Capítulo 35: The Quest for the Oil
"The Floating Market will be closed for a few weeks unless you get more oil," Glesga explained. "We'll offer rewards if you retrieve the oil barrels stolen by the Reef Raiders a few weeks ago. I don't want to risk sending patrollers since the town will be left undefended, so we could only rely on adventurers to retrieve the oils. Do you want to accept the quest?"
Xin nodded, accepting the quest. There was no time limit, so he might as well take it. He planned to gather better equipment from NPCs and upgrade his gear before heading out to face the Reef Raiders.
"Splendid! That's the spirit!" Glesga was pleased, and Xin's [Relationship Level] with him shot up to [Intimate].
Glesga then proceeded to give Xin directions to find the stolen oil. "There's a beach, one day travel from here where we believe the Reef Raiders are keeping the stolen barrels. Getting there is easy, but you may run into ambushing parties."
Glesga explained the three approaches they could take to reach the outpost once they crossed the hills surrounding the bay where Seagull's Nest was located. "The first option is to go along the beach and then dive underwater when you get closer. The downside is that the waters are crystal clear, so you might be easily spotted."
"The second approach is through the palm tree forests surrounding the beach outpost," he continued. "And finally, the third option is a head-on approach via the rocky formations on the beach or by boat."
Glesga also mentioned that Drasta might sell them potions for the dangerous quest. "The Reef Raiders are vigilant and will fight to defend their position, so be careful."
[The Quest, STEALING IT BACK, has been updated!]
"By the way, you can have this as a sign of our friendship," Glesga said, offering Xin a gift.
[RECEIVED!
WATER CANNON (Very Rare, Requires Attunement), given by the NPC Glesga
A gun that shoots water magic and requires two hands to wield. They could shoot two rounds per five seconds.
A brass and wood cylinder full of twisting glass tubes and intricate glowing wires with a simple grip. The barrel glows a deep blue when active, emitting hot steam.
Once fired, the glow brightens to pink and finally intense white; the water it shoots glows and fizzles with this pinkish-white energy.
INT + 100
May cause FREEZE for five seconds.]
Finally! A weapon upgrade. Xin thought to himself, satisfied with the rare item given by the town mayor. It was just what he had hoped for.
He decided to attune to the Water Cannon later at the Blacksmith. As for his armor, he had the [Crustacean Carapace], but it only a +10 CONS, so he knew he needed to find better equipment in the future.
Xin thanked Glesga for the gift and the information about the quest, feeling grateful for the new equipment he received.
After speaking with Glesga, Xin made his way to Drasta to purchase her [Water Breathing Potion]. He had a feeling he might need it if he had to swim to that beach Glesga mentioned.
Xin briefly considered asking Ariel for help, but the thought of dealing with that crazy mermaid again was enough to make him reject the idea. Xin would rather face dangerous quests alone than deal with Ariel's unpredictable behavior.
After his talk with Glesga, Xin decided to ask Triton for help with the quest to retrieve the oils. It would be much easier with Triton's strengths and skills.
But first, he went to the Blacksmith to have the [Water Cannon] attuned to him, so he could equip it for the upcoming quest.
With the weapon now attuned, Xin made his way to Drasta to buy the [Water Breathing Potion] he needed for the underwater part of the quest.
As he approached Drasta, she noticed him and asked, "Oh, you're going to retrieve the oils?"
Xin nodded in confirmation, and Drasta seemed slightly disappointed as she continued, "The town is responsible for killing nearly every whale that approached the bay in the last decades. That's why we have this oil problem."
She then suggested, "It's pointless to go whaling now, but if you're brave and strong, you could try to kill what I believe is a monstrous whale that's made its lair near the reefs a day's travel away."
[ACQUIRED the Quest, LET'S GO FISHING!]
Xin was surprised to learn about another quest related to oil, but he accepted it without hesitation.
After purchasing the [Water Breathing Potion], Xin continued his journey, completing various quests and interacting with NPCs.
Determined to acquire all the items on the Newbie Island, Xin was fine spending weeks completing quests and interacting with the town folks to maximize his relationship levels with them.
Money became a significant motivation for him, and he made sure to go to the Adventurer's Guild to auction his items and free up his inventory from time to time.
Unlike last time, now he wisely set his auctions for a week to get the most out of his rare loots.
=======================
The DEVELOPER's DISTRESS
=======================
"He sure is taking his time on the island," one developer commented.
"I would too if I knew that all NPCs held rare items once you maxed out your relationship level with them," the other replied.
"I have an idea!" the first developer exclaimed.
"What? It better be good," the other retorted.
"You know that he'll have to play with his friends once he's out of the Newbie Island, right? He's bound to form groups and even join guilds with people he knows!"
"So?"
"So . . . we will make the connections from all the people he interacts with in the game. Most of the players have already announced their real identities. It will only be a matter of time before we make the connections with him!"
"That's . . . that's a good idea."
"Right?!"
"And then what?"
"What do you mean, 'What'?"
"What would you do after you find his identity? Make him delete his account? He would never do that, not with that cheat CHA. So what are you going to do?"
". . . I . . . I haven't thought about it that far."
Capítulo 36: The Failed Attempt
The next day, Xin woke up to the sound of his mother's voice, shouting at them to wake up.
"Come on, you two! It's already ten in the morning!"
Still feeling sleepy, Xin tried to go back to sleep, but his mother's voice persisted, as if she was right beside him.
"Wake up? It's a Sunday! We're supposed to rest!" Xiaxia complained groggily, clearly not pleased with being woken up.
"We've already done all the chores yesterday. We have every right to sleep in," she added.
"It's already ten in the morning! You've been up all night playing that stupid game!" their mother retorted.
Knowing that his mother must have woken up on the wrong side of the bed, Xin reluctantly got up and went to his mother, who was in the middle of an argument with his sister.
Without a word, Xin handed the remaining money to Evelyn. The crumpled bills totalling to thousands of dollars left her and Xiaxia stunned, gaping at Xin in disbelief.
"Y-you . . . Where did you get that money?!" Evelyn asked, almost shouting.
"And you still have that much money left?!" Xiaxia questioned with wide eyes.
Xin yawned, looking rather bored. "I got it by playing the game."
"What did you do in that Newbie Island?" Xiaxia muttered to herself. "If I knew it was that lucrative, I wouldn't have left so early."
"Can I go back to sleep now?" Xin asked, yawning again as he scratched his back.
"Of course, of course. You can sleep in our bedroom. What do you want for lunch?" Evelyn asked, her excitement evident as she counted the money, her smile stretching from ear to ear.
"Anything," Xin replied without care. He accepted the offer and headed to the bedroom to resume his sleep.
Xiaxia looked like she was about to do the same when Evelyn grabbed her hair, stopping her in her tracks.
"Not you," Evelyn said firmly. "You will help me make dinner."
"Egh? Not fair!" Xiaxia complained.
Evelyn stared at Xiaxia with dead set eyes, and Xiaxia couldn't help but notice the uncanny resemblance to Xin.
"If you want to go back to sleep, then give me money," Evelyn demanded.
"What? I don't have any right now. I told you all my money was used for a dungeon raid. Just wait a little while after we finish the raid," Xiaxia bargained.
Evelyn simply rolled her eyes. "Then no sleep for you. Come on now, I still have other things to do."
Xiaxia grumbled under her breath but complied, knowing she had no choice in the matter.
=======
That afternoon, after taking lunch, Xin logged back into the game and was greeted with a commotion in Seagull's Nest.
It appeared that the two groups that attempted to retrieve the oil had failed miserably. The Reef Riders had spotted them before they even reached the raider's hideout.
"They got ambushed by the sea! Their boats got sunk!" one player exclaimed.
"They should have known better than to use boats. It's in the forums!" another player grumbled.
"I think they were just trying to show off," someone chimed in. "They wanted to be the first ones to do it by boat and get famous on social media."
Xin shook his head at their foolishness. The guide clearly stated that using boats would attract attention and was not a good idea. He had already known this from the forums, but it seemed like some players still refused to listen and learn from others' mistakes.
As the players discussed their next plan, Xin quietly slipped away from the crowd and headed towards the beach. He wanted to explore the area and see if there was any other quest he could complete while waiting for the others to figure things out.
Xin wasn't in a rush, and he knew that patience and careful planning were key to success in Guildbane.
Xin checked his auctioned items, and seeing the substantial amount of money he had earned, he felt even more motivated to continue his adventures in Guildbane.
"Lord Schrodinger!" Skylark's voice called out, and Xin turned to see her rushing towards him, clearly out of breath. "W-wait . . . damn it!"
Xin waited patiently as Skylark caught her breath, curious to know what she wanted.
"Are you free right now?" Skylark asked, still panting. "We could really use some help. Some of our members left, and we badly need players to fill in the blanks."
"Is it about the Oil quest?" Xin inquired.
"Yes," Skylark replied.
Before Xin could decline, Skylark interrupted him, "Wait. Hear me out first."
Xin remained silent, allowing her to continue.
"You can be the leader of the group," Skylark proposed, "and any rare items we find that suit your class and race will belong to you. How about that?"
The offer sounded too good to be true, and Xin couldn't help but wonder, "Why me? My level is just seventeen."
". . ." Skylark hesitated and looked away, her expression betraying that something was indeed off.
"If you can't tell me, then goodbye," Xin said.
"Wait!" Skylark grabbed hold of Xin's clothes, feeling compelled to explain, "It's because those guys are very arrogant and demand that all loot will belong to them."
". . ." Xin remained silent, allowing her to continue.
Skylark sighed, realizing she had no choice but to elaborate further. "This is a common thing in the game, after all. The guys who have higher levels have more pride and demands than the rest."
So that's the reason, Xin thought. Skylark wanted him because she believed he wouldn't demand much and that he looked like a noob.
Well, he was a noob, so Xin didn't mind that assumption.
"Sorry, but I'm not interested in partnering up," Xin declined politely and walked away.
Skylark could only watch as Lord Schrodinger left, feeling somewhat disappointed yet again.
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