'You have made a wise choice.'
Just as Valyr had made up his mind on whether to continue with the trials or not, the monotonous voice resounded throughout the grounds once more as it praised the young man for his decision.
'There is merit to both choices, though whether that remains true depends on the strength one wields.'
'If one's strength is lacking and they opted to not proceed to the next set of trials, their choice would be considered wise. One could interpret this as a realization of one's limits, or as an imposition of discipline onto one's self.'
'On the other hand, if one's strength exceeds the norm and they opted to proceed to the next set of trials, such a decision would also be considered wise as well.'
'As you, the trial taker, fall under this category, any further explanation is not needed. After all, such a choice must not be simple to make, even if the stakes were obvious.'
'Then again, if one's strength is lacking and they still opted to proceed to the trials with their lacking strength in mind, there is also merit to that.'
'Of course, such a choice would not be considered wise, but it would nevertheless be considered respectable as only a few among those in that situation would take the risk and do so.'
'In that scenario, the unyielding spirit of a person is shown in its true colors, showcasing the underlying perseverance and tenacity that any being holds under even the direst of situations.'
'With that said, the choice that you, the trial taker, have made is also respectable.'
'For anyone who has made the choice to attempt something, even though the chance of failure exists, is considered a far better person than those who decide to shy away in front of the face of opportunity.'
'You have 10 minutes to prepare.'
Listening to the monotonous voice's explanation, a faint smile crept up the young man's face as a thought surfaced in his mind.
"It's not really that deep," muttered Valyr as he sat down on the ground.
Facing the screen before him, the smile on his face gradually became crooked.
"If anything, the reason why I decided to continue was because of this quest right here."
Ding!
[Gates of Awakening' Trial (2)] (Linked Quest) (Time-limited Quest)
Difficulty: B
The Gates of Awakening… description has been omitted.
Addendum: Rather than choose the bare minimum, you've decided to go all out and reach the top, showing the Gates of Awakening that your skills even exceed one's wildest expectations.
Through this, you have gained merit, as well as the attention of the Gates of Awakening itself.
Now, having passed the first bottleneck, you shall be given the choice of proceeding onto the next set of trials, or claiming the other rewards you've yet to claim.
Once again, the choice is ultimately yours.
However, some choices might now lead to greater rewards than before.
Quest Objectives:
> [Option 1] Forfeit the opportunity to proceed onto the next set of trials (0/1)
> [Option 2] Surrender at the sixth trial of the Gates of Awakening (0/1)
> [Option 3] Clear the sixth trial of the Gates of Awakening and pass through the second bottleneck (0/1)
Quest Rewards:
> [Option 2 / 3] Access to the second level of the Gates of Awakening's True Blacksmith Archive
> [Option 2 / 3] Increased level of authority within the Gates of Awakening
> [Option 3] Access to an incomplete set of memories from the First Forger
> [Option 3] Access to Gates of Awakening' Trial (3)
> [Option 3] ??? (Additional rewards dependent on performance during the quest)
Quest Penalties:
> Level - 10
> Teleportation to the inheritance's entrance
[Note: This quest can only be obtained and completed within the Four Pillars' Inheritance. Leaving the inheritance is considered as forfeiting the quest.]
Reading through the quest earlier, Valyr knew that it would be incredibly stupid for him to proceed with the first objective.
After all, with how no reward came attached to the first option in his new quest, it meant that he would be basically forfeiting the quest if he were to choose it.
With that, only the second and third option was left in his mind, taking on a slight interest towards the fact that the quest had decided to give something like the second option in the first place.
Then again, just like before, the young man eventually went with the last option in the end.
However, it was not for the reason that the third option gave him more rewards.
Instead, it was the fact that the third option allowed him to access the memories of the First Forger again.
'With how the Triad Gates are designed, these memories would potentially allow me to obtain the inheritance of the First Forger itself,' thought the young man.
'However, the only thing I've gained from the First Forger's memories were the two Intent Seeds I comprehended related to forging.'
'Though I wonder if I'd be able to inherit the First Forger's skills through seeing more of its memories, I'm more curious as to what answers the memories hold once I take a look at it.'
'Well, that's only if the memories do contain information that may give me answers in the first place,' thought Valyr as he let out a faint sigh.
With these thoughts continuing to linger in his mind, the first and second option on his newly obtained quest gradually dissipated on its own, leaving only the third option for him to complete.
At the same time, the monotonous voice resounded throughout the trial grounds, causing Valyr's eyes to slightly widen in surprise.
"It's already been 10 minutes?" asked Valyr to himself, only to push such thoughts to the side as he began to listen to what the monotonous voice had to say.
'Through the first trial, you've shown your level of prowess in combat.'
'Through the second trial, you've shown your level of prowess in forging.'
'And through the third trial, you've shown the potential you have in the other fields of combat.'
'The fourth trial could be considered similar to the third trial in that it examines whether you, the trial taker, has potential towards the other fields of combat.'
'However, rather than test your potential in physical combat styles, the fourth trial shall examine your potential in the world of the arcane.'
'With that, your fourth trial is the Trial of Four Elements.'
