Shards of Myth

Hearing the Lv3 player run his mouth, I ignored him like one would ignore a buzzing fly. 

The old man, however, could not hold his anger in anymore. He stood up with rage and thundered, "You impotent fools! If you can't save my children then so be it! Don't curse them behind my back!"

The old man then flung two ordinary pebbles he picked from the ground at those two players. 

-200 

-230

Two huge numbers appeared above their heads. Their HP bars were emptied in a single shot and they died on the spot, unable to believe their fate. 

The old man then turned his glowering eyes at me, challenging me to say even a single bad thing about the fate of his family. I quickly raised my hands in surrender and gave the old man some time to cool his head.

This old man was obviously powerful if he could use ordinary stones to kill Lv2 and Lv3 Players in one shot. Most importantly, it was all base damage, not even a critical hit!

I would be a fool to cross such a powerful character, who could also make me a custom bow, over nothing. 

After a few moments, the old man finally calmed down. He seemed to have aged by 10 years in those few minutes. He started to pace agitatedly around his tent, while mumbling to himself -

"That cunning Gnoll Dorukh… He is still coveting the Shard of Myth. Even if he held my blood hostage, I cannot just hand the Shard over to him. What should I do?"

My ears perked up after hearing his mutterings. If I had dog ears, they would be standing straight up with alert excitement. 

Shard of Myth! 

This single phrase sent shivers down my back. 

The PR team of Dreamverse had mentioned about the Shards in an interview. They said that there were only 108,000,000 Shards of Myth in the Dreamverse. Then they had shut up, not speaking about it anywhere. 

Various media outlets had tried to remove all traces of this interview from the internet but the more they tried to suppress it, the more it spread amongst the Netizens. 

It had become so viral that even a recluse like me had heard of it. I did not not know why the Imagine Corp was being so tight lipped, but if it was limited, it meant it was valuable. 

108 million may seem like a huge number but it was less than 0.1 percent of the total player population of Dreamverse.

One could only imagine how rare and precious they were. Yet, I heard a clue about one of the elusive Shards of Myth from an Old Barbarian in a novice village.

Naturally, I could not let this chance pass. I moved closer to hear what he was mumbling a bit better but he noticed my presence. He stopped in his tracks and looked at me with hesitation. 

"Sending him to that Gnoll… it would be like sending a lamb for slaughter. Should I do it or should I not?"

I could hear him mumble about my fate very clearly. It made me annoyed when he underestimated me but I couldn't do anything because I still had no idea what he was talking about. So, I waited.

Bowsmith Sangma let out a loud sigh and looked at me with defeated eyes. 

"Young lad, I am in no condition to make a bow specifically for you. If you simply want a Bow and Quiver of Arrows, I have a few in the shed that I crafted over the years. You can give me the White Fangs in exchange for them."

Sangma no longer said anything about saving his son and grandson, like he had given up on seeing his family forever. Even though he had given up on them, I had not. 

Stivi's quest was about saving a father and son who had gone to Golden Slopes to find a Wild Dog pup. I had a deep suspicion that they might be this old man's descendents.

If the 'Gnoll' or 'Slave of Darkness' he spoke about was as powerful as he feared, then I had to know about it. Stivi's future was dependent on it. 

If she was going to die after wasting so much time anyways, they might as well give up on the Penance Quest now and save some time. 

Giving this thought a consideration, I probed the Bowsmith for more information; about the quest and the Shard of Myth. 

"Master, I heard your kin and blood were in danger. If I help you, would you tell me more about the Shards of Myth?"

"Ignorance is bliss and the ignorant are fearless," the Bowsmith laughed deprecatingly and asked me with a sharp tone, "Do you even know the enemy you will be facing?"

"Master Sangma, I am a Deathless being! We do not fear death. No matter what enemy it is, I will do my best to save your kin."

The old man sneered at my claim. Obviously he had experienced the exact opposite before but he did not refute me. After taking a moment, he said," Fine. I will tell you about the Shards of Myth."

Immediately, a quest window appeared before me. 

—

[Slave of Darkness]

[Dark Gnoll Dorukh has captured the Son and Grandson of Bowsmith Sangma. He is holding them hostage somewhere in the Golden Slopes. Save them from his clutches.]

[Quest Reward: +100 Favorability with Bowsmith Sangma.]

[Additional Reward: Information about Shards of Myth.]

[Do you want to accept the quest?]

[Y/N]

—

No wonder Players were unwilling to accept the quest. Who would go through so much trouble just to get max favorability with an unknown NPC? 

Had I not reached an agreement with Sangma, it was impossible that the additional rewards would be revealed just yet. 

The quests in Dreamverse were all like this. They had no tiers and only revealed the most obvious of rewards. One could even say the quests were like Pandora's Box. 

If players reject a quest after simply seeing the rewards mentioned in the quest window, they just might miss out on a huge opportunity; just like the two players earlier. Or they might be saving themselves from a fate of having to start over.

I clicked 'Yes' and instantly a warning flashed before me. 

—

[Warning! This quest far exceeds the Player's level and capabilities. Do you still want to accept the Quest?]

—

I could not help but suck in a cold breath. If this warning showed, it meant that there was a 90% chance I would die multiple times during this quest. 

Just as I thought before- The quest was a Pandora's Box. If I could not complete the quest, I might be wasting my time and may even have to start over. If I could complete it, the reward might make me OP overnight!

I looked at Bowsmith Sangma. He wore a facade of calmness but I could see hope hidden in his eyes. He was leaving the fate of his son and grandson in my hands, hoping I lived up to my words. 

It not only touched me but also made me want to give my best. Combined with the allure of Shards of Myth, I did not hesitate any longer.

I chose 'Yes' and accepted the quest.

[+30 Favorability with Sangma] 

A notification appeared as soon as I accepted the quest. When I looked toward the old man in surprise, I could see a lone tear roll down from his right eye. 

He quickly wiped it away and smiled at me with misty eyes. 

"Go to the shed and pick whatever you like. You will need all the help you can get if you are to face Dorukh. I will give you something I had prepared just for him."

After saying the first sentence, Sangma turned his back on me and went inside his tent while mumbling the rest. If not for my good hearing, I would've missed everything he said. 

I shook my head at the senile man's eccentricity and walked into the shed.