Chapter 118: Evolving Ellie’s Swordsmanship

A man covered with blood fought fiercely against bandits as the spear in his hands began to rotate fiercely.

[Tornado Spear.]

[The thrown spear will pull the enemies and brutally attack them.]

The man threw his spear with all his might towards his enemies. The bandits that blocked his way were pulled along by the momentum of the spear, tearing them apart and clearing the road.

“Keuaack!”

“Ugh, ahhhhh!”

“Y, you damn rat...!” One of the bandits shouted. This was the Bandit Boss, a Level 370 boss monster. The Bandit Boss was shocked to see one person easily dealing with dozens of his Level 200 Bandits, all by himself. The man did not even let a single attack lay on him. When the man reached his hand out, the spear that was thrown far away flew right back into his hands.

[Spear Boom.]

[A strong energy will be concentrated at the tip of the spear.]

The man immediately stabbed the Bandit Boss.

Spurt!

Vwooom!

Splatter!

The Bandit Boss’ body exploded, its body splattering all over the place.

[You have killed the Bandit Boss, Jan Becker.]

[You have gained 5 REP.]

[You can now receive the reward.]

The man shook the blood off of his spear. This man was none other than Crow, a bounty hunter. Crow was not listed in the official overall rankings, but he was ranked second in the Spearman Rankings. In fact, his strength was similar to the number one in the rankings, the ‘God of Spear’ Verden. Just as he was about to return to turn in his 500 million gold bounty…

Piii! Piii!

…A siren-like alarm rang in Crow’s head. He thought,?‘Huh? Did the Master declare a state of emergency?’

Crow was surprised. Usually, alarms like this would only be rung by the guild master whenever there was a guild war or a quest that needed to involve all of the guild members. Crow laughed in interest. It seemed like he found it fun.

[Guild Master Genie:

URGENT NOTICE!

Right now, Genie is in Raven Village escorting a King from the Northern Continent, Varen to meet with Ellie’s soldiers. Varen is currently being chased by unknown pursuers. The rewards that will be given by King Varen are expected to include titles, territories, quests and countless other rewards. Guild Members, please gather right now. Those who will not be able to participate will be excluded from the compensation and rewards list.]

“Ho?” Crow chuckled in interest.

A quest to escort a king? And they were in Raven Village? Genie even gracefully added her coordinates in the message. Crow quickly returned to the city and entered the building that their guild used as a hideout. When he opened the door, there were already some of their guild members who were waiting. One of the guild members, a short man with blazing red hair and a mysterious straw hat, stood up to welcome him.

“You came, Crow?”

“Oh, Firefist. Did you find a girlfriend?”

Firefist Ace. This was his self-proclaimed name. However, his real username was Red Flame Fighter. He had the legendary class Fighter, and he was also one of the unofficial rankers in the Fighter Rankings. He was known for his flames that erupt fiercely whenever he struck an opponent. On the flip side, he was always trying to look for a girlfriend every day.

“Sigh.?I’m already giving up on the Nami-type of girlfriend. Right now, I’m into the Robin-type. My type has changed into an intellectual woman.”

“This Hyung told you not to speak to me informally, right?”

“Hey! Even though I look like this, I’m the Firefist Ace of Eunpyong Elementary! I recently won against the gum boys too!”

“Ah, yep yep. You’re amazing~” A woman answered, making Crow grin.

A woman with double swords entered the place, this woman was another ranker. She was known as the Goddess of the Battlefield, Ascar.

“What about Locke and Khan?”

“Well, I heard that they were going to the tower. They probably did not see the GC.”

“Let’s leave as soon as everyone has gathered.”

All of them were considered to be reclusive masters. Then, Fire Flame Fighter, Ace, said, “Crow, it seems like it would be a lot of fun. Right?”

Crow grinned at him and nodded. He said, “You said it.”

***

Ares received a report from one of his guild members.

“GM. We are sure that the king stayed for quite some time in Raven Village.”

“And then?”

“Yes. Cospo followed the scent of his blood and found an inn. I asked the owner of the inn and he told me that the man stayed in their inn for quite a while. But...”

Ares’ brows furrowed in concern.

“At first there were only two of them, but when they left, there were four people who left together. The two additional people were a player wearing a frying pan on his back and an extremely beautiful woman.”

“They recruited players?” Ares asked, immediately understanding the situation. After all, Varen was an NPC that could give out quests.

In fact, they also received a quest. And this quest was…

[Empire Quest: Capture King Varen!]

Rank: S

Requirements: Marquis Athman’s Favor.

Rewards: Territories, Titles and King Varen’s Skill: Evolution

Penalty for Failure: Favor with Collodis Empire’s NPCs will drop significantly.

Description: You have received a shared quest from a person from Collodis Empire. King Varen is a man with great capabilities. He has the ability to further evolve and strengthen the skills that a person has. In addition, if you are able to capture King Varen alive, the Collodis Empire will be able to take over Valkyrie Kingdom and you will be able to receive territories and titles according to your contributions!

During the Quest’s Progress: You will not get a Temporary Chaotic or Chaotic state even if you PKed other players.

‘Keuhuhu!’?Ares laughed at the unexpected Empire Quest. This was a quest shared by Callian. He was the guild master of the Iris Guild, one of the top four guilds.

Ares was clearly a citizen of Eivelis Empire, which was at odds with Collodis Empire. The players were even divided between those who started in Eivelis Empire and those who started in Collodis Empire. Iris Guild was a guild in the Collodis Empire. However, both Ares and Callian always kept in touch with each other, even though they were players of opposing empires.

One of the reasons why Callian contacted Ares for this quest was because he knew that he would not be able to reach this place quickly. They quickly mass teleported and brought in a 50-people troop to this place. They had told him that they were the best of the best. The levels of these elite soldiers had all exceeded Level 300. Most of the players who came here were those that were deprived of their titles in the Collodis Empire. Among them was the previous Imperial Sword, Rumad.

In the current?Athenae?worldview, Rumad was considered to be one of the ‘Pinnacle Strong Men’. It was a title that could only be given to the strongest of the strong among NPCs. Even though Rumad was only the weakest among all of the Pinnacle Strong Men, he was still the former leader of the famous Crimson Savage Mercenaries.

‘It’s kind of reassuring.’

What would Ares be afraid of if he had a super powerful comrade with him? Besides, their enemies were only four people.

‘Who the hell did they recruit?’

Ares was quite curious about their choice. Then, the guild member who was reporting earlier said, “We will continue to chase them with the help of Cospo.”

Cospo was a monster leopard with a good sense of smell and they were chasing them with its help.

𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

‘He must be captured before he meets with Ellie.’

Once they met up with Ellie, it would be a big problem for them. If that happened, even if they had Rumad in their ranks, they would not have a chance to make a move. ?There was only one reason why they were trying to risk their lives just to capture their target…

‘The King’s power...!’

Ares could tell just from the contents of the quest that King Varen possessed an extraordinary power.

‘It’s definitely a reward that is as amazing as Ellie’s Swordsmanship!’

What was written in the rewards section was the skill Evolution. He might not know what exactly is meant by Evolution, however, he was sure that he would understand it once he read through the detailed description.

Ares had received a skill named Valkain’s Swordsmanship. It was a unique skill, however, it never rose from Level 1. He was thinking that Evolution would allow his skill to progress further and turn the unique skill into an epic skill.

‘The king is like a huge gold mine!’?Ares thought with a grin.

***

Clack, clack, clack━

This was the sound of the carriage carrying the king of Valkyrie Kingdom, Varen! The king who had millions of people under him and was sometimes deemed as the ‘Cold-blooded Ruler’ was currently licking his upper lip in hunger and was grabbing his stomach pitifully. The foreigner, Minhyuk, sitting in front of him brought something out at the sight of Varen’s state. It was none other than a boiled egg.

“As expected, boiled eggs and cider are the best when traveling.”

Crack!

Minhyuk cracked the boiled egg on his head as he laughed happily. Then, he peeled it off in a blink of an eye.

“Huh? Won’t you give me one? Will you be so cheap as to eat alone?”

“Hmm... Genie gave me a croquette,” Minhyuk said as he gladly gave her a boiled egg.

‘It…it’s elvan stone baked eggs...!

Varen could not help but drool as he watched Genie and Minhyuk eat the boiled eggs happily. He had not eaten for two days! However, a king had a sense of pride and dignity that he needed to uphold, that was why he could not beg for one. All Varen could do was watch Minhyuk dip the egg in the salt and take a big bite out of it.

‘If it’s elvan stone-baked eggs, it will definitely be chewy. If you take almost half of it in a bite, you will definitely taste the harmonious flavor of the white and the yolk.’

Varen nodded in agreement with his thoughts. Then…

Fwish!

Minhyuk opened a can of cider and gulped it down. As Varen watched Minhyuk’s throat bobbing as he gulped down the refreshing cider, he thought,?‘It must be really cool and refreshing. The droplets on the can prove that it’s definitely ice cold. That’s right! You have to gulp it down all at once!’

“Kyaa!”

“Kgghk...!” Varen exclaimed at the same time as Minhyuk did after imagining himself in Minhyuk’s position. Varen felt a huge sense of shame engulf his body as he turned away to hide his embarrassment.

‘Bastard! A man will definitely offer an egg at least once!’

Varen’s subordinates and vassals always recommended food to him first, then he would taste it first before they could eat. As he was thinking about his vassals and his life before this pursuit, Minhyuk said, “Your Highness, do you want some elvan stone baked eggs and cider too?”

Being starved for two days, Varen felt that he really needed a cool and refreshing cider right now. However, he was a king, so he needed to save his honor. He put on a nonchalant front, “It’s fine.”

Varen wanted to refuse his proposal first and then pretend to accept it reluctantly once Minhyuk tried to give it to him a second time.

“Is that so? Well then…”

‘Wait… that’s not how the script goes! Why won’t you ask a second time?! Why! Why!’

One should know that all requests, suggestions, recommendations, and proposals should be done thrice!

“But Your Highness, you must be hungry so you should at least have one,” Genie suggested.

It was a relief for him.

‘I’m definitely going to give this woman a good reward!’?Varen thought.

Then, Minhyuk said, “Hey. I don’t think His Highness likes this kind of food.”

“I…is that so...? But...?” Genie said, but soon nodded in agreement. After all, there was no way that a king of a kingdom would like these simple elvan stone-baked eggs.

‘I’m doomed...’?Varen thought. He was really dying for some food! Why did he stop her from giving him some food?! Why?! At that moment…

Grooooooowl!

…Varen’s stomach growled loudly.

“Ahem. Ahem!” Varen coughed loudly to hide his embarrassment. Minhyuk and Genie’s eyes both turned to him.

“Although I don’t particularly like elvan stone-baked eggs and cider, but…”

The two of them nodded in unison.

“But I haven’t eaten for quite a long time so I’m a bit hungry now. And because there are people waiting for me, I don’t want to give up. I want to survive through this difficulty.”

Minhyuk and Genie nodded again when they heard his words.

“So I’ll eat those eggs for my people and regain my energy.”

“So in conclusion, you want to eat eggs. That’s it, right?”

Varen nodded abashedly and said, “Y…yes.”

Minhyuk nodded and handed him some eggs willingly. Varen quickly took an egg and held it carefully. He thought,?‘You have to break the eggs on your head...!’

However, he stopped himself from cracking it on his head. There were still two people watching him so he had to act with dignity. He lowered the egg to the floor, and cracked it before peeling it and taking a bite.

“Phew. Aah.”

A sigh of relief unconsciously came out once he had some food. Varen had been starving for quite some time so having food was really a relief. The elvan stone-baked eggs were truly delicious to taste! He dipped it in salt and took a bite while he cracked another one.

Crak!

Fwish!

Varen opened a can of cider and gulped it down fiercely.

“Kkkgggk!” Varen exclaimed in spite of himself. Then he started to chomp on the elvan stone-baked eggs with vigor. Just as he was about to eat another one, Varen noticed Genie watching. He could not help but choke on the food in his mouth.

“These elvan stone-baked eggs are not that bad. Ahem, ahem!” Varen cleared his throat and began to eat again with much gusto.

“I grew up eating Rald’s satisfying dishes, you know?”

“Rald?”

“Yeah. He’s our kingdom’s chef. I heard that he was called a legendary chef outside of Valkyrie Kingdom.”

Minhyuk was suddenly interested. He must be the legendary chef that knew about the Kong Qing Elixir. Besides, Minhyuk also wanted to taste the dishes made by a chef that was deemed to be legendary.

“Rald’s dishes are truly excellent, they’re really delicious. No one in the world can cook as well as him. He also has one dish that he specializes in. The dish that he makes best…”

A dish that he is most excellent with…

Minhyuk focused intently and waited for his next words.

“...is a dish named sushi.”

“...!”

1. Elvan Stones are known for their various health benefits and have plenty of minerals. Eggs baked on these stones are brownish in color (like eggs braised in soy sauce) and have a nutty-ish flavor. It seems that it’s more expensive than regular hot spring boiled eggs because of the health benefits of the elvan stone. I also read that it takes at least 3 hours for an egg to be baked on top of an elvan stone.