Guild Quest (1)
"Here's the Golden Compass."
I held it out to Braust. It had been one of the items Kurun was carrying.
The truth was, I'd been dying to use that Golden Compass to find my little sister first. But I couldn't.
Only a single charge left.
If I used it myself, the Scenario Quest would become impossible to complete. On top of that, I'd be picking a fight with every elf in the sanctuary.
Honestly, if it weren't for what Hyung told me, I might have used it anyway.
To be frank, Scenario Quest or elves be damned — my sister should have come first. I'd hesitated when I first found the thing on Kurun. That desperate, choking urge to just activate it and find her.
But if what Hyung had discovered was true, I didn't need to stake everything on this particular compass.
Clear a Guild Quest and they'll give you a Golden Compass.
A new Guild Quest had appeared once our guild hit level 2. Clear it for the first time, and you received a Golden Compass identical to this one. We hadn't been paying the guild much attention, but other guilds were pouring everything they had into leveling up and inflating their influence. Plenty of them had already reached level 2, which meant there was a good chance they'd already been handed a compass of their own.
Kurun had probably gotten his the same way.
However he got it, I suppose.
He might have been in a guild, or he might have obtained it some other way. If he had been in a guild, though, that was a little unsettling. It meant the world was crawling with bastards like him.
Shame we let Arin and Rox get away.
Arin had already fled, so that was that. As for Rox — the one who'd been out cold — whether he'd come to while I was fighting Kurun, I couldn't say. By the time I made it back to that spot, he was already gone.
No loyalty among them, either.
Watching Arin abandon her comrades and run, and Rox simply vanish into thin air, I almost thought Kurun had been the most loyal of the lot.
"Thank you."
Braust accepted the Golden Compass and offered a formal bow of gratitude.
And then—
Scenario Quest [Find the Golden Compass] complete.
Transporting to the Room of Scenario.
The instant I handed over the compass, the quest completed, and I was pulled into the Room of Scenario once again.
What now?
These Scenario Quests showed no sign of ever ending. Was this even a quest that had an end? There was clearly a great deal buried in it, of course. And every time I completed one, I received some kind of reward, so it wasn't a bad arrangement for me.
I waited in the Room of Scenario for the footage to begin.
And when the person who appeared on the screen came into view, my eyes went wide.
"Wait— that's Mi-seong?!"
One of the people in the recording. My little sister was standing there in the scenario video.
Why is Mi-seong showing up in this?
On one hand, the fact that she appeared at all meant she was alive, and that was a relief. On the other, appearing in a scenario video was proof she'd gotten mixed up in something.
Besides Mi-seong, dozens of people were packed together, all of them hanging on the words of a single figure standing on a raised platform.
"Everyone. That day is almost upon us. Please make your preparations."
Was the person on the platform giving a sermon? He'd gathered roughly fifty people and was pouring words over them without pause.
"In one week, it will begin. Until then, all of you must bring a Fruit in order to escape the Calamity. Understood?"
"Yes! Understood!"
"Yes!"
They believed him utterly. Every last one of them nodded along and answered as if his word were gospel. Mi-seong was among that crowd.
What the hell is "it"? The Calamity?
Judging by their reactions, this wasn't something I could dismiss lightly. Was something I knew nothing about going to happen in a week?
And where even is this?
It looked like a sealed indoor space, which made it impossible to get my bearings. If only there'd been an opening — a window, a doorway, anything — so I could see the surroundings.
"Then I shall see you all here in one week. Only those who are prepared will survive."
With that, the speaker turned and walked out at an unhurried pace.
The footage seemed about to end — and then a new scene took its place.
"Mi-seong. What are you going to do? You said you were going to find your family."
"I don't know. But if we can't escape that Calamity, would finding them even mean anything?"
"Well, that's true, but…"
The friend talking with Mi-seong. It was definitely Kang-mi — the one Mom had told me about.
They're both okay.
The fact that the two of them were unharmed was a blessing. What I couldn't understand was why the scenario video had singled out Kang-mi and Mi-seong in such an ominous way. Pulling them into a close-up like this, given everything the scenarios had shown me so far, could only mean that something was going to happen to them.
"Let's look for a Fruit first. I don't know if what he said is actually true, but most of what that man has shown us has turned out to be real."
"Okay. What's today's date?"
"December 27th."
With those words, the scenario footage seemed to end. The screen began to fade. Even as it dissolved, I couldn't take my eyes off it.
I had no idea what she'd gotten mixed up in. But I'd confirmed that my sister was alive. That alone was something to be grateful for.
Scenario recording complete.
Something special for the Predator has been prepared for the next Scenario Quest. Please look forward to it.
As a reward for completing the third scenario, a special skill for the Gourmet Predator will be granted.
Something special?
Was it something related to Mi-seong that was supposed to be special? If anything, wording like that only made me more uneasy.
Whether the Scenario Quest knew how I felt or not, it began searching for a new scenario all the same.
Searching for the next scenario.
Writing scenario…
Scenario configuration complete.
The hidden secrets are gradually coming to light.
The Secret of the Fruit
📍 Objective: Uncover the secret of the Fruit.
⚔ Objective: Devour the Fruit.
Once the new scenario had appeared, I stepped out of the Room of Scenario.
Uncover the Fruit?
The Fruit. It had been mentioned in the footage just now — the thing Mi-seong had said she was going to look for. I remembered that clearly enough.
Is the Fruit a monster?
Given the word devour, everything I'd predated so far had been a monster. The word "Fruit" itself probably didn't mean quite what it sounded like.
"Ah. You've returned."
"Huh? Oh. Yes."
"Thank you once again for retrieving the Golden Compass."
"No, not at all."
Braust had been waiting for me the entire time I was gone. I really had no manners. The Scenario Quest was to blame, but I'd vanished on him without a word. Braust, however, didn't seem to mind in the slightest.
"Thanks to you, we should be able to find the reincarnation of Kaiserion, the Primordial Elf God."
Kaiserion, the Primordial Elf God. Was his reincarnation truly here on Earth? I had no way of knowing for certain, but if finding that reincarnation could halt the elves' extinction as the legends claimed, then all the better.
"I am grateful as well."
"I, too, offer you my thanks."
Elena and the Elf Elder both conveyed their gratitude.
"Please, don't mention it. I'll be taking my leave, then."
"Leaving already? I was going to throw a banquet in your honor."
"I'd like to stay longer, but… I have something I must do."
Turning down hospitality from elves who were treating me so warmly wasn't exactly polite, but I had no choice. This wasn't some trivial errand — my sister was involved.
"Well, it can't be helped, then. We shall save the banquet for another time."
"Thank you."
I turned to go, and Elena came toward me.
"Um… would it be all right if I came with you?"
"Sorry? With me?"
Elena, of all people, suddenly wanted to come along. Why leave her family and this sanctuary just to follow me?
Don't tell me she has feelings for me?
The thought flickered through my head before I could stop it. Otherwise, why would she need to come with me at all?
"Yes. I've already asked Grandfather for permission."
"Well, I don't mind, but are you sure you'll be all right?"
"If we're going to adapt to this changed world, we elves can't rely on Lord Kaiserion alone. I think we'll need all sorts of experience and information."
"Ah. R-right. Of course."
I'd gotten ahead of myself. Of course Elena wouldn't be thinking anything like that.
"All right. Let's go together."
"Really? Thank you so much."
The moment I agreed, Elena stepped in close to thank me. Looking at her face so near, I couldn't tell whether the heat in my cheeks was embarrassment at the thought I'd just had — or simply because she was that beautiful. A faint flush rose to my face either way.
"We shall prepare the path home for you."
With that, something was tossed onto the floor, and a gate formed in an instant. The item created a portal that could carry you to another nearby location. The range wasn't particularly wide, but it could take you wherever you wanted within that span.
"Thank you."
The Elder even packed a few extras for us, just in case we might need them. Of course, given that he handed them to Elena rather than me, it was pretty clear he was worried about her.
When we stepped through the gate, a familiar landscape unfolded around us. The school. It felt almost like coming home.
And what I had to do here was already decided. I went straight to Kang Hyuk.
"Hyung. Let's start the Guild Quest."