Chapter 76. Rayner
"So, the information is really true?"
"Yes, we have already verified it with the graphics experts. They said that it was genuine. Someone had really found the antidote to the position of the Venomous python."
"Great!!"
A middle aged man with black hair and a handsome face exclaimed.
He has a sharp chin and his face was Asian, more precisely, Korean. He was one of the top rankers in the game and the person known as the pride of Korea, Rayner.
At the same time, he was also the guild leader of Dark Luna guild.
"Did you find any information about the sender?"
"Not yet. It looks like the sender had not left any traces."
"Whoever it is, he sure doesn't want to take any risks. How much money is he asking for?"
Rayner wondered about the identity of the sender as he asked.
He wanted to know if the player who has the antidote of the poison was an alchemist or not.
If he was one, then the Dark Luna guild would do anything to recruit him. If he was really an alchemist, then he would surely be the most talented alchemist in the whole Ark.
Rayner wanted to recruit such a player.
Even if the sender was not an alchemist, he must be skilful to find the antidote or he could just be a lucky person.
Either way, Rayner was curious about him.
"80k USD! It was the amount he was asking for seven veils of the antidote."
The glasses wearing information team leader said.
"It's doable but seven veils won't be enough. Don't he have more? The Dark Luna guild would pay him an appropriate amount for it."
Rayner has strong resentment towards the Venomous python. The Dark Luna guild had lost the battle against the Venomous python miserably.
This has angered Rayner greatly.
Now, he wants nothing more than to stab his sword in the heart of the Venomous python.
"I emailed him asking about selling more antidote but the reply was that he would only sell seven of them."
"It is most likely that he doesn't have any more antidotes. I wonder where he even got the antidote from."
"Either he is an alchemist or just a lucky player. I sent an email saying that we would buy the information on how he got the antidote at any cost but…"
"But?"
The information team leader pushed up his glasses and continued.
"The reply I got was, 'I'm not interested'."
Rayner laughed when he heard that.
No matter who the sender was, he didn't look like someone who wanted to negotiate for long.
He seemed to be in a hurry.
"Prepare to make the transaction. Send one of our trusted members for the transaction. Someone who is quick on his feet and prepare other members too."
"Understood."
The information team leader was quick to understand what Rayner meant by 'other members'.
He would not be in the position of the information team leader if he can't even understand this.
"Inform all the high leveled members to be ready. We are going to kill that snake as soon as we get the antidote."
"Many members are moving towards the Northern mountains of Crancia currently."
Rayner shook his head hearing that.
For him, killing the Venomous python was more necessary than exploring the new region.
"Make a separate team to explore the Northern mountains. Add some players with potential in that team. We should give equal opportunities to newbies too."
"I would do that."
"And quickly get the antidote."
Rayner said in an impatient voice.
It was not just the sender who was in a hurry. Rayner was the same too. His anger towards the Venomous python was enormous.
The antidote was the light for him.
He won't waste this opportunity.
* * *
"It looks like they finally wanted to make the deal."
Lu Fei said as he looked at the email in front of him.
It was the email saying that the Dark Luna guild has agreed to the transaction and is willing to pay 80k USD for the seven veils.
Grin!
A grin appeared on Lu Fei's face when he read that email.
'80k USD!! I would be one step closer to paying the debt.'
It was an astronomical amount for him but Lu Fei has a feeling that he would earn more money in the future.
He suppressed his excitement and started writing a reply for the email.
The Dark Luna guild had only agreed to the transaction and he had not gotten the money yet.
He first has to select a place to hold the transaction.
Lu Fei was sure that the Dark Luna guild would try to capture him even after the transaction.
They would want to know where he got the antidote from. It was mostly likely that there would be assassins or thiefs hidden in the dark, ready to capture him.
Lu Fei was sure of this when he thought about Rayner's personality.
"It was not easy from the start."
He muttered as he completed the reply. The place he had chosen to hold the transaction was actually the slum area in Arth.
It was a place that players won't frequent much and Lu Fei had chosen this place because of a reason.
The transaction would take place one day before the Arena would start.
The capital was already full because a large number of players were entering Arth because of Arena.
Finding a single player would be hard even for the Dark Luna guild. Moreover, they would soon stop their search and focus on other things.
Lu Fei just has to be careful.
"I just don't have to get caught and I would be fine."
He sighed as he muttered that.
Three days.
The Arena would start in three days and the transaction would take place in two days.
There was not much time left.
* * *
Swish! Swish!
The sounds of swords slashing through the air could be seen as various players tried to get a hit on the magic doll.
It was the scene of the Training centre.
The usually desolate Training centre was full with players and all of them were sweating but they were still trying to fight against the magic dolls.
'Just a hit is enough. A single hit!'
That was the common thought of the players as they again swung their swords.
Those who got a hit on the magic doll were smiling and those whose attacks were blocked had an irritated expression.
But all the players still swung their swords.
At that moment, a player entered the Training centre.
He has dark black hair and his face was handsome. There was a gentle atmosphere around him, making him look more mature.
His name was Kai.
He was one of the players participating in the Arena. He had also reached level 50 and would compete in the Rookies league.
As there were still three days to Arena, he had come to practice in the Training centre.
He was trying to increase his stats by fighting the magic dolls.
But as soon as he entered the Training centre, a look of shock and surprise appeared on his face.
He had heard that players don't frequent the Training centre much but the Training centre was full with players.
It looks like he had heard wrong.
After a while, the look of shock soon changed into curiosity and he approached a player that was panting while sitting on the ground.
"You look tired. Have a drink."
Kai took out a water bottle from his inventory and held it towards the panting player.
"Ah, t-thanks."
The panting player was surprised for a second before he finally took the water bottle from Kai's hand.
Gulp!
He gulped the water down his throat and let out an exhilarated breath.
"Thanks again. I was really tired from trying to hit the magic doll for over three hours."
"It's nothing much."
Kai sat down next to the player and glanced at the players who were still swinging their swords.
Then, he turned his head and asked.
"If you don't mind, then can you tell me why all these players are trying to hit the magic doll? I thought raising stats through hitting the magic doll was something that only rankers do."
"You are wrong."
The player shook his head.
"Ah? What do you mean?"
Kai seemed confused when he heard that.
He hadn't heard about any other function of the magic doll. They were good for practising your skills and one can raise their stats by continuously hitting them.
But there was nothing more.
"It seems like you don't know about the rumour going on."
"What rumour?"
Kai tilted his head and asked.
"People are saying that if you can hit the magic doll for a long time, the instructors would challenge you to a duel and if you won, then you would be able to get a B grade or higher quest."
"Huh? Is it true?"
A B grade quest was something all players wanted. The difficulty of such a quest was high but it gives you great rewards.
"I can't say as there are other rumours too but it's true that the instructors would challenge you if you can impress them."
"How do you know that?"
"Earlier, a player started hitting the magic dolls for a long period of time and the instructor challenged him. The players gave him the nickname 'Lunatic' and he has become some sort of celebrity here."
"Where is that player?"
If there was a player like that, then Kai would really want to meet him.
"I don't know. That player came here two days ago but the other players swarmed at him. He quickly fled and no one knows where he is now."
"That's a pity."
Kai became disappointed when he heard that.
He thought that the Lunatic would surely be a highly skilled player and a fight with him would surely be thrilling.
But there was nothing he could do.
Kai stood up from the ground and picked up a Training sword. He started hitting the magic dolls.
He wondered if he would be able to impress the instructors and got challenged to a duel.
'Lunatic? It's an interesting name. I wonder if I would be able to meet him some day.'
Kai thought and swung his sword vertically, swiftly hitting the arm of the magic doll.
"I hope he participates in Arena."
While muttering that, Kai continued to hit the magic doll, surprising the other players.
* * *
-Hello, everyone, we are back with a special episode. Today, we would be discussing a trending topic.
-Yes, we would be talking about Arena.
The two broadcasters were sitting in the studio and they both had smiles on their faces as they discussed about the recent news on Arena.
-If we are talking about Arena, then the Masters league is the main topic of discussion.
-Yeah, many rankers have already revealed that they are going to take part in the Masters league.
-People are really excited about that but personally, I'm looking forward to the Rookies league more.
-Why is that?
The broadcaster asked as he raised his eyebrow.
-I think we will see some surprises in the Rookies league.
-Really?
-Yeah, I had heard that there would be some super rookies from the top guilds in the Rookies league.
-Then, the Rookies league would surely be interesting.
Both the broadcasters nodded and continued the conversation.
-I had heard that there would be a super rookie from Storm breaker guild.
-Are you talking about Heiss?
-Yes, he's in the news for some time now and it looked like he would be joining one of the raid parties of the Storm breaker guild soon.
-Then, we should call him for an interview.
-Haha, I wonder if our viewers want to see us interviewing him.
The two broadcasters continued to talk about the Rookies league and the players who would be most likely to win.
Some people had even given analysis on who is the most likely person to win.
Still, many people wanted to see some underdogs who would be able to surprise them.