We didn't meet with the king but we were merely guided at the entrance of Itz. A random guy was there sitting. It looks like he was looking for someone.
"Hi!"
"Lord Zieglind?" He stood up and shook hands with me.
"Yes. Its me. I was brought here. Is it starting?"
"Yes. Are these your companions?"
"Ah yes. This is Yefa and Precia."
"I see. Anyway here's the document." He handed me an envelope.
I opened the contents and it seems to be a list of some kind. "What is this?"
"What you need to learn."
"Are... Are you serious? There are like... 1, 2... 30 damn things here."
"Yes unfortunately. But you will be rewarded handsomely."
So there were 30 things we need to know.
Current Ruler
Members of the Government
Royalties
Royalties that are Inactive
What Kingdoms are Involved
Enemy Kingdoms
Internal Conflicts
External Conflicts
Treasury
Stores
High Ranking Merchants
List of Adventurers
Adventurer Race Ratio
Quests Listed
High Level Adventurers
Army Count
Army Plans
Army List
Army Race Ratio
Population
Population Strength
Population Race Ratio
Villages
Village Population
Village Race Ratio
Dungeons
Level Threshold of Dungeons
Common Monsters
Artifact Dungeons
Level Threshold of Artifact Dungeons
"You've got to be kidding right? This is like I'm invading a kingdom with thousands of units versus us three. This is basically a suicide mission. How the hell do you think we're gonna get all of these information?" I was angry about the situation. I thought this was going to be a simple scouting mission. "What the hell are these objectives anyway? Current Ruler? Are you kidding me? You don't know the king or queen of Cagyer?"
"I told you, you'll be rewarded handsomely for your help. Its better than anything you've ever imagined."
"Dammit. Your king is either a damn freak or an idiot. You basically have zero knowledge in this kingdom. And you want to lure Polk in this?"
"Yes." The messenger said calmly. "The king has high hopes on you. He said that you are one of 'them' he emphasized that. He has placed his trust in you."
"Tsk. The reward better be damn worth it." I was placed in a situation where I can't say no. We're basically powerless right now. I have an army of 20 Goblins and including us, we're all 27. If I refuse, the king might treat me as an outlaw and my village might be attacked too. We're completely powerless at that for now. My reputation will decline too. That crafty old man.
I tried to calm myself by replaying the memories I spent with the children and women in the village. "*sigh* Sorry I won't be back for a while." I thought to myself.
"Are you okay Zieglind?" Yefa asked.
"Yeah... Sorry you two. I dragged you in an unreasonable quest."
"We don't mind." Precia reassured me.
Yefa gave a small nod.
"I see. I'm glad you're here with me. Let's go to Cagyer."
We three rode the Gryphon and began flying to Cagyer. It took us a couple of trips to get there. We were resting every hour now and then. After a while, we arrived at Cagyer after a 12 hour journey. I gave Yefa and Precia some tattered robes just to hide our identities if we're known here.
"Halt!" A couple of guards went infront of us and blocked our path. "What business do you have in the kingdom of Cagyer?"
"We're trying to become adventurers."
"We just need to go through the guild." Yefa seems composed and cool. I'll let her handle the conversation.
"Do you have verifications?"
"I'm afraid not. We just came from a small village far from here. We traveled a long time to get here. I hope that we won't be rejected as soon as we arrived."
"Nice, Yefa!" I thought to myself.
"I'll let you in. Don't cause any trouble." The guard turned around and ordered his soldiers. "Pave the way!"
Just by looking at this scene, I can get the gist of Cagyer. A strict and war hungry people. It is a secure place but who knows what's going on in the inside.
We were let inside and hoo boy. Just by the sight of the entrance, this kingdom is insanely huge. The walls surrounding it was about 10 meters, made from stone and a wooden platform above. Several cannons and weaponry above it. I guess its true. Guns do exist in this world. The skill that Rize has that produces infinite arrows but cannot be buffed doesn't specify that it only produces arrows. That is a valuable information for me. Now that I know that, totems aren't the only defense I have. I need someone or somewhere to make it.
Most guards here uses guns and spears. I wonder why. Anyway, I can see the problem Itz is going to have. The area here is very, VERY populated. I need to know what I'm going to do first.
I guess getting the adventurer objectives first might be easy. Then after that I'm going to look for stores.
It seems my stay here will be long...
Way too long.