The Golden Quests

This wasn't in my ability at all. I didn't come here to play hero, I only wanted to gain a class and survive just like everyone else.

"Can you help her?" Angelica looked at me in such a soft way, but how could I possibly be of any help here?

My power was limited and I was still classless. I did a trick to limit the intervention of the three angels of this region, but other regions still had angels with enough blessing points to kill me a thousand times.

"If she managed to come here, then I promise her my protection," this was all I could say for now. Sorry, but I knew my limit here.

"But… She will die if she comes here."

"And she will die if she stays there," I shook my head before adding, "there must be a way to leave that island. She can't possibly have isolated herself there without a way out, right?"

From Angelica's expression I could tell I was right.

"She brought a speedboat with her to the island just before the apocalypse hit. But she can't touch the ground here, not without proper protection," Angelica moved closer to me and even dared to grab my hand. She looked me in the eye and all I could see was pure sincerity.

"Can't you go and help her? You are strong and… I can bring all the people I saved here with us to help."

'All the people? That's just a wishful thinking,' I inwardly sighed before releasing my hand from hers, "Sorry but that's a suicidal."

"Sister Ace can't die like that, we need to do something to help her," Angelica's face was very troubled and I could even see a few tears there.

"Sister… Are you two related or something?" I couldn't help but ask.

"She… was my friend for a long time," her face kept blushing in a strange way. Don't tell me… the two of them… no f*cking way!

It wasn't strange to see two of the same sex together in this age and time. But that wasn't my business so I wouldn't butt in it, not when it was so dangerous like that.

"I… promise to do anything you want… even… anything…" her tone seemed slightly shaky. She first acted this horny and now she was pulling the sympathetic card to me.

However I had to admit, she was a beauty even in such a state. She wasn't mine to consider, but how could I say no to such a strong helper?

If I managed to snatch her and bring her to my side with debts like these, then my chances of survival would be higher.

Was there a way to save her friend here?

Angelica kept looking in such silent pleading gaze at me. She was really sincere in her words, but in this world words didn't mean anything.

"Let's do it this way then," I slowly opened my mouth and said, "I have a way to save your friend for now."

"Really?" her face brightened but I had to pour cold water on her excitement.

"Wait until you hear out my offer to the end," I pointed my finger towards her face and stopped her from talking, "I have a way to make her escape the upcoming calamity and bring her halfway through here. But she has to survive for the end of this quest before I can go and pick her."

"That's… great!" she seemed not to refuse this idea, "but… how long will she stay alone here?"

"At least ten hours," I gave her my worst expectation, "give or take two hours from it."

"This…" Angelica seemed to think about something as she clenched both fists, "if you managed to bring her closer to here, then I'll go and bring her here myself."

"Out of option," I shook my head before adding, "you can't step outside here without my permission."

"What?!"

"That's the other part of our contract," I slowly said before adding, "we'll sign a contract bound by the system. You won't be able to do anything without my permission or your life will be the price. From this moment onward, you'll be one of my minions, got it?"

Sorry girl, but I had to be this strict with you. If I wanted to survive this, I couldn't be soft or naive at all.

It wasn't the problem of the hearts only. People wouldn't just backstab you in the back just for fun or temptation. The cruelest method would be by using threats.

Just like I was doing here, using her weak spot to turn her into my side. Others would also do the same to gain more benefits, especially those distasteful angels.

"You want me to be linked… forever with you?" she closed her eyes as if she was about to say no. "Alright, anything just to save her."

So she held such a great place in your heart after all. I felt a little bad but I couldn't show any of this on my face.

I knew in this lifetime, I would do this kind of thing a lot and I wasn't regretting any of it. This was the safest way to survive these dark times, and I would definitely survive!

"Give me your hand," I stretched my arm and she didn't even hesitate to give me hers.

There were many ways to make a contract here, the simplest was by using the system in our souls to bind one.

But I didn't expect to see the next message popping in front of my eyes when I thought about initiating a contract.

[You don't have enough coins to perform this contract. The process is canceled]

"Damn!" I totally forgot that I was broke.

"You don't have enough coins?" she asked as if she got the same message as me, "alright, let me buy a contract from the market then."

"You can't do it while being in the middle of a quest," I was annoyed right now. How could I lose her about finally getting this close?

"Not a problem for me," she suddenly took a reel out. It was an empty yellow piece of animal skin which I could write anything on it by my thoughts. She simply threw it in my direction while I reflexively caught it with a flabbergasted expression on my face.

"This…" the shocking thing was the fact she managed to use her market.

"How can I use it?" she finally smiled and her tense expression faded to regain her previous self, "I have a class after all, so why won't I be able to use the market?"

Gosh! There were people in this world who were really born with silver spoons in their mouths. I couldn't help but feel a little bitter. I lived my entire life dreaming about having a class, and here she got one even in the first quest.

How could this even be called fair?

"Don't give that look as if I'm special," she seemed to notice my thoughts while I started to fill the required fields of the contract, "I have that useless traitor class after all. Despite being shut away from the most basic features it has, I still can increase my stats and use the market as well."

'Oh, so it was this… But…' "Won't this make any traitor have a class as well?" I asked as if this was true, then I was going to face a harder time than I expected.

Comparing someone with and without a class was like comparing earth and heaven. I might have bought the beginner's package to supplement my stats, but that was barely enough.

The class wouldn't only grant more stat points for coins, it also would unlock the greater door of increasing levels and ranks.

Many things were attached to having a class. Or why was I determined to have one my entire life?

"All of the traitors? That's a joke," Angelica chuckled before adding, "only the leaders of them will gain such opportunity before the calamity happens. In this world, we have three hundred and sixty-seven leaders. They lead one region each."

I didn't know that. It was good to have someone from the inside after all.

"Here," I threw the reel back, "all it needs is your confirmation."

I already filled the contract. It was one with the most securing conditions I ever heard of. Trying to double cross me would make her end in losing her life.

"Done," she read the contract briefly with her eyes before she agreed to it. The moment she did so the reel turned into fog and dissipated like it wasn't here. "Now tell me how to save her," she demanded in urgency.

However, unlike her thoughts, I asked a totally different question. "Do you know what time it is now?"

"..." Angelica seemed startled by my question before she coldly said, "you can check it in the system, genius!"

"I didn't mean the system clock," I snorted while shaking off my head as if I was disappointed with her.

She looked at me in puzzlement. She knew what I was asking about. In fact it was much easier to follow the time of the system clock. However there was one little problem here.

The early events recorded were timely written according to the old world's time, not the system clock. That meant I had to calculate the time using the new day and night. But I hated math!

"What does this have to do with saving the ace?" she pouted her lips and I could get why she felt this angry.

"Just tell me, it's crucial," I slowly added, "I need to time her escape."

"It's about seven A.m. now," she said after closing her eyes for a brief moment, "tell me how to save her."

"Not now," I firmly shook my head.

"Are you going back on your words? The contract is his sole condition of helping me save my friend!"

"I didn't say I wouldn't," I looked at her in a meaningful way, hoping that she would get my hints, "when the time comes, I'll let you know."

"You…" she seemed about to come and punch me so I had to change the subject as I said:

"So you are the leader of New York?"

She glared at me for a few seconds as if she was considering hitting me and breaching the contract or not. After that her face showed her resignation. Even if she didn't like my current decision, she had nothing to do against it. And over all, the contract was monitored by the system.

"I was," she shook her head, "but now there's someone else supervising over the activities of the traitors here."

Well as long as you started talking, then I had no excuse in not asking for more.

"What's the real goal of the traitors?" This was one of the most basic and most fundamental questions I had in mind regarding them.

"We… They have a list," she paused before her eyes turned serious, "a list of names, many names. There is no continent, not a single country without a long list of names there. They are asked to kill them all before reaching quest five."

'So this is their aim after all,' I thought to myself, 'but why quest five? What's so special about it anyway?'

I already knew the list of quests we'll face in the next ten years. The first ten were really cruel and challenging, with most deaths occurring in them.

But quest five wasn't that special. I didn't recall anything special about any of the first ten quests besides their danger.

"Do you know why they are targeting them?" I knew already but had to fake my ignorance. Perhaps she might say something I didn't know about.

"They said these people holds a great threat to everyone," Angelica seemed to not believe this sh*t either, "but I once heard a rumor… They say after the fifth quest special quests will appear. These people are deemed to be the most likely ones to have them, so the traitors want them cleared out of the picture before that."

I started to gather the cores of the monsters and anything worth of value. After all this battle had thousands of monsters killed plus four alphas. If I managed to gather everything, I would end up striking it rich.

"What kind of quests?" I asked without any care while jumping from one monster corpse to another.

"I don't know the details, but one thing is for sure… They named these quests the golden quests."

The moment I heard her, my hand stiffened and my mind went ablaze. 'The golden quests? No f*cking way! Aren't these the ones the old man asked me to pay attention to before coming here?'

"What's wrong?" Angelica seemed to see something in my face, "do you know about them?"