QUEST: OUTBREAK at Seorak
OBJECTIVE: Kill 20,000 monsters in the Seorak QUEST Area within one week
Progress: 14,521 / 20,000
REWARD: 2,000,000 GOLD (each party will receive a portion of the reward)
FAILURE: The Seorak region will no longer be safe for humans
Willow had suspected and Jinyoung had an inkling, but the only one of the three who truly knew what the next morning would look like was Hana. The party had taken up temporary residence in a shop at the edge of a small abandoned town. There were plenty of roads, but most importantly, it was far enough from the town’s center that celebrations like the one last night wouldn’t keep them awake for too long.
The last Jinyoung saw, most of the parties were still out. Planning to drink and enjoy the merriment well into the night. But now, in the morning, he could see that the town had emptied out.
“It happens, especially with trophy events like this.”
Most of the merchants had left, but the Guild Master had made assurances that enough would stay to support the few parties that stayed behind to complete the outbreak quest. They all gathered in the town square, a sizable number but nowhere close to the near-military might of the day before.
“Good morning, everyone!” the Guild Master shouted. “I see that you all had nothing better to do with your day!”
That elicited a few chuckles from the group.
“The mission is the same. We’ve got about six thousand more of the slimy bastards in the mountains that need to be cleared before the week is out. We don’t need a repeat of Wolmido.”
The crowd grumbled and a few of the older players winced at the mention of their greatest failure.
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“We’ll be splitting into two factions. The first will be tasked with hunting monsters in the quest area. The second will be tasked with defending the town in case of attack. We still have wounded here recovering before they can make the trip out.”
During the course of the outbreak, more than a few players had been injured. Ambushes like the one the Phoenix had encountered on their first day were common and less-experienced parties had fallen prey to similar attacks.
“Don’t forget, all the weaker monsters have been killed so you’ll be running into armed lizardmen out there. Understood?” The crowd roared in the affirmative.
“Good, then get out there and let’s clear this quest!”
***
Dae reunited with the party just after the Guild Master’s speech. While Jinyoung wasn’t thrilled to be spending the remainder of the quest with a grump, he was glad to have him around. If only to complete the quest faster.
“We still have about three thousand monsters to clear and with our current numbers, it should take no longer than two or three days.” Hana had spent the majority of last night thinking about her plans for the next few days and realized that Dae’s presence was a boon. Not just to her, but to Jinyoung. “While we’re clearing the forest, we’ll also be training. Willow, I’ll be helping you focus on improving your spell proficiency while Jinyoung focuses on his combat skills.”
“But you’re not a scholar, sunbae. How are you going to help?”
“I can’t teach you any spells, but I can raise your and everyone else’s defense to minimize the risk of injury. We’ll start from there.”
Jinyoung raised his hand and spoke. “Wait, then who’ll be training me?”
“Me,” a gruff voice rumbled. The smile on Dae’s face was wicked. And purposefully so.
Jinyoung had forgotten the ogre of a man was still there. He’d been quietly listening to everyone else speak and now seemed only too happy to speak up. It was unnerving.
“You?” the novice stammered. “We’re not even the same class!”
Hana sighed. “No, but Mr. Han’s the most experienced warrior in the country. He’ll be able to help you improve your combat skills.”
The shield knight of the blade looked at the two young players in her care. “Yesterday should’ve been a wake up call. You saw the battle with the mid-boss. We’re nowhere ready to take on a monster of that caliber or anything close to it. Right?”
The last bit was aimed at Jinyoung. All his enthusiasm yesterday had been tempered by the stiff realization that he was only level 17 and his skills, while certainly useful, had nowhere near the destructive capability of even a basic scholar, rogue or fighter.
His sister’s gaze was piercing and it was all he could do not to respond.
“Good, then let’s get started.”