For over four weeks, Broken had spent his time on the mountaintop surrounded by dense forests and numerous monsters, along with three strangers he had met by chance. Over time, they had shared many experiences, from hunting monsters to joking around together. Although Broken remained more passive, mostly responding to their jokes, he appreciated their company.
As usual, they would spend some time in the evenings around the campfire near their tents, laughing and talking about their day's adventures.
PussyCat, who had long blonde hair cascading down her left shoulder, smiled warmly at Broken and inquired, "It looks like you're getting close to completing your quest, right?"
"Yes," Broken replied. "I just need one more Moonstone to complete my quest."
RememberMe then chimed in with a laugh, "I'm actually enjoying this mountain more now that I get to fight monsters every day, and my level goes up quickly too. Ha ha ha!"
Forev interjected, "That's not what you said when Broken wasn't here."
PussyCat added, "You said being here was boring because you couldn't bully weak players, right?"
"Hahaha… but that doesn't change the fact that it's fun here. My level goes up faster than usual," RememberMe admitted.
"That's because you're always distracted by your stupid antics everywhere you go," Forev continued.
Broken smiled, his face illuminated by the light from the roaring campfire. "I can't express enough how grateful I am for all you've done for me."
"So, it seems you're finally accepting us as friends?" PussyCat said with a light chuckle.
"That's not what I meant," he replied, realizing he had subconsciously been shutting himself off from the three.
"Who wouldn't be annoyed if they met this idiot RememberMe, huh?" Forev interjected. "If I hadn't known him first, I probably would have killed him on sight in the game!"
"You guys still blame me?" RememberMe said with a laugh. "I've apologized thousands of times already, you know!"
"A gift, or special power, is something that should be kept very well hidden," PussyCat said, causing the others to look at her in surprise. "I understand why you don't want to join our party, even though we've been adventuring together for a few weeks."
"That's definitely true," RememberMe said assertively. "He seems to have something amazing that he's keeping to himself like he's been given a special gift from the deities!"
Broken smiled softly and replied, "Not really. I'm just not used to being in a party; I've only been playing this game by myself for the past year because I don't have a lot of time to play."
"You don't seem to have a limited amount of time playing games," Forev interjected.
Broken continued, "I mean, the first year I played this game, I didn't have much time. But in the last few weeks, I've decided to focus more on playing this game."
"You certainly have something interesting planned for the future, don't you?" PussyCat asked.
"Why don't you create a guild, Master?" RememberMe exclaimed, grinning. "We would be more than happy to become your first-ever members. And if you still have any objections, I don't mind being your slave in the game, hahaha…."
"Guild?" Broken murmured softly.
Broken was silent for a moment, processing the word "guild." He wanted to play the game more seriously, and he knew that owning or belonging to a guild was necessary to achieve that. However, he hadn't thought that far ahead yet, plus he had no experience managing people. As an introvert, he was more comfortable working and moving around alone.
"I think you guys are overestimating me. I'm not…. that great," he said, "but thanks, I'll think about it."
Afterward, Broken persisted in his mining quest, growing increasingly passionate with each passing day. With only one more Moonstone required to finish his quest and descend the mountain, he had thus far collected four low-grade Moonstones, far from the high or medium quality he had hoped for.
Regardless, he was content, having also obtained a wealth of resources from hunting monsters and collecting iron ore.
At last, the notification that he had been eagerly anticipating arrived.
[Congratulations! You've obtained 1 high-quality Moonstone!]
"Yes! Yes! Finally! I made it!" he shouted loudly and threw himself onto the ground with satisfaction.
"Hahahaha," he laughed freely, feeling the joy of his hard-earned success.
He shouted in excitement, his body shaking with joy. He picked up the shimmering stone and held it aloft.
The other three people rushed toward him and congratulated him on his success.
"Congrats!" PussyCat said cheerfully. "I'm so happy for you."
"Well done, Broken," Forev added.
"Uh yeah!" RememberMe screamed. "I'm sure you can craft something legendary with that sparkling stone, right?"
Broken lifted his face, smiling at the three people. "Thanks, now we can get off this mountain," he said.
After completing all the requirements of the quest, the four of them did not waste any time and descended from the mountain the next day, returning to Deadbay City.
When they stopped in the plaza at the city center, Broken jumped off the carriage and said his goodbyes.
"If you ever need my help, please let me know," he said, as they had added each other as friends and could now send messages to one another.
Beaming with excitement, Broken raced to Gia's residence. In a few short minutes, he stood before the wooden door of the old house. He knocked on the door, and soon enough, he heard the familiar voice of an old woman - Gia.
The door creaked open, and there stood Gia. "You have returned?" she said, puzzled.
"Yes!" Broken replied, grinning from ear to ear. "I have successfully completed the quest that you gave me."
Gia raised her head, and her eyes widened. There was a moment of silence before she spoke with a trembling voice. "You managed to mine the Moonstone?"
"Yes," Broken nodded quickly.
The two of them then entered Gia's house, and Broken proudly presented her with the Moonstone he had managed to mine.
She seemed to tremble with excitement at the sight of the high-quality Moonstone in front of her.
"You managed to get this high-quality Moonstone in just a few weeks of mining?" she said, looking back at Broken with admiration.
"Yes," Broken nodded quickly again.
Gia then smiled broadly, "I think I should give you a higher reward than this."
Gia stood up from her chair, walked into another room, and returned with a wooden box in her hands. She carefully placed it on the table and spoke in a low voice.
"My husband spent decades chasing that dream. However, it seems that he can rest easy now, as a young man has proven his capability to continue that dream."
Broken tried his best to process the information Gia was giving him, eager to learn more about the significance of the Moonstone.
Gia opened the box and presented its contents to Broken. "I think you deserve this," she said.
[Your affinity with Gia has strengthened to 45%.]
[Broken was finally able to prove his competence, which moved Gia's heart as it was reminiscent of what her late husband had dreamed of and fought for. It seemed that there was somebody else who was equally passionate about continuing his legacy.]
Broken slowly shifted his gaze to the contents of the wooden box when he was suddenly presented with a flurry of notifications in front of him.
[The quest "The Heirloom of the Moonstone Miners" has been upgraded to an A-rating, which will significantly increase the rewards for successful completion.]
[Congratulations! You have completed the quest.]
[You have earned 1 High-Quality Moonstone.]
[You have earned 1 The Unseen Universe Necklace Blueprint.]
"Blueprint?" Broken muttered, intrigued.