I carefully descended the rocky path outside the secret entrance to the tunnel systems beneath the village. It was somewhat awkward balancing myself on uneven ground as I became a foot and a half taller and heavier. It was like I was in high heels, lugging a thirty-kilo backpack. I adjusted to my virtual body all over again.

I warily approached the southern gate of the village, keeping my eyes open for any guards who might accost me. I spotted five of them by the mouth of the main tunnel.

Curiously, a couple of players chatted with the guards.

“They can see them?” I mumbled.

They weren’t posted there before the Blight outbreak. Shouldn’t those guards be part of my quest alone? Same as there wouldn’t be a dozen Yusa clones waiting by the west gate if a dozen people did the same quest, these guards and players shouldn’t be able to interact with each other. There should be a separate instance, and those players weren’t my party mates.

A world quest—?

A loud grunt interrupted my thoughts.

A [Lvl 43 Cragodon Calf] sauntered out from behind a stack of boulders behind me.

“What the hell are you?” I said, spinning around.

It looked like a rhino with an incredibly craggy hide, as if hundreds of rocks were glued on its body as crude armor. A small nub with branches—some peculiar horn—was on its nose. Its shoulder was as high as my upper chest and spanned about half wider.

Why was such a high-level monster near the village? I hadn’t seen this kind before. Was it similar to Buvalu, roaming around wherever it wanted?

The Cragodon Calf stared at me with small beady eyes, continuing to grunt.

“Cragodon? That sounds familiar…”

“Step away, youngling!” a strong voice called.

The guards nearby galloped in my direction, startling the players talking to them. For a moment, I thought they were going to arrest me—I was prepared to log out—but they ran past me. Brandishing swords, they attacked the Cragodon Calf.

The large beast, which I supposed was still a baby given its name, bellowed and ran away in a rumble. Two guards continued chasing the Cragodon; the rest approached me.

“Hurry to the village, youngling,” said the highest level among them. “The Great Hunt draws near. Beasts are disturbed in their habitats and wander these parts.”

“The Great Hunt?” I snapped my fingers, recalling that Kezo had mentioned the Cragodon was one of the event monsters. “Is that why you’re here? Are you keeping them away?”

“Nay, youngling. We watch the tunnels for strange happenings are afoot. You might have heard of accursed creatures lurking about inside.”

“The Hunter-Warriors have returned,” another guard said. “They’ll deal with this threat before leaving for the Great Hunt.”

“Tarry here no longer,” said the lead guard. “Soon enough, you’ll have your turn fighting for the village.”

The southern gate had more guards than before. Mixed with them were Hunter-Warriors, identifiable by the distinct spears on their backs and that they usually carried more than one. The Hunter-Warriors were more buffed than the regular village guards and wore imposing armor.

A few players observed the herd of armed NPCs with interest. I caught bits of their conversation as I cantered past.

“What’s going on?” asked a female player.

“The Great Hunt, I guess?” replied the axe-wielding guy beside her. “Saw a Fengharl cub by the mines.”

“This didn’t happen last time,” said their friend behind them.

What should I do? I had cleaned up the Blighted mess, but it was evident the Hunter-Warriors were continuing with their operations ‘on the morrow’—I’d have to check for the exact time they’d move out. Understandable. Several Mardukryons had disappeared.

Bawu wouldn’t leave even though she was previously preparing to. Something must’ve changed her mind. If she wouldn’t listen to me, would she heed Healer Gula? Not a mere letter—Bawu would ignore that again—but a heart-to-heart talk between sisters. I’d bring Gula to meet with Bawu.

Add in the convincing powers of [Swineling Meat Pie].

An escort mission to accompany Gula to Bawu’s base sounded tedious. Better have my party along so we could plan for the Great Hunt while slowly traversing the tunnels.

Then a previous thought returned to me.

What if I don’t do anything?

That seemed like a recipe for absolute mayhem. And a world quest, perhaps? Tempting, tempting, tempting.

But before I thought more about it, a bit of shopping first. I had reached the auction house.

Only two pieces of the normal Vinereaver’s Revenge set were for sale.

Actually, it was surprising that any were available. It was frustrating to farm them, hearing Kezo’s story about Jensen. With Mon Aleh dead, were there other Vinereavers that could drop this? Zoar Elab probably didn’t; it was too high-leveled to drop such low-level armor.

Crown of Vinereaver’s Revenge| Item Level: 20

Epic | Heavy-Armor | Helmet

162 Armor

135 Retribution Damage (Neutral)

Requires: 43 Might, 55 Vigor

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+55 Retribution Damage (Neutral)

+33 Might

+15% Earth Resistance

Bark of Vinereaver’s Revenge {2} | Item Level: 20

Epic | Heavy-Armor | Upper Chest

210 Armor

145 Retribution Damage (Neutral)

Requires: 49 Might, 62 Vigor

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+40 Vigor

+72 Armor

+21 Health per Second

[Vinereaver’s Revenge] Set Bonuses:

(2 pieces) + 155 Retribution Damage (Neutral)

(3 pieces) 55% of (Might + Vigor) added as Retribution Damage (Earth)

(4 pieces) +35% Neutral Retribution, +35% Earth Retribution, +450 Health

This version had lesser Armor and lacked a percentage retribution damage boost compared to its Blighted counterpart. Furthermore, its inherent retribution damage was Neutral instead of the Poison type. As for its set bonus, it only had up to four-piece effects, while the Blighted had five. No Poison retribution-related effects, though it did have a higher bonus to Neutral and Earth retribution.

“Herald!” Clinking beads and clip-clopping hooves came up behind me. “Herald, my friend, do you have time to talk?” The way SpartanDonkey said ‘friend’ was irritating.

“Sure,” I said. “What’s up?”

“I was looking for a Band of Loamy Renewal but couldn’t find any,” he said.

“It’s fine. I did tell you not to hassle yourself with it. Plenty of other rings here.” I gestured at the floating listings of the auction house.

“I did bring a couple of items that might interest you.”

“Interest in what way, I asked?” I asked. Was SpartanDonkey going to pester me again about Mehubanarath or Zoar Elab? Could also be that he wants me to farm for him. He couldn’t have known I had talked to Chimi minutes ago.

“Interest in selling me the battle logs of your party’s victory over Zoar Elab.”

“Again, I’m not sure about that,” I said with an exasperated sigh. “Even if I want to sell it, I don’t know what to ask for. I might sell the battle logs for less than it’s worth.” That last sentence could mean I honestly didn’t know its value, or it was very valuable.

SpartanDonkey’s huge smile told me he interpreted it the second way. “Last time, I offered you ten million Artas and a set of your choosing. Here’s my new offer: fifteen million Artas and two items that will help your build.”

“From a full set down to two items?”

“Look at it from this perspective, my friend. Giving you a full set will just be giving you Artas with extra steps because I’ll be buying the items from the auction. I’m not going to offer a full set of anything not available, in the same way I can’t promise a Band of Loamy Renewal. For my improved offer, not only did I bump the Artas part by five million, these two items are invaluable.”

That made my ears twitch forward. Figuratively. I hadn’t tried moving my ears. Herald Stone, Figurative Ear Mover. “Invaluable in a good way or bad way?”

“In a good way, definitely in a good way,” SpartanDonkey said. “I’m not going to trick you with a play on words. No one should do such a horrid thing.” That sounded like a threat. “How about I show you the items, and you decide?”

“I’m not committing to anything.” I crossed my arms over my chest, the same as Chimi did when we negotiated, to signal SpartanDonkey that he should try harder to convince me.

“This is the first one.” SpartanDonkey twirled his fingers, flipping his holo-screen to face me.

Smoldering Hooves of Kaghao| Item Level: 25

Relic | Med-Armor | Feet

220 Armor

15% Movement Speed

Leave [Tongues of Flames] in your trail, lasting 5 Seconds

25% additional Burn Chance and Duration

Requires: 83 Might, 45 Vigor

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+3 Seconds Burn Duration

+14% All Ailment Duration

+12% Burn Resistance

I pressed [Tongues of Flames] on the item description and brought up its information.

Lvl. 3 Tongues of Flames: Small fiery tendrils rise from the ground, dancing across a small area. They scorch those who enter with (70% Attack Power) as Fire Damage (hit frequency dependent on Attack Speed). Each strike has a (55%) chance to Burn for (24%) of the initial damage per second, lasting 4 seconds. Those inside the area of effect will have (-18%) Fire Resistance.

“I bet you’re thinking: how is this item invaluable?” SpartanDonkey said as if reading my mind. “It’s of Relic Quality, but surely, that can’t be all? And you’re right. I got this item from one of the earliest Mardukryon players.

“He had changed races months ago, but if he stayed, he’d have a higher level than me. Only his circle of friends knew where to get this. They never wanted to sell me the information about it. Several Kaghao Hooves circulated in the past, but it’s almost impossible to find any now. It’s level twenty-five, though, so you’ll have to wait for a few more levels before wearing it.”

“I agree that it’s invaluable in that sense,” I said. “But that doesn’t mean it’s particularly valuable to me.” I had a few ideas for this item if my hunch about [Tongues of Flames] was correct; it might synergize well with [Mantle of Kindling] if it could burn easily.

Lvl. 2 Mantle of Kindling: Intense heat deep within bursts outward, enveloping you with protection from the ancestors. Punish those who would strike you by Burning them. (20% chance to Burn attacker with 13% of Attack and Magic Power per second for 5 seconds). Those Burned by any source will be weakened by (-7% Attack and Magic Power) when attacking you. Replenish (30 + 0.3% of Armor) Ancestral Shroud when you Head-On Block an attack from a Burned enemy; limited to once every second.

I should keep mum about my ideas while negotiating. “This looks like something for ranged physical DPS builds with high attack speed,” I noted. “Kiting monsters while Tongues of Flames do their work. Also, this doesn’t synergize with the Band of Loamy Renewal. The Kaghao Hooves need me to move for its effect, while the ring requires me to stand still.”

SpartanDonkey replied. “You’re right; ranged DPSers used this. But it can also be helpful for tanks. Think about it this way: you taunt monsters; they chase you and get whittled down; you find a nice spot and stand to tank them. No conflict with Band of Loamy Renewal. The only time you’d stand still for long is tanking bosses; often, you’d be running around, controlling mobs.”

I kept my arms crossed. “So, Kaghao Hooves isn’t useful all the time?”

“I didn’t say that. Tongues of Flames also lowers the Fire Resistance of all monsters inside the AoE, including bosses. Helps the party DPSers. And it can also, very easily, Burn most non-boss monsters. Don’t forget the effect of Mantle of Kindling for tanking Burned enemies. I suppose you chose that Cidule skill since you’re going for a tank build?”

“I did, yeah.”

“The fun doesn’t end there, my friend,” SpartanDonkey said. “I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but Tongues of Flames isn’t a DoT tick; it’s a hit, meaning it can apply on-hit effects. Coat Kaghao Hooves with poison and Tongues of Flames can poison. Maybe you have items that proc by attacking; that’d work too.”

Interesting. That sounded synergistic with my Plaguetank build if it worked with items like Healer Gula’s [Pristine Frostore Amulet].

Pristine Frostore Amulet | Item Level: 15

Epic | Amulet

86 Magic Resilience

20 - 34 Magic Power

Requires: 32 Spirit, 13 Sense

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+18% Water Resistance

+10% Freeze Resistance

+5% Chance to Freeze the target for 2 seconds

SpartanDonkey wasn’t done with his explanation. “Note the lines of secondary attributes crafted on the item. These were made by HammerDeezBolt, the top Mardukryon BlackSmith before, you know, people started quitting wholesale. These weren’t cheap to make back then, more so now.

“Look at it. Added Burn duration works for all sources of Burn. All Ailment duration too. That works on Burn, Poison, everything you’ll inflict on your opponent… and yourself. You’re planning to trigger Cleansing Flames stacks by putting ailments on yourself, right? This would also help with that.”

“I’m still not sure about it,” I said, though I was interested in the possibilities the [Smoldering Hooves of Kaghao] might bring to my build. “What’s the other item?”

“Kaghao Hooves is just the appetizer, my friend. Here’s the main dish!” SpartanDonkey spread his arms as another screen popped up.

HammerDeezBolt’s Tower Shield {3} | Item Level: 20

Epic | Shield | Off-hand

207 Armor

23% Chance to Block 198 Damage

Head-On Block 336 Damage

15% Additional Armor and Magic Resilience

Requires: 45 Might, 65 Vigor

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+2 Level to Slotted Link Shards

+6% Chance to Block

+45 Block Damage