Chapter 45

|Catharina von Xenotra - Heiress of Baron Xenotra|

"What? The Alcott family is dead?"

The spy in front of me nods his head and says.

"Yes, my lady."

"Are you sure it is not just some rumor? Also, all of them? As far as I know, the Alcott Family heir is on another continent."

"About that…"

He takes out a letter from his pocket and gives it to Jonathan. While Jonathan reads the letter, he says.

"Before they died in 'accident,' Alcott's heir died in the storm, and the ship he stayed in was found two days ago. It looks like Lord Alcott did not want to make his family look even weaker than before and decided to hide that his heir was dead from the public. At first, we thought it was just that, an accident. However, after this, we know that they are killed."

"Who is the one killing them?"

"The official story is that they are getting killed by a bandit ambush as their body is stripped of their valuables. We also notice that Lady and Heiress Alcott get r*ped before they kill them. However, we know it was not a bandit's work because they did not strip the carriage of its valuables. They also make it too messy. A group of bandits that can defeat thirty professional knights will at least dumb the body in the forest and clean the area."

I release a sigh and take the letter Jonathan gives me. I look at it and read it. After a few seconds of reading, I sigh.

"This is the worst scenario."

I look at Jon and nod.

"Yeah. We are so close to uncovering their dirty laundry, but now they are dead, the king will not want to continue because he did not want to disrespect the dead. Especially with many people wanting to take over their land and business because of a blood tie or something."

There are too many players in this game, and it gets harder and harder for me to do something to prevent the second arc from happening.

I know the first arc will not happen as long as the Hospital and the north do not poison them again. With Alcott gone, the first arc will not happen, and now I only need to focus on the second arc.

The first arc is all about strategy and counter-attacks against the mighty army of the south. You can win the first arc if you do nothing too stupid and ensure your economy and army are doing well.

The second arc is different. The second arc is all about survival and defense against an unending army. The first arc is called 'The Southern Rebellion,' and the second is called 'Bloody Year' because you need to fight an unending monster for an in-game year.

The first arc is easy because Gwyndolin and his army have a limit, but the second one does not. Monster wave after monster wave will come, and each one will be stronger than before.

If a player decides to destroy Shadowfall in exchange for an early positive point for a specific character and get a lot of money from the noble, they will have a hard time in this fight. Shadowfall is key for 100% completion because, without it, the monster will quickly push through the southern part of the kingdom, and some of the recruitable people will die.

With the south not rebelling, I have additional time to ensure the third arc will not happen.

However, it will happen in the future. I still have time. I must ensure the second arc does not happen and know where to look first.

"Anything else?"

I snap from my thoughts when John asks his spy.

"Another thing, yes. Lady Xenotra asked us to monitor Gwyndolin and his group, and we brought some news."

I nod and let the spy continue.

"One member informed me that Gwyn and his people are busy in the Luzia kingdom."

"Luzia kingdom?!"

What is he doing in that place?!

Luzia kingdom is the HQ for the last boss and where he will transform into his final form. In the second arc, we notice that the last boss and his group will turn Luzia kingdom's citizens into undead.

From the theory and the evidence I read in the past, it starts with a plague.

"What are they doing there?"

"They are curing a plague, my lady."

So they have been doing that since the first arc?! Fuck. If only the shitty dev put the date inside their lore book. This will be easier.

I release a frustrated sigh and rub my neck in annoyance.

"Tell me more."

"Of course, my lady. Gwyndolin and his group help them through the plague and even manage to find the cure to the said plague. However, before they can even finish their work, something terrible happens. Void Crack appears outside their wall, and it is not a singular Void Crack; there are three of them."

"Three?! Are they okay?"

The spy nodded and took out something from his pocket. This time, it is a stack of paper. I looked at it, and it was a painting. It looks more like a photo than a painting with that detail.

"The other agents use her talent to draw what she sees."

I look at the paper one by one, but one drawing makes me sweat a little.

"Errr, is that dragon? Also, is that the Four Guardians of the Cardinal Directions?"

I don't remember creatures like that in this world—the same with that white dragon. I know there are dragons in this world, but as far as I know, there are only Western Style dragons on this continent.

I continue to look at the picture in front of me.

"What?!"

I look at the drawing in my hand and start to tremble. I know that monster. I know that fly-like monster. That is Yulia, the Pestilence. One of the most annoying bosses to fight. She has a final form of a Fly-Like monster that keeps healing as long as a monster near her.

Not only that, but she is also a debuff type of boss. She can release a nasty debuff to all of the units attacking her. A lot of players hate her for that. I also hated her when I fought her the first time. However, a certain character is her biggest weakness.

"Cat? What is it? Do you know what kind of monster that is?"

"That is not a monster. At least not entirely. She is a human that implants something from the Void into her body that transforms her into that monster you are looking for."

Jonathan looks at me for a few seconds and sighs a little.

"I want you to tell me how you know that in the future."

"I will. I promise."

I will do that. This is the least thing I can do for him for all he has done for me.

"Good. Now, what do you want to do? At the moment, we cannot do anything. The Luzia kingdom and the northern noble did not have the best relationship. They will see us as an enemy if not for the southern noble."

What should we do? The Luzia kingdom is a harsh place to live. They did not have much other than their strategic place to place a castle. That is what makes them a hard place to breach when the third arc starts.

At the moment, there is nothing much we can do other than watch them closely. Wait! There is something we can do! The Luzia kingdom is an end-level territory to explore! There are a lot of items I can get before the third arc!

Most of the SSR items in the first and second arcs are in the form of a gift from the recruitable character or a reward after completing a quest, unlike the third arc, where you can get many items from exploring the ruins in that place.

I start to think about which item I should get from that place. Most items are inside the destroyed castle and fortress from the former noble, which I cannot take because the owner still exists.

After thinking for a few seconds, I look at the spy before me and smile.

"Can you search for something for me?"

Yes. There is one item I want from that place. This is a hidden weapon that I once read about on the forum. It is an item that is useless if the player takes a Physical Build, but for me, who takes the magical path, it is a precious item.

There is another thing that surpasses it, but if I can get it this early, it will be a great boon. Not only for the preparation for the second arc but also as a trump card in case Gwyndolin is still rebelling.

"Of course, my lady. Please tell me the description of the item you want us to get."

"Can you get me a magical wand buried in a specific place? That wand has a symbol of a Moon, Sun and Star on it."

With this magic wand, I can be a Spam Mage.