章 50: Fated encounter
"Eh, I'm still alive?"
Mays woke up as he felt his heart aching. He observed his own bandaged body while moving his limbs slowly. He was surprised that his body was still intact after everything he had gone through.
"Ah, even Drasca survived. I'm glad."
At his side, a small crystal dragon was curled up beside his straw makeshift pillow. That dragon was mainly the reason why he was still alive. His gratitude for her was genuine. Stroking the curled up body of the small dragon gently, he smiled wryly.
Mays was currently half naked. All his equipment were placed nearby by the person who saved him. They were all currently pitch black since the curse from the Vampire Lord was still active. He was glad that his life was still intact. Everything else mattered less. As long as he was still alive, he would eventually reunited with Ria.
As his gaze shifted back toward the makeshift pillow and bed made of straw, he wondered who the one that saved him was. The last thing he remembered before he passed out was that he fell directly into an underground waterfall while holding Drasca tightly.
"Who was it that saved me I wonder."
Mays tried to stand up as he cautiously observed his surroundings. It took him less than ten steps before he reached the cave entrance. He was currently inside a cave somewhere in the middle of a forest. This forest was totally different than Demonfall Forest. There was also a clear river flowing gently near the cave entrance.
Walking slowly toward the flowing river, Mays kneeled in front of the water as he washed his face.
"Fuwaaaaaaaaaaah!"
Feeling refreshed, Mays let out a relieved sigh. His whole body was still sore though. His injury was quite severe after all. If not because of his high regenerative capability, who knows how long it would take for him to be able to walk again.
"Oh, you're awake."
A sudden unfamiliar voice interrupted Mays. He immediately turned to look at the person who just talked to him.
"Err… yeah. Thank you for saving me."
In front of him right now was a woman in her early twenty, clad in golden armor. She was none other than Hallel, the Golden Reaper. Without a doubt, she was also an over worldly beauty. Since all female HeavensTale's players which came to this world turned into beauties, Mays was used to it by now.
"Heh, good that you didn't kick the bucket after all the effort I put in helping you. Wait a sec, I'm going to cook us something."
Ignoring Mays who seemed full of question, Hallel walked away and started preparing food. Piercing several slab of meat using daggers, she started roasting them. Mays was about to say something at the side but he decided not to for now.
"Come here, let's talk."
Calling Mays to come sit at her side, Hallel gestured with her hand. At the same time, she drank water from its cask in a wild manner like an old man chugging down alcohol. Mays slowly walked toward her and sat beside her.
"You're a player aren't you?"
Hallel asked right after she noticed Mays was looking at her, sizing her up.
"Yes I am. Thanks again for saving me. I am Mays."
"Pfffffff... Mays? The Red Wargod Mays?"
Shocked by Mays's answer, the water inside her mouth sprayed out all over as she looked at Mays with eyes of disbelief.
"Yeah. That's me."
Mays replied with a smile. He gained nothing from hiding his identity anyways.
"Okay. I'm Hallel. Golden Reaper Hallel."
This time, it was Mays's turn to be shocked. Once again, he stared at Hallel while keeping his silence.
"For real?"
"Yeah."
And again, the two of them stared at each other without saying anything. They were both thinking of something before they started grinning.
"Hahahhahahhahhahaha as if!"
They even laughed in unison.
"Everyone knows Hallel is a guy. Please don't make a joke like that."
Mays still thought that the girl in front of him was joking. True he never asked Hallel about his gender back in HeavensTale but from all his interaction with Hallel in the game he already deduced that he was a male. It was rare for a girl to play a male character after all. Unlike girl character, half of them were male without a doubt.
"Bleh, word is useless. As a HeavensTale player, you should at least recognize this thing right?"
Hallel who unsheathed her sword shoved the sword toward the sky.
"Awaken!"
Light shone brightly from the plain looking sword before it changed into a fiery red great sword which emanated an overwhelming might. One couldn't be a legit HeavensTale player if they didn't know what this weapon was.
Hellfire Solar Eclipse.
That was the name of Hallel's signature weapon, the strongest bladed weapon in HeavensTale. She was the only one who used this weapon as the stat requirement for it was exceptionally high.
"Hell… Hellfire Solar Eclipse! You're unexpectedly the real deal!"
This time, Mays ways genuinely shocked. He never thought that his rival, Hallel was actually a girl in real life.
"Heheh now you know. So, why don't you tell me who you really are then?"
Pleased by the reaction showed by Mays, Hallel immediately asked him the same question. It really was not a big deal at this point anymore but she just couldn't bring herself to call her crush with the same name as her one and only rival.
Hallel just couldn't link the two of them together. There was no way for a nerdy gamer to have such a perfect well-toned body. Not to mention her rival Mays was someone with a good brain too. Real world was not a place for such a perfect character to exist.
"Err... I don't mean to lie or anything, but I really am Mays. That Red Wargod Mays you spoke of."
"Stop spouting nonsense or I might beat some sense into you!"
The moment Mays replied with his usual noncommittal tone, Hallel snapped. She never was someone with a good temperament to begin with. As her killing intent seeped out, she threaten Mays with an annoyed tone. She was somewhat dejected deep inside since she had high expectation of this person in front of her. She didn't want to hate someone she finally took a liking to just because how dishonest he was.
"Ugh."
Mays sighed.
He was really in a predicament. There was currently no way for him to prove himself. Thanks to the curse he received from the Vampire Lord, all his equipment were useless at the moment. His signature gear were all turned black and unrecognizable. Even his space belt was unusable right now.
"I gave up. Do whatever you want. Not like anything I told you matters anyways."
Mays raised both his hand as if imitating the scene of robbers giving up after they got apprehended by the police. At the moment, he couldn't do anything else to convince the girl in front of him. Since he knew that this person was the real Hallel, he also knew how hard headed this person was. A half assed answer wouldn't do him any good.
Without wasting time, Hallel swings her great sword vertically from the top toward the unguarded Mays. Mays was looking at her without blinking as the great sword closed in before it stopped right on top of his head.
"Tch."
They stared at each other for around ten second before Hallel clicked her tongue and pulled back her great sword. She then sit back at her previous seat beside the campfire. She was somewhat conflicted at the moment.
Hallel was a problem child. Ever since she was a kid, she had been rebellious toward everything. She was the type that shoved her fist forward first before talking. As she saw how adamant and resolute the person in front of her was, she gave in.
"I'll listen to your circumstances later. Eat first."
Hallel muttered as she grabbed one of the grilled meat and started chewing them.
"Hehe that was close. Better luck next time I guess."
"Pff!"
Mays chuckled as he said that. He gazed at the choking Hallel who overheard what he said with a grin on his face. He never knew that Hallel would rage in front of her computer every time Mays said that after they ended in a draw from their duel.
"Even that one line would have me convinced that you're the real one, jerk."
Hallel muttered with a soft voice that was only audible to herself.
-----------------------------------------------------------
"You really come here. I didn't expect that."
"Please. You being a girl is not something I would expect either. I'm like eighty percent sure that you're a guy."
"It can't be helped. If I played a girl character, those lame nerd and wimpy guy gonna flock over me and waste my time."
"Hahaha that's right. Most gamers were desperate people who gave up on real life after all."
After some time, the two of them started opening up to each other. At this very moment, they interacted like real friends despite the fact that they never met each other before this.
"For someone like me to be unconscious for a whole day, I really am in a dire state indeed."
"Damn right. If not because your heart was still beating, I would have mistaken you for a corpse."
Mays told Hallel about his current situation. How he end up with his previous near death condition and how he got separated from Ria after coming here together with her. He also told her about other useful news from the human continent.
Thanks to Drasca's teleportation skill, he ended up at the other side of demon continent. Now that he was separated from Ria and all his spirits, Mays had no means to get in touch with them again. Mays never blamed Drasca for that though. If all, he felt only gratitude to Drasca who used up her remaining magical power to cast that teleportation skill and saved his life.
"Pink Demon Ria huh. It had been around five years since I last saw her."
"I bet she might be worried sick about me right now. I don't even have any means to contact her at the moment. Do you by any chance have a spirit stick?"
"Sorry but I never touch that thing. Not like you don't know, I don't spend even one cents on games."
"Yeah figures. I'm a special case though since I got Ria who fund me everything."
"Dem right! But well, even without her help, you could still fight me evenly I bet."
Surprisingly, Hallel was quite the talker herself totally different from when she was in game. Back then, Hallel never talked to others. She hardly replied to chat either. Mays felt weird when he figured out how Hallel really was in reality.
Mays also learnt more pressing information from Hallel. At the moment, he was currently at Silent Prairie which was located inside NatureSprite Dukedom.
"A dukedom in the middle of demon continent huh. This is somewhat troublesome. I know nothing about this place too."
With a distressed look, Mays voiced out his opinion.
"Erm. Just be careful against them dryad freak. The nymphs are friendlier so they won't attack you without reason."
After talking to each other for almost one hour, Mays finally stood and brushed off the dust from his clothes. He then stared at Hallel for several second before started talking again.
"Anyways, I really am thankful for what you have done. I can't promise you my life but I really owe you one. If by any chance there is a time when you are troubled, come look for me. I'll help you with whatever it is."
"Eh? What are you saying?"
"What?"
"Heheh with that brain of yours, you should know what I'm planning to do right?"
With a grin, Hallel immediately get up and started stretching. She was doing the normal high school physical ed. routine stretching as if it was habitual. She was a high school student before she got forcefully transferred here after all.
"Sorry but I don't want to implicate you any further. I'm already grateful enough for your... ouch!"
"Heh, that cleared your mind yet?"
Before Mays could finish his line, his torso took a clean hit from Hallel. He was aware of the incoming punch but with his current state, his physical body just couldn't follow his mind. His current prowess was only around players at level fifties after all.
"Ugh seriously. You want to kill me or help me? Made up your mind please."
Mays smiled wryly as he wiped the blood dripping from his mouth. The strength of that punch was no joke either. A normal fighter wouldn't survive if they took that punch.
"Tch, sorry. It's your fault for playing hard to get anyways."
Hallel rubbed her nose awkwardly after she saw Mays desperately trying to ease his pain while kneeling. She failed at holding back for sure. But when she saw Mays's face brighten after a while, she let out a relieved sigh.
She was worried about Mays without a doubt. Mays was her rival in HeavensTale, the only person she acknowledged as someone better than her. Even if she had not fallen for him, she would still help him regardless. She would never admit it though.
"Hallel."
"Yea?"
"Thank you. I really appreciate it."
"Meh, no biggie."
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The usually quiet Demonfall Forest was overly noisy today. Several figure were seen restlessly moving while shouting at the mountain hill all over the forest outskirt. One after another, a hearty shout echoed all over Doram Ridge.
"MAYSSS!"
"MAYYYSSSSSSSSS!!!"
"MASTEEEEERRR!"
"Sir Maaaaays!"
Ria who was teary eyes shouted as hard as she could, hoping for even the faintest of reply. All her spirits were also shouting loudly, looking for the missing person after the fierce battle, Mays.
Mays's spirits were not in good condition either. They had been searching for Mays for one full day yet everything was to no avail. Mays was nowhere to be found. The only thing which calmed their heart was the fact that Mays was still alive, somewhere in this world.
It could be considered a miracle for Mays to survive after confronting a group of three top ranked insane boss. Normally, even a single insane boss need at least twenty fully geared players and spirits to defeat it. A situation where three insane boss ganged up upon players were something that never happened either.
Soon enough, Demonfall Forest's portal gate shone as several people came out from it. Every single one of them was wearing a grey cape with a Purple Skull insignia on top of it. They were none other than the Misfit Squad sent by Sanortep to support Mays and Ria. They came right away after they heard from the guards that the seal surrounding the portal gate disappeared.
"Whoa… This is demon continent."
"Such a great scenery. Better than the human continent even."
Adol who stepped into the demon continent for the first time casually commented. Bahar complimented the sight which was obviously great, comparably soothing as any famous tourist spot back on earth.
Adol and Bahar were the vanguard for this squad. The knight Adol was a man in his late twenties with a scrawny yet short stature. He seemed unreliable but his skills was top tier. As for Bahar the warrior, he looks really plain, totally like a side character. He barely showed off his skills so nobody knew to what extend his real potential was.
"Save the chatter for later. Let's track those two first."
Samat the monk, who was the appointed leader of this group talked in a strict manner. He need to at least put up an act of a leader since he was actually leading these people at the moment. With his bald head, mean looking face and big body frame, it was easy for him to intimidate others if he wanted.
"Sorry mister leader but I don't think that is necessary. I can even hear their shout at the moment. Barely though."
"Erm."
Joyah who was a hunter which boasted better senses than other classes already picked up the voice of their target which were carried by the wind. The ranger Dora who stood beside Joyah just agreed to whatever her best friend said. Joyah was a tall, tanned girl with a curvaceous model like body while Dora was the slender beauty type.
"…"
The other two in their squad didn't even said anything as they walked slowly, following the group from behind. One male and one female. They were observing the surroundings vigilantly though.
Misfit Squad had a total of seven players in it. Together with their spirits, they numbered a total of twenty five people at the moment. These seven were no small character either. Every single one of them were listed in top one hundred PVP rank monthly, proving their strength as the second best squad of Misfit Society.
"Whoaaaa! Look at this!"
"Holyshit! This was not something ordinary people could do!"
Both Adol and Bahar were shocked as they arrived at the former battle scene between Mays's party and those insane bosses. There were overly huge craters everywhere. There were even several part of the forest which seemed like it had been scooped out by something. This kind of battle aftermath was totally on a different level even to them who was considered the elites among godkin.
"Red Wargod and Pink Demon. They deserved their overwhelming title indeed."
"Erm."
Once again, Dora agreed to Joyah's heartfelt remarks. Dora knew that Joyah actually admired the Pink Demon. She was also the same but she never let it slipped out so others didnt know. For female HeavensTale players, the target of worship was always the Pink Demon. Considering how Pink Demon seemed close enough to run dungeons with the member of their guild, Joyah ended up admiring Pink Demon more and more.
"Mays!!"
"Masteeeeeeeer!!"
As they walked away from the portal gate, they started hearing echoes of shout coming from the outskirt of the forest. They were moving closer to Ria and the rest thanks to the direction by the experienced hunter, Joyah.
"They're close by. Let's meet them first."
Without wasting more time, Samat sprinted forward toward the source of the shout. He knew that something might had happened to the Red Wargod by now. They wouldn't search for him using this desperate and crude method otherwise.
"We are going ahead."
"…"
The two people who were always silent and did nothing suddenly rushed out hastily leaving Samat and the rest dumbfounded. They were Tomiran and Kasimon. Their face looked almost the same while their body stature differed a little. They were siblings after all.
"Did that guy actually talk?"
Samat asked in disbelief. He never heard him talking for years. He thought that those two were mute.
"Yeah. One of them talked."
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