Chapter 1072: Chaos In Fragul's Valley (Part 1/2)
Meanwhile, somewhere in Fragul's Valley...
Shrieeeek!
A creature's cry echoed throughout a certain part of Fragul's Valley. It was a bird-like monster that stood approximately 1.5 meters tall. It had a razor-sharp beak, talons like metal blades, and blue feathers that acted as natural armor against attacks. This monster was known as the Deadly Valley Hawk, a flightless bird-like creature that often roamed Fragul's Valley.
Woosh! Phhhtk!
Name: Deadly Valley Hawk(Elite)
Level: 58
HP: 0/184,890 (0%)
The Deadly Valley Hawk fell to the ground as an axe sliced the creature's head off, causing it to turn into countless particles and leave loot on the ground where it fell.
After the creature's defeat, four individuals hovered over the loot on the ground.
"Heh, I've already gotten used to fighting these birds. Their feathers and beaks are a little annoying, but their intelligence is low. It's easy to take advantage of their simple attack pattern to farm up experience and gain loot." One of the individuals said with a grin.
This individual was a young man who appeared to be in his early twenties. He had dark blue hair, a pair of cyan eyes, and a handsome face that carried with it hints of confidence and arrogance. He wore a full set of light armor equipment that briefly showed a light white aura that encompassed it, revealing its identity as at least rare-ranked equipment.
In the young man's hand was a blue and silver axe that held an intricate design. It was also the weapon he used to cut down the Deadly Valley Hawk and deal the finishing blow to the creature.
This young man went by the player name Feral Blade. More importantly, he was a rising star who had recently been recruited by Broken Exile, one of the most powerful guilds in RML. Feral Blade was accompanied by three other players: Hazard, a middle-aged man in fully plated armor with a serious facial expression; Nighting, a young male magic assassin melee dealer with a headstrong appearance; and I Am Diligent, a youthful girl with a charming aura who was a range supporter.
Unlike Feral Blade, these three were not a part of Broken Exile. Instead, they were part of Broken Exile's subsidiary guild, Shattered.
It was not uncommon for top guilds to have a subsidiary guild where they raised new talents that could potentially move up to the main guild if they performed well enough.
While these types of guilds' main purpose was to discover new talents, they also served as the primary source of gathering and securing resources for their respective top guilds. After all, no matter how skilled a player is, it was virtually impossible to compete with other skilled top players if they spent a large portion of their time farming resources while others focused on leveling up.
That's why, although it was well known that Fragul's Valley belonged to Broken Exile, members of the Shattered guild were mostly seen in its vicinity.
"As expected of a rising star from the main guild. Without you here, venturing this deep into Fragul's Valley would have taken us three times longer." Nighting said as he sang Feral Blade's praises.
"That's right! If not for you, we would have had to use many more resources to reach this place." I Am Diligent commented with a glowing smile.
As he received a wave of compliments from Nighting and I Am Diligent, Feral Blade could barely control the wide smile on his face.
"So, this is what it feels like to be a part of one of the top guilds. I have to thank my elder brother for pulling some strings to speed up my entry into the main guild. He even gave me such a great opportunity to prove myself. This kind of respect and worship-it's no wonder the top guilds are so serious about maintaining their status." Feral Blade thought to himself.
Feral Blade cleared his throat and said, "Naturally, this much is to be expected of me. If the main guild didn't have confidence in my talent, they wouldn't have sent me on such an important mission in the middle of an event."
"Then, are the rumors true? Does that creature who grants any wish really exist somewhere in the heart of Fragul's Valley?" I Am Diligent inquired with a look of curiosity.
"Grant any wish? Your head is too far in the clouds. If it had such a ridiculous power, wouldn't the guild leader or one of the Six Stars come here in person?" Feral Blade scoffed.
The Six Stars were the equivalent of Cross Haven's Five Great Generals or Blue Oasis' Seven Captains. They were players who stood at the peak of RML and served as a foundation for their guild's power.
I Am Diligent's cheeks flushed red in embarrassment. Indeed, if something like that were true, how would the main guild be willing to send one person and a few subsidiary guild members to take care of it?
"Well, don't feel too embarrassed. It's not like your guess is entirely wrong. While the creature we're looking for doesn't grant any wish, it does give something that's not that far off. As long as we manage to capture the Golden Imp, it will cough up a rare-ranked or higher item. From what I know, last time, the item that was dropped was legendary-ranked." Feral Blade said in a bragging manner.
Legendary-ranked?! When the members of Shattered heard that, their faces were filled with expressions of disbelief and shock. One had to know that legendary-ranked items were extremely rare in RML and worth a fortune. Selling one was enough to pay someone's annual salary for a few years. Needless to say, the number of players in RML who have seen a legendary item firsthand was probably less than a hundred. This number was incredibly small given the millions upon millions of players in RML.
"Is it really okay to be telling us something so important? If it's a legendary ranked item, won't other top guilds want to get their hands on it?" Nighting commented.
Feral Blade glared at Nighting and said, "How will those top guilds find out? Is there anyone here foolish enough to betray Broken Exile? That's no different than saying you don't want to play anymore. But, just in case any of you get any funny ideas, don't forget that my elder brother is one of the Six Stars. No matter where you run to in RML, you'll never be safe."
The three members of Shattered shivered at Feral Blade's warning.
"O-Of course. Sorry, I misspoke. There's no way anyone would be foolish enough to covet what belongs to Broken Exile, let alone go around talking about it." Nighting said in an apologetic tone.
"Y-yes. We will not speak of this to anyone. You can trust us." I Am Diligent chimed in. "Tch... Naive, spoiled brat. Just because his elder brother is one of the Six Stars, he walks around like he owns the place. Who just gives away important information like that without thinking? Does he think that no one dares to compete with Broken Exile? What about Cross Haven? Even Sleeping Gardenia is able to compete with them on even footing now because of their connection with the Mystical Realm Palace. Why did I ever join this cursed guild?" Hazard thought to himself as he hid his annoyance.
Originally, Hazard joined Shattered as a way to prove his skills and get recognized by a top guild. However, after being accepted, it was nothing like he imagined it to be. The inner guild politics, the sucking up to advance, the constant backstabbing-it wasn't what he signed up for. Unfortunately, he still had some time left on the contract he signed with Shattered. Otherwise, he would have already left that guild, which was like being stuck in the mud.
"I overheard you talking about something rather interesting. How about sharing a few more details?" A voice abruptly sounded from in the middle of the group.
"?!"
Everyone was taken aback by the sudden emergence of an unknown voice. What was even more terrifying was the fact that no one was able to notice that person getting so close to
them or react in time!
Swoosh!
After that initial pause and surprise, Nighting was the first to make a move as the dagger in
his hands swept forward at the unknown assailant.
Ding!
Nighting's facial expression turned extremely ugly as his dagger collided with the unknown assailant. Instead of inflicting damage, his entire arm went numb, and he could not stop shaking as the dagger bounced off his target's body. It was like hitting a thick sheet of steel!
"Eh?" Without warning, the world around Nighting turned gray and everything rapidly spun before turning upside down.
Nighting eyes widened in shock as his head had been separated from his body without a
chance to retaliate!
"Nighting!" I Am Diligent cried out in horror.
Too fast! Nighting died before she could even use a single healing or barrier skill. Faster than
she could even blink, his HP went from full to zero!