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Standing between the church's door was a young man, he looked to be between 13-15 years old.
His hair was black, a bit messy, his face was dirty and his body was just a bit muscular. He wasn't handsome by any means.
His clothes were a bit tattered, but Dale was already used to how things were in this village, so his shabby look didn't make his expression change at all...
Apart from his already visible surprise.
"You said it isn't going to move, can you tell me more about it?" Asked Dale the young teen
The teen looked at Dale and replied:
"It depends, I'll do it if you have the conviction to go after it after hearing my story."
But Dale still asked:
"Before we start, how do you know anything if even…"
But he was interrupted by the boy:
"Guessed as much… Outsider, you must know that our village has been on a decline for years already."
"It started even before the oldest in our village were even born. And by the time everything took a turn for the worst, they were only young children, so it's normal they don't know much about things that happened before their time, being forgotten in time."
"But some things are still passed around… And this leads us to this."
The kid sat on a chair and said as he looked at the Church:
"You did quite a good job with these, those old farts are praising you quite a lot, it was quite the bother to be compared with you by them."
Dale said as he crossed his arms:
"I can't control that… Besides, my name is Dale, it's better than calling me an outsider."
The teen shrugged.
"I would prefer for us to not get too close. Let's leave this for after you bring the Icon back, yeah?"
"..."
'He is rude... Overly so... But not arrogant at the very least.'
The young man stretched his arms and said:
"So, this church… What is its deal?"
"It has a very long story, and it's one of the few buildings from the time before the decline of the village that are still rather intact."
"As you know, this place is a church dedicated to Ju-Arkesios, God of Stability, Prosperity, and a few other things I forgot about. The church itself was operated by a Cardinal, having at its peak 2 Bishops and 12 priests."
Dale looked around the place and said:
"This place is a bit too small for such a number of people right? And if the highest authority was a Cardinal, doesn't that mean the Icon was blessed by the Pope of this religion?"
The teen nodded and clapped his hands.
"It's precisely as you said, now, a quick question, why did the Pope and his forces remained still despite the Icon having been supposedly stolen despite its importance?"
Dale thought before opening his mouth to say…
"Wrong." Interrupted the kid
"... I didn't even say anything."
"I know, but I also know your answer is wrong."
"..."
'This kid…'
The teen kid got up and said:
"The Icon was never stolen, it was hidden."
Dale opened his eyes in surprise.
'What great news!'
Looking at his expression, the kid said:
"Don't get your hopes up, there is a reason why everyone thinks it was stolen."
"This is because the Cardinal at the time, understood that the village was slowly losing its stability and would soon collapse, he hid most of the important items of the church he couldn't carry with him and switched them for fake ones to draw attention."
"The problem is that things continued to go downhill, and the Cardinal was called back to the mainland of the religion before he could retrieve everything, the two Bishops and the Priests also went with him…"
"However, he left behind a kid… One that he shouldn't have had, and this kid carried his secrets with him as well… That was my grandfather."
Dale heard the entire story and couldn't help but think this village was one hell of a strange place…
"There are a few holes in your story like… Why didn't the Church send anyone to help maintain the village? And why didn't you collect the things after so long?"
The teen laughed at his question.
"I can't blame you for being ignorant."
"..."
"First things first, I am not aware of everything, the reasons as to why this village started to decay and be abandoned are beyond me, you should try your luck with someone else like the Village Master."
[DING]
[Chain Quest Activated, Resko's past
Find out what happened to the old Village of Resko 0/?
??? 0/1
??? 0/1
??? 0/1
]
"But the past is of no importance for us. I only told you this to give a bit of context."
"As for the reason why no one tried to get it… Well, there was no one capable enough of doing it. The Church itself is another story... I have no idea what is passing on those guys' minds..."
This made Dale confused.
"So first things first, the only ones that know anything about this would be the Priests and Bishops, but they left a long time ago, as, for my grandfather, he wasn't capable of doing so and almost died trying to think of a way to do it."
"My father tried, but he also failed, his crippled leg is proof of it. And now, it comes to me… But I am not like them, I have no intention of risking my life for something that has absolutely nothing to do with me anymore."
Dale replied:
"So why not just leave it to the village?"
The boy said as he shook his head:
"That isn't an option. First, my father would be disappointed in me, second, I can't allow the people in the village to have hope in something that will never happen, third, I can't have them risk their own lives to get such a feeble thing."
"And in the end, this will affect me and the village's already wobbly stability. Did that answer your question?"
"And in any case, thankfully, you appeared to ease my worries!"
"... How so?" Asked Dale as he felt a headache coming
The young man said nothing. He walked past Dale and into the stage where the Altar was located.
He pulled out a small object and lodged it inside a difficult-to-se hole before he twisted it until a 'clack!' was heard.
Following that he pulled and pushed a few more pieces until he used his body to push the altar, but nothing happened…
"Help me here for a moment… The mechanism must be stuck after so many years of disrepair…"
Dale rolled his eyes and helped the boy push the altar, and with a loud sound, it started to move with the ground, revealing a thin staircase into the dark.
"So this was the answer…" Said Dale as he looked at the hole
'There was an entire mechanism hidden... This altar wasn't glued, it probably connects to a series of mechanisms... Cool, one mystery down... Many more to go.'
"Phew… Okay, I'll tell you what to do now."
The teen rested his back on the altar and said with a smile:
"The village of Resko is actually built on top of a complex maze of passageways and tunnels, why? Don't ask because I have no fucking idea."
"Who did it? Ha! I don't care and don't know, in that order."
"The only thing that I know is that this is probably the only entrance since the rest is either broken and lost or buried in the sand and dirt over the decades."
Dale thought for a moment before he asked:
"So what now?"
"Simple, somewhere down there is the Icon, there should also be a few interesting items and things to collect… Treat them as an extra reward… If you can keep them." He said with a cheeky smile
The teen started to leave, but he said one last thing:
"I know you must be thinking: What if I try to flee with the things and bla bla bla… Well, first, the place is very dangerous. Traps are numerous and I am sure some nasty things may have taken it as their home, who knows?"
"Second, I dare you to try and escape, I bet you aren't even going to leave the gates before one of the old farts cuts you down, so yeah, good luck, and remember to stay on guard, that place already crippled enough people…" He said as he waved his left hand
[Your quest has been updated]
[Lost Icon
Description: Without an Icon, the believers cannot commune with their God, nor can you proceed with your plans and get a Class.
If you do find a replacement for it they would be just as grateful nonetheless.
A Church is a vital part of any territory, and a spiritual Pillar is necessary for any territory, especially one in dire conditions.
* The Icon was never lost, instead, it was hidden inside the complicated labyrinth that runs below the village and its surroundings.
Find the lost Icon 1/1
The lost Icon lies somewhere deep with the old Labyrinth of Resko, recover it 0/1
Or find a suitable replacement 0/1
]
[Your quest has been updated]
[Resko's past
Find out what happened to the old Village of Resko 0/?
??? 0/1
*The Village of Resko is built on top of the ruins of a Labyrinth.
-Find out why 0/1
??? 0/1
??? 0/1
#You heard that this village once held an incredibly precious Icon for the Church of Ju-Arkesios, having once a Cardinal, 2 Bishops, and 12 Priests.
#During its downfall, the Church did not send help and instead just retreated.
]
Dale finished reading through all of the messages and thought:
'Alright… This was definitely not coincidental… This probably happened due to my efforts in increasing my Reputation!'
'And it also showed me one thing, and that is the fact that the chain quests only progress if I pay attention to my surroundings.'
'If I do not ask a question at the right time, or if I do not have the requirements, nothing will happen at all. I need to be ready and pay attention to the NPCs words and the environment…'
Dale gazed at the dark hole.
"Hum… Still, even if the quest updated, I can't trust that kid too much, I need to proceed forward with caution…"
Dale took out his best shield and held it in his left hand while he carried his spear with his right one.
"Time to rock!"
'I'll start with my current gear because of the temporary Skill, Explorer Sense 3.5-Star, but if things prove to be too hard and the conditions fit, I will change to my other set.'
Dale slowly descended the dark stairs…
[DING]
[You have discovered a hidden Dungeon, Labyrinth of Resko]
[Respawn point set]
[For the next week, all drops and XP will be doubled, with the chance of acquiring rare items being increased and the death penalty has been decreased as long as you don't leave the Dungeon]
{The Dungeon is readjusting…}
[You were the first player to discover a Dungeon, would you like to leave your name in the Hall of Fame?]
"Wow… Thank you game, I really needed this Respawn point and that death penalty readjustment…"
"Forget the Hall of Fame, I don't want to pressure the other players into leaving the tutorial faster…"
Shaking his head, Dale took his first step into the Dungeon's first floor.
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Notes
I did some changes due to how I wrote the next few chapters, but this was done during the edit so it may be inaccurate and I may change it again after posting this chapter.
In any case, its rather late and I need to sleep, peace!