HC:Pacifist | Ch. 39 - Leak (Patreon)

Distortion Field!

Around Wilson, a translucent screen of energy formed, slowing the spear that was coming for him enough so that he could dodge it.

"Nice one, Xana." They were deep into beaver territory, and they were surrounded. As a halberdier, Wilson did a lot of damage but was slower than other warrior advancements. He could let out more damage unimpeded when Xana watched his back.

Halberd Whirlwind!

Around Wilson, a series of beavers screeched, letting out sounds of pain and transforming into motes of light. Now that he was free, he ran toward Xana to assist her in getting rid of the beavers targeting her. Although they had come close a few times, she kept activating her drones to send sound waves that pushed the mobs away from her and bought enough time for Wilson to finish the ones targeting him. Although the drones now needed to recharge their pushes, Wilson had arrived and, together with Xana, made quick work of the remaining mobs.

As their XP points climbed and Xana's drones picked up the loot, Xana decided to approach the subject both had been avoiding.

"Do you think that Shirley...?"

"Yes."

"What about Brian?"

"They're gone, Xana. Loki would never let a traitor go unpunished."

"I'm so angry at Gary! He..."

"Shut up, Xana. It's not Gary who's at fault here. It's the slayer! He's the one who started all of this."

"I'm angry at Gary," said Xana in a hoarse voice, "because that could have easily been us. "Have you thought about it, Wilson? It could have easily been Shirley and Brian hunting these beavers today and talking about you and me being gone!" Wilson remained silent.

"Do you think I don't know that, you idiot?"

"You know that if something like this happens again, Gary won't hesitate to get rid of us next, don't you?"

"Unless..." He let the words hang in the air.

"Unless we get rid of him first."

*

Crowds kept flowing into Greensburg. The first batch of players had arrived by horse, returning from hunts in the nearby fields. But as the day went by, others started appearing in fancier rides. Sometime in the afternoon, someone came riding a bionic black panther. Later, another came riding a hovercycle. As the time for the auction drew near, the biggest player yet made an appearance. She came from the sky, flying on a golden hawk. Flying rides were exceedingly rare; for many, it was the first time they had seen one. Many recognized who was arriving just from her ride.

"It’s her!"

"Mel, the Hawk Knight!"

The player jumped off her golden hawk, with glistening silver armor cladding her body. Her helmet’s guard was shaped like a beak, making her look like the hawk that transported her. As she jumped off the golden beast, it shrank to a much smaller size and flew to the knight's shoulder. Whoever knew Mel and her winged friend knew this was its normal size. Whenever she wanted to fly it, she activated a skill that made her hawk big enough to ride. She was number 32 in the rankings and very popular. She had unlocked a hidden class, the Hawk Knight. Her appearance riding a giant golden hawk was very memorable. Guild leaders and other casual players who followed her videos respectfully greeted her as she passed. She casually smiled a greeting and headed toward the auction house to check if the rumors were true.

Mel, short for Melanie, had started the game as a casual gamer. She had a few lucky encounters along the way and unlocked the hidden class that, according to her knowledge, only she possessed. She had made a contract with a mutated, highly intelligent golden hawk. Her attacks and skills revolved around coordinating with Goldie, her partner, and buffing it or being buffed by it. It was a very complex class that Mel had learned to master fairly well. With time, as she got better and better at the game, her video blog gained momentum and a legion of followers.

Because of her unexpected success, she was able to quit her job and was now a full-time gamer. She liked her job, but she loved gaming more. Unlike her previous occupation, however, there was a ridiculous amount of competition here. There was always pressure to put out more interesting content. She always tried to catch up to the next player in the ranks or gain distance from her pursuer. She would lose a lot of momentum if she dropped off the top 50, and she was fighting furiously to stay in it.

When she heard that someone was selling two [Power Truffles], she flew here as fast as possible. Unlike other players who only worried about gearing up their avatars, she had a partner to worry about. The stronger Goldie became, the more powerful she was. Due to previous experience with similar items, Mel had discovered that her hawk friend could eat consumables that permanently increased stats. These were exceedingly rare, but she had managed to get a hold of some and saw Goldie gain a significant power spike from eating them. She agreed to join the Kraken's guild to get access to more first-grade consumables she could feed her partner. Of course, there were other benefits. Their pay was good, which gave her some financial stability. Their buffs also made a big difference in her stats. The Krakens were a first-tier guild, after all. Their museum had an impressive collection, and the flags they hoisted were impressive.

The biggest selling point for her was their extensive information network. A big guild always had channels that allowed them to get their hands on items, skills, and equipment that single players could only dream of. As a high ranker, she had been allowed to leave her name on an item's wish list, and one of the items was precisely the [Power Truffle}. Since the guild didn't have this item in stock when she joined, they promised they wouldn't immediately PM her whenever they heard mention of it.

Among her most desired consumables, the [Power Truffle] was near the top of the list. If she could get a hold of two, she could instantly gain two levels' worth of stats, 10 strength for her and 10 for Goldie. That would be enough for her to catch up to the next player in the ranks and widen the distance from her pursuers.

Just in case, she had sent a message to the guild leader, and he had put aside a portion of the gold in their coffers to assist Mel in securing the truffles if she was short. He had also asked her to pay special attention to any clues as to how two truffles could appear simultaneously.

When she entered the auction house, she opened the interface and filtered out everything but consumables. She then looked for [Power Truffles]. Sure enough, they were here. It had been posted at 12:32:54 today, and the seller had set the auction to start at midnight. She clicked her tongue. This guy was smart. It was quick enough to make everyone feel the pressure of the item being available for a limited time but long enough to gather the most powerful players here and let them amass a tremendous amount of gold to fight for it. The seller had also purposely put two [Power Truffles] on sale. It was as if he hinted that he could get his hands on more at any time. Now that she was finished confirming the rumor, she decided to look for clues.

First, she sent a message to her friends and followers, asking if anyone knew about the seller's identity or how to get extra [Power Truffles]. She knew it was a long shot. It led nowhere. She tried something else. She went to the forums and selected 'power truffle' on the search engine. Posts advertising the rare opportunity of acquiring [Power Truffles] in Greensburg's auction house were plentiful. It had become public knowledge. She sorted the results by all occurrences, starting from 1 minute before the listing had been done in the auction house. Right at the top was a suspicious post.

Two Power Truffles Are Going on Sale in Greensburg.

#news #powertruffles #consumables #rareitems

Poster: Sphinx314

Post: I heard a rich dude brag about how he would sell two [Power Truffles] in Greensburg. He also said he had found a hidden room inside the Rat's Cave in the Green Woods. He used a [Miniaturizing Potion] inside the dungeon and found a secret chamber. Could it be true?

Comments

Krakaboom124: Two? That sounds impossible. No one sells those. Only big guilds can get them.

HairyHarry994: A secret chamber? Doesn't sound right. Oh well, there's no way I can get my hands on a [Miniaturizing Potion] anyway.

She compared the timing of the post with the one in the listing. The post had been done one minute before the listing in the auction house. This Sphinx 314 character was probably the salesman. She tried sending him a message in the post asking if she could get more information.

The [Miniaturizing Potion] could be gained in the same region as the [Power Truffle]. Could there be a secret chamber inside the Rat Cave? It could just be a lie. She checked the clock. They still had several hours to go before it was time for the auction. Opening her map, she estimated that if she hurried, she could check it out.

She used up the skill [Gigantify], and the hawk grew until it was bigger than her. She jumped on top of it and flew south. When one flew, it was much easier to travel. For one, on most maps, there were no airborne monsters. In higher-level maps, it was a different story. But just the fact that one didn't have to follow the curves and detours of the road and could travel in a straight line meant that they could save a lot of time.

After just one hour, Mel arrived in the beginning area. If she was received with awe at Greensburg, to the beginners here, she was a goddess. When the hawk landed, everyone made room for it and began asking for autographs or asking if she wouldn't throw them just one silver or two. She ignored them all and entered the dungeon.

Most high-ranking players always carried one [Miniaturizing Potion]. It was exceedingly helpful in escaping tricky situations and sometimes entering a hidden treasure room. For example, once, when killer drones in Thunder Mountain were chasing her, she used the potion and hid in a crevice to escape the mobs' sensors. Had it not been for that, she would have lost a level and valuable equipment. Although [Miniaturizing Potions] were expensive, losing a whole level and stats was much more expensive.

The only other time she had used the [Miniaturizing Potion] was when she found a suspicious hole on a map she was exploring. After using the potion, she went through it and found one rare accessory that she still wore to this day, a rare set of earrings.

She breezed through the dungeon unimpeded. No mobs appeared when there was a player level 6 and above in this dungeon; it was empty to her. She got out the only [Miniaturizing Potion] in her inventory, drank it, and began exploring the dungeon. Just as she finished the second trip around the map, she found something besides the throne room that she'd never seen before: a tunnel.

It led into a glorious room of yellow and gold with very high-end NPCs she'd never heard of before. She looked at her map and saw that this was called the True Throne Room. She got neither experience nor notifications, meaning someone had been here already. She checked her guild's library. There was no mention of it in it, either. As far as she knew, no one else knew about this hidden room.

According to her contract, she was obligated to inform the guild of any discoveries she might make. Before she contacted the guild master, she went to try to talk to the NPCs. As she drew closer, one of the mice put its paws on the scabbard of its sword and took one step forward. Mel interpreted that as a warning that she'd be dead if she took one more step. As she examined the mob, she saw only interrogation marks. Probably they would kill her in one hit. She stopped, not daring to go any further.

Maybe someone had unlocked some hidden quest and acquired [Power Truffles] from these NPCs. She didn't know. Whatever the case may be, one thing was sure. The [Miniaturizing Potion] had just become a priceless treasure inside the game.

*

Zin entered the hidden basement of the observatory. It was dark here, but his high perception allowed him to see as brightly as in daylight. Zin had seen much in his life. He'd been deployed more times than he cared to name. He had seen every sort of injury, death, and unspeakable violence happen before his eyes, sometimes by the work of his hand. But he still felt sick as he beheld the inhuman spectacle his employer was making here.

The egg at the center of the basement sent out roots that pulsed as if they were veins. Sometimes, the egg itself pulsed as if it were a beating heart. There was a foul scent in the air and a dead silence. He didn't have the stomach to see the alien hideousness of the race his master had unlocked.

"Zin..." spoke Loki from within the egg.

"How goes the transformation, sir?"

"It will still take long before I finish pupating. But one is never bored when inside here. It's a whole management game of its own."

"Good, good." Zin cursed at how insidious Loki was. The monster knew he had the upper hand meeting him here rather than in real life. Every encounter between them was meticulously planned to keep him in check.

"Have you found the traitor?"

"No, sir. He's smarter than we thought. He must be lying low somewhere. We'll find him, though."

"I know you will." His employer was enjoying himself inside that blasted disgusting thing. He hadn't expected to be let off the hook so easily. He seemed only to remember the brat who put him in the wheelchair when he was bored or frustrated. He was the only thing that made Loki behave erratically. He was pulled back from his silent meditation. "Your class advancement?"

"It's complete. I'm level 51 too."

"Good. Share the info you've gained from your class advancement quest with the rest of the core members. Your experience and insight are priceless."

"Yes, sir."

"Now, come closer. I want to try out my new racial skill." Zin gulped as he stepped toward the egg.