"Who are you lot, and what are you doing inside my cottage?!" the Half-Orc shouted as it threatened to brandish its sword towards the Dwarves, who had taken a defensive stance against it.
"We come in peace," Lux stepped forward and stood between the Dwarves and the Half-Orc with his hands raised in surrender.
"Peace?" the Half-Orc snorted. "You come and steal from my house and you say you come in peace? Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill you, right here, right now?"
Lux frowned because according to the data that the Elysium Compendium was giving him, the Half-Orc in front of him was a Rank 4 Alpha Monster.
At first, Lux didn't want to believe it, but after looking at the information for the second time, he realized that it was indeed correct.
The Half-Elf could feel beads of sweat forming on top of his head because he knew that if they really offended this Half-Orc in front of them, all of them would become sliced cheese in a matter of seconds.
Fortunately, before he could even reply to the Half-Orc's question, a row of texts appeared in front of him, giving him some options to choose from.
—--
– Option 1
(Chaotic Evil)
"We came here to burn this cottage and kill you, foul creature! A filthy half-blood like you deserves death!
– Option 2
(Lawful Good)
"Sorry for intruding into your cottage, good sir. We came here with the good intention of inviting you to a seminar on how to earn money while you sleep."
– Option 3
(True Neutral)
"We do not wish for conflict, and would like to talk things out. However, if you are adamant in using force, we will reply in kind.
– Option 4
"We came here to help you with your wish for Dominion."
—--
Lux knew that the first choice would instantly send all of them to the afterlife. The second option was funny, but he doubted that the Half-Orc was in the mood to humor them with their answer.
The third choice was rather tame and Lux was initially tempted to choose it, but he knew that these weren't the right words to say in their current circumstance either.
"Sir, we came here to help you with your wish for Dominion," Lux said.
Immediately the Half-Orc's rage changed into that of confusion. After a while, it lowered its greatsword and looked at Lux with a serious expression on its face.
"How did you know?" the Half-Orc asked. "How do you know that I wish for Dominion?"
Lux sighed in relief as he read the next row of text that was the answer to the Half-Orc's question.
"An Orc shouldn't be judged whether he is full-blooded or not. The only thing that is important to the Orcs is strength! Only the strong can rule and command the Horde!"
"Well said!" the Half-Orc replied as it patted Lux's shoulder with its hand. "Although I don't know how or why you came to know my goal, I believe that fate has brought us together. My name is Barca, tell me your name… Half-Elf."
"My name is Lux, and these are my friends," Lux made a gesture to introduce Colette and her friends to the Half-Orc.
After the introduction the Half-Orc walked towards his bed and pushed it back to where it once was. He then moved the horns of the bull ornament to its original position.
"Did you take it?" Barca asked. He didn't ask what Lux took, but the meaning behind his words was very obvious to the Half-Elf.
"Yes," Lux replied. "I took it."
Barca nodded his head in understanding. The Half-Orc then sat on the floor beside the bed and took out his whetstone to sharpen his greatsword.
"My mother was the daughter of a Tribal Chief, and my father was a mighty General in the Human army. They met by accident, and somehow fell in love, and I was born as a result. I will not bore you with the other details, because they are not important. Since you said that you wish to help me then are you prepared to ensure that I become the next Orc Chieftain?"
Lux nodded. "That is why I am here."
"Then prove it." Barca took a map out of his belongings and placed it on the floor.
The Elysium Compendium automatically recorded the map in Lux's Soulbook, allowing him to view it normally.
"The current Orc Chieftain, Orobak, has four warlords that support him," Barca said as he pointed at the marked locations in the map. "Tanabur of the South, Baronar of the West, Oreg of the North, and Mogazar of the East."
"As long as you are able to help me defeat or convince these Warlords to join my side, Orobak will lose his loyal supporters. This will give me the opportunity to challenge him in a duel in front of the other warriors for the position of Orc Chieftain."
A series of notifications once again rang inside Lux's Head as the information of the Hidden Quest was updated.
Hidden Quest: I Wish For Dominion
Bonus Rewards will be calculated depending on the choices you make in this mission.
—--
< Kill the Four Orc Warlords >
+500 Riders of Norria Reputation Points
– Gain one random Pseudo-Mythical weapon, armor, or artifact, that belonged to each of the Warlord that you have slain.
– Gain the Orc Slayer Title
( Orc Slayer Title )
– Increase damage to all Orcs by 20%
– Orcs will feel threatened by your presence
—-
< Negotiate with the Orc Warlords >
+1000 Riders of Norria Reputation Points
+200 Kingdom of Gweliven Reputation Points (Exclusive to Kingdom of Gweliven)
+200 Gold Coins
– Gain Negotiator Title
( Negotiator Title )
– When dealing with Nobles or Royalty, your chances of closing a successful deal is increased by 10%
—-
The Half-Elf rubbed his chin as he pondered his next move.
'A Chain Quest,' Lux thought as he looked at the information of the four warlords. 'If I choose not to kill them then I will gain reputation points, gold coins, and a title…'
The Half-Elf then glanced at the other option, which sounded more tempting to him. 'Although I will not gain as many reputation points and gold coins if I chose to kill the Warlords, getting four random pieces of Pseudo-Mythical Gear is not a bad trade off.'
Lux understood that he was far from reaching the requirements to be able to craft Mythical Items. First, he lacked the materials he could practice on and his current Smithing rank wasn't high enough. Aside from that, the best weapon he could make with the items available in the Beginner's Zone were rare weapons.
The Half-Elf was not satisfied by that, especially after experiencing the power of his Master Randolph's Mythical Weapon, Blood Moon.
Barca was closely observing Lux's expression, and the moment both of their eyes met, the Half-Elf as well as the Half-Orc smiled evilly. As if waiting for that moment, both of them laughed at the same time, which made the Dwarves look at them as if the two had gone crazy.
Eiko, looked at her Papa, and the Half-Orc before joining them in laughter. Although she didn't understand what was going on, she felt like it would be fun if he followed her Papa's actions.
Lux and Barca understood that there was only one way to get what they wanted. For that to happen, only one option was left for both of them, and that was their opponent's complete and utter destruction.
