Abel had sold off all the monster parts after parting ways with Coinweaver, he'd meet the young merchant again to get his last share of their deal but their pact had officially come to an end. After he logged off and ate a late breakfast alone, he instantly went to bed and got up just now, a little after 11 am on Luminara.
'It's too hot to exercise now…'
The weather was warming up as May progressed and he wasn't keen on working out in the noon heat. He decided to postpone his exercise until the night and made himself a light lunch before diving back into the virtual world.
Whoooooooooosh
He was standing in the middle of the old study, ready for another long day of reading.
The old guardian's notes were much greater in quantity than his brothers, he had barely gone through 30% of the records by the time the sun was setting. Most of the journals were just mundane pieces of information the old man would write down when he had the time.
There were still some informative sections that widened his knowledge about the region.
For example, Radiant Pearls were found in the deep-sea trenches surrounding the islands of Caelondia. These pearls were highly sought after by the noble NPC's, especially the females among them and were therefore worth a great deal of gold coins.
There was also Glowbloom Nectar that was a valuable alchemical ingredient, often used in potion-making and alchemy. Similarly, the Aurora Shell's that could be found along the island coasts were also always in demand. When ground into a powder, these shells create a magical pigment, often used in the creation of magical inks and dyes. A Magiscribe would usually write out an agreement using such an ink, they were a rare good that were always in demand.
He didn't notice the passage of time until old man Rye roused him from his readings.
"It's time child, we should head out."
"I'm ready sir."
He quickly got up, putting the books back in place. When they stepped out of the house, Old man Rye grabbed his shoulder and a few seconds later, they were standing at a side door in one of the Palace's outer walls.
'Oh shit… I might puke.'
Abel barely held the nauseating feeling he was subjected to, his head was spinning and he was seeing the ground and sky flipped on each other. Thankfully, his resilience stat helped him and the dizziness quickly subsided before he vomited the black bread and water he had eaten an hour ago.
"Not bad, you did better than I expected." Old man Rye nodded to himself, happy with Abel's resilience.
'Was that pure speed… it should be. I don't recall his journals ever writing about his magical abilities, he should be a pure warrior.'
Abel would have been terrified of this experience were it not for the fact he had reached friendly favorability. This further reaffirmed the need for him to excel in this quest, he couldn't fail it no matter what. Just the thought of making this old man his enemy sent shivers down his spine.
Old man Rye didn't speak a word to the guards, he didn't even flash a token but walked through the door. He called out to the dazed Abel, telling him to keep up.
After crossing the threshold, an immediate sense of grandeur and majesty enveloped him. The air carried a delicate fragrance of exotic flowers, mingling with the subtle hint of polished stone. The palace before him stood majestically, a marvel of architecture with towering spires and ornate domes, reflecting the dual moonlight in a dazzling array of colors.
Abel gulped as the grounds opened up expansively, they were adorned with meticulously manicured gardens. Elaborate botanical art pieces of mythical creatures and intricate mosaics of vibrant flowers creating a serene sense of natural artistry.
'If I activate the record function, I wonder how much this video would sell for.'
The recent mention of the paid forums ignited an idea that he couldn't simply brush off, so he called up his interface and activated the recording function. Although it would cost him coins every minute he recorded, he hoped he'd make them back through uploading the video behind a paid post.
The need to pay coins to make the recording was put in place so that streamers would have a cost beyond just the pod, registration and subscription. Like Samuel had said, it wasn't easy to make money in the world of Faeron.
The first hour of recording would be priced at 1 silver per minute, beyond an hour it would jump to 2 silvers, 2 hour later it would double again and again. This would also prevent very long video's from eating up the cloud servers' bandwidth, people would be forced to keep their videos short if only to save themselves the expense.
As the young and old both walked along the cobblestone paths, the uniform sound of flowing water from the fountains harmonized with the distant melodies of nocturnal birds. Each step would reveal new wonders — beautifully decorated reflective pools, archways adorned with intricate carvings and various courtyards surrounding the grand palace in the center.
As they continued, they came across palace guards, resplendent in their regal armor, surveying the grounds or standing at attention. They didn't bother them, apparently knowing full well who the old man was, not even scrutinizing Abel since he was walking alongside the old guardian.
Walking through the palace grounds wasn't just a simple journey for Abel; it was an immersive experience in itself.
When they reached a side building, Abel switched off the recording function and stepped inside with the old man. He had no idea where they were but if he had to venture a guess, then it should be the royal library.
He was somewhat surprised it wasn't within the palace itself, but if it didn't hold any sensitive secrets then placing it in a separate building outside would be the better option. Perhaps ministers or court officials might need to access some information, having to come into the palace for every scroll would be a hassle and create extra work for the guards.
An old but skinny man was standing at the hall's entrance, waiting for their arrival.
"Child, this is the royal bookkeeper. You can call him old Ren, if you have any questions then ask him. He should be able to direct you to any sections you need."
"Sorry to trouble you sir." Abel greeted the man courteously but the man's reaction surprised him.
"Not at all young lord. It is my pleasure to be of aid to you, you may ask me anything. I know these records better than my own family tree."
Abel was about to correct him but he held his tongue at the last second. He figured the man was acting this way due to the old guardian personally bringing him here.
"I would like to ask about the forbidden zones of the world. Do you have any records pertaining to these areas? Especially locations that hold mountains."
"Hmmm… we do have such information." Old Ren replied after a few moments of thought, as though he had the library and its contents in his mind and he was simply skimming through them. "They aren't complete though, the forbidden zone of Caelondia is the most complete of the lot but it doesn't have any mountains. We do hold some records about the other forbidden zones in different regions."
"I'll leave you in old Ren's care. I'll go check on that kid, see how he's doing now." Old man Rye simply walked off while old Ren and Abel didn't dare say anything about the old man's way of addressing the future king.
He followed the old bookkeeper into the royal library and was stunned by the grandeur before him. The tall columns and ornate sculptures hanging off the high ceiling were a spectacular sight. If it weren't for all the books around them, then he would have though he was entering a high-value art gallery. The smell of dried parchment and ink overwhelmed his olfactory senses but thankfully, there was no dust. It was obvious how well-maintained the library was.
He was eventually led to a section between the different bookshelves. The place was filled with dozens of 3-meter high bookshelves, requiring a ladder to reach the top shelf.
"These 2 shelves should hold all the information you seek young lord. This one here holds information about the Cursed Trenches, Caelondia's forbidden zone. The other shelf holds all the information we currently have about the other forbidden zones in the world… Though I must admit, they aren't much in comparison."
The old bookkeeper pulled out half a dozen books and said, "These are the introductory books to each known forbidden zone within the world."
"Thank you sir, I'm certain I'll be able to find the answers here."
"Please young lord, call me old Ren. If you need to leave, just make use of this token upon return and the enchantments will allow you to enter."
Old Ren pulled out a token with the royal crest on it but it had an additional symbol overlapping it. It was a scroll with a quill overheard, signifying it as a place of wisdom and knowledge.
Abel nodded and respectfully took hold of the token, tucking it away in his spacial bag. Once the old man gave him a reminder to call out if he needed anything, he left him alone.
'While others are getting exciting quests and go out adventuring, I'm always stuck reading. But all this reading does have its plus points… No use in procrastinating, I should take a look at each of the forbidden zones and dive deeper into their details.'
He wasn't sure how long he would need to go through everything, but he knew dallying would only be a waste of time. He took a deep breath and reached out to one of the books, he got started with his new reading session right away.