Vol 2 Chapter 2 (1/2)
Chapter 02: Determination
1
Guilds Formed by Adventurers with no limit in size, it was a system used by Elder Tales' players to interact with each other Players who had not joined any guild could foruild with two or uild bank account, group chat, and other unique functions
The guild hall was one of these unique functions, referring to a zone leased to a guild
For exauild halls of 4 varying sizes: 3 roo it to accouild members to store itee banks of individual players, as well as production materials and equipment
Large guilds uild hall
The game story of Elder Tales was set in the future of Earth, and utilized the half Gaia project, sis and ruins of Akiba These ruins were euild if they had enough money
For such zones, players were able to control the area as they pleased, including toggling the “battle allowed” option or banning undesirables fro
So to serve as their HQ
The Crescent Moon Alliance guild hall was B class with 7 rooms
It was not spacious, but the facilities were enough for a guild of this size to operate 4 roo room Maryele described it as convenient to use
Even though it was dubbed theroom, there was only space for 15 people Even if everybody in the guild and shi+roe's party squeeze in, there was siful activities
To solve the issue of space, Maryele and her guild e room for Serara's welcome party
Floral decorations could be seen everywhere The work tables were covered with table cloths They cleaned every corner of the guild Coffee tables and plenty of cushi+ons were placed everywhere for people to gather and chat There was even a row of cYesrs placed along the corridors
These furnishi+ngs were not high quality iteuild members themselves
When shi+roe's party arrived in the city, the Crescent Moon Alliance ate and escorted the in contact via telepathy, the guild members knew Serara's time of return days in advance
The Chefs in the guild also learned about the correct roup, and had been gathering all kinds of ingredients to prepare for the feast
Maryele said that the Chefs had been hard at workmanually
Even if it were just trying out the food, the guildjoy that was comparable to Serara's safe return
The new cooking method was not without issues
Firstly, beginners needed to spend time to prepare the food by hand Food had always been easy to prepare using the menu, be it steam or boil, it only took 10 seconds to finish But the new method required Chefs to spend the appropriate amount of time to prepare the food instead
Also, cooking using the redients But the new redients needed to make the dish Curry made from meat, potatoes, onions, and spices wouldn't have carrots in it
They also found out through their research that when Chefs attempt to make a difficult dish, there would be a Chef level requirement If they were under leveled, they would fail to redients they used
On the whole, it was observed that using fried, grilled, and steah Chef levels to be successful, but the details remain unconfirmed
Other than this, there was another issue
Using the old redients and anyone would be able to cook the same dish via y cracker taste would also be the same
But for the new method, even if they were the saredients, the quality of the finished products could differ greatly too No h the Chef level was, the food was still prepared er solely dependent on the Chef level, and there were also no limits to what type of food you could make
Although the new method had many restrictions, it was not worthless On the contrary, it was a very valuable discovery Even if the new redients, and the taste varied fro the real world's logic, it made perfect sense
The iroup and the Crescent Moon Alliance were already sick of eating food that was similar to tasteless, mass-produced rations
”We have grown nu Animal feed is different than a hu now can be considered a proper meal!”
AsSorcerer of the Crescent Moon Alliance, it was only after you had tasted delicious food that you would realize what a pathetic life you have been living
After finishi+ng up the food preparation and the decor, the guild received shi+roe's group as the guests of honor A festive atuild hall
They ushered the guests to the grand dining table in the uests that dinner would be ready in an hour and as brought out to the group's enjoyment
Both the guests and the hosts were enjoying this reat food and fine company was a first ever since the Catastrophe
”Today is a day worthy of celebration! Let's eat, drink, and play to our hearts' content!”
To the guild members who had lived everyday in depression since the Catastrophe, Maryele's cheerful announcee from the depths of their hearts
Words of thanks filled therooo take a look in the kitchen” and left Serara followed him hurriedly The two of them entered the temporary kitchen that spanned the whole workshop roouild's Chefs who looked like veterans in a battlefield
By using the new er relevant, the Chef had to rely on their own skills and knowledge from the real world, which would affect the taste
The Chefs and Nyanta displayed their cooking knowledge and shared their recipes,the feast even more fanciful
The guildroom moved into the other rooms to chat and drink
The food kept co
Fried chicken, eggs with tomatoes, corn salads, seafood baked rice, unfermented bread that looks like Indian naan, spicy mutton soup, heavily seasoned deer meat, cut fruits, pancakes with butter
Serara walked around the whole guild hall holding a big tray to distribute the dishes, but all the people in the roo, ”This party is held to celebrate your safe return, just sit down and enjoy yourself” But she just replied with a sher part as a Housekeeper
This part of Serara was very endearing, and her fans in the guild increased Everybody wanted to drink with her when Serara visited the roo her dizzy
shi+roe's group was also dragged everywhere
Naotsugu started talking about battles while surrounded by low level players
Crescent Moon Alliance was a young guild, and just a few members were level 90 And they only reached level 90, but did not go for the content beyond
”In other words, the i is that the level of the teammates match each other Levels are not is beyond levels”
”Beyond levels? You mean ultimate moves?”
The young swashbuckler Shouryuu whose face was red fro into his chicken kebab Shouryuu was the guild's battle teau several tiu was like a hero
”Hmmm That is Panties!”
Naotsugu's strong announcement stopped everyone in their tracks The atmosphere in the room was really aard, even Shouryuu had the expression ”What is this guy saying?”
Naotsugu seemed to notice the weird ath and says:
”That was just a joke eh, e talking about? To win battles by leveling, the reason you lose will be your level being too low, right? If you reached the level cap, what does that mean? It implies that at the level cap, you can never beat the opponents you lose to since you can't level any to the extre tactics as well as work together with our teammates Without these two aspects, you will lose no o It will be too late if you realize this after reaching the level cap People who have never co-oped with others will not develop good teamith others just because they lost On the other hand, even if your level is low, you can still work on your tactics and teaest for is to ask yourself ”What other ways can I contribute?” My bro shi+roe is ato do anything to secure victory!”
The crowd seemed moved by the speech this time
But if shi+roe heard what he said, he would probably say soro!”
Theydifferent type of ene all kinds of topics No ood or bad players, everyone in this world loved ga, and even after they were transported to an alternate world, they would be eager to learn once they recovered their spirit
On the other hand, Akatsuki was confined in a certain room
This was one of the Crescent Moon Alliance's rooms that was reserved for ladies only
The roo it a siant feel Five women surrounded Akatsuki
”Coive in”
”I refuse”
Akatsuki wore her usual grumpy expression on her face She searched the room for an escape route, but did not find any
”There is no need to be afraid, ill be gentle”
”You should be aware that this is a bad guy's line!”
The leader of the ladies, the beautiful Bard with blond curly Yesr Henrietta,Akatsuki took a step back fearfully, but a tall lady hugged her from behind
”How small and cute!”
”Don't say I am small! I am older than you, probably!”
Crescent Moon Alliance master Maryele
It was rare for wouild masters This led to the proportion of wouilds' And a lot of the guilds
Akatsuki's small stature and her doll-like face endeared her to uys who had crushes on her, but the female fans were more passionate and harder to handle
”Ding ding, we have 3 sets of summer dresses for you!”
”Hold on, ould wear that for battle!”
Henrietta see the pretty one piece dress with a blushi+ng red face Akatsuki retorted immediately
Since they were girls, Akatsuki couldn't use violence like she did with Naotsugu and could only wriggle and struggle But the girls even praised her for looking so cute struggling, ht back
Not only that, they also took out a dark purple dress, and the next irly dresses made Akatsuki dizzy
”I a my lord, how can I wear such frilly clothes?!”
”We got perive up”
”You set me up! My lord, did you set me up?!”
Akatsuki could only accept her fate in tears as the girls ild looks in their eyes ether
2
As the party drew to a close, the happy tiratitude, ishes, drinking cheers, and compliments for the food
Fascinated by the food, enchanted by the drinks, playing their hearts out
The moon should have set completely
The guild hall, with so warmth of the party, was shrouded in the bliss-filled, peaceful air unique to the end of a festival
Beer bottles, ice buckets, and plates were scattered on the tables everywhere, like in the wake of a hurricane
Guildeverywhere, some under the table, some on the sofa, some curled up on the floor
Naotsugu snored in a spread eagle position in theroom, while Akatsuki as all dolled up by the “Crescent Moon Alliance Cute Girl Fanclub” leader Henrietta, slept peacefully on a cushi+on
”Woah”
shi+roe caught the bottle that was shaking at the edge of a table, and put it into his Bag of Holding along with the other bottles The bag was able to negate the weight of ite up
In the quiet , only shi+roe and Maryele were awake
In the corner of the table was a pile of dishes with some leftovers Maryele cleaned up the room that was messed up in the drunken party, and covered each of the sleeping members with a blanket She put both hands on her hips and turned to talk to shi+roe
”Was our reception good?”
”Ah, yeah”
A voice si came from somewhere in the room
shi+roe s his voice down in order to not wake the others
”What should we do? Do you want to sleep too shi+ro-bou?”
”I am not sleepy”
”Is that so”
Maryele approached shi+roe, with an expression as though they had justtime
”Let's have tea then It is not convenient here, let's go to the guild master room”
Maryele left after inviting shi+roe, telling him ”Wait a moment” She went to check on all the rooms The me on a sofa, cushi+on, or floor
”We need to do a major cleanup tomorrow”
”I will help”
”I can't let uest do that”
Maryele looked at herMaryele as she was now, shi+roe was glad that he took the rescue mission
The two of theerous bottles and plates away, and headed to the guild ether Before shi+roe left for Susukino, it was in this frilly roo Maryele's explanation of the situation
The only thing thattable Everywhere else was decorated in pink, as if this were Maryele's bedroom
”What would you like?”
”Anything is fine”
”Then ill drink so that is already made let me search”
Maryele brought the leftover beverage ”Black Tea” over This tea was suitable to be drunk either hot or cold, and was really refreshi+ng if one added fruits in
The two of them sat on the sofa for a moment of rest
In this type of party, shi+roe was always the last one awake He did not hate banquets He actually liked them a lot But the more happy he was, the more he wanted to protect it and was unable to sleep Nyanta and company had always made fun of him for this habit Maryele seemed to feel the same way Her tender eyes as she covered each ht to remember
The guild hall was filled with the gentle sound of people sleeping soundly or turning around, which was more at ease than total silence
”You have taken good care of us I arateful”
”Don'tdeal”
Similar to the warmth of the festival, shi+roe replied with a warratitude froratitude, but not from so many of them
He thought back to the Crescent Moon Alliance members' smiles which were almost as wide as their faces
shi+roe was different frou and Nyanta He had an aura that keeps people at bay, but the Crescent Moon Alliance ratitude despite that
(I did not expect them to be so happy)
shi+roe was already prepared to be bla into the business of others
shi+roe could not endure the world beco like 'this', and took up the quest to vent his frustration This was just shi+roe forcing his principles and values on others
shi+roe thought that was very arrogant behavior
(I won't be sorry for this, but understand that this is not so worthy of thanks)
That's hen others said their words of gratitude, shi+roe panicked and didn't kno to react since he did not understand why
”If this is not a big deal, ould be a big deal? We have to repay your kindness with gratitude”
”Let's not talk about gratitude When I was gone, how is the situation here?”
”The situation here”
Upon hearing shi+roe's question, Maryele's expression became complicated
shi+roe did not press her He calmly swirled the tea in his cup as he waited
”Akiba is more stable now”
”Stable?”
”Yes, PK has decreased, security I feel it is not bad No, I don't mean compared to other places I think that it is better than the worst case scenario, so it is not too bad”
Maryele picked her words carefully
”But the atmosphere is very bad I cannot describe it clearly, in other words er bad things It feels like so, you will be unable to do so I am sure this is because the tier has been set”
Tier
This phrase gives an inauspicious feeling
”We are a ht? We have only four level 90s, half ourwe can control But this is a fact that cannot be changed For exauild in Akiba, with more than 1500 members, lots of level 90s This is also a fact that cannot be changed”
Maryele placed her glass on the table She adjusted her posture, the tips of the fingers on her left hand touching those on her right
”I'uilds have their problems too But if the situation continues to deteriorate, ill be going down the path of no return Big scaled guilds with big facilities, of course they will do well But this will create an atmosphere and rules in the city, for example preferential treatment in the market”
”Things like this”
”Things like this are not written rules But they have so ht around on the streets all belongs to the big guilds The guilds are powerful in all aspects, so their antly, which makes sense to me”
Absurd
Big guilds had more people, so they were uild'sainst monsters in order to secure item drops were known as raids The number of people available was tied closely to the efficiency of the raids If a guild wanted touild would help to bring out the potential in each item, and was more efficient But this did not reat
If it was <her>, she would probably laugh it off
She would just laugh heartily at the pathetic players who crowded together, saying that they were not cool at all
”Didn't I just uilds, one will be stronger than the other If a guild is stronger than another, their tier will be clear, and there will be no point in fighting it out since the lower tier guild knows they will lose In order to avoid conflict, they will not contest with that guild for the rights of the raiding ground, and rounds are either very far away or have bad iteh PK has decreased, this is only because the big guilds have already divvied up the raiding grounds You cannot fight in the city, so there are no conflicts But even so, invisible territorial lines are for, and this is what I meant by tier”
shi+roe was not drunk, but he still felt hissituation than the deterioration of security This situation was indeed not the worst case, since there was less conflict and PK
(But, I feel that it is irritating and annoying)
shi+roe thought that this was not cool at all
The feeling of irritation beca
Maryele said that it was not bad because soround was nothing honorable, but you couldn't really say it was a bad thing There were no laws in this world, so you couldn't say anyone was guilty
A method to maintain efficiency in raids was to camp in a specific area and accue of the zone in order to operate efficiently Beco an expert on the tactics of a specific zone was not anything wrong
And the big guilds needed to spend a lot of resources to keep up this tactic, and even needed to send out patrols to protect these areas
shi+roe would not criticize this strategy without reason
If you allowed the weak to criticize these ainst the strong
shi+roe could understand Maryele's view of ”no one is at fault” In actual fact, this was just ”going with the flow”
Despite that, shi+roe was still unable to accept the situation
In this alternate world without laws, could a ive an uncool answer, it would be ”no” But shi+roe understood the reason he answered ”no” stemmed from shi+roe's own preferences
”Did the se the situation?
”Err Yes For exa up an alliance to solve the probleo too well Since all of us are suilds, our ree over the details, which leads to discontent Or people unable to suppress their willful opinions In the end the alliance broke after a quarrel and a nuet absorbed by a large guild”
So there was such a thing, shi+roe thought
In a way, this couldn't be helped While it was the saround vary for each level Hence the grounds preferred by each group differed according to the level and nuuild
If you wanted to work together to secure a raiding ground, you would need to keep your selfish desires in check and work together selflessly Big guilds uilds, conflicts were unavoidable and it was hard to come to a consensus
If you thought about it, the transport gate being down and the proble impact japan servers had to control tens of thousands of zones The nuuilds were about one thousand, so the probleine
But with the transport gate down and the unknown nature of the Fairy Ring transport schedule, the riffons like shi+roe were exceptions, soby horse Raiding grounds that were one day's distance away from the city were much more limited compared to the past
For Akiba, there were roughly 50 zones in the region, with about 300 raiding grounds If you considered the level, distance from town, and safety, it was easy to tell that the most popular spots would be heavily contested
After the Catastrophe, all zones were available for purchase The prices were determined by factors Adventurers did not understand But there was a factor that was apparent, which was its size All zones that were big enough to be used for raiding were incredibly expensive But for guilds that had enough manpower, there was no need to purchase the area, they just needed people to just camp there
”Another thing, the Black Sword Knights and Silver Sword guilds are atte to break 91”
”Ah?”
91, that should be referring to level With the 'Novasphere Pioneers' expansion, the level capSince the level cap had been raised, you would be able to develop beyond the old level limit of 90
But didn't you have to defeat ame world had become our new reality, shi+roe wondered if there was a need to risk such a dangerous battle
”Big guilds are already strong now, but it is impossible for the number of players to increase correct? So it is not just players, the nuh level players will also affect the influence of the guilds Consider this, Black Sword Knights are elitist”
shi+roe nodded and agrees with Maryele's point
Black Sword Knights were an arrogant force in Akiba With their elite-only policy, there were no uild only allows hts was a pure-blooded battle guild
”Black Sword Knights is still upholding its joining requireuild, our Crescent Moon Alliance cannot even coht? But compared to the 1500 members of DDD, they pale in couilds As for the Black Sword Knights, they are unable to absorb guilds due to their entry restriction, so they are ai on quality over quantity to win”
”But how are they going to”
This was the core of shi+roe's doubt He understood the motives and also the considerations and tactics, but was there a way to succeed? ”By using 'EXP Pot'”
” EXP Pot”
In Elder Tales, this was a fahtly increase your attack and recovery powers, and receive twice the EXP in battles
There was another effect In a normal case, you need to defeat monsters that are less than 5 levels below you But with the potion, you can gain EXP even if you defeat monsters 7 levels below you
The effects of the potion last for only 2 hours, but it would help you earn EXP during its effective time
This type of potion ht be powerful, but there was no need to complete major raids or quests to obtain it, so almost all players had used it before
As a ga test of ti its level cap over the years This resulted in a trend where people who joined later needed a longer time to catch up to those who joined earlier To counter this issue, the developer provided all kinds of aid to help them level faster This potion was one of the measures
To put it simply, players below level 30 would receive a free potion every day This was a kind service by the developers hoping the players will ”reach ame”
”But those potions”
”There is a guild known as Hainners, and recruited many of them after the Catastrophe It was a period of confusion, and the inners, including us But Hamelin sells the 'EXP Pot' for uilds use the 'EXP Pot' to level up No one knoho is at fault, or if there is any bad guy This is how the situation is changing, and no one can stop it”
3
The warone
Even though it was early suht was still icy cold His cloak fluttered in the strong wind
The shadow of the cloud flashed across the floor
The ht shi+roe see the contrast between the shadow and the ht
He didn't have any place he wanted to go
He just wanted to get away fro, or he wanted to confirht
He felt that there was a heavy thing in his chest, siht provided no sense of ease It felt like asphalt, dense and dark and inco volume, there was nowhere to vent it, it simply existed there
(It simply exists, but)
shi+roe understood
This emotion that he had nowhere to vent
Evildoers exist, Haiven the chance, shi+roe would fight theandia
But even if Hamelin was evil, they were just a small part of the evil The current situation in Akiba was not the fault of Hamelin, it was due to all sort of events that ”could not be helped” The current Akiba was the result of these events accu atmosphere of Akiba frustrated shi+roe and he had nowhere to vent it
shi+roe understood that if he vented this e a tantrum
He held his breath and kept walking
Throwing a tantruly
shi+roe was unwilling to vent his frustration just to make himself feel better
shi+roe was unable to shake this dark e out at Ha
(But, if it is like this)
If it was like this, shi+roe wouldn't have any place to vent his frustration
Hamelin was the small-time evil, so it was still okay
But, as the greater evil?
Big battle guilds ht notice the source of ”EXP Pot”, but they pretended not to see in order to expand their influence, were they wrong?
Even though the beginners know they are being oppressed, but they illing to accept that they eak and hope to gain protection by sub?
Suilds, and wished to break the stale an alliance But in order to protect their own interests, they turned to infighting, playing politics Were they wrong?
All the players understood the at but they chose to not do anything about it, and not take responsibility Were they wrong?
It rong
All of them were evil
But they were small evils, only to the extent of foolishness and selfishness None of them were the hidden evil mastermind, similar to the evil of fairy tales You could not solve the proble an enemy, it was not that simple
The twisted nature of everything led to the feeling of frustration
shi+roe hi more and more out of breath As the lopsided rules started to take shape in Akiba, even if shi+roe's level and equipment was better thanEven if he understood the situation, he would choose to ignore it, and carry on like that
This fact frustrated shi+roe This was no different froht up in the trouble, which made it even worse
Even though Maryele failed, she still pushed the develope But shi+roe had not reached this stage yet
And that the shi+roe who didn't reach that stage thought that ”s the that he nearly drew blood biting his lips
(I am just as bad Maybe I am the worst of them all)
shi+roe did not knohen he cae covered in s, thein the reflection of the moon
Then, what needed to be done?
shi+roe unconsciously pushed this feeling and thought about it Whenever he saw a proble about it as it was his nature This was also how he molded his sense of responsibility in the Debauchery Tea Party
Many concepts were created and discarded
shi+roe's right hand was the red poker cards, his left was the black poker cards They dueled using the lance of negative and the sword affir unnecessary facts, going through all possibilities, the deduction and inference flowing along with the river in the night
He was unable to come up with an answer It was impossible to come up with an answer shi+roe knew that a perfect answer did not exist And he was carrying too big a burden fro it on his own free will
(Thinking that it is a burden is an arrogant thought, this is just the debt I owe I a away, I became a solo player on my own free will)
shi+roe was not sure what <she> would say shi+roe aze froht ht
(She was a forthright person Not like me, weak and indecisive)
shi+roe thought that <she> would definitely laugh heartily and solve the issue like a hurricane, or just abandon Akiba if it were too troublesome
Speaking practically, she would do whatever she wanted and say to shi+roe after the fact ”shi+roe will think of how to deal with this ht? Any objections? I don't think so! shi+roe is talented, you will be able to deal with this easily!” and leave the assignment to shi+roe
shi+roe opened the Telepathy contact menu
There were two names on his friend list
Tohya, Minori
The tho should have joined Hamelin
He could find out just by asking The tho got separated with shi+rou ht up in the middle of the storm, all because shi+roe left theu after the Catastrophe
shi+roe wanted to help the for the Serara of the Crescent Moon Alliance
The first difference was that Maryele was in a guild shi+roe went on behalf of Maryele In other words, he was just doing a job with Maryele being the client
Of course shi+roe wanted to rescue Serara, but shi+roe had an escapistthis was just a job request that he had to fulfill
The second difference was that even though shi+roe wanted to save the twins, he wanted to settle the current situation ht There must be players in the same boat as Serara in Susukino Even if there were notSerara would still weigh down on his conscience
But shi+roe could still use 'the current nore the fact, and return to Akiba
shi+roe felt that if he ran froht anymore
So he would need to save the twins, stop the big guilds fro style, improve the city's atuild, and even harder to achieve for shi+roe as not even in any guild Could shi+roe do it? To be honest, it was impossible
(Not even in a guild)
These words brings shi+roe a dull but eable pain
Thinking carefully, shi+roe thought of a guild as an organization you belonged to and could control you easily Guilds have always existed, but had nothing to do with shi+roe He was just judging the guilds' merits and its suitability for himself from an outside point of view
This was not an irresponsible attitude
That was how shi+roe thought about it
This was no different than those living in Akiba, but discussing the atmosphere of Akiba from the outside point of view
shi+roe had not joined a guild or worked for a guild, but was forcing his own preference and convenience on the guilds that was indeed an arrogant way of thinking