Chapter 18 Egh? World Quest . . . ?

"Egh?"

I blinked.

World quest?

<There are many quests in Nordland associated with their difficulty. The common are Normal and Side quests that are available for all. The average difficulty, Hidden Quest, which required specific criteria to be met. And the hardest of them all, the World Quest.>

Why is it hard?

<You could only trigger it if you meet certain criteria like in a Hidden Quest. But unlike a Hidden Quest, it could only be activated one time, and usually, if you fail a world quest, it would be lost forever along with its many rewards.>

<That's not all, World Quest is usually a chain of quests, and if you failed just ones, it would be lost forever.>

You just repeated what you said a moment ago.

<Not only that. It's extremely hard to complete. A world quest requires months or even years to complete because of the chain of quests. And sometimes, you need to defeat a word boss, which you can only achieve if you reach three or even four digits of your ATP.>

A . . . world boss?

<Bosses in Nordland that you couldn't hope to kill or even scratch at your current level. They could kill you with just their breath.>

Then I couldn't complete this quest at the moment? But it doesn't say anything about defeating a world boss. All it said was to find if the rumors were true or not. I think I could manage that.

I checked and asked about the rewards. It didn't say anything. Just a (?) at the end of the book. Though the color of the books was platinum blue.

<That is the color of legendary items. And usually, a question mark indicates that the skill and spellbook will match the receiver's class and race.>

A legendary item? My heart beat many times per second. Finally, some good news!

<Items and treasure chest are categorized as follows. Bronze for common. Silver for rare. Gold for very rare and platinum blue for Legendary, the highest tier from all of them.>

<Platinum items and chests are considered godly items or artifacts that house a soul and couldn't be found or bought anywhere else. It is one of a kind, and usually, the items and treasure it contained would place you above the rest.>

That's good news! I was even more motivated to find this secret lair now!

<However, since Host has the system. Host couldn't use this spell and skill book since the system already has specific skills and spells unique to your class.>

". . ."

I just saw my hope sunk in the bottom of disappointment.

<But naught to worry! Host could always sell it in an auction, and you'll instantly become rich. You'll acquire money for your Kingdom and begin the age of world domination!>

. . . Or I could give the books to Soarsie.

<Tsk.>

I somehow felt better.

Though the lack of information was bothering me. Where was this secret lair? Since I triggered it in the newbie village, then I expected that the secret lair would be near it.

"Oh, look. What's this?"

I blinked and regained my thought at Jane's voice. I looked around and found myself in a daze when we were already halfway inside the forest.

Eh? What happened to the monsters? Was I daydreaming all this time that I didn't even notice them?

<While Host was busy about his thoughts for world domination, the others fought the monster barging your path.>

Oh. How come I didn't notice?

<It's because the beasts are avoiding Host. With your high AGL, the monsters in this forest are simply not your match anymore, and they instinctively avoided you.>

Oh . . . no wonder Jane and Luke were looking at me like I was a leech.

We had come all the way in the middle of the forest with them fighting while I lagged behind. They thought that I was leeching off their kills.

However, right now, it was not important as all our attention was focused on a stone pillar in the middle of a patch of grass.

"What's this?" Jane questioned, eyeing the words carved on the stone.

We hadn't reach this far in the forest yesterday, so we were surprised to find something out of the ordinary in the middle of the usual greens and rocks.

Soarsie read the words encrypted on the massive stone wall.

"Secret . . . Lair?"

". . . Egh?" my head snapped, and I strode in urgent steps to where she was standing and read the contents of the stone pillar.

"This is the Secret Lair of an Ancient God. It is said that the beast was once a mighty hero to the native people. It slew monsters and brought healthy crops but demanded a feast in his name.

"Over time, the natives coveted the God's power and managed to lock it inside a cave, but with it, decayed followed. Without the God, monsters raged, and crops wilted.

"Trying to right what they did wrong, the natives tried to free the God, but they were only reciprocated by its rage. Now, the God was trapped while the natives tried to appease it to this day. Hoping that by doing so, they could return to their golden era once more."

Egh? I think I found that secret lair.

Should a World Quest be this easy? Should a stone containing secrets like this appear here at a convenient time?

<As long as Host receives the quest, there's a chance that you can trigger the event.>

So I triggered this stone pillar to show up?

<Pretty much. If you haven't triggered the World Quest, this stone pillar wouldn't be here in the first place.>

But the question is, I was the one who received the quest. Can the others complete it too? I asked in my mind as I looked at the others' curious faces.

Luke was inspecting the stone pillar, trying to see if he could trigger it to reveal a hidden passageway or something.

<Yes. As long as you partied with everyone. It's up to Host if you want to solo or make a group for the quest, but the leader position is fixed on you.>

<What's more, you should be present at all times to trigger the events. Without you, clues like this wouldn't appear.>

"Hmm . . ." This Ancient God looked bad news. Is it a World Boss?

<Yes. God's are beings ruling over certain things or a plot of land. In this case, it must be the God of Euclid Forest.>

We stared at the stone pillar, hoping by doing so, it would open and reveal stairs or something.

<Is Host going to enter if the secret lair is revealed? I suggest leveling your ATP first.>

I've already triggered it, might as well explore its depth, right? It might disappear if I dawdle.

But the question is . . . where was the entrance?

"Let's go."