The Message

Chapter 32

Meanwhile, the White Devil guild and the East Lazarus Guild reached the first temporary outpost. The travel was rough, but there were no troublesome matters that blocked their way. Most members of each guild keep the conversation and interaction at a bare minimum and take it upon themselves to be discreet when addressing another guild member.

The conversation concerning what happened to the East Guild leader was never talked about; Jacob took charge of the task until Charlotte returned. The white devil vice captain Natasha Sokolov was leading her guild; each guild had delegated 100 of their members to participate in the Evolve Drake quest while the previous merchant guild that accepted to be the third party to join the quest suddenly backed down and never showed up at the empire of Solnara Cererindur open market grounds.

The empire of Solnara Cererindur never planned to send their own troops; even the nobles and aristocrats turned a blind eye toward the quest, indicating they just don't see any significant value in saving a few small poor towns and farming villages in the far regions under the empire of Solnara Cererindur domain. This was the scenario the players had to openly accept.

The white guild and East Lazarus guild were left alone to face this quest; a few reporters traveled along with them, as this was an official reward task that came from the king of Solnara, and everybody knew if they succeeded, the quest to clear the Empire of the Graves would finally open to the player. .

The White Devil already requested backup from their main clan and is awaiting a formal response, and like them, the East Lazarus guild also did the same but as a last resort and upon request.

As Sebastian Lazarus understands clearly what kind of personality Charllote has, they respect each other to the point they will never overstep their authority over their respective commanding guilds. But Sebastian has already made preparations to be close with fifty of his strongest heavy armored knights. .

As the two guild reach the outskirts of the Solnara while the sun has already sent in human times its about past eight pm , they had to stop at the foot of a mountain range that is a natural wall from what's on the other side, with a height of 3 thousand feet and eight hundred miles long the only entrance was created thousands of years ago, it was said the huge gap at the far center of the mountain range was created ,when a elder dragon created a shelter at the lowest part of the mountain and made it its nest until it was hunted down by its natural enemy,

a horde of cave trolls the battle that ensued inside the cave nest devastated the area until the elder dragon killed the entire cave troll horde by sacrifing itself out of anger and pride it exploded, thus creating a gap big enough that the first king the great grand father of King Deryth Cererindur, the warlord of the northern lands, saw an opportunity to establish a grand trade route fortress within the mountain.

The fortress would later become known as Dragon's Rest, in honor of the fallen elder dragon that had rested on it. But even with this, the mountain range fortress soon lost its luster as many bandits and rival warlords began to lay siege to it, leading to a series of bloody battles that would shape the region's history for generations.

Now abandon and left to crumble to dust its once mighty walls serve as a reminder of the fierce conflicts that once took place within its confines. The ruins of Dragon's Rest stand as a haunting symbol. The place just became another ordinary route as the land slowly deteriorated and became a barren wasteland. As the miasma that came from countless deaths within two hundred turned the area into a desolate and cursed land, the legacy of Dragon's Rest lives on in the whispers of its tragic past. That is why when King Deryth Cererindur came into power, he abandoned the west and left its people to fend for themselves, choosing to focus his efforts on rebuilding the eastern regions of the kingdom instead and establish the capital near the gate. The once proud and powerful fortress of Dragon's Rest now lies forgotten, a mere shadow of its former glory.

After 3 days of travel, the two guilds finally set up camp near the Dragon's Rest route opening toward the west. They camped in the area that was still untainted by the miasma, as the priest from the empire placed numerous small unmanned towers to stop the miasma from expanding further. The miasma wasn't harmful to people or to any other animals, but it was eating the soil's natural nutrients, thus making it barren and uninhabitable.

With the cathedral priest's efforts, the miasma was contained, and the land surrounding the mountain range remained safe for the other people and races to continue their work, as many other race tribes and remote clans made this area their home away from the influence of King Deryth Cererindur and the nobles rule.

Jacob instructed the younger Lazarus clan members to set up camp and double-check all their equipment and secure everything was in order, as he understood whatever happened to his older sister is not something to think little about; he knew his sister would never leave this quest as it was. The chance that this was a ploy to damage their chances of killing the drake was high, so Jacob couldn't shake the feeling of unease that lingered in the back of his mind. Despite his doubts, he remained determined to see the quest through to the end.

A pixie messenger reached him while he was guarding their equipment and ration, as they had a month's worth of food to feed 100 guild members. The battle wagons they brought were reinforced to ensure only clan team leaders were allowed to open the seven large battle and cargo wagons. The pixie messengers were proficient in their task as they flew as swiftly as possible to deliver messages across the vast territory. Jacob's unease grew as he wondered what urgent news the pixie messenger could possibly bring at this late hour

As soon as he opened the letter, his worries vanished as he passed the letter toward Oliver, Farrah, and Rainey. The three smiled and were finally able to loosen up as their cousins were fine, and an unknown benefactor came to save them. Whoever that person may be, the Lazarus clan owes a deep gratitude toward what happened.

Mary Kay, leader of the High Strategy guild, has entered the first floor and is currently heading to where the second outport is, on which they were currently at. With the additional equipment and with her was their guild leader Charllote, Bonnie, and Cody with an additional twenty Mary Kay High Strategy guild staff as support. They will reach the main rendezvous point a day after, so Jacob had to inform White Devil guild vice captain Natasha Sokolov to wait until they arrive to ensure the hunt will obtain good results.

Jaboc took out a coin and handed it to the pixie and gave his answer to the letter: "Please tell the sender of that letter we shall comply with the East Guild Leader's request to wait until they arrive."

"PAYMENT AND RESPONSE HAVE BEEN ACCEPTED."

Jacob stood five foot eight, has short black hair, and has an endomorph physique; his ability is to produce magma blast bullets and manipulate them with precision. He was known for his calm demeanor and strategic thinking on the battlefield; he gained the second-in-command position based on his own merit and skills. Jacob walked toward the White Devils campsite and requested to speak with their leader regarding the upcoming battle strategy. Natasha Sokolov was very accommodating toward the request, as she saw that something might have happened at the Lazarus guild for Jacob to personally visit her that night.

As Jacob entered the white Devil main meeting tents, he saw senior members of the attack force as they casually discussed their plans for the upcoming battle. Jacob knew he had to tread carefully and choose his words wisely in order to successfully negotiate their guild leader's request to hold the attack on the Evolved Drake for just a day, explaining that this would benefit both guilds.

The meeting lasted for just a few hours; sadly, Natasha Sokolov could not allow such a request as she also needs to follow what her brother instructed, but she promised to ask her older brother as she mentioned he is a very reasonable person if the request is valid and favorable toward their own guild's primary goal.

The night was cold; Jacob and the rest of the clan rested guard from both guild patrol and oversaw their members safety as they were in territory where they could be attacked anytime.

While Jacob and his other cousins slept, hours passed by so fast, and it was nearly daybreak when somebody came looking for Jacob. He was preparing to leave his tent when Oliver Lazarus rushed toward the tent and told Jacob. That same pixie messenger came back with another letter.

"Jacob, the same pixie messenger, is back."

"What! That was fast. It's a three-day travel from here toward the tower exit gate. How can the messenger be back?"

"That's why I ran here. The pixie looked exhausted and trembling in fear; it kept mumbling, saying it felt the chaos bringer energy, and mentioning the cursed mountain."

"That the northeast of the gate, no player has ever ventured there, even the new awakened ones."

"How long has it been since we saw the pixie messenger left ?"

"Maybe just two hours ago, not sure, but it's within that time frame."

"Whatever the reason, it's not good."

"Charlotte is the only person in our clan that could sense these things,"

"But Jacob, the cursed forest is further away from our own stronghold. From the gate, it will take about a day to reach the open border toward the cursed forest clearing."

"The pixie race is super sensitive toward mana energy; they go crazy even when a young wyvern comes within their vicinity.."

"It's a three-day travel; that's nearly as long as this mountain range., two thousand miles or farther."

"If that chaos bringer is a tower resident or a monster, and a player accidentally triggered it and coincidentally became part of this scenario, we are in deep trouble."

"I need to know for sure."

"That's why we badly need to obtain one of those communication artifacts."

"As you all know, this tower is somewhat similar to Arcane Crusade; every scenario can branch out toward another scenario without warning."

"Many players before got frustrated and died as they assumed the scenario they were encountering was going to end soon, only to find out it was just the beginning of a much larger quest."

"We need to be prepared for anything and everything that comes our way in this tower."