{-Myr-}
Their plan seemed rather simple, with a clear line of which quest they’d go to after the next. It seemed like they’d really given it some thought—made sure it was time-efficient, in order to get as much done as possible. It made sense, really. They wouldn’t be able to stay here all the time…
But, of course, she only half-listened to all of them. Despite what might be implied with their meeting, it sounded like they’d be seeing Bezyu again soon. That was who Myr was looking out for, instead of any of the actual quest-givers they were supposed to be finding.
And, sure enough, she caught sight of a familiar face. Myr got Llewel’s attention—getting the rest of them to realize it, too—and they made their way over to Bezyu.
“Long time no see!” Myr called, apparently what was needed for Bezyu to realize they were there.
She quietly said something to whoever she’d been talking to before and went to meet them halfway. She managed a smile, though it was clear enough to tell that something else was on her mind. “Llewel and Myr! I was hoping I could see the two of you again. I was… actually planning on finding you. It saves us a bit of time, I suppose. Are these the friends of yours I’ve been hearing about?”
Myr nodded. “Mhm! They’re Zetai, Reynneak, and Tinath.”
“I’m glad I had the chance to meet you personally, as well,” Bezyu said, looking at the players. “It’s nice to see that they have some reliable-looking people on their side. I know there’s been a lot of things none of us could’ve prepared for.”
They gave their mumbles of acknowledgement of the praise, but Llewel brought them all back on topic. “I think they’re well aware of that by now. You mentioned something else—that you’d already been planning to find us.”
Bezyu must’ve struggled to keep her smile. “I knew that wouldn’t have gotten past you. Do you all have a moment right now?”
“I guess so,” Zetai responded with a shrug. “We were on our way to do a couple of quests in the area, though.”
“O-oh, then I suppose my request might seem a little bit out of the way…” Bezyu briefly paused, but continued before any of them could offer a comment. “I’d like you all to come with me. Unfortunately, it’s rather far away from the city. But I must assure you that it’s something of the utmost importance…”
Myr, remembering what Tiolfe had told them, gained a sense of dread from hearing the suggestion. It looked like Llewel felt it, too. Of course, the others remained oblivious to it.
“Is that… scripted importance, or actual importance?” Zetai asked. “Because there’s a handful of other things we can get done right here in the city before we have to head out for anything.”
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Tinath nodded. “It makes more sense to take care of the handful of things here first. We can come over as soon as we’re done.”
“N-no, I’d really advise that you come with me now.” Bezyu shuffled nervously, her eyes darting to the crowd. The fact she knew something that the rest of them didn’t… it certainly wasn’t something that could put Myr’s mind at ease.
“It’s not a part of a quest,” Reynneak said calmly. He pulled up the map, just to show them. “That means it’s probably something serious.”
“Not serious, serious! Just a bit of a request, between old friends. But it is still rather urgent, yes.” Bezyu took a deep breath. “I’d like you all to accompany me outside of the city. There’s something I want to check on there.”
“Can you be a little more specific..?” Llewel prompted. “I’d like some other warning of what we’re going to be doing…”
“I believe you’ll remember what we did before, with Casrane?” Bezyu said after a moment. “It’s the crystal around there—I would like to see how it’s been doing. Can’t exactly have it failing, for… reasons I don’t have to remind you.”
“You still need to maintain that kind of stuff?” Zetai questioned, though it was just out of curiosity.
“Given everything else, I’m not surprised,” Tinath said. “Everything here’s moving forward just like in the real world, that’s what makes this place alive. Nankohm might help out a bit but a lot of that stuff is probably left for the NPCs to deal with.”
Bezyu nodded. “Exactly! I’m the one regularly entrusted with this sort of thing, after all.”
Llewel didn’t really look like he wanted to ask the question, but seemed to have found himself doing it anyway. “And… what makes this important enough that you need us to help you, even though it’s not an actual quest? Don’t get me wrong—I think we’re all more than willing to help out. Some things just aren’t quite matching up…”
“I-it’s difficult to explain here,” she said. “I’ll have more peace of mind knowing that all of you are with me. We never know what could happen while we’re there.”
Zetai shrugged. “If you want us to come with you that badly, then we can help you out first. It’s basically just a short detour, right? Can’t imagine you’d run into that much trouble if all you’re doing is checking on it…”
“Yes, a quick detour,” Bezyu said quickly. “That’s all it is! I’m sure you’ll all be back in the city and ready to do more quests before you know it!” She must’ve seen someone, too, when her eyes darted to the crowd again. “How about we get going now? It won’t take us long to get there.”
A mutual, but silent, agreement between them led them all to follow her. Myr couldn’t help but notice the surprising lack of people to greet her, despite how many should’ve known her; only a few players did, and Bezyu simply politely said they could talk later.
“Is it just me or is she acting really weird..?” Myr mumbled, only half-acknowledging Llewel was the only one paying enough attention.
“She definitely is,” he muttered back. “But I doubt she’s going to say anything about it. At least, not anything that she’s willing to say in front of everyone.”
“And at that point, is it really anything good..?”
“Maybe.” He sighed. “We’re just going to have to wait and see.”