30) I need a fortune
Once Ryker came out of the ruins, the sun was starting to rise on the horizon. Everyone acted as if nothing had happened but he was brimming with curiosity. He then returned to the hotel to see the semi-humans there, as if they never left.
*Bam bam bam*
After a few seconds, the wall slid open and a very angry Valerie with messy golden hair opened the door.
"What do you want! It is too early" -she shouted before realizing who was at the door. But once she did she did…
*Slam*
Valerie had fainted and hit the floor like a bag full of rocks.
An hour later, the group was sitting at a coffee shop near the hotel. Ryker had asked them to explain why even when the Kingdoms were at war, there were people from the Kingdom of Shadows walking around in Zilco City pretending nothing was going on. He also demanded an explanation of the events that had transpired yesterday night. Especially the human sacrifices. He might not have a hero complex but he still had a modern-day moral compass.
"The ruins under the city are from thousands of years ago, the word thing about them is that they have a very high magic restriction. It is still a mystery why some people can cast spells inside the dome and why others don't. We say it is because only those whose gift has been accepted by the Ancients are able to do it. As for why the Kingdom of Shadows is present, it is because it is a tradition. So no matter what the circumstances in the outside world are, the ritual will always be carried out." -Shila was the one answering all these questions because Ava was still very cold towards Ryker and Valerie could barely look him in the eyes because of today's incident.
They then discussed the beliefs of the rebirth cycle and how religion had played a very important role in this post-apocalyptic world. Because no one retained memories of what happened before then they started to speculate and developed their own society and culture. Some things were an accurate representation of the world Luca lived in but others were too farfetched. Eventually, the discussion came back to what they had to do now.
"W-we need to go save Nayla" -said Valerie. She then turned red from embarrassment. She was not a shallow girl but every woman had some dignity.
"Nayla?" -asked Ryker in confusion.
"Yes, Nayla Ombratio. The Shadow Princess. We used to be friends when we were younger but then her father became power-hungry. She was brainwashed and became the number one assassin in the entire world. Not everyone knows that the person behind The Scarlet Raven is actually the princess of the Kingdom of Shadows." -said Ava, showing emotion for the first time since Ryker met her.
"Wow, this is so interesting… just kidding! I'm bored" -said Holden as he melted in the chair as if he was a cat.
"We need to become stronger in order to be able to go after her. Once she is on our side, it should be possible to mobilize the guardians against the Kingdom of Shadows and end this petty war." -said Valerie while punching the air.
[New questline unlocked!]
[The beginning of the end]
[Quest #1: you need to become stronger in order to adventure into the Kingdom of Shadows, reach level 40 in a month or the party will depart without you]
At the same time, there was a worldwide announcement for everyone to see. Not only were the player inside the game notification but every screen in the world displayed the same message.
[Congratulations to Player Ryker for starting a world-changing quest! In order to save the world, you must work together. Good luck!]
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Somewhere in a very famous white building, a certain someone was receiving calls non-stop regarding the announcement.
"I said FIND ME THIS PLAYER RYKER AND WHAT THE F*CK HE DID"
"Mr. President, please calm down, every government is looking for this player too. We don't even know if he's American."
"Of course he is American! We are the best at everything! He must be American"
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This new message was being discussed on every social media platform and every news channel in the world. People were wondering "just how much publicity is this new game getting?"
Of course, this intrigued them even more and so billions of new players started flooding the game world.
Everyone was aware of everything that was happening but a certain teen was looking at his gold coins with a pained expression. It had been a while since he entered the dream realm but he was sure that when he did, he would need a lot of coins to buy everything necessary for him to increase his strength.
He raised his head and looked at the digital billboards that were here in the adventurer's guild. It was true that compared to the one on Feywoods it was way more advanced. It was like comparing a hole in the floor to a Chinese toilet. They were in two different worlds.
The good thing was that his tanzanite stag pin still worked here, otherwise, it would have been a waste. As he looked around he realized that the figures on the pins changed. Some had a falcon, others had a snake. There were a few with weird patterns or geometric figures. He had no idea what they meant but he knew something. He needed to collect them all. It was one of his worst traits. He loved collectibles.
That is why he wanted to have as many spells as possible, just for the sake of having them. When he lived with his parents he collected cards, figurines, posters, and even mugs.
As he scrolled through the available quests for his level, he sighed. The number of gold coins was too little. It was going to be some very tedious weeks.