Chapter 66. The seventh hero (1)
Sunday, exactly at 2:01 PM
Hundreds of millions of white lights appeared all over Ark.
It was an amazing sight that was enough to surprise most of the kingdoms and empires in the world.
These white lights were of course players that were logging in to Ark, after the system update was over.
They were very excited to see what new content was added into Ark.
There were already rumours about new hunting grounds and completely new monsters.
So, most of the players wanted to go to these new regions to hunt monsters.
"It's good to be back."
"It all looks the same. I was still in the middle of a quest."
"Screw that quest! I can't wait to go hunt in the new hunting grounds."
"Do you even know where are those new hunting grounds located and what would be the average level of the monsters?"
"Won't there be an article about it?"
All the players looked around, like they were experiencing Ark for the first time.
There were exhilarating and anticipated expressions on their face. At the same time, they were happy that they were back in Ark.
It was hard to not play Ark again, after experiencing it once.
Ark was the most addicting game in the world and only the players knew how they had spent the past few days.
They were living in agony but now, they were finally back.
'They all look happy.'
Ian thought as he looked at the chattering players in the central plaza.
Like them, he was also happy that he was back in Ark, but at the same time, he was eager to know about the new regions and monsters.
After finding the hatching method of his egg, Ian also wanted to go hunt in those new regions.
"Hey!! Pegasus corporation has published an official article about the system update and the new regions!! There seems to be a promotional video too!!"
Suddenly, a player who was wearing the attire of a warrior shouted.
With that, all the players in the central plaza started to tap on empty air. Actually, they were looking up the article on the internet.
Ark's interface allows one to access the internet while they are still in the game.
It means that one can watch videos or articles while hunting monsters.
Many players would actually watch Ark-related videos while taking a break from hunting.
'I wonder what the article is about.'
Ian thought as he opened up the search engine. He didn't have to look for the article as it was currently trending on the real-time search rankings.
It was something to be surprised about as the article was just posted 10 minutes ago.
Ian quickly clicked on the article and began reading. It took him five minutes to read the article.
The article basically contained some information about the new regions and some dungeons.
It was not too detailed nor it was vague.
After reading the article, Ian clicked on the promotional video at the end of it.
Rather than the article, he preferred watching the video, as it gave him a more clear view.
'The video is well made.'
Ian thought as the video began.
The logo of Pegasus corporation appeared on the screen and after that, the scene changed to a snowy mountain.
The Northern mountain of Crancia!
The name of the snowy mountain appeared on the bottom of the video and after that, the scenery kept changing.
There were some glimpses of new monsters like Ice golem and Cold bats. Apart from that, some Snow wyverns could be seen flying in the sky.
They were probably the monsters that lived on the top of the mountains.
The screen again changed and this time, there were glimpses of some dungeons and boss monsters.
Those were the new dungeons and regions that were included in this update.
'It looks like a good place to hunt.'
Ian thought about the amount of experience the newly introduced monsters would give. He can't wait to hunt there.
As it finished showing the new region, the video suddenly blackened and some words appeared on the screen.
'The Arena is open!!'
The black screen quickly changed and a wide coliseum was seen. It was an empty but grand Coliseum.
For some reason, Ian felt that he had seen this Coliseum somewhere, but he shook his thoughts and focused on the video.
He didn't want to finish a second of the promotional video.
Two people suddenly appeared in the middle of the Coliseum. They were wearing armour and both of them had a weapon in their hands.
Ian was not able to see their faces but from their armour and weapon, he can perceive that they were both a warrior and a swordsman.
Soon, both of them started fighting with each other.
The screen again changed and this time, there was an assassin and a magician facing off against each other.
Like that, the screen kept changing and many classes clashed with each other.
In the end of the video, the words 'Arena is open!! Do you have the courage to become the champion? Enter Rakan carnival to know!!' appeared.
The video ended with that.
"Damn!!"
After the video ended, Ian took a deep breath. It was because he didn't expect that there would be a PvP event.
It was the perfect chance for players to get famous by defeating other players.
At the same time, they can also fight for the guild's attraction. It was a way to show themselves and get into one of the top guilds.
"Did you see the video? It was really great."
"Yeah, the Northern mountains of Crancia looked like a great place to hunt. I'm going there as soon as possible."
"Rather than that, Arena interests me more."
"Yeah, there is finally a PvP event. I wonder what are the requirements to enter this Rakan carnival?"
"Maybe, we will know if we go to the Coliseum"
"Coliseum? Do you know where the Coliseum is?"
"Idiot!! You don't even know that and you are in Arth. Look at that big stadium over there. That's the Coliseum!"
One of the players pointed towards a large stadium like building and many players looked at it.
Ian was the same.
'That's why, it was familiar.'
Ian thought as he looked at the Coliseum from the distance.
It was an oval shaped venue that was located in the middle of the capital. Due to its large size, it can be seen from anywhere in Arth.
'I thought it was just an abandoned stadium.'
The reason Ian didn't know about the Coliseum was because it was seen as an abandoned building till now.
Players had tried to enter the Coliseum but they would be blocked by the guards standing outside.
It was mostly treated as a tourist attraction till now.
"...Now, it is finally open."
Ian muttered as he felt excited about an PvP event. If the rewards were good, he wouldn't mind entering it.
Fighting against other players would also give him an insight on his own weaknesses and strengths.
'I want to take a look at the Coliseum but I want to go to the library too…'
Ian contemplated whether he should go to the Coliseum or go to the library to find the hatching method.
In the end, he decided to go to the library first . It was not like he couldn't visit the Coliseum later.
For him, finding the hatching method of the egg was more important.
In the fight against the Goblin king, he had again realised that he needed a comrade that can stay with him always.
A pet was the perfect for that!
That's why, Ian strode towards the public library.
Reaching the public library, he noticed that there were no players inside the library. Apart from the books and the librarian, there was no one.
The library would not be visited by players often, but there would still be one or two players reading books.
But today, there was no one.
"It's probably because of the update."
While muttering that, Ian moved upstairs towards the third floor of the library. There were two guards standing there.
"Commoners can't enter here!"
One of the guards took a look at Ian and perceived that he was not a noble.
"I have a permit."
Ian quickly pulled out the letter he had received from Count Ravenstein.
It was a letter signed by Count Ravenstein himself and there was also the emblem of the noble house Griphline.
It was enough for Ian to enter the third floor.
One of the guards looked at the letter and after confirming that it was not fake, he nodded his head.
"You can go in, Sir."
'His tone suddenly became polite.'
Ian smiled seeing the guard giving him respect.
It was because having the letter written by the Count was akin to having the Count as his backing, at least to some degree.
That's why the guard was being polite.
'It's bigger than the first two floors combined.'
As Ian entered the third floor of the library, the smell of books entered his nose and at the same time, he was shocked to see the enormous size of the third floor.
It was way bigger than he had imagined.
There were more than ten thousand books on the third floor. He can't even begin to imagine the size of the fourth and the fifth floor.
Ian quickly started searching for the book by Master tamer Piolan.
He was quick to find the section titled 'Monsters and their hatching methods.'
The section was filled with books on different topics written by countless tamers and summoners.
It was hard to find a specific book here.
'Why is it so hard to find one book?'
Ian sighed because he was not able to find the book he was looking for, even after half an hour.
"... Maybe it's on another shelf?"
While muttering that, Ian turned around the corner and at that moment, he collided with someone.
"Ah… what the fu…!!?"
Ian faltered a few steps back and looked at the person he had collided into.
'I thought I was alone here.'
He had earlier thought that he was alone here, but it looks like he was wrong.
"Who are you?"
Ian asked as he looked at the person in front of him.
The person in front of him can be described with just one word - a heavenly beauty.
She was really pretty, almost at the level of being regarded as a goddess, just because of her beauty.
Her curves were displayed in every right place and her eyes were tranquil, like a peaceful lake.
But currently, there was a small wavering in the calm tranquil lake.
"Why should I say who I am? First, tell me, who are you?"
Instead of answering, the girl asked back.
At the same time, there was a question going on in both Ian's and the girl's mind.
'Is he/she an NPC?"
There was no way of knowing. That's why, Ian and the girl just stared at each other in shock.
It was because it was rare to find someone on the third floor of the public library. Being here means that one is connected to a noble and one's identity is not simple.
"I'm Ian."
Ian introduced yourself first and the girl also followed with her name.
"I'm Rachel."
'I feel like I have heard that name somewhere.'
Ian thought and stared at Rachel who was also looking back at him. She opened her mouth to ask.
"Are you a player?"
"Yeah. It seems like you are one too."
Rachel slowly nodded her head but Ian can see that she was confused. She must be thinking about his identity.
Like that, both of them kept staring at each other for a while.
They were both waiting for the other person to speak and an awkward atmosphere soon embroiled them.
Unable to control the silence, Rachel finally asked.
"Which guild are you from?"
"Ah…"