Chapter 9: The Key to Change His Fate

With the death of the Corpse Mother, the undead army's assault on Tristran finally came to an end. When Alex and the Crusader dragged their exhausted bodies back to the town gate, the only living people left to greet them were Captain Rutherford and two archers.

"Well done, kid."

Looking at Alex, Captain Rutherford showed a gratified smile. He reached out and patted Alex's shoulder firmly before turning to the Crusader beside him.

"Thank you for your help. You can go in now. Lia is at the Slaughtered Calf Inn. Alex can take you there… What's wrong, kid?"

"Nothing, Captain Rutherford."

Hearing Rutherford's concerned inquiry, Alex shrugged gloomily and replied. He now deeply regretted his earlier thoughts.

Initially, Alex had thought that although the tasks given by this system were somewhat troublesome and dangerous, at least the mission objectives were clear.

But to his dismay, the third phase of the "Guardian" mission turned out to be incredibly frustrating!

Change fate!

Just thinking about the mission requirement left Alex feeling frustrated.

These system-generated tasks were all random; he had no memory of them, and the mission prompt didn't give any clues, only instructing Alex to change predetermined fate. However, it provided no specifics.

Moreover, the system specifically mentioned that failure in this mission would result in being forcibly expelled from the mission world, and it "thoughtfully" included a countdown.

So now Alex only had forty-eight hours to change this so-called "fate." Originally, Alex had planned to stick close to the Nephalem and grind, but that seemed impossible now.

"Please follow me."

With these thoughts in mind, Alex forced himself to stay spirited, nodded to the Crusader beside him, and then stepped into the town.

The two did not speak much along the way. If he had the time, Alex would have liked to see what the "official" Nephalem was really like.

But now, he didn't have the luxury to waste time. The third phase of the mission only gave him forty-eight hours, and Alex had no leads about this fate.

This was also because Alex couldn't quite remember the plot of Diablo. But that was understandable; when you are addicted to Greater Rifts every day, the story of Diablo becomes unimportant to players. Grinding for a set was more critical...

When Alex and the Crusader arrived at the Slaughtered Calf Inn, they immediately saw Lia at the counter, looking distressed. This short-haired girl was sitting on a chair, whispering to the innkeeper.

Seeing Alex push the door open, the innkeeper immediately interrupted his conversation with Lia and waved warmly at Alex.

"Kid! You saved us again! Here, this drink is on me… And who might this lady be?"

Hearing the innkeeper's question, the Crusader beside Alex stepped forward. She reached out, removed her helmet, revealing a face full of heroic spirit.

Her long golden hair was tied into a ponytail draped over her shoulder. She smiled warmly at the innkeeper and then looked at Lia.

"Hello, Miss Lia. I am a Crusader of the Zakarum faith. My name is Aribeth…"

'What the heck!'

Hearing this, Alex almost spilled his drink. He turned to the Crusader with suspicion and disbelief—this Nephalem, her hairstyle and name were too ominous!

'I can already see the ending, can't I?'

Never mind anything else, Alex thought that the first thing he should do was get this Crusader lady to change her name and hairstyle. That might make his task easier… Just kidding.

'So could it be Lia?'

Thinking of this, Alex looked at the young girl again. He knew that an evil god was hidden within her, and eventually, the evil god would resurrect using her body.

Logically, if Alex killed her with a single strike right now, it would count as changing fate. However… Is that possible?

Not to mention that Lia herself was a combatant, the power of the evil god within her was also formidable.

Even if Alex launched a surprise attack, he wouldn't be able to fool the evil god. If he pushed it too far, things would go badly for him. So this idea only lingered in Alex's mind for a moment before he dismissed it.

At this moment, Aribeth had begun asking Lia about the falling meteor, and Lia, as in the game, explained the situation to the Nephalem. She also asked her to find her uncle… Brendon Cain…

Hmm?

Hearing this, Alex's eyes suddenly lit up.

Right, how could he have overlooked such an important figure, Brendon Cain!

If Alex remembered correctly, Brendon Cain was threatened by the cult leader Medusa to repair the broken holy sword of the angel Samuel.

However, Cain refused and was severely injured by Medusa's subordinates. Lia then unleashed her power, driving Medusa and her group away. In the end, he used his last bit of strength to restore the holy sword, but he died due to his injuries.

At that time, the Nephalem left Tristran to find the third piece of the holy sword!

So, if Alex could find the third piece of the holy sword in advance, wouldn't that prevent the Nephalem from leaving Tristran? Could this be the way to change fate?

Thinking about it, Alex realized that this might be the key to changing fate!

Given his current strength, saving the Nephalem or defeating the Demon Lord was out of the question.

He was just a militia member; even with Crusader Strike, Alex didn't think he could outdo the Nephalem.

So, ruling out those difficult options, the only thing he could do was retrieve the third piece of the holy sword in advance.

This way, Brendon could repair the sword early, and the amnesiac Samuel wouldn't be captured by Medusa, which would also prevent repetitive dungeon crawling, allowing Brendon to survive.

Wouldn't that solve everything?

Even if Brendon died later due to unforeseen circumstances, preventing Samuel's capture and restoring his memory early would still count as changing fate!

With this thought, Alex immediately made a decision. The falling meteor was under the Nephalem's watch, so he wasn't worried about any issues.

Besides, the mission had a time limit, indicating that the event would happen nearby. Otherwise, if he had to go to the High Heavens to change fate, the mission time would end before he even got there.

"I'm leaving right away."

At this moment, the Crusader, with her dangerous hairstyle and name, had finished talking with Lia. She stood up, put on her helmet again, and looked at Alex.

"Will you come with me?"

"No, I have a more important task."

Although being recognized by the protagonist was a good thing, Alex had no time to be entangled in this matter.

So, he shook his head and declined the Nephalem's invitation. The Nephalem nodded slightly and left without saying much.

Watching the Nephalem leave, Alex also exited the inn. He initially wanted to chat more with Lia, but she seemed uninterested, perhaps annoyed by his refusal of the Nephalem's request.

She only glanced at Alex before returning to her room without a word. Alex didn't mind, knowing that provoking the Demon Lord would bring trouble to himself.

Without further ado, Alex left the inn and went straight to Captain Rutherford, requesting to go to Worsan.

"To Worsan?"

Captain Rutherford was surprised by Alex's request.

"What are you going to Worsan for?"

"I received some information suggesting that pieces of the falling meteor might have landed near Worsan. I want to see if I can find any clues to uncover the meteor's secrets."

Alex's explanation was reasonable, so Rutherford quickly nodded and agreed.

"Alright, I'll inform the boatman to prepare the boat. But you just went through a tough battle; don't you want to rest first?"

"No need, I'll rest on the way."

With the mission countdown already ticking, there was no time to waste.

"Okay."

Seeing Alex's impatience, Captain Rutherford didn't say much. He nodded, took Alex to the dock, and after talking to the boatman, they set off downstream towards Worsan.

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