Chapter 119
Chapter 119
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 119
Chapter Title: Return to the Guild
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Chapter 119
Western Flower arrived at the guild. It was a building so familiar, yet it felt like ages since she'd last seen it. Even though the time she'd actually been away from the guild wasn't that long.
'It must mean this incident left that much of an impression.'
She had experienced many things on her way to becoming a ranker in Arc, but even for her, this event was one that would stick deeply in her memory.
She opened the door and entered the guild.
First, she'd have a short meeting with the guild leader, then get back to her normal routine.
She knocked on the door of the guild leader's office. The guild leader's voice came from inside, in his usual tone: "Come in."
She opened the door and went inside.
The guild leader wasn't alone.
"Good work."
There was Cooking Day, the guild's sturdy pillar of support alongside the guild leader. And...
"Welcome back!"
Beauty Art, raising both hands high without hiding her ecstatic mood.
"Aren't you going to level up?"
Beauty Art had wasted just as much time as she had. Naturally, Western Flower had assumed she'd rush off to grind levels like crazy after returning, but she was still at the guild.
"I was waiting to see you. My pretty girl needed repairs too."
Pretty girl. The moment that word came out, the guild leader, Cooking Day, and Western Flower all stiffened slightly. But they quickly schooled their expressions with practiced ease. You had to be able to handle this much to stay on friendly terms with Beauty Art.
"Badly damaged?"
"Nothing critical, but some items needed fixing and all that. The battle dragged on, and that Halloween Pumpkin wasn't an easy opponent."
"If that guy had come at you straight-up without any tricks, you would've had a tough time too, Beauty."
Just as he shortened Western Flower to Seohwa, Cooking Day called Beauty Art simply Beauty. And since the word "beauty" carried such positive connotations, Beauty Art loved the nickname.
But Western Flower and the guild leader, who knew the real reason Cooking Day called her Beauty, wondered if it was really such a great title.
'The reason I call her Beauty? Shortening it like Seohwa doesn't sound right. Beu-ah? Beu-ti? Ar-ti? Ti-a? Ti-ti? Tia might be the best, but how do I put it... it just doesn't roll off my tongue. Huh? What about Art?'
At that moment, Cooking Day had turned deadly serious, to the point where you had to question if he was the same affable uncle type.
'You, can you call her Art?'
Back then, Western Flower had immediately agreed upon recalling Beauty Art's Death Knight. As expected, a few more years of life experience made all the difference.
"Yeah. When he snatched the Necronomicon copy and bolted, leaving his forces behind, I smashed them all."
If his skeleton legion had been fully intact, Beauty Art wouldn't have won so easily.
"Well, the result was your victory anyway. Man, the moment I heard, I poured myself a drink. Best booze I've had in ages. Hearing those crib babies got screwed is always music to my ears."
With that, Cooking Day laughed heartily.
"Come on, Seohwa, take a seat. Sit down and spill the details on this incident."
"You've already heard plenty from Beauty Art."
"Hey, Guild Leader. These things are all about perspective. You need everyone's take to get the full picture."
"You're not just dying to hear the C.O.T.S guys got owned from a fresh angle, right?"
Cooking Day burst into loud laughter. It was as good as an admission.
"Fine, a quick recap then."
She sat down.
"But first, how are you feeling?"
Western Flower asked Beauty Art. The meaning was obvious. Beauty Art flashed a beaming smile.
"What do you think? On top of the world. I haven't been sleeping right because of this lately, and boom, it's solved."
"Lucky you."
Western Flower still hadn't obtained her upgrade item. In fact, very few rankers in Arc had.
That was why Halloween Pumpkin and White Skull had been so obsessed with the Necronomicon copy from Meteor.
"You'll get one soon too. If you need help, just say the word."
"Yeah, got it. Thanks."
"Worrying about unavoidable stuff just hurts your health. Let's relax a bit."
The guild leader said.
"We're not claiming to be the strongest or the biggest guild, but we're no small fry either. We're gathering info at the guild level, so don't stress too much. We might not be the fastest, but we won't be the last."
"Understood."
It was baseless reassurance from the guild leader, but Western Flower felt a bit more at ease. Given his track record so far, it actually seemed plausible.
"Yeah. And who knows? It might drop in your lap out of nowhere like this time."
"True, it did come out of left field, like you said, Uncle."
Beauty Art nodded. The item they'd been desperately hunting had been found by someone who'd barely joined the guild—and a much lower-level player at that. And he'd even sold it to her, which she was truly grateful for.
"Still, this one's mostly thanks to me."
"Your credit, Uncle? You were holed up in the guild with me the whole time—what big role did you play?"
"Who scouted Meteor? Me."
"Oh, that's what you meant."
The guild leader nodded emphatically.
"We're in trouble. Every time Meteor pulls off something huge, this uncle's gonna strut around like he owns the place."
"Of course! Soon everyone will know my choice was key to the guild's growth!"
"Someone rein in this uncle for me."
But the guild leader's plea went unheeded.
"I think Uncle's right on this one."
"Oh great, another one with stars in her eyes now that she got her upgrade item."
Feeling like Western Flower was his only ally left, the guild leader shot her a pleading look.
"Oh yeah, Uncle. Didn't you make Meteor's item?"
"He's not even getting a reaction now."
The guild leader eyed Western Flower with the pathos of Caesar crying 'Even you, Brutus?' Of course, she breezily ignored him.
"Yeah, I poured my heart into crafting it."
"And I delivered it."
Beauty Art added.
"Seemed like he used it pretty well."
Western Flower thought back to Meteor during his clash with Method. She'd charged into battle the moment she saw them, so she hadn't gotten a good look.
But even from that brief fight, she could tell he handled the gear with impressive skill.
"Yeah. I saw the footage too. Kid was flying all over the place."
He said proudly. As an alchemist, seeing someone wield his creation so well filled him with satisfaction.
"The guy's already a beast with mass-produced gear. With my item, it's like giving wings to a tiger. He might catch up to us in no time."
"Nah, no way."
Beauty Art laughed it off.
Everyone here had pushed through the brutal leveling slowdown after level 30, so they knew all too well how tough it got.
"Still, if he did, that'd be impressive."
"Yeah. And we're not even carrying him on the bus."
As they chatted idly like that, Western Flower suddenly asked.
"Oh yeah, what'd you give for the Necronomicon copy?"
It was an incredibly valuable item, so she was curious about the price.
"Money, for starters."
But that alone couldn't cover its worth.
"And a Mysterious Map."
"Ooh!"
"Wow!"
"Actually, two of them."
Everyone nodded at that.
"That's generous."
"Decisive move. Must've hurt, even if it was fair trade."
"I wanted that Necronomicon copy bad. Plus, I felt bad. He went through hell trying to sell it to me."
"Fair enough."
It had escalated from petty flies to a massive incident with C.O.T.S rankers swarming in, so yeah, guilt made sense.
"Besides, it's super valuable, sure, but not proven yet."
"True. Still seems like solid payment. How'd Meteor react?"
"He seemed plenty satisfied. But..."
"Hm? Something up?"
"Well... I had that Black Bread, right?"
"Yeah."
Most players sell or toss their starter Black Bread.
But some, like Beauty Art, stash it away to use as junk gear after death to lower drop chances on main items.
"I remembered Meteor liking Black Bread, so I threw that in too."
"Hmm..."
Cooking Day groaned. He could guess what came next.
"He liked it even more than the Mysterious Maps."
Everyone clamped their mouths shut.
* * *
While the Wayward guild members debriefed the incident in high spirits, things were the total opposite at C.O.T.S.
"We got owned by Wayward again?"
"Again? Last time was just a mission fail and a rampage. This time, two rankers straight-up died. Not even comparable."
"And they didn't lose a single one."
"The forums are roasting us alive."
"Bunch of keyboard warriors who couldn't squeak if they met face-to-face."
"Honestly, we can't blame them. It's embarrassing for us."
"Exactly. Those rankers strutting around ended up tarnishing the guild's name."
Twice in this short span, they'd been bested by Wayward. And this incident was way graver.
The spotlight was brighter because of the scale, so C.O.T.S's rep had plummeted faster than last time. Even the old scandal, which had been fading, resurfaced.
Bad news all around for C.O.T.S.
They'd never been on great terms with Wayward, but this fueled even deeper resentment.
And the name at the root of both past and present incidents was seared into every C.O.T.S member's mind.
Meteor.
* * *
Some dungeon. Like any other in Arc, players had entered hunting for exp, cash, and loot.
But unlike most, the only combat sounds came from one person.
Not that the dungeon was unpopular. Far from it—this one was renowned nearby for top-tier exp efficiency.
Slash!
A monster fell to a sharp axe strike. The warrior slung his axe over his shoulder and turned back.
"No more monsters around here, so we're moving out."
He continued in a slightly grumpy tone.
"You rookies."
"Thank you, Lumberjack."
Willy, one of the party huddled behind the axe warrior, flashed a friendly smile.