“I, uh, don’t have any such grand request,” Yunya chuckled. “I’m not sure if I should say this out loud, but we all knew that completing the first quest didn’t mean everything was solved. I was just looking for something that would give you the final push needed to agree to a secondary quest.”

“And thus, you took the risk to settle for an unknown reward?”

Breeze interrupted, failing to hold back her laughter, “I’m not sure whether I should be impressed or disappointed with what you just said, Ashen.”

Yunya glared at her, but wasn’t exactly in a position to refute Breeze whatsoever. It really had been a spur of the moment when he suggested the favor as a reward. He then looked back at Elwin, who was now leaning against his desk, patiently awaiting an answer.

“Uhm, I guess so? But then again, when I see what my companions got out of it, I don’t think I made that bad a decision.”

At the very least, that did shut up Breeze. She’d never admit it, but getting tricked into the initial boar quest and its sequel resulted in her getting access to magic related npc's, many of which she otherwise never would’ve heard off, let alone actually meet.

The village elder smiled, “So, does that mean that, now, you do know what to exchange this favor for? If not, I will only allow one day for you to decide. No more.”

When the others had been stating their request to Elwin, Yunya had been thinking, but to no avail. The only thing he really needed right now was exp to get to level15 and the big city. He could use some help on deciding between cartographer and investigator, but felt Elwin’s favor would be wasted on such a request. He also didn’t need an introduction to npc’s like Breeze nor a special weapon like Path. On the other hand, Zephyr’s request was too broad for Yunya, especially when he hadn’t even experienced arcane archery yet.

He explained his thoughts and then sighed.

“So, I really have no idea what I want.”

“You are not asking for a quest or area that would help you get strong enough to be able to enter Eagle’s Watch?”

“Maybe. If I don’t get any other ideas, I’ll probably go with that. Even if it feels like a bit of a shame to use it for something like that.”

“Then do you want a suggestion?”

Everyone suddenly looked at Elwin, even if only Yunya was still eligible for a reward.

The npc chuckled, “Calm down, young ones. I am not even sure it is a good suggestion to begin with. You asked for the favor as a reward, without really expecting anything tangible, right? So, why not go all the way, go all in. I have something that might lead you on a wild goose chase or might give you a good reward. It could be either or. Maybe even both. It has been gathering dust in my storage for a long time, but recently, I have felt it change. However, I do not know how or why.”

“Damn, I can smell a quest from a mile away,” Path said, but was quickly corrected by Zephyr.

“A vague quest you mean. Elwin did call it “a potential wild goose chase”,” to which the npc shrugged.

“Yes. But perhaps it would be more accurate to describe it as high risk, high reward.”

They went back and forth a bit longer, with Breeze trying to change her reward to what Elwin had suggested for Yunya, but was met with a firm denial. When that didn’t work out, she tried to get more information, but she didn’t make any progress there either.

But in the end, it was up to Yunya to make the decision. And he chose to accept it.

“That sure sounds tempting. Too tempting to give up.”

With a laugh, Elwin went behind his desk, to one of his bookshelves. The second row from the top however, didn’t contain any books. Instead, it contained a seemingly random assortment of items. From one of them, a feather, Yunya could even feel the mana it emanated, even this far away. But that’s not what Elwin was after. Instead, his hand went towards an ornate little box. Within lay a gemstone, about half the size of Yunya’s fist. Elwin played a little with it, being lost in thought. Or rather, nostalgia.

“Here. When I was young, I was a researcher. On one of my travels, I found this gemstone in a shipwreck called “Saintess Mary’s Painted Girl””. Back then, it was a lot more illustrious than it is now, but it also held a significant amount of mana. Over the years, it dulled and lost its shine, becoming almost indistinguishable from a normal rock.”

Elwin then stepped towards a little window, the gem glittering in the sunlight that shone through.

“However, since a few days ago, I have felt it absorb the tiniest bit of mana. And now, the gem glitters again, ever so slightly.”

Elwin handed the gem to Yunya with a pained face. Letting go of what was clearly an old memory would be hard for everyone. The moment Yunya touched it, a quest activated. One with a different outline than any previous quest he had done so far. His other quests had always had a blue outline, but this one was bathed in gold.

Quest Glittering Gem Description From a village elder, you have acquired an almost dull gemstone. You can feel the potential within, but its purpose remains unclear for now. If you want to learn more, seek out a person wise and familiar with history. Reward Unknown

Yunya read the quest’s description out loud, but except for an ‘see, I told you it was a quest’ from Breeze, no one had any real feedback.

“Wise and familiar with history? I am usually not one to boast about themself, but I do not think there is anyone in Red Reef that fits that description more than I do. And I have not got the faintest idea what this gem means,” Elwin said.

Laughing, he then added, “If I did, I would not have given it away.”

“So it’s a dead end?” Breeze pouted.

Path shrugged, “He did say it would be either a good reward or a wild goose chase.”

“And Eagle’s Watch? Do you think anyone there might be able to help us?”

Elwin turned to Zephyr, who’d just asked that question. “Presumably. I know for a fact the Archives in the capital would be of help, but that is not a place just anyone can access. But Eagle’s Watch? In a big city like that, I assume at least one person in there knows something. But finding that one person would be up to all of you to do.”

With yet another reason to hurry in order to make his way over to Eagle’s Watch, Yunya thanked the village elder. Outside, they all split up. Path had gotten the location of a quest for a rapier, so she instantly went after it. Zephyr and Breeze had to wait for a while, since Elwin had said that it would take him some time to write each of them 2 letters of recommendation. He had limited it to two, since he’d said he didn’t want to harass all his friends. Breeze had been so kind as to say that Zephyr could get his letters first, since she didn’t mind waiting.

This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

But now, the true reason came to light.

“You want me to bring you over to Desmond, while you wait on your recommendation letters?” Yunya’s eyebrow twitched. The woman in front of him seemed so innocent at times, but in the blink of an eye, she could turn into someone that had calculated everything.

“You made a promise!” she refuted sternly, yet the glimmer in her eyes betrayed her eager enthusiasm.

“Yeah, like 5 minutes ago. Ever heard of the word patience?”

“I see you have brought a friend?”

Yunya sighed, “Desmond, meet Whispering Breeze. Breeze, Desmond. She might have the mage archetype, but she’s interested in anything that’s magic related. And that obviously includes arcane archers.”

“You’re making me sound like I’m obsessed.”

Yunya wisely chose not to start an argument he’d never win and instead asked Desmond about something he had read on the forums when he’d been making his way back from Violet Valley. Apparently, there were two major kinds of arcane archers. Desmond had explained the differences between focusing on either mind or dexterity, but not the nuances within the mind attribute. While a player’s status didn’t explicitly explain it, there was a difference in the maximum amount of mana you could have and how fast it regenerated. As a djinn, Yunya had the bigger total mana pool, but other than that, he didn’t know anything about that topic. And apparently, it mattered.

“Oh, didn’t know you’d be concerned with something like that before even getting the actual class. That's why I didn’t bother telling you about it.”

Either she was ignoring Yunya’s obvious annoyance or simply didn’t notice, but Breeze took over the conversation without any hesitation, asking Desmond about the specific details.

“Long story short, it comes down to how you approach combat. A larger total mana pool, meaning most djinns, means you can sustain the enchantments on your arrows for a lot longer. So, those people simply enchant a lot of arrows before a fight, then once shit hits the fan, they simply take the appropriate arrows and fire them.”

“Appropriate arrow?”

“With the correct magical element. Right tool for the job and all that. Anyway. It means they need to be prepared at all times and have a quiver filled with all kinds of arrows.”

“Most high elf arcane archers though, the ones with higher regeneration, enchant their arrows in the middle of the battlefield. Less need for preparation, more flexibility, but it also means they’re more vulnerable. Both when they’re enchanting with a battle raging around them and when they’re caught unawares. Eventually, you’ll have the option to pick a passive skill related to either of them, but not anytime soon. Respectively, either have longer lasting enchantments or take less time to enchant in general.”

“Huh. Sounds interesting, but it’s not all that useful when he doesn’t even have access to magic yet.”

“Which is why I didn’t tell him this stuff last time.”

Feeling ganged up on by the sudden best friends, Yunya left Breeze and Desmond with each other, turning his thoughts elsewhere. Tuning out their conversation, he instead opened his interface and directed his attention to his new, golden quest.

And was promptly hit in the head.

“Pay attention, kid. How dare you bring someone here and not bother with us immediately after?” Desmond chastised him.

Rubbing his head, more out of embarrassment than out of pain, Yunya sheepishly apologized.

“As I was saying, good arcane archers are also capable of enchanting more than just arrows.”

“What do you mean, more tha-,” Yunya asked, but immediately he thought of an answer. “Oh, the bow, you mean?”

“Seems like as long as you pay attention, you’re somewhat passable. But only half correct. An archer’s quiver is as indispensable as their bow, wouldn’t you say?”

Yunya nodded, having the feeling he was about to get a lot of information that would end with ‘but that’s for when you have a much higher level’. So, he tried to prevent that situation from even happening.

“And let me guess. I will only be able to enchant them when I’m a lot stronger, aren’t I? If so, I don’t think I’ll really benefit from you explaining everything right now.”

“Stop spoiling my fun,” Desmond harrumphed, but the raised corner of his mouth showed it was merely pretended anger.

“A real piece of advice however, is about magic itself.”

He turned to Breeze, asking if she knew the different kinds of elements.

Never shy to show off her knowledge, she explained that there were 3 major kinds of magic elements. Firstly, Basic was, well, basic. It contained the six most standard elements and they were relatively easy to awaken. When Breeze would receive her elementalist class, one such element would also automatically awaken. Following that was the second category, the Combined elements. As the name suggested, it could combine two basic elements into a new element. With the catch that you needed to have awakened both of the needed Basic elements. It also represented the biggest category. Lastly were the Special elements. In a sense, they were pretty basic, in that you didn’t need any prerequisites. But unlike the Basic category, opportunities for them were hard to find and it was even harder to actually awaken them. And you couldn’t combine them with other elements.

“The basic ones are water, fire, earth, wind, light and dark. Examples for the other categories are respectively lightning, which is fire+wind, and time. But other than that, back at the mage tower, they didn’t want to tell me anything more.”

Breeze then continued in a mocking, shrill tone, displaying the best imitation she had of the npc who gave her info on her archetype and class.

“You focus on getting to a class first. You focus on mastering Basic elements first. You do the rest later.”

“Aaahn. If that woman starts one more sentence with you, I swear to God.”

Yunya could see Desmond was somewhat tempted to poke the bear and start his next sentence with you as well, but he was quick enough to answer first.

“Maybe if you ask Desmond here sweetly, he’ll tell you more.”

And that worked like a charm. Desmond didn’t even get the chance to answer the first five questions, not before Yunya pulled Breeze’s arm to slow her down. Taking a breather, Desmond looked at the mage in front of him and had to force himself to stay calm. The girl clearly was just curious, but by god could she talk.

“I assume you were talking about Yelena?”

“Yes. How that woman manages to start every sentence with the same word is a mystery I don’t think I’ll ever unveil.”

“She is right though. Before bothering with Combined or Special elements, you should stick to Basic ones. And that’s with you, as a mage, having an innate advantage. Archers on the other hand, don’t,” he said as he directed that last part to Yunya.

“I can’t give much actual mage advice, but for you, Ashen, stick to at least three or four Basic elements first. Never forget that by nature, you’re an archer, not a mage. So don’t ever slack on the fundamentals of archery. No point in enchanting an arrow with incredibly powerful magic if your aim is shit.”

“First, learn one Basic element, then learn how to enchant your arrows. Learn what it means to be a proper arcane archer, you know. Then go for a few more Basic ones and only when you’re confident in handling those, only then should you bother with the other categories. ”

Doing his utmost to look sagely, Desmond then escorted them out, telling Yunya to become stronger before he’d give him any more advice. And then ruined his carefully crafted image by cussing up a storm after he stubbed his toe on a table.

After Yunya had stocked up on arrows again, a disappointed Breeze sighed, “Not much magic advice from him, huh.”

“Never said he’d be much help,” Yunya shrugged.

“Of course not. You didn’t actually expect that affront to archery to be useful, did you?”

Turning around, they saw the one npc Yunya had hoped to avoid.

“Would it kill you not to speak so badly about magic or arcane archers, Thelonius?”

“Do not talk back to me, djinn,” the npc spat. “You should take that filthy high elf friend of yours back to her little tower. And stay there.”

“Huh?! What did you just call me, yo-”

“Ignore him, Breeze,” Yunya said as he dragged her away. “No need to give racists any attention.”

Walking away, Thelonius was staring daggers into Yunya. If it wasn’t for the fact he had somewhat of a leading role in the very archer outpost they were in, he probably would’ve attacked there and then. Not a single racist likes it when they’re called out for it.

But in the end, he stayed his hand.

"No need to personally dirty my hands now, do I," he grinned.