A week had passed since Lucien arrived in Rhamira. A week since the Guildmaster announced his intention to visit so Mirror and file his report.
And Lucien was growing tired of waiting for his Identity card and Adventurer card.
But in the past week, he hadn’t been idle. He’d discovered more about that Mirror business, for instance.
Apparently, Rhamira boasted a unique governntal system.
The nation was ruled by a council called the Council of Ascendants—a group of players and NPCs who had crossed the Third Ascension Phase. This ant they had evolved at least three tis and were in their level 300s, though he didn’t know the specific requirents for NPCs but assud they were the sa.
As for players, they started as the cream of the Adventurers Guild and climbed the ladder into the nation’s politics, which ant they had to begin as Mirrors.
Rhamira had seven Mirrors, considered the Voice of the people—influencers, players or NPCs who spoke to and for the people.
Most players who made it this far were those who gained widespread favorability throughout the nation. When their reputation finally crossed 100,000, they gained eligibility.
In fact, any player whose reputation crossed 100,000 naturally gained eligibility to beco a Noble. They could either purchase the title or earn it through hidden quests.
Most of the ti, titles earned through hidden quests carried more weight and were the kind that let players climb the ladder. Purchased nobility was always restricted in certain ways.
Above the Mirrors were the Scepters. The Scepters served as executors—it was easier to reach this governntal position through the military, but it was all politics. All a player had to do was gain favor with the right person.
Scepters typically commanded wars, oversaw economic surveillance, and managed events.
Beyond the Scepters, it beca extrely difficult for players to climb, though one player still held that position currently.
The Thrones.
The Thrones were the codebearers—the legislative authority of the Federation.
They ranked second in power after the supre voice of the Federation: the Primarch.
And the Primarch was always an NPC, unfortunately.
Lucien wasn’t interested in politics, but if he were, it would be simple enough. Right now, his reputation sat at 87,000—not to ntion it kept rising on its own without him lifting a finger.
Another thing keeping Lucien busy was tackling nial tasks, which probably explained why his reputation points kept climbing.
He was either chasing a firetail cat around the city or helping so granny harvest herbs.
He usually headed out in the morning to pick a quest from the Quest board and returned to the Inn late at night.
Most days when he returned, Gaya had already fallen asleep.
He’d also noticed she’d been busy—always exhausted. He didn’t know what she was working on, but he planned to ask her later.
Either way, he was stuck with nial quests again today.
He entered the guild hall and approached the counter, settling onto the tall stool.
Adrian watched him with a worried expression.
"Are you sure you don’t want to take a break today?"
He turned away to grab a green bottle from the shelf behind him, poured a little into a cup, then brought out another darkish-red bottle and added so of that too.
He mixed it with sloppy, would-be skillful motions and set it before Lucien.
Who stared at the cup with a blank, terrified expression before looking up at Adrian’s face.
"You know, buddy, you don’t have to be a bartender—or force yourself to be one."
Adrian smiled sweetly.
"I love bartending."
Lucien exhaled.
"Well, you suck at it—that’s one. Two, you’re a gifted nature-type magician. Why aren’t you out there skewering sothing with your wooden arrows and trying to grow stronger?"
Adrian looked down for a mont, his expression falling. Lucien caught it.
"Look, you don’t have to answer, alright?"
Adrian managed a bitter smile.
"Thank you."
Lucien watched him with hidden spite.
’Pssh. You could have insisted—I wanted to know.’
Adrian was mysterious. He knew plenty, could accomplish plenty, except for the very thing he was doing right now. Yet he insisted on doing the one thing he loved.
Lucien suspected there was more to him as a person. He wouldn’t obsess over it, but he’d certainly discover the truth one day.
He licked his lips.
’I’m sure it’ll be a rich hidden quest.’
He brought the cup to his lips and took a gulp.
"Sss—ahhhh, that slaps!"
He looked up.
"So! What other quests do we have today?!"
Adrian glanced at the Quest board for a few monts, then his gaze returned to Lucien.
"Thanks to you, a lot of small quests that have gone unattended for the past month have been solved. There are just three left. And then there are no more quests—well, at least the kinds you’ve been requesting."
Lucien stood up with the sleek glass cup in hand, took another sip, and walked toward the board plastered to the wall adjacent to the bar counter where Adrian stood.
He studied the board for a couple of seconds and pointed to the three quest posters.
"I’m guessing it’s this, this, and this."
Adrian’s voice ca from behind.
"Yes."
Imdiately, he removed the posters. The quests appeared on his HUD display.
[New Quest]
Quest Information: Lady Varlyeth needs an escort for her beautiful daughter who is going to the Magic Academy. She has tried going twice and been kidnapped twice. The poor lady is very skeptical of sending her precious daughter to the Ustrus Magic Academy unless she sees an Adventurer truly capable of protecting her.
Escort Lady Varlyeth’s daughter to the Magic Academy.
Quest Reward: 30,000 luns, 10,000 reputation points.
Quest Failure: –30,000 reputation points.
Lucien looked at the first quest with a slight frown, then shifted his gaze to Adrian.
"How far is the Academy from this place?"
"Not very far, actually. You’ll just have to cross The Drowned Steps."
Lucien raised a brow.
"The canal dock on the eastern end of the city."
"That leads to Esho Forest, which is crawling with dirty, horrible low-level monsters. Players think it’s a waste of ti, so no one picks the quest. Moreover, the inhabitants of Drowned Steps can be quite... hostile."
Lucien stared at it for a few seconds, brooding. He turned to Adrian again.
"Does everyone going to the Academy from the city always have to take this route?"
Adrian chuckled, making Lucien frown.
"What? Did I say sothing funny?"
"It was funny that you think soone going to the Magic Academy is sothing that happens regularly. There’s the Warp center, but it’s been down for ages. We rarely have any talent worthy enough to dare attempt the academy."
Lucien’s eyes lit up.
"Oh! So this young girl is like a rare case."
Adrian nodded.
"Yup. I don’t know if she still hopes to go, though. The quest has been unattended for a month now."
Lucien smiled heartily.
"I’m sure she won’t give up on her dream."
He crumpled the paper and pocketed it.
"I should get going before people start arriving. I’m going to tackle these two smaller ones first, then complete this one by the end of the day."
He bid Adrian farewell and strode out of the guild hall.
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