"Um, you don't have to do this, you know?" Lux said to the Dwarf Captain that was escorting them back to Leaf Village.
"It's fine," the Dwarf Captain replied. "It's the Commander's orders. This is to ensure that you won't get ambushed by Kobolds again."
Lux could only reluctantly nod his head as he allowed his Mount, Jed, to travel at the center of the hundred-men escort that was prepared for him and his friends by the Commander of Norria, Thoram.
The Dwarves who were chosen to be the Half-Elf's escort would glance in his direction from time to time. Admiration and respect could be seen in their faces. Clearly, they only had goodwill towards the man that had given them a great boon in their strength, as well as helped improve the growth of their territory.
Lux endured the stares that the Riders of Norria were giving him.
'Is this the effect of having high reputation points?' Lux thought as he looked at the reputation points that he had for the Riders of Norria.
—--
Riders of Norria Reputation Points: 2,500
Relationship Status: Benefactor
– Gives you the privilege to enter the Stronghold of Norria and explore the services available there.
– You will get up to a 50% discount on all services inside the Stronghold.
– You will be able to gain their assistance if you wish for it. Every time you ask for their help, your reputation points will be decreased by 500 Points.
Points will not be deducted when you ask for their help, as long as the task will benefit the Territory of Norria as a whole.
—--
'Benefactor…," Lux mused as he looked at the current relationship he had with the Riders of Norria. 'I guess this is a good thing.'
The Stronghold of Norria was the main army that was stationed in the territory of Norria. Several villages, similar to the Leaf Village, were under their protection. In short, they were the strongest Faction within the Beginner Zone, so having them as an ally was a good thing.
When they arrived at the village, the residents were surprised to see so many Riders of Norria all at once.
"Did a big shot arrive?"
"Maybe Commander Thoram is doing an inspection?"
"Are we under attack? Is there some kind of outbreak headed our way?"
The residents talked among themselves as the Riders of Norria continued to ride into the Plaza.
Boreas, the Rider Captain that was currently stationed in Leaf Village, gave his comrades a salute before looking at the Half-Elf with a big smile on his face.
"Lux, my boy, you've done well, Lad," Boreas said as he walked towards the Half-Elf who had just dismounted from his Warg.
"How about you share your story with me in the tavern later, will that be fine?" Boreas asked.
"Of course," Lux replied.
Boreas laughed as he patted Lux's leg before returning to his duties. Thoram had already sent a messenger bird to Boreas, his message informing the latter that if Lux ever needed any kind of help while he was still in Leaf Village, they would do their best to accommodate him.
"So, it was you!" Cedwyn looked at Lux in disbelief after Boreas had reported everything to the Village Head of Leaf Village.
"Hahaha! That's my boy!" Randolph said with a smug expression on his face. "The moment I laid my eyes on him, I knew that becoming my Disciple would make him an amazing person."
Grandma Annie snorted after hearing the Blacksmith's words. The Elders of Leaf Village had gathered together to talk to Lux and his friends about what had happened in the Stronghold of Norria.
It was not only the Stronghold that gained great benefits from Lux's completion of the Hidden Quest. All the villages within the territory also received the temporary buffs that increased their production rates.
Randolph had bragged to Lux that his chances of creating Unique and Mythical Weapons had greatly increased thanks to the 10% success buff that had fallen upon his head.
Grandma Annie, who was also an alchemist, was also quite thankful to Lux because her experiments had also benefited from his success. Aside from creating candies, the old Dwarf was also known to create potions that the defenders of Leaf Village used during emergencies.
"As a reward for all of your hard work, we decided to bestow upon you the 'Leaf Village Equipment Set (Mythical),'" Cedwyn declared. "This is the least we can do for your help."
Lux's eyes widened in shock because he didn't expect that he would be the one to receive one of the rewards from the Mythical Quest that could only be obtained inside Leaf Village.
What most foreigners (Solaians) didn't know was that each Beginner's Village had a Mythical Quest. Leaf Village had a quest that was almost impossible to clear because of the strict requirements that needed to be met before the quest was cleared.
—--
< Mythical Quest >
(Birth of a Legend)
– Defeat the Alpha Monster of the Aspiration Plains.
Carbuncle (1/1)
– Defeat the Alpha Monster of the Leaf Village Cemetery
Ghoul Beast (0/1)
– Defeat the Alpha Monster of Figaro Garden
Red-Eyed Terror Mantis (1/1)
– Defeat the Field Boss of Heartwood Forest
Forest Wolf King (0/1)
—--
< Rewards >
– 500 Skill Points
– 50 Body Constitution Points
– 50 Stats Points
– Leaf Village Equipment Set (Mythical)
– One random Mythical Item exclusive to the Leaf Village
Note: The Mythical Item reward will depend on your overall performance. So you better do your best!
—---
In order to complete the Mythical Quest of Leaf Village, all the Alpha Beasts, in addition to the Field Bosses, must be killed.
A team of Apostles could defeat the Carbuncle, Red-Eyed Terror Mantis, as well as the Ghoul Beast that appeared at midnight in the graveyard area of Leaf Village. The real challenge was fighting against the Field Boss, Forest Wolf King.
Orobak was weaker than that Field Boss, but he was already hard to kill. Any party who had just stepped into the Rank of Apostle would find it impossible to defeat the Orc Chieftain, let alone the Forest Wolf King, who was Final Boss of Leaf Village.
This was why no one had cleared the Hidden Mythical Quest of Leaf Village because they would always fall short of their final goal.
However, Cedwyn had just said that he would bestow upon them the Mythical Armor Set that could only be obtained after clearing the Quest that Lux had once thought to be impossible.
"Wait!" Randolph immediately stood up from his chair and pointed at Cedwyn with a reddened face. "You bastard! You didn't tell me anything about this!"
"I just did."
"Fool! Do you think crafting Mythical Armor is easy?!" Randolph's spittle flew in every direction as he glared at the Village Chief who had given him extra work. "Right now, we only have 3 sets of the Faunus Battle Regalia! Do you think I can craft them all before these kids leave the village?! Even with the blacksmithing buffs, at most, I can craft one armor set in ten days!"
"Ah, don't worry," Boreas replied. "The Riders of Norria will personally deliver them to these kids. As long as they are within the Kingdom of Gweliven, we can easily send them the armor once it is done."
Randolph snorted, but no longer said anything. He didn't mind crafting the Battle Regalia of Leaf Village for Lux and his friends. He just didn't have enough time before the kids left the village.
Just like everyone else inside the room, he could sense the power of Apostles radiating from Colette and her friends. This meant that they had already crossed the threshold and would be leaving soon.
"Let them have the first batch," Lux said with a smile. "I'll be staying here in Leaf Village for a little while longer, so you can prioritize them first."
Cedwyn nodded his head. "Since there is no problem with the delivery, all of you can rest assured that you will receive the best equipment that we can offer. Isn't that right, Randolph."
"Yeah, yeah, I heard you, Old Fart," Randolph waved his hand dismissively before leaving the room. Knowing that he needed to finish crafting the Faunus Regalia, he decided to start working on it before the kids left the village.
Lux patted Colette's and Matty's shoulders before glancing in Cedwyn's direction. "Give them two of the three sets you have in your possession. We will be going to the Figaro Gardens later to challenge the Red-Eyed Terror Mantis."
Cedwyn nodded his head. "Of course. The two of you, please, come with me."
The Village Head led the children to the treasury of the village, while Lux decided to stay behind. Since they would be challenging the Alpha Monster of the Figaro Gardens, he needed to upgrade Eiko to make her stronger.
He also still needed to choose which Rank 3 Skill Book he wanted from the Orcs' treasury in order to give himself an edge against one of the strongest Alpha Beasts in the Beginner's Zone.
