be a great problem, as he can only use fire and lightning.
Dane can't add more skill slots. The only way to gain additional slots was to reach level 100, but sadly he was still stuck at a novice player level. The anomaly he created and used his knowledge for was considered a cheat by the tower system, and he can't argue with the penalty he himself helped create.
He can only give a heavy sigh at the moment, but clearing the empire of graves and entering the second floor will lift the penalty lock on his level. But clearing the quest of the Empire of Graves has a small problem, and that is the requirement needed to join the raid was a guild that has enough manpower and resources to successfully complete the mission. This presents a new challenge for the novice player, as he must now navigate the complexities of guild dynamics and teamwork in order to progress in the game.
The tower system gave those who participated in the Evolve Drake quest two months.His alternate player name was on the list of guilds that gained recognition from the quest, and he doubts that the main system will allow additional time for them. As Dane views the notification about the active empire of graves, he lacks the required manpower and force to participate.
He hopes two months will be enough to gather all the forces he needs under his guild flag; registering the guild will confirm that the Netherborn isn't a tower being but a player. This will create so many problems in the future, knowing all guild players will retaliate, knowing a player has this much power under his command.
"Sigh… these are the things I should have considered in the past, but I never expected I would be the one who is now facing this dilemma."
"Nevertheless, I must strategize and adapt a more reasonable answer without breaking any rules of the main system."
"And the only way I could think of is establishing a guild of players , that will serving a tower character, like a god or deity, "
"like The Knight serving the God of Light, Aether, these players can easily enter any region and dungeon."
"Because the second floor up to the sixth floor's main theme was dungeon subjugation. Clearing the masters of these dungeons was meant to break the player level cap?
"And after that, the seventh floor theme is about surviving the continental war."
"Playing alone is indeed profitable, but climbing the tower gets harder, and players who play this as a game know how hard it is to act alone, especially when facing powerful enemies and challenges. Joining forces with other players becomes essential for success in the higher levels of the tower, creating a sense of camaraderie and teamwork among participants."
" I might look really strong here now but going up pass the tent floor is a different realm on its own, the veteran players knows abut this but they seems to be keeping quiet about this vital information, "
"Relying too much on magic spells will be useless the moment they reach the elevator floor."
But as of now, Dane just wanted to enjoy his life inside the tower; he did reluctantly create additional situations or scenarios, but it was still within the framework they created. His plan was simple: go toward the kingdom of Solnara Cererindu merchant market and act like he was in dire need of money to survive and let the item he will sell run its course. He needs to use his real player's registered name; Dane Lazarus will accidentally be part of the quest relating to the Duchess Elleena Rothchester starting tomorrow.
If the timing is correct, Wrenla Bouldergrove has already obtained the duchess's son's personal items. Among the dozen items he got from the sealed cave, one of them will surely be recognized by the duchess. The plan was simple: Wrenla Bouldergrove will tell the Duchess an adventurer suddenly came to her shop and tried to sell her a necklace. The person that sold her the necklace looked malnourished and dirty and seemed to have encountered so many hardships while being an adventurer and was mentioned as being overly conscious and defensive. The necklace bore the crest of the Rothchester family, sparking the duchess's curiosity and leading her to investigate further.
And if everything falls into place, Dane just needs to be honest and never pretend to be someone he's not in order to gain the duchess's favor. With this honesty and authenticity, Dane finally made up his mind, so he stands up and recalls the coordinates on the war forge and mentions this plan to the Bouldergrove clan head and his family and fulfill his promise to the velvet knights.