Chapter 252 A Secret (Part 1)
Ye Ci had already done a thorough work in clearing out the scene before going into hiding. She cleared away all the bottles she brought from the Southern Continent, and left a few barrels of beer that were very commonly seen in the Western Continent, and was sold in almost every NPC owned taverns near the Dwarves. As it is common knowledge that the Dwarves loved drinking, and the presence of barrels of beer in a place with Dwarves around was not at all suspicious as long as the beer did not belong to the Southern Continent.
Hidden Dragon did not expect the three Black Iron Dwarves to be drunken mere moments after his departure. Their behavior, of course, did not arouse his suspicion as many of the races in Fate loved drinking.
The scene that unfolded him still came as a shock to him. He returned with the intention to confirm his hunch about the hidden quest, only to find the three NPCs intoxicated. This was something that Hidden Dragon had never considered.
Ye Ci observed silently from her hiding spot as Hidden Dragon circled the Dwarves. He then knelt on the ground and attempted to rouse the Dwarves from their sleep. After several tries that were met with failures, the man summoned his mount and prepared to leave.
He will definitely be back.
It was something that Ye Ci was very sure of the moment Hidden Dragon appeared in her view. She could not move against him, and could not risk proceeding with the quest as she was certain that he would once again return to the spot. As long as I don't do anything, he'll start doubting himself, and by that time I might've found a way to keep the Mithril ore vein safe.
Then again, it was not possible for Ye Ci to remain in this spot every single day. The only solution available to her was to put someone in charge of the surveillance on the ore vein. But is Timely Rain reliable? Will he betray us once he learns about the Mithril ore vein?
Ye Ci was hesitant. Bai Mo had always been the one who handled guild affairs as she was always away from the guild. He was a better judge of Timely Rain's character than she could ever be. She immediately initiated a voice call with Bai Mo.
At that point in time, Bai Mo had only just finished a meeting with the officers of Upwards Ho!, and was making preparations to lead the elites of the guild out to level up. After all, if more members of Upwards Ho! were able to reach lvl60 before the introduction of the patch, it could give the guild an edge over its competitors when the patch is finally implemented into the game. He immediately sent the coordinates provided by Ye Ci to the officers, assigning party members to each of the officers who were then assigned to a leveling area.
This was when he received the call from Ye Ci.
Bai Mo listened patiently to Ye Ci's words and spoke in a calm voice, "We can trust in Timely Rain."
"Do you know him in real life? If he's just an online friend of yours, there is no way we can trust him."
"Yup." this was something that Bai Mo had forgotten to tell Ye Ci, "We were close friends back in high school. I didn't know who he was until I found out about it in a conversation some time ago. This guy is a trustworthy person. You don't have to worry about it."
"Alright then. I'll leave this to you." trust was something that did not come easy. Despite the repeated reassurance of Bai Mo, Ye Ci was still worried. She took in a deep breath, and decided to trust Timely Rain fully just like how she trusted Bai Mo and Tan Polang.
There were times when we had to earn a person's trust by first trusting in the person.
"Who don't you talk to Timely Rain about this? I think it's better if you can speak to him in person." Bai Mo knew Ye Ci very well. He knew that it was part of her nature to be overly suspicious, and he would not let a chance to fix this shortcoming of hers slip by without trying.
Ye Ci's eyebrows furrowed when she heard Bai Mo's words. She was hesitant. She knew that Bai Mo was simply trying to help build up her reputation in the guild. She was but a figurehead in the guild, and was far from being the soul of the guild. This was why Ye Ci relented despite her hesitation.
Trust was not something that could sprout overnight. She must learn to trust little by little, starting from this very moment.
Ye Ci returned to Red Lake City and immediately made her way to the guild encampment, where a curious Timely Rain was already waiting for her.
Based on the man's knowing of Ye Ci, he had expected her to shun away from the affairs of the guild upon the return of Bai Mo. He was baffled when he received a message from Ye Ci, telling him to await her arrival in the guild encampment.
Ye Ci quickly arrived at the conference room and Timely Rain immediately stood up as she entered the room, "Gongzi, you're here."
"Yup." the smile on Ye Ci's face was stiff as she greeted Timely Rain.
"What is it? Is it something very important?" Timely Rain was unsettled by the unnatural expression on Ye Ci's face.
"Why don't you take a seat first?" Ye Ci was not oblivious to Timely Rain's feeling of unease, and she was apologetic as she was the source of his anxiety. She took in deep breaths in an attempt to calm her emotions.
Anxiety gripped Timely Rain's heart as he took a seat at the table.
Ye Ci seated herself as well. Her crossed arms and tightly knitted eyebrows were telltale signs that something very important was at hand. Something that would trouble even the usually high spirited Gongzi You would of course unsettle Timely Rain, "Gongzi, have you run into some sort of trouble?"
After a long moment of silence, Ye Ci stared square at Timely Rain and spoke in a soft voice, "Timely Rain, I found a Mithril ore vein."
"Huh?" Timely Rain stood up abruptly and stared at Ye Ci, "What did you say?"
"I found a Mithril ore vein."
"Mithril.... Ore vein..." Timely Rain could hear ringing in his ears, and he was hit by a wave of nausea that rendered him breathless.
Timely Rain would probably be unfazed if he was just a normal player. Players knew that Mithril was precious, but no one would get overly excited about something that was considered to be way out of their league. As an officer of Upwards Ho!, Timely Rain was different. Even if Upwards Ho! was a medium-sized guild, and even when his knowledge of the game was nowhere as impressive as Ye Ci, he knew about the true worth of a Mithril ore vein.
Mithril was something that was next to useless in the current stage of the game, but it was a very valuable resource that were highly sought by major guilds. Even a million-member guild like the Wolf Pack had not more than 10 pieces of Mithril ore of low quality.
Ye Ci, on the other hand, found an entire Mithril ore vein.
What does it mean to have control over an ore vein? It means the guild would be able to establish itself as the lead producer of Mithril ores.
Timely Rain was at verge of fainting. His mouth was dry and he could see stars in his vision. The only reason he remained standing upright was his hands that were propped against the table.
Ye Ci was worried as Timely Rain's face was a shade of red. The man was even panting heavily. Will he faint from a brain hemorrhage or something? "Timely... Are you alright?"
Timely Rain took in a deep breath, he could see multiple Ye Cis in his vision, "Gongzi, that was a joke right?"
"Do you think that I'm a person with a sense of humor?" Ye Ci grimaced. Oh come on, he doesn't even believe what I said.
Timely Rain stared at Ye Ci as his brain struggled to process her words. It was apparent that Ye Ci's words were very hard to process indeed.
As a disheartened Hidden Dragon returned to his guild encampment, his party members were turning in a portion of the loot they have obtained. A Warrior named Christmas Night spotted Hidden Dragon and walked up to him, "Hey, Hidden Dragon, how did your little expedition go? Have you found any clues yet?"
"Nope." Hidden Dragon heart was stung by the mockery from Christmas Night. Despite his anger, there was nothing he could do to Christmas Night. After all, he was nothing but a third rate player whose words held no sway among his fellow guild members. The only reason he was allowed in a party was the 'Resurrection' spell that he had obtained through sheer dumb luck.
Christmas Night laughed at Hidden Dragon's response, "I knew it! I told you that it's not worth it! Even if you suck as a healer, but you left the party just because of a hunch that turned out to be nothing! Don't you think that you're dumb?"
The penalty of leaving a party that was leveling up or exploring a dungeon without a valid reason was severe in the Bloody Steel guild. The offender might even lose his or her salary for the month.
"That's enough. It's not that much of a big deal anyways. Why are you treating him like this?" Christmas Night was cut off by Bubblegum, the female Cleric.
It was apparent that Christmas Night did not share the same thought, "Stay out of this Bubble! The only contribution to this party that he has is Resurrection! There's nothing else that he can do. I've had enough of him dragging our party down for a long time, and now he left the party without permission? Is the rules of Bloody Steel a joke to him?"
"His only job is to resurrect any dead party members. Why do you have to keep picking on him? Nobody died today anyways. Besides, we all have that moment where we need to attend to some emergencies! Why must you be so harsh to him?" it was apparent that Bubblegum was an upright person. Even when Hidden Dragon was bad at healing and had no offensive capabilities, his Resurrection meant that he was a very important member of the party especially when Resurrection was still a rare ability.
"What if someone died today?" Christmas Night rage grew as he listened to Bubblegum's words, and it further encouraged him to vent his anger on Hidden Dragon.
Hidden Dragon lowered his head. He clenched his fists tightly and gritted his teeth, but there was nothing he could do. Despite the raging anger in his heart and the strong urge to throw a punch at Christmas Night's face, Hidden Dragon forced himself to remain calm. He had always been at the bottom of the food chain. Even if Bloody Steel was a shadow of its former self, the guild was still a very competitive medium-sized guild. As someone who was lacking in terms of talent and influence, he could only swallow his anger and submit to humiliation. After all, the salary he was earning from Bloody Steel was his only source of income that he could not afford to lose.
"You..." Bubblegum was rendered speechless by Christmas Night. Despite his harsh words, Bubblegum knew that Christmas Night presented a sound argument. She cast a glance at Hidden Dragon who was cowering from Christmas Night and sighed. She felt pity for Hidden Dragon, but in a society where the weak are prey to the strong, she knew that the man must stand up for himself. How many times can I help him out if he himself is not willing to grow?
Besides, Hidden Dragon was clearly in the wrong for abandoning his party. Christmas Night's action was not entirely unjustified.
Bubblegum understood the feelings of Hidden Dragon. He knew that he could lose his place in the party at any given time, which led to his desperation in searching for the hidden quest that might be offered by the NPCs. The discovery of a high grade quest would increase his contribution to the guild and win him a handsome reward, especially in terms of money, equipment, and skillbooks.
Success could bring great change to the fate of Hidden Dragon. It could at least propel his role as a third-rate member in the party into a first-rate healer. This was a temptation that not many could refuse, not to mention someone who was at the bottom.
Hidden Dragon's luck, however, seemed to be lacking.
Bubblegum sighed and stole a glance at Christmas Night, it seems that I have to be the peacemaker, "Enough of this. Let's go cash in on our contribution points and continue leveling up."
"Contribution points?" Christmas Night sneered at Hidden Dragon, "Are you implying that he contributed to today's farming?"
"What do you mean?" Bubblegum furrowed her eyebrows. Christmas Night was not a bad person, but he was very narrow minded.
"You don't have to look at me like that Bubble. I'm not a bad person. Have I said anything when we have to bring this burden along with us every single time? No! And that's because he was a responsible person who did his job even when he lacked the skills. But today? He left the party because of some stupid NPC! Do you think he deserves a share of our contribution points? We're not the best the guild has to offer, but we don't have the obligation to keep this parasite around!" Christmas Night raised his voice, and many of the guild members began staring at Hidden Dragon coldly.
"Besides, do you think I don't know what was going on in your mind, Hidden Dragon? You wanted to report a high grade quest to the higher ups am I right? What do you think we are? Are we stepping stones for you?" Christmas Night continued.
Hidden Dragon began shaking in anger. As the saying goes, even a saint could still feel anger. No matter how cowardly a person Hidden Dragon was, there was still a limit to his tolerance, "Christmas Night! What the heck do you want? I admit it's my fault! We can settle this according to the guild rules, so what's the big deal? Are your words even necessary?"
Christmas Night was shocked. Hidden Dragon had always been very quiet and meek. His sudden anger was a surprise to the rest of his party members as well. However, it did not take long for Christmas Night to regain his composure, "What's the big deal? Are you saying that the guild rules are something that you abide to only if you feel like it?"
"That was not what I said."
Chapter 252 A Secret (Part 2)
"Looks like I'll have to teach you a lesson." Christmas Night stood up and charged at Hidden Dragon before Bubblegum could even react. Some of the party members began to cheer as the brawl started.
Hidden Dragon was a Cleric with mediocre skills, but he was still a long time member of the party. His equipment was on par with the rest of the party, and with his abilities to heal himself, Christmas Night's attacks were not fatal. Even when Hidden Dragon could not fight back and was forced to frantically avoiding the attacks from Christmas Nights, his defeat did not come very soon.
Crimson Millions heard a commotion at the guild square as he left the conference room with Seductive Dance. It was the laughter of players and the sound of abilities that were being cast. Crimson Millions was about to dismiss the incident as a friendly match against players, but his eyebrows creased when he noticed the lack of the war banner that would appear during a friendly PK match. Is this an infighting between guild members?
Despite his questionable character, Thousand Sunsets was still the leader of a guild. He was aware of the taboos that must be avoided at all cost, which was why infighting was something that he prohibited in the Bloody Steel guild.
This is obviously not a friendly match. I don't know what is happening, but infighting must be stopped.
Crimson Millions immediately made his way to the guild square, followed closely by Seductive Dance.
With his standing in Steel-Blooded Battle Spear, Crimson Millions became an important figure in Bloody Spear. He was loyal to Thousand Sunsets, and his loyalty earned him a spot as an important officer of the guild. He was able to make his way to the front of the crowd with relative ease.
Some of the players were still cheering at the top of their lungs, but most immediately quieted down upon his arrival.
Crimson Millions could see a Warrior chasing a Cleric around with his two-handed sword. The Cleric was unable to fight back, but was very good at avoiding attacks. He was able to avoid certain death a few times by dodging and healing himself. This was putting a strain on his mana, which meant that he would soon die at the hands of the Warrior.
The frown on Crimson Millions' face deepened. He immediately began the incantation of a spell, and the duo were enveloped by a faint blue light. It was the result of a lvl50 Priest spell, 'Bind', that could root its target for the duration of a few seconds.
But these few seconds were what he needed.
Crimson Millions walked out to the duo and shouted, "What are you doing?"
Christmas Night was stunned when he noticed the presence of Crimson Millions, but he was able to quickly recover from his shock, "Boss Crimson, it's all his fault! We were leveling up in at the Black Wind Mountain as a party, but he left the party without permission just to talk to a useless NPC. It would be okay if he had stumbled upon a Unique Quest, but it turned out to be a waste of time! He's the only Cleric in our party capable of resurrecting our members, if someone died today, it would cause a great loss to the guild. I was giving him a lecture about his misconduct when he lashed out at me out of anger."
Despite his fear of Crimson Millions, Hidden Dragon could not hold himself back when he heard the obviously lie from Christmas Night, "I did not! He was the one who started the fight!"
The situation eventually devolved into a shouting match between Hidden Dragon and Christmas night, with the former being outmatched in every way by the latter. Hidden Dragon could only shake in anger as he was berated by Christmas Night. By then, the crowd had already dispersed. The members of the guild knew that infighting was strictly prohibited, and instead of reporting the fight, they have instead cheered the combatants on. Each and every one of them fled from the scene at the first given opportunity.
Even Bubblegum herself was pulled away by one of her female friends.
After getting a hold of the situation by listening to their arguments, Crimson Millions waited no time in cutting them off, "That's enough!"
Hidden Dragon and Christmas Night immediately quieted down as they stared silently at Crimson Millions.
"I don't care why you did it, but both of you were fighting in the guild encampment. Do you know that infighting is strictly prohibited by our guild?"
"Yes." the duo replied. This was something that was known to all members of the guild, and had happened frequently. These incidents, however, went unnoticed by the higher ups of the guild. This was why Christmas Night had the courage to start a fight with Hidden Dragon. He did not expect things to turn out as they were.
The penalty for infighting was heavy. Guild members involved in the offense might lose part of their salary, or even find themselves demoted. Some might even be removed from the guild.
"Well, since you know the rules, I don't have to waste my time. As this is your first offense, I'll settle with docking your salaries for this month."
"But, boss..." the punishment was too heavy for Hidden Dragon's heart to bear. His salary was docked right at the beginning of the month. How am I going to live for the rest of the month? Christmas Night was not satisfied with the punishment as well. To him, Hidden Dragon's punishment was well deserved for abandoning the party while he himself was caught in the fallout of the man's action.
"What? Is the punishment too light for you? Or do you perhaps want the guild leader to hear about this?" Crimson Millions glared at the duo.
"No."
"Leave then." said Crimson Millions as he motioned with his hand. He then tipped a wink at Seductive Dance, who immediately went after the duo, "Hey, you! The Cleric!"
Hidden Dragon turned around to find Seductive Dance behind him. He could not believe his eyes. There was no way one of the guild's elites would have business with a low rank member like him. He looked at his surroundings for signs of any other Cleric, and then at Seductive Dance, "Are you talking to me?"
Seductive Dance shrugged, "What do you think?" he said with a smile.
He originally a member of the second squadron, but was then promoted as an elite in recognition of his skills. Being an elite meant that he received some of the best equipment available to the guild, and enjoyed huge benefits from the guild. A player like this was highly respected by guild members, and Seductive Dance himself was an idol of Hidden Dragon, who was nervous but excited at the same time.
He immediately made his way to Seductive Dance and asked in a hushed voice, "How can I be of help, boss?" perspiration was beginning to form on his nose.
"No no, don't call me that. I'm not the one who is paying for your salary." despite his status as an elite, Seductive Dance had no interest in involving himself in the management with the guild. He held no post in the guild, but was still respected by the members of the guild.
"Crimson Millions is looking for you." Seductive Dance pointed at Crimson Millions who was heading to the conference room with a smile.
"Eh? Boss Crimson is looking for me..." dread immediately filled Crimson Dragon's heart. Was it because of the thing just now? He won't be kicking me out of the guild right? Being kicked out of the guild after having a month's worth of salary docked would make an already bad situation worse for Hidden Dragon.
"Don't worry about it. It's not because of the fight." Seductive Dance read Hidden Dragon's thought through his worried expression. He patted the man's shoulder with a bright smile and continued, "Go on. I'll be taking my leave."
Hidden Dragon stared at Seductive Dance as he headed to the teleportation crystal. He then took in a deep breath, and jogged towards the guild conference room, knocking on the door only after he had managed to calm himself down.
"Come on in." it was the voice of Crimson Millions.
Hidden Dragon pushed past the door to find Crimson Millions staring at a screen. He was watching a video about a high level dungeon. Crimson Millions immediately turned around when he noticed Hidden Dragon's presence, and he said with a smile after turning off the video, "Have a seat."
The attitude displayed by Crimson Millions came as a surprise to Hidden Dragon, who did not expect such a treatment from one of the guild's officers.
Crimson Millions wasted no time with pleasantries and went straight to the point, "You were involved in a fight with Christmas Night because of a seemingly useless NPC am I right?"
"Yes..." even when Hidden Dragon held a different opinion, the three Black Iron Dwarves did appear to be nothing special.
"Just what sort of NPC are they? You violated guild regulations just to check them out." even when Bloody Steel was a shadow of its former self, it was still a guild with more than a hundred thousand members. Crimson Millions who was the officer of such a guild possess strong observation skills, and the incident had certainly attracted his attention.
Why would a coward like Hidden Dragon risk his neck and broke guild regulations because of an NPC?
Even when Ye Ci was delivering her story slowly, Timely Rain, who was still in shock, found it hard to process her words, "Wait wait wait..." he held out his hand and motioned for Ye Ci to stop.
Ye Ci raised an eyebrow and shrugged, "What is it? Are my words that hard to comprehend?"
"Oh please, I'm shocked by this, alright?" Timely Rain grabbed at his hair.
Ye Ci lowered her head, cleared some dirt from her nails, and smiled, "You can take your time to process what I've just said, but there's something that I need you to do."
"What is it?" Timely Rain was anxious. Not many things in this world could cause Ye Ci to be so cautious.
Timely Rain immediately understood the gravity of the situation when Ye Ci recounted her run-in with Hidden Dragon, "You mean to tell me that Bloody Steel is suspecting something about the Mithril ore vein?"
"Yes. The quest is locked, so I'm not worried about them finding out. But if this attracts attention, I'll have trouble with proceeding to the next stage of the quest. Besides..." Ye Ci continued with a grimace, "Even if I could, I don't think Upwards Ho! can defend the Mithril mines."
"Alright. Leave it to me. I'll be ready for any further instructions too."
"Are your men dependable?"
"I'll only send those who I trust. Don't worry about it."
Ye Ci nodded, "The only thing we have to do at this point is to have some Rogues stationed around the area. I want to know if somebody else other than Bloody Steel knows about this."