Chapter 574: Contract of Sorts
Translator: Dess Editor: EbonyFrost
When Kieran came back to his game lobby, the rating notifications popped.
[Sixth Official Dungeon: City of Fiends]
[Dungeon Type: Free Mission]
[Dungeon Difficulty: Average]
[Main Mission: Solve at least 1 special case in 1 week]
[Mission Completion: 100% (Rating F)]
[Case Solved 1: Devour Woman]
[Case Solved 2: Puppet Fiend]
[Case Solved 3: Flurry Blade Ghost]
[Rating increased: F → C]
[Sub mission 1: The Intercepted Supporter]
[Mission Completion: 100% (Rating C → B)]
[Sub mission 2: Backstreet Kitchen]
[Mission Completion: 100% (Rating B → A)]
[Sub mission 3: Butcher's Massacre
[Mission Completion: 100% (Rating A → S)]
[Special event: Unusual Quake]
[Perfect rating: S → ZZ]
[Battle Performance: Very Active (Rating ZZ → ZZZ)]
[Exploration Performance: Average]
[Special Rating 1: Complete main mission in advance (Rating ZZZ → V)]
[Special Rating 2: Defeated Ren, one of the 21 Fiend Exorcists (Rating V → VV, Rep +1)]
[Player final rating: VV!]
[Calculating dungeon reward…]
[Final player rewards as follows…]
[Points: 200,000; Skill Points: 50; Golden Skill Points: 6; Golden Attribute Points: 6]
[Acquired Special Dungeon: City of Fiends II]
[Acquired Special Reward 1: Saint Brilliant High School teacher employment letter]
[Acquired Special Reward 2: Gang distribution map of Flame City]
[Acquired Special Reward 3: Sewer distribution map of Flame City]
...
[Detected player brought out identifiable life form from dungeon, deduct 10,000 Points…]
[Detected player hasn't formed a contract with an identifiable life form, identifiable life form will cost extra 1000 Points per non-contracted day…]
[Note 1: Non-contracted life form will cost player extra points during entering and exiting dungeon]
[Note 2: Non-contracted life form will not cost points in dungeon world]
...
Kieran went over his dungeon clear rating and directly ignored the [Special Reward] section.
After glancing over the points and skill points, his attention was placed at the very end.
"Contract?"
It didn't come to him as a surprise though. Kieran did see how the loner Raven fought previously. Just that he needed to estimate the price for a contract.
Judging from how expensive the equipment cost for Chosen Ones, his current Points and Skill Points were not sufficient to meet ends because there was another [Dark Nether Stone] waiting to be embedded.
The embedding cost of the [Dark Nether Stone] would surely be more expensive than the previous [Ghastly Sapphire] which had already cost him 300,000 Points. After all, the [Ghastly Sapphire] was just a Rare gemstone and the [Dark Nether Stone] was a Legendary.
At the same time, Kieran still remembered [Wilco's Grudge] that he gave Lawless to dispel the curse at the curse dispeller.
Even though Lawless said he owed Kieran a debt of gratitude, based on Kieran's understanding of Lawless, if the process would require any extra fees, Lawless would definitely pay with his own funds.
Kieran then took out the spoils of war from the last dungeon world from the [Crimson Ghost Stomach].
Two machine guns, two low tier Magic rank items and [Blood Cleaver of Flurry], [Floating Ring] together with some [Repel Potion], and [Conceal Potion].
Lastly, the box that was unsealed by Artitelgar.
Kieran took the box and opened it up.
His game lobby room was definitely the place that set his mind at ease the most, so he opened it up without any hesitation.
Inside the box was a black item the size of a palm. When Kieran took it out of the box, he was surprised that it was a piece of scale.
[Name: Great Swamp Scale]
[Type: Scale]
[Rarity: Legendary]
[Attack: ?]
[Defense: ?]
[Attributes: ?]
[Effect: ?]
[Prerequisite: A Gift from Great Swamp]
[Remark: It isn't a dragon scale but it has its own magical properties!]
...
"Great Swamp Scale?" Kieran muttered softly.
Any extra layer of speculation was added on what Perforation Sting wanted to achieve.
Undoubtedly, the scale didn't belong to Artitelgar, so there was only one explanation left, Artitelgar's father... if what Artitelgar said was the truth...
"A plot revolving around the scale of Artitelgar's father? What could it be?"
Kieran mumbled as he looked towards the description of [City of Fiends II]
[City of Fiends II: Perforation Sting is much more vicious than the rumors had it after you've accidentally disrupted their plans, you are treated as a thorn in their side…]
[Main mission: Begins when enters the dungeon!]
"A pursuit for my life?" Kieran wondered.
Though he shook his head quickly.
Even if Perforation Sting did want his life, it would be after [The Queen's Shield II], [Primordial Invasion II], [The Shaman's Partner IV] and another normal dungeon run.
Three special dungeons plus one normal dungeon would present Kieran with sufficient strength to keep himself alive. He was confident of that.
At the same time, Kieran realized the pros of a special dungeon once more. Not only would it not add to the normal dungeon count, it would also grant him extra strength to maximize his rewards in a normal dungeon with ease.
Last but not least, the window of breathing!
Without the three special dungeons buffering time, Kieran couldn't even dare imagine how he would face the Gods in [City of Fiends].
"Lucky!"
After being fortunate of the breathing window, Kieran was concerned about the problem at hand, which was the lack of required points.
"I must find the contract first, otherwise the Fire Raven will definitely be an infinite abyss."
Entering and exiting a dungeon would cost Kieran 10,000 Points plus an extra 1000 Points for each day spent without a contract. Even though the Fire Raven would not cost any points inside a dungeon, but as the days accumulated, it would be a great sum as well.
Once the thought struck him, Kieran felt like his flesh was being sliced open.
He opened up his PM tab and contacted Raven.
...
2567: How much points to form a contract with the system identifiable life form?
2567: Have any?
After sending two messages, Kieran was ready for a long wait knowing how Raven's character behaved. Kieran then opened up his message tab to PM Blacksmith in order to save time.
However, out of Kieran's expectations, before he could leave a message for Blacksmith, Raven gave him a reply.
Raven: You need a companion contract, cost around 100K Points.
Raven: I don't have it now, but someone is dealing in Harvest Inn.
Chapter 575: Osiris Brew
Translator: Dess Editor: EbonyFrost
Harvest Inn, the gathering spot for a portion of the lone wolf players.
During dungeon intervals, many players would gather at the place to trade off the spoils of war from the previous dungeons. Most of the deals made were scattered but when some Rare items appeared in the inn, bigger dealing ranges would take form.
The only exception was whenever Lemour the Alchemist appeared in the inn.
Fortunately, the alcoholic alchemist wasn't in the Harvest Inn that day.
Lawless who always lingered in the inn wasn't present either.
After sending a message to Lawless, Kieran glanced over the handful of customers in the inn.
Rachel, the owner was behind the bar counter, wiping her glasses. Her blonde hair shone brilliantly under the lights, even her purple bib pants and white shirt were reflecting the lights, making her look very energetic and experienced with an added layer of exoticness.
Though, the usual lone wolf players of the inn knew the true nature of the female owner. No one dared to take an extra look at her as they turned their head down, minding their own business.
Therefore, none of them saw Rachel's absent-minded state when Kieran walked in.
"Crow…" Rachel mumbled like a fly's buzz and stared at Kieran blankly.
The black figure plus the new Fire Raven on his left shoulder converged with the image in her memories buried deep in her heart which she still hadn't forgotten.
"Hey, Rachel!" Kieran reached out to greet her.
"Hmm!"
Rachel replied with a cold tone and tilted her head down in silence. She looked like she was wiping the glasses but the white linen cloth in her hands had completely stopped working.
Rachel then turned around, showing her back to Kieran. Droplets of water started to wet the white linen cloth in her hands.
Kieran was looking at the scene awkwardly as he touched his nose.
He couldn't be as reckless and carefree as when he was with Lawless though. Although Kieran acknowledged Rachel as a friend, the difference between man and woman prevented Kieran to act naturally like he did with Lawless.
Kieran knew that he wasn't skilled in handling such a situation, so he directly went over to Raven sitting in the other corner.
"A decent companion!"
Raven said after inspecting the Fire Raven on Kieran's shoulder.
It was the first thing Raven said when Kieran sat down, however, Kieran went directly to the point. "Where's the player selling the companion contract?"
Since he stepped into Harvest Inn, Kieran glanced over the available players at the place.
Other than Raven, there were couple more lone wolf players yet none of them were showing items to trade or screenshots of items.
"There!"
Raven pointed at the other corner of the inn without any wasteful words and continued caressing the cat in his arms with his head down.
Kieran carefully observed the cat in Raven's arms but it was just a stray cat of the big city, there was nothing special about it.
Raven then went quiet again. It also added another layer of understanding to Kieran's impression of the title Loner.
Kieran then went over to the direction that Raven pointed without caring whether the person at the other corner saw him or not.
Harvest Inn wasn't big by any means. It would only take a few big steps to reach the other corner.
As Kieran went over to the potential seller, he pulled out the chair of his table and sat down.
"You have the companion contract?"
"Hmm."
The player nodded and pulled out a screenshot.
[Name: Companion Contract]
[Type: Contract]
[Rarity: Magic]
[Attribute: Form a contract with any life form that fits the regulations, to become your companion and fight with you. (Doesn't include natives)]
[Prerequisite: None]
[Remark: You can choose any life form within the regulations, cats, dogs, even birds. As long as you aren't afraid of their death!]
....
Below the screenshot was a price tag of 100,000 Points. An optimal price on the market.
Kieran glanced over the [Companion Contract] and sent out a trade request before placing his eyes on the player himself.
A camouflage bulletproof vest with a big handgun at his waist, the gun model was concealed but it should be a unique one. Under the vest was a military outfit, together with, multi-purpose military pants plus a pair of military boots.
If it wasn't for that big handgun, the person would look like a newbie player that had just purchased a set of armor from the system shop.
"Disguise? Or something else that I don't know off?" Kieran wondered after his habitual commentating.
Surprisingly, the player rejected the trade request.
"2567?" The player asked.
Even though with a covered face, Kieran could pick up the disdainful tone from his words and tone.
Kieran raised a brow and kept quiet, waiting for a follow-up reaction.
"I, General will never sell things to anyone who is related to that fricking bastard Lawless!" He said.
General? Kieran suddenly went into deep thoughts, and moments later he recalled the conversation that he had with Lawless before.
"General? That business grabbing prick hasn't died yet? That bastard is a business competitor in my mercenary business. Not too strong, though his reputation was guaranteed!"
As the conversation floated in Kieran's mind, he knew this trade was off.
Lawless wasn't a saint, he too had friends and enemies.
Kieran and Lawless were friends and General before him wasn't really Lawless's enemy but definitely a rival.
Even though both of them hadn't reached the fighting stages, sneering and mocking between the two was inevitable.
The enemy of my enemy is my friend.
So what would the rival of my friend be?
Enemy! Without a doubt!
Kieran stood up and walked off without a second thought.
Kieran never had the intentions of staying on and try to work on the deal either.
While enjoying the convenience that Lawless brought him, would he still wish for Lawless's rival to have a decent conversation with him?
Kieran wasn't that naive nor did he have a thick face.
Since the deal was off, Kieran didn't plan on staying in Harvest Inn for long.
He would leave the place after he greeted Rachel again. Though before Kieran could utter a word, Rachel presented him with a glass of wine.
[Name: Orange Light Sorante]
[Type: Wine]
[Rarity: Fresh]
[Attribute: Recover 100 HP within 10 seconds, recovery rate increased by +100%]
[Prerequisite: None]
[Remark: This is a special cocktail cooked up by Rachel, the taste is nothing special but it has a special effect!]
...
Kieran took up the glass of cocktail and looked at Rachel with a confused face.
"Drink it! It's good for you!" Rachel said softly.
"Do I have a choice?" Kieran smiled and toasted his glass.
With much experience in talking with Rachel, when she spoke with such a tone, it was definitely a serious one, so it would be best for Kieran to play along.
More so, Kieran believed that Rachel wouldn't hurt him.
So, bottoms up!
The wine in the glass was a little harsh on the smell but it tasted sour and sweet and wasn't as spicy as it smelled.
"A little fruit j…"
Before the word "juice" could escape his mouth, Kieran plunged his head on to the wine bar as snores echoed the area.
Just before Kieran fell asleep, the system notification popped up before him.
[Player consumed Osiris Brew…]
Chapter 576: Nightfall
Translator: Dess Editor: EbonyFrost
Kieran fell asleep.
It was a deep sleep that he barely experienced before in recent years.
There wasn't any stress, any goals to achieve, all he did was sleep.
When he woke up, he instinctively stretched his body and after the gesture, the sudden realization hit him.
He was looking at Rachel who was still wiping the wine glasses in doubt.
Subconsciously, he opened up the system notification tab.
[Player consumed Osiris Brew…]
That was the only notification in recent time but it was sufficient at the moment.
He remembered what he drank was [Orange Light Sorante] not [Osiris Brew]
"Rachel, I…"
"My bad, I took the wrong cocktail for you. That was supposed to be Lawless's punishment. Well, consider yourself a fish caught up in a disaster." Rachel answered Kieran directly.
She then passed Kieran a contract scroll.
"Both of you are friends, so it's quite okay if you want to take the punishment for him but I don't want him haunting me after this… So, you know, consider that compensation. It's what you wanted right? A companion contract."
Rachel didn't care about Kieran after she spoke and concentrated on her wine mixing.
Kieran took the companion contract though his instinct was telling him Rachel was hiding something but he couldn't gather enough proof to prove as such.
Nothing changed in his character tab and attribute tabs anyway, Rachel's explanation made sense as well because every one of the veterans knew the relationship between Rachel and Lawless. The compensation scroll in his hand was real as well.
Why not ask other bystanders then?
Kieran turned around and saw the empty inn. The few players that lingered had disappeared long ago.
Rachel seemed like didn't want to talk about it further either so after Kieran used the [Companion Contract] on the Fire Raven, he left Harvest Inn after completing the contract process.
It was already at night outside. The sky was full of stars.
The big city in the game also had a day and night reflection of the real world.
Kieran raised his head at the unknown constellation and raised a brow.
He seldom came out to the big city in the game at night.
He spent most of his time strengthening himself so he barely left his room. The other point was Lawless mentioned before the night in the big city was very dangerous, especially after the player killers appearance.
"I slept for a whole day?" Kieran mumbled as he quickly headed towards the train station.
At the same time, he also checked his PM tab for messages.
There were two in fact. One was from Blacksmith and the other from Lawless.
Blacksmith's message told him that the appraisal of [Dark Nether Stone] had been completed and was available for embedding but Kieran would need to follow her schedule.
Lawless' message was about the trouble that the curse dispeller had and he had to lend his hand.
Blacksmith's name was grayed out at the time. Obviously, the female player was still persistent in differentiating between virtual and reality.
Kieran then opened up Lawless's message tab straightaway.
…...
2567: Where are u?
Lawless: Almost done!
Lawless replied almost instantly yet Kieran frowned.
2567: Where are u?
...
Kieran asked once more.
Kieran understood Lawless well enough, helping the curse dispeller was part of his character but the other part was because Kieran requested the curse dispeller to help him remove the curse on [Wilco's Grudge].
With Lawless nagging attitude, a simple and quick answer like that meant the trouble was not something small.
Just like how Kieran understood Lawless, Lawless too shared the same understanding of Kieran.
When Kieran repeated his question for the second time, he knew Kieran was serious. If Lawless didn't want the situation to get out of hand, it was best he go along with Kieran.
...
Lawless: Donaville Street, Small Path Square.
2567: I'll be there in a moment!
...
After the message, Kieran dashed out frenziedly from his casual walk, however, a couple of figures blocked his way in front of the train station.
A total of four people sharing the same look of a black cap and mantled body, meaning the four of them were from the same organization and the weapons in their hand were reeking of malicious presence. It seemed like they were not there for a friendly visit.
The four of them dashed out to Kieran the moment they saw him without even asking anything.
The group of four dashed out in a "one front, three back" formation. The player in front reached out both his hands straight and two barrels of a Gatling gun sprung out from his palm.
Dak Dak Dak Dak Dak Dak!
Dak Dak Dak Dak Dak Dak!
The barrels rotated rapidly as bullets shells came off from his shoulder.
The bullets were like a heavy downpour of rain, almost enveloping Kieran whole.
Kieran didn't even dodge the barrage of bullets as [Primus Scale] was activated, he took the bullets head on and closed in on to the firing player.
Ding Ding Ding Ding!
Bullets were sprayed at the Powerful force field barrier, sparks splashed all over upon contact. The translucent barrier started to shake under the relentless fire, seemingly ready to fall apart at any moment.
But before the barrier was even broken Kieran already appeared before the firing player.
The firing player would never have thought the scene would unfold like that. He was so used to the scene when he fired his Gatling gun, his targets would scatter in all directions so the remaining three of his teammates would clean up the battlefield easily.
So, when the bewitching greatsword was swung down at him, he didn't have any chance to evade.
Tsssing!
A red line started from the middle of his brows and extended downwards. The next moment, the body was split in half, plunging into the ground and disintegrating into light particles.
Souuuuuu!
A giant net sprung up above Kieran's head.
The net was made out of ropes but even under the stars and moon, it was glittering in a metallic glint. Just as the net was about to catch Kieran, the net was sparkling with electricity.
An electric net!
Yet it was not much of a use.
The already activated Powerful barrier plus [Secondary Elemental Damage Resistance] and [Body of Evil] allowed Kieran to completely neglect the numbing effect of electricity.
Wuung!
[Arrogant Word] was swept out horizontally. The other two players pulling the net were sliced in half at the waist.
The last remaining player though turned around and ran for his life without even showing the courage to fight back.
Bang!
[Python-W2]'s bullet blasted of the crown of the running player's skull. The moment his brain splattered out, his body twitched a little before it disintegrated into light particles.
Honor Kills notifications then came right after.
The group of four presented Kieran with 30,000 Points and 15 Skill Points, plus their room keys.
Yet Kieran wasn't delighted at all as he frowned even harder after the quick battle.
Something was wrong! The attacker before him was not right!
"It wasn't the familiar player killers. They have a general understanding of my strength by now, especially after that battle with Black Hell Banning, they wouldn't put up such a rash setup to ambush me. Maybe they are just the player killers that prey on common players during the night?" Kieran's brow almost stuck together.
The reason that he came up with couldn't even persuade himself.
The moment Lawless required his support and just so coincidentally, a bunch of player killers appeared at the train station and struck him without asking anything?
No matter which side Kieran looked at it, it wasn't a coincidence.
"Maybe someone sent them here to intercept me from giving support to Lawless?" Kieran guessed.
Kieran then quickly sent out a couple messages to the other acquaintances player yet none of them replied.
Kieran's heart turned heavy.
When he saw the train come around, he boarded it without further ado.
Though, the scene within the carriage caused him to squint his eyes.
The same black cap mantled figures were all over his sight.