As I walked up to the receptionist, I asked her if she knew of any magicrumb dealers. Maybe I shouldn't have led with that, because she looked at me as if I was crazy.
"This is a drug-free establishment, sir. Wait, YOU'RE THE BOOGEYMAN OF THE GUILD HALL! CAN I GET AN AUTOGRAPH?!"
"Sure whatever, just tell me where to find magicrumb dealers."
"I don't know where exactly the magicrumb dealers are, but I can tell you where to find a poor hero that fell into addiction with it. He hangs around the left alleyway of the guildhall." She directed me.
I thanked her by signing a piece of paper that she had. At this rate, I should change my name to Boogeyman.
...
Nah that doesn't sound cool at all. It doesn't even sound that scary. It's just a goofy name. I gotta change my reputation fast before this boogeyman thing sticks.
Anyway, I went to the left alleyway to find a destitute man slumped to his side. He was wearing nothing but rags and had a constant look of absentmindedness. It looked like his high was coming off because he began to take a blue crystal out of his pocket. Before he could ingest it, I smacked the drugs out of his hand, grabbed him by the collar of his rags, and began to question him.
"Where did you find the magicrumbs?"
"I-I'll take you to my dealer! Please don't hurt me..."
I let go of him and he looked through his menus to DM his dealer. It's kind of sad to see, really. This guy was probably a perfectly normal personal before he got ahold of magicrumbs. It makes me wonder if addiction transfers from the game to the real world. It wouldn't surprise me if the developers of a game like this thought of something twisted like that. Or maybe the high you get is something that can only be achieved through this specific drug? I wonder...
"Wait a minute. He's an NPC. He doesn't have UI magic. I guess we just gotta see if he's there at the usual meeting spot."
"The usual meeting spot?" I asked.
"Follow me." He began to walk off and I followed.
As we made twists and turns throughout the slums of the lower reach, the hero lead me to a storm drain that he removed the grill of and jumped into.
"Come on in!" His voice echoed in the storm drain as he called me to come in.
"All for a valuable death. All for a valuable death. All for a valuable death..." I consoled myself as I hopped into the storm drain and into the sewers.
Once I hopped in, I looked around to find that we were in the sewers. It had a torch here and there to give lighting, but for the most part, it was very dark. There were walkways that could be followed and a manmade river between the two that transported the waste.
"It surprises me that the lower reach has the funding for this."
"Heh! Yeah, there's a conspiracy that the only reason they got the funding was specifically for magicrumb distribution."
If that conspiracy is true, then that means the entire magicrumb situation goes deeper than just the Bellow family. The royal family may be involved too. That would explain why magicrumbs have been going so rampant throughout the lower reach. If the king really wanted, he could've cleaned out these sewers the whole time.
We followed the walkway and went down certain pathways until we saw a man wearing nothing but black robes and a hood. Although we were a bit ways from him, I could see his welcoming smile turn into a concerning frown once he saw me. I have a sneaking suspicion that he doesn't trust me already.
"Hey there, Fore! I got a guy here that's real interested in what you sell!" The hero waved at the man as we approached him.
The man stood there silently as we advanced to him step by step. As we stood right in front of him, he eyed me from head to toe. I forced a smile as much as possible and said "What drugs do you have...drugman?"
I can't believe I said something so stupid. There's no way that he's going to trust me. I might as well do things the hard way and force the answers out of him. Wait, why didn't I just lead off with that?! This damn idiot of a hero forced me into this conversation!
"Lots and lots! Hahahaha!" The man grabbed my hand and shook it fervently.
"I got lots of different kinds of magicrumbs. We're even making a magicrumb out of a red crystal back at the labs! It's a bit pricey but-"
I grabbed his shoulders. I can't believe these idiots wasted time and energy getting a red crystal just to turn it into a drug. They could've gotten a weapon like Potenshia or Shapios, but they threw those chances away. All for a quick high. I was so close to punching this guy right into the sewage. This is starting to get ridiculous.
"That sounds amazing! I got a hefty amount of gold on me right now that I would just love to buy drugs with! Please let me buy them!" I gritted my teeth as I asked him.
"Sure thing! The best thing is, We're making it right now! I'll lead you to the spot so you can get a sample. Come on, it's not even that far!" Fore started to walk off.
"Oh boy! I knew I was in for a treat when this armored man tried to threaten me!"
Why is this loon acting like we're going on a field trip? We're not going to some wine factory, we're going to a drug den. I might as well confirm with him if he's seen Elizabeth. He'll say no and then when he leads me to the magicrumb lab, I'll destroy the entire thing.
"Hey have you seen a girl with long brown hair and purple eyes? Her name's Elizabeth."
"Elizabeth?! OH MY GOD! YOU KNOW THE BOSS?!"
Did this guy just call Elizabeth his boss? That doesn't make any sense. Her father said that she was going to wipe out the magicrumb industry. Why would she work with the very people she hates? I'm getting more and more confused about this quest as it unfolds.
"We're here! You're gonna love it."
Fore opened what looked like a cellar door to reveal the the magicrumb lab. It had various flasks and beakers sets that I assume were used for the making of magicrumbs. There were ten tables of these sets and two people operating them. These tables were set up throughout the lab and at the center, there was a space with a circular platform and spotlight that had a woman directing everyone. She wore white robes that could easily be mistaken for a lab coat, had a short sword at her side, long shimmering brown hair, and piercing purple eyes just like just Max Gornwell.
This lady is Elizabeth Gornwell, and I couldn't believe that she was standing in front of me.
Elizabeth wore a blank expression as she directed everyone, but once she saw me, her expression changed to one of curiosity.
"Hey Boss, I just brought this guy that's interested in the red crystal we're working on!" Fore introduced me.
"Fore...is this a hero?" Elizabeth asked Fore as she looked at me. Her eyes were like daggers trying to pierce into my soul. They were both beautiful and terrifying.
"Yes! Tero here introduced me to him!" He put his hand on the shoulder of the adventurer who led me here.
Elizabeth stepped down from the platform and approached me. Once we stood there, face to face, she asked me one question.
"What are you REALLY here for?"
I never imagined that I would be meeting Elizabeth like this. Under THESE conditions. I could've sworn she was dead not even thirty minutes ago. This is the perfect opportunity to just grab her and leave. And if anyone stops me, I'll be completely justified in taking their life. I'll just be completely honest with her.
"I'm here to bring you back to the Gornwell noble family. No matter what the cost." I returned her piercing gaze.
The room fell silent as everyone stopped what they were doing to glance at us. They were all waiting for their boss' response, after all. Elizabeth's expression fell back from one of intensity to one of relaxedness.
"It's about time!"
The noblewoman unsheathed the sword at her hip and went around the room smashing each and every set around the lab, glass and incomplete magicrumbs flying everywhere. Everyone in the room was completely speechless and so was I. After all, I was led to believe that she was leading these people, but she just destroyed possibly thousands of gold's worth of equipment.
Once she finished, she wiped the sweat off of her brow and pointed her finger to the ceiling as she panted.
"My goal to wipe out the magicrumb industry is entering its conclusion right here and now!"