Chương 22: Chapter 21 - Interlude 1

She looked at the message that was blinking in the browser window and took another glance at the name of the sender. She knew who they were. Everyone who worked in the same circles as she did knew who they were. LazyPhoenix rose to infamy just like their namesake. They knew things nobody should know and had access to things nobody should have.

The speculations on the forums (and in private) ran rampant, with everybody trying to figure out where they came from, and who pissed them off that they were so generous with what was, more than likely, insider information. Personally, before today, she didn't care much. People like LazyPhoenix popped up now and then, and then crashed and burned when their fame got into their head, and did or said something inadvisable. But LazyPhoenix didn't talk to people.

They didn't brag about their knowledge or fame on any social media. They were only active on one site, and even there, their interaction with people was businesslike. They sold information and nothing more. And now she was here, staring at a message from the aforementioned person, offering her information. Three favors. From her. A person who was at best a small-time streamer. For a moment, she even thought it was some kind of scam. But she couldn't exactly point out what kind of scam it could be.

In the end, she couldn't help it; her curiosity overwhelmed her and she accepted the offer. She expected a well-formatted document with a list of tasks or something along those lines, but apparently, the game was new enough that even LazyPhoenix couldn't showcase their usual meticulousness. Instead, she was practically treated to a few videos, with parts highlighted, links to stories from people, and even some clips from her own stream. It was definitely weird, but LazyPhoenix was the guy who knew.

So, she just shrugged and wrote down the instructions. It was worth the try… Sometime later, she stared down at the stone tablet in the middle of the cavern, decorated with crystals jutting out of the ground and the ceiling, all pulsing with mystical light. The cavern itself was humongous, as she couldn't actually see its end, only the twinkling of the crystals in the distance like stars on a clear night.

The journey to reach the place wasn't arduous, but without the hints she was given, she would have never found it. And as she saw several people near the locations while she was doing the requisite quests, she knew she only had a small window to acquire it. So, with a small trepidation, she reached out for the tablet and prayed that the quest was true, and it would really give her the thing she was promised. As her hand got closer, she could hear an audible hum coming from the crystals, and the pulsing sped up.

Then her fingers touched the stone tablet, and a deluge of notifications appeared in front of her. [Congratulations! You found one of the Tablets of Creation!] [Thanks to your luck and attention to detail you gain +1 LUK, +3 PER, and +1 WIS!] [The Tablet of Creation reaches out to you…] [The Tablet of Creation finds you worthy!] [The Tablet of Creation grants you the Knowledge of Crystal Geomancy!] [Crystal Geomancy: Level MAX (Passive) You are able to summon an ethereal book that contains the knowledge of how to build artifacts, items, and most importantly, golems out of crystals.] She stared for a moment, and while she was reading the screens that appeared, the stone tablet, which so far looked like an ordinary stone tablet, began to shine with the same light as the surrounding crystals.

Then it began to pulse, and before she could react, it flashed brightly enough that she went blind for a second, and when she managed to blink the flashes out of her eyes, the tablet was gone, and crystals were losing their own shine. Instead, she was greeted with another notification. [The Tablet of Creation found your lonely journey worth a reward!] [The Tablet of Creation granted you the Crystal Heart skill!] [Crystal Heart: Level MAX (Passive) Your heart turned to mana crystal, and while it will operate the same way your old heart did, it will also confer you several blessings. Your base mana gain from Magic will be doubled. Your base Mana Regeneration is doubled. The base number of crystal creations you can control is doubled. Grants you the Crystal Affinity skill.] This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

[Crystal Affinity: Level MAX (Passive) You have a great affinity for crystals. Crystal-like beings will be more favorable to you. The cost of the spells and skills dealing with and using crystals is halved.] She stared for a long moment, and the next moment the rapidly darkening cavern was echoing with curses that would make a ship's worth of sailors blush.

"Now I can't even show it off on the stream! Fuck!" Dave liked money. However, he didn't like to work. That is why he found the perfect compromise. Crime. But Dave also liked games, and that was how he found out about gold farming groups and their associated activities. It didn't take long for him to shift his own group into a "professional" gaming group, while those who were a little behind on their rent were asked to play a game for a while. It was a win-win for everyone.

He made money, didn't have to work, and got to play video games. And then Magic Unbound came out. It was the latest in the lines of the revolutionary VR games, and while everyone waiting on seeing if it was actually worth the hype, Dave smelled an opportunity. Roleplaying games always needed thugs and bandits, and he had a decent collection of them.

And while they were away doing what they did best (or at least trying not to fuck up) he could take his main group and create a proper guild that would be the face of his business. And look, he was right! The game was amazing, didn't need people to race for the highest level, and there were secrets everywhere. Which meant there was money to be made everywhere. Then, one day, he received a message. Some of his boys were killed. Dave didn't really care, as this was a game. He cared more about how they were defeated.

A player with amazing skills and spells that they haven't seen yet? Now that was more interesting. He looked up from his tablet at his assistant.

"Get the info from the guys, and tell our people to keep an eye for the guy. I want to know where he got the skills." The man standing in front of him nodded, then made some notes on his own tablet.

"Should they… ask, or…" he replied leadingly. Dave thought about it a little before answering.

"Nah, we are at the beginning of the game. Just follow him and see if we can steal his quests."

"Yes, sir. Do you want us to offer him money for it?" Dave just simply waved the man away, annoyed.

"What for? It's not like he expects us. And our boys are good." He thought for a second, then nodded a little.

"If all else fails, we can just kill him until he gives up his secrets. The other man nodded.

"Understood, sir. I'll make the arrangements." Stephen, at first, was annoyed with the guy that had that adorable wolf with his short, and basically useless description of the process of acquiring a pet, but in the end, he just shrugged and put it behind him. True, he was out of a few silvers, but now he knew where to go. In his previous quest, he talked to one of the rangers, so he naturally knew where to find the woman.

Though it was a little annoying that if he hadn't asked that guy for it, he wouldn't have known to talk to the ranger to get a pet. As he walked toward his destination, he couldn't help but talk out loud.

"Man, this game is hardcore, but such fun!" A random guy next to him also exclaimed.

"Right?!" They exchanged a high-five and Stephen continued on his travel, while the guy began to extoll the game's good points to an unfortunate bystander. Stephen approached the small building on the outskirts of the town, opened the small gate, and stepped into the courtyard of the house, surrounded by a low stone wall. Inside the courtyard were several people preparing to head out, maintaining their gear, or talking to each other.

Stephen ignored the collection of rangers and headed directly for the severe woman standing in the corner of the courtyard, observing the activities. He made eye contact with the woman, and when he received a small nod, he approached her.

"Hail, Ranger Rose!" he called out, offering a deep bow.

"Young Stephen, well met," came the deep and husky voice of the ranger in front of him.

"How can I help you today?" she asked, then smirked a little.

"You need more help with differentiating weed from herbs?"

"Not today, Ranger Rose," he answered, his cheeks pinking a little in embarrassment.

"Then what brought you to my yard, young man?" she asked with a raised eyebrow. Stephen almost answered with 'milk' but in the end, he managed to control himself.

'Curse those memes…' He cleared his throat and began talking.

"I was wondering if you could help me acquire a pet…" There was a moment as the ranger stared at him, then she snorted.

"That's it?"

"Well… yeah."

"Alright! We are preparing to head out, come with us, and I'll show you the ropes."

"For the traps?"

"For the traps." Stephen stared at the beast in front of him. Taking it in as its eyes glinted intelligently back at him. He observed as its fur rose and fell as the creature breathed. He slowly reached out with a hand, and began to stroke the creature's very soft and delicate fur, wondering at its dark gray color. As he continued to caress the beast, he took in the horn, as the tip of it looked sharp enough to get through his armor. Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on who you asked, the beast had no claws.

Just as Stephen was about to talk to the creature when he heard a twig break behind. Knowing who he was with, he was pretty sure that the noise was deliberate. The creature in front of him froze at the sight, and he simply turned around, his hand continuing to caress the soft fur.

"Yes, Ranger Rose?" The woman gave him and the creature behind him a long look, then looked back at him.

"Is this your final choice, Stephen?"

"Yes," he answered without thinking. The moment he spotted the beast, he knew it was meant to be.

"All right, in the end, it is your decision. But I must warn you, your path will not be an easy one." Stephen just nodded.

"I'll make do." The ranger gave him another long, measuring look, then nodded.

"Very well. Then this is what you need to do…" Stephen walked back into the town of Greenwood with a pep in his steps, pride in his heart. And the most adorable and fluffy bunny in his arms. Slathor the Younger, Destroyer of Worlds, Ending of Universes, or for short, Slathy was a big, fluffy horned rabbit, common around Greenwood.

And the reason Stephen chose him, and not a wolf as he originally planned, was because the little bunny was able to evade all of his traps when he went out to gather food for dinner, under the orders of the head ranger. The bunny was too intelligent for wildlife.

And as he approached his friends, who upon seeing Slathy, immediately gathered around him (including several girls, which included his crush) and began to pet and coo at the bunny, as he sat in his arms imperiously looking at the surrounding people, just as an emperor would look at their subjects.

'I really need to thank that guy…' Stephen thought, then with a smile turned to Julia and began to tell the slightly embellished tale about how he acquired his adorable rabbit.