[[ Congratulations! ]]
[[ Hidden Mission Accomplished ]]
[[ Do you want to receive the reward? ]]
[[ Yes ]] [[ No ]]
"I've been waiting for this message the whole time. Took you long enough." Aectaeon muttered in satisfaction.
He crossed his arms as he leaned back on the wall. The glints on his eyes darkened as he read the messages of the panel after he had tapped [[ Yes ]].
[[ Player's progress: "_ _ _ _ _ _ D E M _ _ _ : _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _" ]]
[[ To View Progress: recite "Jus ad Bellum" ]]
When the system panel receded from his view, a scoff went through Aectaeon's tightly pursed lips. A second later, he laughed inwardly at what he had received.
"Really? That's not helpful at all. It's obvious that the second word is Demons."
He didn't stop chuckling for a brief while, mocking how expectant he was of the reward. The man couldn't believe that he had a sliver of trust that the system would make things easier for him.
"I should've known better."
In light of that fact, Aectaeon cleared his mind off of the disappointment that he felt. His decision was accompanied by several heavy sighs. Before he knew it, he was back to being nonchalant about how the system treated him.
'I should focus on the game for now. It won't do me any good if I stay here.' He said to himself as he pinned his eyes on the map.
During which time he was preoccupied, he heard a knock on the door all of a sudden. Aectaeon didn't pay any attention to it and just went on with his business.
A few seconds after the knock, the door was opened. It revealed a woman who was in his mid-60's, a tray with a glass of juice in her hand.
Aectaeon met the eyes of the woman, bowing his head as a greeting.
"What brings you here?" He asked, returning his eyes to the map immediately.
When he heard no response subsequent to a few seconds, Aectaeon raised his head to look at the woman. In view of doing so, he saw a message panel similar to what Thyr had whenever it was communicating with him.
'Ah, so it was for everyone in this game. I thought it would only be when I'm communicating with demons.'
{-{ "You haven't come out of your room for a while. Your visitor has been waiting. Drink this juice then come down." }-}
"Yes, thank you. I will go down once I'm done."
{-{ "Alright, Igor. It's been a long time since you saw Krysha. Don't make her wait for too long." }-}
Aectaeon just nodded in response as he took the tray off of the woman's hand. She then took her leave, closing the door behind her.
The man laid down the tray on the study table. While on his way to the table, he was tempted to drink the juice.
"An NPC told me to drink the juice, so I will be able to drink it, right?"
As soon as his hands were free, he picked up the glass and emptied it in an instant. The feeling of drinking a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice invigorated his spirit. He then mouthed his gratitude towards the woman who gave it to him.
From there on out, Aectaeon studied the entire map, memorizing whatever he could. Once he was done, he closed all of the panels he could close. That only left him with the 'Return Countdown'.
"Now, I should get going. Today is March 12, so I have to attend the gathering tomorrow. I will be better off visiting the area where the headquarters is located."
Blithely unconcerned, he walked out of the room and made his way down to the living room. As he was on his way down, he noticed that he couldn't smell or hear anything.
"Is it because they're irrelevant to my missions? All houses have a certain smell to them. Even back in the Island of Mahak, the smell of the sun and sweat combined permeated my poor nose."
Landing on the first floor, Aectaeon quickly searched for the main door. To his right were the kitchen and the dining room. Meanwhile, to his left was the living room and where his goal was.
Aectaeon went straight towards the door and got a hold of the handle. Withal, it wouldn't budge. He tried turning it a few times, but even using his full strength couldn't make it move.
'I can't leave the house yet then. What is left in this house to do? Cook? Clean?' Aectaeon thought as he turned his back against the door.
At that instant, he saw the woman who had visited him earlier and another woman who was much younger. Aectaeon wanted to be scornful about the restriction surrounding him. Nevertheless, he stopped himself since it wouldn't help him maintain a composed mind.
'I don't want to play any fps games anymore. But if a game was this restrictive, I'd rather go back to playing a war game than drink orange juice here every day.'
Aectaeon slowly went near the sofa, taking a seat on the single couch. He looked at the old woman, then at the young one, before giving both of them a nod.
"What seems to be the matter?" He asked as he leaned back on the softness of the couch.
{-{ "Igor, I told you that Krysha is here. She has been waiting for almost half an hour." }-}
"Oh, right," Aectaeon then turned his head towards Krysha, "I'm sorry for taking too long. What do you need from me?"
The woman raised her hands, waving them as if to say that he need not apologize.
{-{ "It's me who visited without prior notice." }-}
"Then, what do you need?"
Aectaeon's frankness made the woman adamant to speak. Her shoulder slumped down as she caressed the back of her nape. The man put a smile on his face, one that hid how annoyed he was, ahead of addressing the matter once more.
"Please tell me what you need. I have somewhere to go."
{-{ "Uhm, your brother told me that-- that you can help me capture my first demon." }-}