The breath hitched in her throat.
I've been meaning to ask you this, but are you a player?
She had been pondering the meaning of those words ever since she had left Inveria, but hearing them brought up again now brought about a wave of confusion and panic.
Before her brain could even fully process what was happening, Evileye was the first to voice her thoughts on the matter.
"Ah yes, the supposed "Gods" that descended upon our world correct? Those beings that possessed power so great, they completely warped the world around them and were responsible for the dragon lords near extinction. And if I'm not mistaken..."
She paused to stare directly at the dragon lord. "Your father was the one who summoned them here correct?"
Though no expressions could be seen through the mask, she would most likely be wearing a scowl, as her tone carried a clear hint of mockery.
"Indeed. Though I feel I must reiterate that my fathers actions were done of his own accord, and most of dragon kind have disavowed him."
"You still could have stopped it though."
As he was about to respond to her muttering, he could not help but notice the expressions of the others in the room. Confusion, panic, and curiosity were the main emotions written over all of their faces.
Well, I guess this topic would be quite shocking to one who hasn't heard the story before He thought to himself.
"I can see the rest of you have no idea what is being discussed. Though I am not surprised. Very few people in the world now know the truth on the origin of the gods. Even within the Slane theocracy, only the Pontifex Maximus knows this secret, as it is something of an initiation ritual to be granted that role. The entire story behind this is quite complicated, and far to long for us to speak about it, so I will simply inform you of the basic outline of the story ."
He gave a deep breath as he prepared himself for the long explanation that was to follow.
"The beings that you all know as the six great gods were the first beings known as players, the term being coined by them when they were first brought to this world."
That single sentence was already enough to stupefy the adventures, barring Evileye.
Though everyone knew of the gods, the one thing that nobody was able to agree on was how they arrived in the world. The topic was still hotly debated in many religious factions that caused no end of headaches to listen to.
"As you are know doubt aware, dragons are, by their very nature, greedy beings, that hunger to horde wealth. Even I am no exception, yet I am able to curb my impulses to focus on the greater good. However, there were none in all of dragon kind who were as greedy as the dragon emperor. His avarice consumed him like no other, and during our reign, he hoarded as much treasure as he could find, even claiming other dragons wealth as his own, which was a large part in why they were so quick to abandon him. He likely saw the world itself as his own treasure."
Anyone who had encountered one of the dragon lords knew of their immense hatred of their kinds ruler. It was one of the few things about them that was somewhat commonly known to those who knew of their existence. But to this day, no one knew the cause of such hatred.
The only ones who knew were the dragons themselves.
"Even though they may have resented him for it, his power towered over all others. Not a single dragon could ever hope to match his strength. Yet even with all the world wealth, and everything else within it entirely in his grasp, it was still not enough for him. He desired more, even when there was nothing more to gain. But to one with powers that can dominate the world, even others were not beyond his reach."
Understanding began to dawn on the adventurers faces as they began to slowly understand what had happened.
"Using every ounce of his abilities, he managed to create a spell that would let him obtain the most valuable treasure in existence. Something that no other could rival. And he indeed succeeded. He found what is undoubtedly the greatest treasure in existence."
"A world-level item." His tone became far graver, and almost fearful as the title left his jaws.
"As their name implies, these items posses the power of an entire world, and there abilities go beyond the realm of possibility." At this, Evileye finally showed some emotion.
"The power of an entire world... Like the nameless spell book? I always thought that was just a exaggeration of its value."
"It would seem your well informed. Indeed, it is no mere hyperbole. They each truly live up to there names. And only the strongest and most powerful beings who had proven themselves worthy enough had a chance of obtaining a single one, as the task that were required to get them were unimaginable. Even I do not know what was necessary. Though I cannot imagine what trails most have been overcome."
.
.
.
As the strongest and most game breaking items in YGGDRASIL, it was only natural that the requirements to obtain such armaments would be equal to the power they commanded, and the conditions for gaining them were categorized into three distinct types.
The first way to obtain one was to complete an event or raid that stared a world class enemy. Though this was the only condition that directly told players they would receive at world class item by completing the event, it was by no means an easy feat, nor was the item guaranteed.
These events often took weeks or even months to be completed from the sheer difficulty, and only the top most guilds and players would participate, as only they would possess a chance to win. And once the raid had finished, the world item would be given to the one who had contributed the most to the bosses defeat.
Originally, the world-item would be given to whoever had dealt the final blow to the creature, but after a particularly humorous incident where a low level player joined at the last second and stole the kill, the devs decided to change the requirement after large amounts of "Player feedback" from the participants.
The second way of obtaining them was by fulfilling a hidden condition. Due to the nature of the game, there was no way to tell what actions or quest would result in such a treasure, but it was at least accepted by those who had gained one in this manner, that completing 80+ difficulty task was a prerequisite, with [The Throne Of Kings] being a notable example.
This was generally the most common way of finding items, as those who sought a challenge, or risked everything for great rewards were those who would be most deserving and most likely to find one of these secret Items.
The third and final way to obtain these items was the simplest way to obtain one, and often referred to by YGGDRASIL's player base as, "the items that the devs forgot about".
Keeping in line with their famous catchphrase to explore the unknown, many of the world items were hidden within the worlds nooks and crannies. All you had to do was find go out and find one. The most famous of which being [Leaf Of YGGDRASIL], which was disguised as an ordinary leaf on a random tree within the game world.
These were accessible to anyone, providing you could find them, yet even within this subset, many were still within high level areas or dungeons that required large amounts of skill and party coordination to navigate.
As a result of these ridiculously harsh requirements, only 97 of YGGDRASIL's 200 world items were found by the time of the games shutdown. Most were hoarded by guilds, and generally rarely ever saw use.
Even so, the fact that only that not even half had been discovered during its entire lifespan was a testament to the difficulty in obtaining one. Yet no matter what category they belonged to, there was one constant that would always remain...
Obtaining one for free, simply does not happen.
.
.
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"Regardless, my father attempted to bypass such trials by summoning the items through his magical abilities. And in a sense, he succeeded, and obtained the treasure he had sought. However there are no shortcuts to power, and in the end, his greed was what caused his downfall."
The dragon lord merely shook his head at the memory, though no one would tell what emotion he was conveying, it was certainly not any kind of sympathy.
"He learned too late that world items are intrinsically tied to their owners. They offer the protection of the world to those who own them. And when the spell was cast on the item..."
"The players came to..." Lakyus finished his sentence as the realization hit her.
The six great gods was summoned by the dragon emperor.
"Indeed, and their appearance in our world has caused us no end of troubles. All of dragon kind blame my father for their downfall, for had he not used that spell, the greed kings would have never been summoned, and the massacre that befell us would not have taken place."
"That's all well and good, but how exactly does any of that apply to our current situation? Last I checked, the gods all died out centuries ago." In contrast to the groups astonishment at hearing such a valuable piece of information, Azuth did not seem to care much at all, and seemed to be growing tired of the conversation, and he made no attempts to hide his boredom with his speech.
Though disrespectful, no one seemed to pay it any mind, as this was just they way he tended to act. He considered himself a nonconformist, but if one were inclined to be less polite, the correct term would undoubtedly be man-child. Lakyus still had many embarrassing memories from when they were still nobles, as his attitude would cause her all manner of grief at events they attended.
"Because even though the gods of old had died, the spell he used to summon them had some unintended consequences." for the first time since they arrived, her usually vibrant voice became grim, and laced with undertones of anger.
"Even though the spell was only meant to be a one time use, the power of the spell was greater then even the dragon lord imagined, and since he died, there was no chance to reverse it in any way. Every hundred years or so, the spell activates once again, bringing with it the beings who change our world. And now is that time."
Lakyus froze.
Her thoughts drifted to the being she had met in that crumbled castle once more, as the true meaning of his words finally took shape in her mind.
That's impossible...
Of course it was impossible. Such a thing would not happen. Could not happen. The very idea was utterly absurd.
Maybe It was just a coincidence. He couldn't have been one of them right? Maybe I misheard him! What if that term meant something different in his culture. What if...
Countless rationalizations and excuses permeated her mind, as it refused to acknowledge what was so clearly laid out.
But... if he really is one of them, then what should I do?
The correct answer would probably be to speak about the encounter with the dragon lord, but she had her reservations against that.
If she did inform him of Genjiro's existence, He would likely be captured by him, or even killed on the spot. No, after hearing his thoughts on his kind, that would be the only outcome.
Though part of her wanted to get it off her chest, as he was essentially a living god that was now free to do as he pleased in the world. But at the same time, he had not done anything wrong as far as she knew, and seemed fairly amicable. It felt like she would just be sacrificing an innocent, just as they wished to do.
In the end, she decided to bite her tongue and waited for him to finish his point before making her decision.
"And from this, I can make can make This had led me to believe that the being that was brought to our world this time, was none other then the Sorcerer king."
Upon hearing this, not even Evileye could hide her shock. Though she had know of the existence of players, the fact that they may still exist today was a terrifying prospect. And the fact that they were currently at war with such a being only compounded those fears.
"Players are nothing but a scourge on the world, and there existence is an unnatural one, they stray the world from its intended path, and spark death and destruction whenever they appear. Even if they have good intentions, it will only end in disaster."
Hearing this only made her more confident in her choice to remain silent.
"Oi Tsa, I've been wondering this ever since you called for me to fend of that harpy, but wouldn't it be a better idea to get help from other dragon lords instead of relying on us? These beings are strong enough to take down my powered suit with one punch. Wouldn't it be better to fight them with equal opponents?"
The rest of the room shared his sentiment.
Though they were rarely seen, the dragon lords were well known to be the most powerful force on the planet. Would it not make sense for him to rely on their aid instead of human adventures, who were much weaker in comparison, and would no doubt fall nearly instantly when asked to face opponents of such caliber.
"I had considered it, but the flaws outweigh the benefits. For starters, when the sorcerer king and his entourage is defeated, he will no doubt possess powerful artifacts of immeasurable strength, much like the greed kings had. And given what we know, it is likely that a world item will be among them. If we fight him together, the other dragons will fight over who shall obtain such a treasure, and I would rather they not fall into the wrong hands."
"I will not make such a mistake again." though he said the last part quietly, it was still easily audible due to his large size.
"I am also not on good terms with them. At best we have no animosity towards one another, and at worse we are mutual enemies. Though they all share the same hatred of players due to their actions, I can't see them leaving there dens to fight for the common good. That only leaves me with you all, as you are the only others who can be trusted, as well as be willing to fight."
As adamantite adventures, stress was a normal part of life. Be it the stress of defeating a particularly difficult foe, or the expectations placed upon them by those weaker then them. Over time, one naturally grows accustomed to such expectations, and eventually they stop being problems all together, so stress became a very rare occurrence for them .
But that was exactly what they were feeling, as the full weight of the task ahead of them pressed down on there souls.
"I understand that this is a difficult task to preform, truly I do. The demon gods that ravaged the planet were nothing in comparison to these beings, and many of you would struggle against even them. But we are out of time. We need to strike now before the sorcerer king turns the entire world into a repeat of the Dragon emperors reign. Even If I cannot change your stance on the matter, please understand that this is necessary."
"Hmm, I can't say I'm entirely on bored, but I won't let that bony bastard harm anyone else!" Gagaran was the first to express her support on the matter, which was swiftly backed up by Evileye.
"I'd say now is the best time to strike, as there is no indication we are the ones doing anything. At the very least we have actual information on him, which is already a step ahead compared to Jaldabaoth. We'll head of in search of others who may be willing to assist in our cause, until then, Continue attempting to Lair-bellup, until you are able to control one of those abominations Rigrit."
"That was already the plan ya crybaby"
Though the laughter and jest of her comrades was a nice change of pace from the recent events, it did not distract her from the events that were now in motion.
Even after all she had heard. Her opinion had not changed. In the end, they were merely attempting to rationalize there own crimes, under the pretense of it being for the greater good.
Lakyus knew she was no saint. She was not a fool who could not see the bigger picture. Sacrifices often needed to be made, as it was fundamentally impossible to save everyone. If a person did did happen to hold such a belief, they would surely be heading down the path to ruin and misery.
Yet this was not a situation where they were rescuing helpless people in need and losing a few in the process. This was nothing more then a slaughter of innocents to gain the lead on a war. A hypothetical one at that!
It seemed like just a few days, the people who she thought she knew inside and out had changed completely. When she thought of the actions of the sorcerer king, and compared it to there own, a new question had replaced the previous one, and one she could tell would not be alleviated nearly
Aren't we just as bad as the other side?
A/N "I'll be resuming my normal schedule, so no more month long waits and such"
So directly after writing the last chapter, I got sick and was generally not feeling well enough to finish, which immediately turned my words into lies. NOW, we are back to normal.
Also, Season 4 hype!