Hall of Fame
The result of rolling dice two stages higher thanks to two Constellations.
There wasn't a single one among the ten items that I could throw away.
'They just tossed me a raid set gear. Do I have to complete the Michella set right here, right now?'
The Michella set is one of the best sets to complete early on, but that's exactly why it's so hard to complete.
There were only a handful of people in the entire game who held all three pieces.
And they threw it at me as a main quest reward, a treasure you're supposed to complete with blood, sweat, and tears of grinding.
'··· All ten of these are treasures that only drop when you hunt specific raid monsters.'
But there was a reason I couldn't help hesitating.
I'm not a newbie, I'm a super veteran player of Pangaenia, so I knew all too well that the other eight were just as good as the Michella set, that's why I was holding back.
If I were only about a year into Pangaenia, of course I'd go for the Michella set first, but.
'Amulet of Protection. In the field, it lets you activate a resting place so monsters won't attack you.'
In this game, if you log out anywhere except a designated spot, you get Massacreed horribly.
But the further you progress, the fewer "save points" there are, and what you need then are tools that set up safe zones, like the "Amulet of Protection."
It isn't only for logging out, even while hunting you become desperate for a place to rest, so its utility rivals the Michella set.
The downside is that it's consumable.
'The problem is there's a limit on how many times you can use it.'
Every tool that forcefully sets up a safe zone disappears after a few uses, and they're filthy hard to get, so you have to use them carefully, a real treasure.
'Gills of the Sea Beast are essential when exploring the ocean or rivers.'
Same deal.
There are lots of hidden dungeons in seas and rivers too, most of them exploration zones after Lv 7, but if you wait until then to look for Gills of the Sea Beast you might end up coughing blood.
So getting it in advance could be a wise call.
<'Anvil of the Adversary'> isn't something I strictly need, to be honest. Since I have the hidden trait Dexterity, using the anvil would level production skills faster, but I'm not a blacksmith.
<'Banner of the Red Knight'>, <'Red Earth Horse'> weren't important to me either. If you bring that banner to a certain kingdom you can get a knighthood, but you get tied down by it, and Red Earth Horse is a mount, and I already had the Soul of a Hydragon.
<'Armor of Palam'>, <'Tears of the Fairy Queen'>, <'Shadow Cloak'>······ out of these, the one that pulled me the most was without question.
'Shadow Cloak.'
A cloak that hides the wearer in shadows.
Basically gives stealth for free.
As long as the cloak doesn't break, it's permanent, a total bargain.
High-tier detection tools or high-level tracking skills can catch it, but those are rare.
More than anything, this cloak would be insanely useful even in reality.
An invisible man, isn't that a childhood dream everyone's had at least once?
Without hesitation, I chose the Shadow Cloak.
Now there was just one left.
I rubbed my chin, eyes gleaming.
Which one should I pick.
Which one should I pick so people say I picked well?
***
「······.」
Space-time is collapsing, everything is being shattered, I can't even tell anymore if this place is reality or a dream.
Of course, all of this was happening only within Dramut's world.
Dramut watched the man, having lost all words.
[Star] was supposed to burn him to death.
But he walked forward calmly, and as if it had always belonged to him, he naturally lifted [Star].
'It's a dream. It isn't real.'
Dramut denied it. A fabricated reality, an illusion someone was showing him, yes, he must be hallucinating right now.
Maybe he'd been asleep for too long. Or maybe he'd eaten something wrong. Were there a lot of hallucinogenic mushrooms around here?
Dramut sped up his metabolism. If it was poisoning, he'd detox and return to reality, that was all.
When he closed his eyes and opened them again, he would be back in reality.
Blink!
He shut his eyes tight, then opened them quickly, and in that moment.
Fwaaaaaaak!
A shower of stars poured down.
'······ This is insane.'
Apparently the mushroom he'd eaten this morning was an unbelievably potent poisonous one, because otherwise there was no way [Star] would choose that human.
The owner of [Star] was the same as Dramut's owner.
The previous owner, "Wilhelm," was a powerful human. A perfect superhuman, more than worthy to be served as Dramut's master.
The instant they met, he'd realized the gap in status, that even if he had a thousand, ten thousand lives, he couldn't beat that man, so he humbly acknowledged it and guided Wilhelm to the star.
But look at that human now.
'Not even on Wilhelm's level, worse than the golem outside, and I'm supposed to serve him as my master?'
There isn't even a speck of transcendence.
Was he qualified, then?
Not at all.
He wasn't even prepared to bear the star.
No, he was weaker than the golem outside, weaker than the rabbit by the hillside.
The gap between them was inevitably enormous. Heaven and earth? No, it was a difference between dimensions altogether.
So when he said he'd challenge it, Dramut mocked him freely, sure he'd be burned by the star.
And yet.
"Dramut, kneel."
「······.」
"Ah, right. Snakes don't have legs."
This damned bastard was making the exact same demand Wilhelm had made right after becoming the master.
Even that line about having no legs was identical.
"Isn't your bar a bit too high when meeting a new master?"
Ssssss.
Damn it. Damn it. Damn it all!
No matter how much he resisted, he couldn't resist. Dramut pressed his face flat to the ground. His body had reacted automatically to match the man's eye level.
A perfect shackle that he could neither refuse nor resist.
It meant that human had truly become the owner of [Star], his owner.
"Good."
Tap. Tap.
The human laughed as he tapped Dramut's snout.
How dare.
How dare he treat me, the Ancient King, guardian of the star, like some pet!
"I am Randolph. From now on, I ask for your guidance, Ancient King Dramut."
「······.」
"Hm. So moved you can't even speak, I see."
「······.」
"Good. Then as a sign of loyalty, let's begin with searching for holy lands."
This is a dream. A vile, vile dream!
Dramut denied reality.
But Dramut's nightmare was only beginning.
***
Thump! Thump!
Isabella's heart started pounding like crazy.
Because she saw the star? Or because that Star Bearer suddenly took the star?
She didn't know. What she was sure of was that she was in a state of extreme tension right now.
"Isabella."
"······ Yes."
Without realizing it, she raised her speech.
The moment he held the star, the Star Bearer was no longer a Star Bearer.
He was the star itself. A goddess.
She was standing before a god now.
No matter that she was the second-in-command of Faisalmer, the great desert city, no matter that she was called a princess and revered, could she ever compare to a goddess?
Before a god, she was infinitely small. Dust-like, something that would be blown away if breathed on.
To stand before that giant, and still try to keep the same attitude as before, would be irreverent.
"If your curse is lifted, what do you want to do?"
"Leave the desert······."
"After leaving the desert?"
"······ I, I want to find my roots."
"The Dersian family?"
"······ Yes."
He knew everything. He saw through every secret.
Isabella von Dersian. She wasn't born in the desert from the start. She was a noble born somewhere on the continent, in the Dersian family.
She learned she was of Dersian blood from the Queen. The Queen told her her secret as she cast the curse.
But she also said this.
If you want the curse lifted, submit.
Rise to the princess's seat, and then I'll lift it.
·· The Queen didn't keep her promise.
He knew a secret she'd never told anyone. Even if a star spoke to him, a mere Star Bearer couldn't do that.
But if he was the owner of the star, if he was the star itself, it was possible.
"I will place a blessing on you. However, there is a condition."
"A condition······?"
"Serve me for one year. After that, I will grant you freedom, and I will help you find your roots."
"Ah······."
"Do you think I'm lying?"
Isabella shook her head.
Then the star smiled.
"I am not the Queen. I do not speak falsehood."
Just serve for one year, and he would give her freedom.
Even if it were a lie, it would have been fine.
As long as her curse could be lifted. As long as she could escape this wretched desert.
"······ I will serve."
Isabella swore loyalty.
***
<
<
<1st, 230 points. Randolph>
<2nd, 198 points. Gracia>
<3rd, 190 points. MintChocoIsDelicious>
<4th, 166 points. Black Jade>
<5th, 160 points. Massacre>
·····.
<
<
<
Kuhk!
At the sudden messages, 'Massacre' frowned.
"Shit, what the hell is this all of a sudden?"
Rights revoked?
The rights that are only revealed to those who make the ranking bracket of Main Quest 2, the news that the rights to the Secret Auction House had been taken away.
'Massacre' was a ranker, but the only thing ordinary about him was his class. He'd barely been clinging to the bottom edge of the Main Quest 2 rankings, but he'd been overtaken out of nowhere.
But his irritation lasted only a moment.
"Randolph······ 230 points?"
He rubbed his eyes, thinking he'd seen wrong.
He finished Main Quest 1 with 220 points, and now it's even higher.
230 points, what kind of class do you have to get to score that?
He knew that Gracia in 2nd had earned 198 points after passing two secret classes and getting the super class "Sword Saint."
But 230?
"Is this bastard really Phantom?"
Randolph. Is this guy really Phantom?
He probably is. The only one who could see through all of Pangaenia and know the secret to get a class even higher than Gracia's is Phantom.
Looks like after getting his character deleted in the Great Expedition, he was truly summoned into Pangaenia.
'I'll kill him. I'll kill him no matter what.'
Massacre bared his teeth. No matter how good a class he got, right now he would still be weak.
Find him, and kill him for sure.
In Pangaenia, or in reality. Wherever he is, as long as I find him.
'Before that, I need to recover my rank first.'
Hoo—. After forcing a deep breath, 'Massacre' judged the situation coldly.
Recovering the rights comes first.
It wouldn't be that hard.
Because all he had to do was kill anyone in the ranking bracket above him, and his rank would recover as a matter of course.