Chapter 63: The Invasion Begins!

The net was in an uproar. Everyone was discussing Etra Media's recent press conference. There were a lot of theory going, but in the end, everyone believed that it was Adrian who did the most work, resulting in the partnership between Etra Media and Digdaya Group.

Other broadcasting companies were silent. They were thinking about how to deal with the current situation. If they didn't do anything, they were sure that Maya would be monopolized by Etra Media.

As for the players, they started thinking about Etra Media's offer. As a gamer, there weren't a lot of attention given to them. But now, they could become a star!

This was indeed a great opportunity!

...

Raka was still researching the opportunities in Maya. He browsed through forums to find important information. He had always been a great learner and it proved to be useful in this kind of situation. As long as it wasn't a restricted information, he had known most of them already.

Some people said that this trait of him came from his mother's gene.

An interesting thread caught his attention. It was regarding the starting stats in Maya. There was a theory saying that it was closely related to the player's potential.

Potential, it was a parameter to calculate one's growth speed. One could say that it was similar to talent. The person said that the starting stats didn't represent the person's current real life 'stats', instead, it measured the person's potential or talent.

This theory was being ridiculed by most of the reader. Even if there's a few evidence provided, people couldn't believe that there existed a program or tool that could measure one's talent. That was just too bizarre.

Raka himself didn't give it too much thought. He knew that he was somewhat above average than other people, but he didn't believe that he was qualified to have his current starting stats. Even the highest known starting stat in one attribute was only 9. He had 10, and there was even two of them. There was no way that it was possible.

Plus, his character was already a bug. Him showing inside the Ancient Blood Cave instead of the beginner town was already an error made by the system. Him having an insane starting stats could be considered as another error that followed.

However, Raka didn't know that Digdaya Group had never made any error in their programming.

...

Night came. Ragna was already logged back to the game.

A message suddenly came right when he entered the city. It was from Dreg.

"Hey, why don't we team up again?" He asked.

Ragna smiled when he saw the message. He too felt somewhat comfortable partying with Dreg. Even if their skills didn't complement each other, Dreg was an amazing player with great potential. Furthermore, after the last battle, they had developed a sense of comradery and trust.

"Sure, let's meet up inside the Realm. It's about to start," Ragna replied.

Ragna had a high expectation in his mind. It was the day of the invasion. From the players' experiences, the Red Demon Invasion was a huge opportunity for players to gain contribution points. There was even a case where someone suddenly raised his rank from outside the top 100 directly to the top 5. He gained a tremendous amount of experiences and contribution points and instantly became a major player in that city.

After a while, the Astral Realm was opened once again. Ragna entered the realm but suddenly something strange happened. There were two guards blocking his way.

Ragna frowned, but he didn't panic. He could see that both of them had a gentle expression on their face.

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"Ragna, the prince wanted to see you," one of them said.

He was slightly confused with the sudden development. Nonetheless, he still followed the guards to Prince Artha's camp. After receiving the rewards, the guards have a quite favorable impression toward him, especially Prince Artha. It would be very unlikely that they were meaning to harm him.

...

Inside Prince Artha's camp.

Right when he entered the camp, he could see that Prince Artha was already waiting for him. But what shocked him was there was also Dreg inside. It seemed like both of them were invited by the prince.

They exchanged a glance with each other. There's a hint of excitement in their eyes. It didn't take long for them to realize the situation they were currently in.

"Ragna, Dreg, I'm sorry for the sudden invite. I have a very important request for both of you. There's a more pressing matter than the Red Demon Invasion. It's related to the future of Prawk City."

He continued, "You must have noticed that the ruin you found yesterday wasn't an ordinary ruin. Indeed, that ruin is called the Ruin of Manifestation. From the records passed down in my royal lineage, we know that the ruin is a sacred heritage that contains the legacy of higher power."

Ragna and Dreg held their breath. This is it! Just give us the quest!

"I need both of you to escort me to the Ruin of Manifestation. We will set out with a small team and together we will challenge it. If we really could acquire the legacy, then the two of you will be greatly rewarded. I swore with my name on the line that you won't be even slightly mistreated!"

Hidden Quest: The Ruin of Manifestation

The Ruin of Manifestation is hiding a secret legacy from an unknown power. The legacy is crucial to the future of Prawk City. Escort Prince Artha to the Ruin of Manifestation and ensure his safety. If Prince Artha dies, the quest will fail and you will receive a huge penalty.

Quest Grade: B

If Prince Artha could acquire the legacy, you will be greatly rewarded.

It really was a jackpot.

...

The invasion had begun!

Countless Red Demons could be seen advancing from the forest. Their appearances were similar to the one Ragna and Dreg had faced yesterday, except that there were also warriors, mages, and other classes mixed inside the group.

The combined force of the army and players stood still in a formation on top of a small clearing around the base. It was the stage well suited for this battlefield.

Even though the Red Demons had an advantage of it being their home ground, the base had been purposely set up in a place to negate it. There, the Red Demons couldn't display their full might as there weren't enough trees.

However, they players also couldn't advance further. They could only defend and silently grit their teeth should the Red Demons choose to retreat.

Numerous arrows came from the cover of the trees, they burrowed themselves to the place where the army was. Unfortunately for them, the number of casualties was very low. The defensive formation, huge shields, and disciplined troops coupled with the players' support made it very difficult for the Red Demons to break through their defense just by relying on their arrows.

It was at this moment that a burly Red Demon with two horns showed up. He rallied the troops from the forest to charge toward the army. The huge twin hammer in his hand gave off a very menacing aura. In fact, this aura was even stronger than the Red Demon Leader that Ragna had previously faced. If Ragna and Dreg were here, they wouldn't even think of facing it and would instead choose to run.

He avoided most of the attacks that aimed at him from magicians and archers, the blood-colored aura seemed to dispel the majority of the damage that he couldn't dodge. In just a few breaths, he was already in front of the army!

Bam!

The huge twin hammer was swung with unbelievable strength. The formation collapsed almost instantly, making a way for the Red Demons behind him to enter.

Naturally, the army won't just let it go as the enemies wished. A middle-aged man with a silver armor was already standing in front of the burly Red Demon. In his hand was a silver sword with a dragon mark engraved into it. The sword emanated a terrifying aura incomparable even to the rarest weapon the players had ever seen.

A huge battle was about to start.

...

At a distance quite far from the battlefield, a small team comprised of human could be seen moving in a hurried manner. There were six of them with a handsome and kind looking man in his twenties as the lead. In fact, everyone in this party was young except for the middle-aged man in the back. Two of them were wearing the same attire as the knights, but the other two were wearing an entirely different outfit. They were both clad in crimson and azure respectively. It was Prince Artha's team.

This team was made after also considering the war at the base. Prince Artha could at most bring one of his retainers with him. He was a powerhouse with a might that couldn't be compared to Ragna and Dreg. In fact, he might be over level 100 already.

The rest of the team was slightly different from what Ragna had expected. The rest of them was two young man around Prince Artha's age. It could be seen that they were from the army's younger generation. But still, the aura they emitted was quite strong, proving that they were the elite of this generation.

Being accompanied by a mighty powerhouse might bring a sense of comfort and safety for the whole party. However, Ragna knew that this quest wasn't a normal one. A hidden quest with B grade difficulty, that was enough to bring most people cower back in retreat.

Both Ragna and Dreg knew... that this journey wouldn't be easy.