Chapter 22

▪️TEAMING UP WITH AN NPC

Hidden sidequest?

The other three players were taken aback first, before being delighted upon hearing Demacia’s words.

“Really?”

“Are you sure, bro?”

Demacia patted his chest and said confidently, “Of course! I’ve been playing games for so many years and seen so much of these type of plot development than you can ever imagine!”

“But didn’t Xiao Mu say that ElvKing cannot be measured by our prior preconceived knowledge of games?” Someone whispered in a skeptical manner.

Demacia was taken aback.

He coughed awkwardly and then waved his hand sheepishly before asking, “W-Well! How will we know anyway if we don’t try it in the first place?”

After saying that, he then glanced excitedly over at the Oak Guardian who was silently waiting for the group’s response, and cautioned his teammates, “I’ll do the negotiating okay? You guys should just watch and listen to me. Don’t just speak out recklessly. If there are any rewards, then we’ll split them equally among us!”

The other three players nodded their heads and quieted down.

They still trusted Demacia because although his normal behavior could be considered comical and he had a tendency to fool around, he was still a very loyal and generous person at his core.

“Have your group finally reach a conclusion?”

At this point, Berserker’s heavy voice resounded from high above theur heads.

Demacia rolled his eyes before chuckling in a wily manner.

He wanted to appear harmless and genuine in order to win over the Oak Guardian’s favor, but for some reason, his fabricated demeanor and temperament clashed with his avatar’s handsome appearance, thus creating a dichotomy wherein he still ended up having the vibes of a clown and a pervert.

“Ahem, hello! Yes, we have discussed it. Um…may I ask if you are the Oak Guardian?” Demacia imitated the other party and drew a tree symbol upon his chest, but the gesture was somewhat awkward and looked particularly comical.

The Oak Treant paused for a moment and answered, “Indeed, I am the Silver-ranked Oak Guardian. I had been given the name Berserker and the Matriarch has ordained me to find any divine relics in the name of the Goddess.”

“Whoa! Silver? What level do you need to be in order to reach that rank?”

“Berserker?..Be….Uncle B?”

“You know what, this NPC actually looks a bit like him…”n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

After hearing the Oak Guardian’s answer, the few other players in his team couldn’t help but whisper quietly to each other. Demacia turned his head and glared at them, doing a ‘zip it’ gesture, before looking back at the Oak NPC.

He then rubbed his hands together and cheerfully stated, “So it’s Berserker, ahem…sorry…I didn’t mean to be disrespectful your Lordship. The relic that you mentioned, could it be this?”

While he spoke, Demacia took out the light green crystal that he had just found in the goblin’s ashes.

The Oak Guardian’s eyes flashed in a bit of flicker and promptly nodded.

“Yes.”

As expected!

Demacia felt a twinge in his heart.

He thought for a moment and carefully confirmed once more, “You mean…this relic is precious enough that it can satisfy a request from us if we give it to you?”

Berserker merely glanced at him and nodded before meaningfully adding, “Yes, a ‘suitable’ one that is.”

He emphasized the point.

As the Oak Guardian stared pointedly at him, Demacia suddenly felt as if all his thoughts were being read by the NPC.

He shuddered and coughed a few times, extinguishing the intrusive greedy idea that suddenly appeared in his mind.

Demacia hesitated for a moment, and finally gritted his teeth and asked, “This…Can you tell us what this is?”

His intuition is strongly telling him that this unnamed crystal was definitely a key to unlocking some kind of quest.

Judging from the attitude of the Oak Guardian, it should be impossible for them to obtain this divine relic. In that case, if this crystal is really is a key to a hidden quest, then the way to unlocking it must be related to the information regarding this divine relic!

After listening to Demacia’s words, Berserker was silent for a second before confirming, “Is this your request?”

Upon hearing the NPC’s words, Demacia’s spirits were lifted.

There’s hope!

The fact that he could continue the conversation meant that he had chosen the right direction!

Demacia’s excitement grew stronger and stronger.

His teammates also thought of this, and they looked at each other and saw a hint of anticipation in each other’s eyes.

They nodded in unison and said, “Yes! Please tell us the origin of this divine relic!”

Upon hearing the players’ response, the towering Oak Guardian reached out to Demacia.

The crimson haired lad was initially stunned, but then he realized what was happening. He quickly took out the crystal and placed it in Berserker’s huge hand.

After receiving the divine object, Berserker gestured a tree-shaped symbol upon his chest and exclaimed enthusiastically, “This is the divine blood crystal left behind by the goddess after the heavenly war a thousand years ago. This relic can help the Matriarch recover her strength faster.”

So it’s actually used by the goddess to recover her strength?

Several players were shocked to hear this.

Then they suddenly thought of the main theme of Elven Kingdom…

To assist the ancient god Evé Yggdrasill in regaining her strength and reviving the elven civilization!

Could it be…what they really stumbled upon not just a mere sidequest but rather the game’s main storyline?

The hearts of all the four male players were pounding with excitement as they were filled with anticipation.

After speaking, Berserker looked at the players and a hint of appreciation flashed within his deep eyes, “Chosen ones, I thank thee for your help. Your integrity and bravery are truly worthy of praise. I will now go to the Nature’s Temple and report the matter of retrieving the divine crystal to the goddess.”

The Oak Guardian then paused and added, “Additionally, I would like to inform your achievements to the Matriarch, would you like to join me?”

As soon as his words fell, several system prompts appeared in the field of vision of Demacia and his teammates. The notifications were then accompanied by a wonderful chime.

【 ❗ 】

【 Berserker’s favorability towards you has increased by 20 points, and your relationship has reached ‘friendly.’ 】

【Berserker invites you to a party with him, will you accept? Y/N 】

Team up?

The eyes of the four players lit up.

There is a party system in Elven Kingdom.

After teaming up, the experience gained will be evenly distributed according to the individual’s contribution, and the mini-map will also be shared amongst every members.

However, up till now, the players simply assumed that they could only form a party amongst each other. In that regard, this was the first instance that an NPC had proposed teaming up!

At this moment, almost all of them were a hundred percent sure that what they had encountered was the main questline!

Demacia and others were utterly ecstatic, nodding repeatedly, fearing that the Oak Guardian would change his mind.

“We accept! We definitely accept!”

“Very well!”

The giant Oak Guardian nodded. He then slightly bent down and made a gesture inviting them to climb onto his back.

“Come up, the journey is quite far, and I’ll take you back.”

Can it be done like this?

The players looked at each other and became even more excited.

Being able to use the Oak Guardian as a mount is definitely a rare opportunity not everyone could experience!

Sure enough, the main questline is definitely more lucrative than a mere sidequest. They can already experience riding a silver mount even before it officially becomes available.

They almost laughed out loud while imagining the expressions that other players might’ve show when they return to the camp riding on the Oak Guardian’s shoulders.

“C’mon guys! Let’s get on the ride!”

They all cheered before climbing onto the oak treant’s branches like agile monkeys.

“Dude, this height is awesome!” Someone stated while they all sat down excitedly.

“Uncle B, you’re amazing! How tall are you anyway?”

“Hey can you move over a little bit? I want to sit here as well to better view the scenery!”

Demacia and his teammates were all extremely excited.

“Get ready, we’re leaving,”

After seeing the players properly seated, Berserker slowly stood up and headed towards the direction of the World Tree…

Elfen Forest, under the World Tree.

The scenery within the base camp had completely changed drastically compared to when the players initially arrived a dozen days ago.

With the aid from magic and sword skills, coupled with constant labor of hardwork, the three hundred players fully replicated the efficiency and ingenuity of modern infrastructure construction.

After a few days of construction, the campsite under the World Tree had undergone tremendous changes, and the elven town, which are designed by a few “player designers” such as the HootyBird, had finally taken shape.

In the center of the town was a small and exquisite natural temple, along with a statue of the ancient goddess Evé Yggdrasill which was enshrined at the podium. Naturally, it was also the residence of the Saintess, Alice Galewind.

In front of the temple was a spacious bonfire square that could accommodate up to a thousand people. At the same time, Alice had constructed a teleportation array here that could directly lead players to the resurrection point on the World Tree.

Going outwards from the square were the four main roads, with various wooden houses on both sides, belonging to each player, many of which had their own personal courtyards.

Vaguely, a novice town with an entirely eclectic style had gradually taken shape…

At this moment, it was mid-afternoon within the game.

Countless players were still busy with doing various construction tasks in order to accumulate experience points.

“Boom…”

“Boom…”

Suddenly, there was a rumbling sound coming from the distance as its getting louder and closer, akin to the footsteps of some giant creature.

“W-What’s that sound?”

Some players stopped their actions and looked towards the direction of the sound in confusion…

Then to their surprise, a group of startled birds fly out from the southeast of the town’s forest, before a giant treant, standing over thirty meters tall, slowly walked out after parting the branches and leaves blocking its way.

This huge treant was so mighty that it attracted the attention of countless players as soon as it appeared.

“Whoa! What is this thing? A tree man?”

“No, it’s the Oak Guardian! I’ve seen one on the edge of the safe zone before! It’s terrifyingly strong!”

“Why did it come to our camp?”

The players immediately made a huge commotion, as they ogled the colossal NPC with their extremely curious eyes.

“Wait… Aren’t one of those people on its shoulder Demacia?”

Suddenly, someone with sharp eyes spotted the people on the Oak Guardian’s shoulder and exclaimed in disbelief.

Upon hearing this, the players were all stunned.

As the Oak Guardian approached, Demacia’s smug and triumphant expression caught everyone’s eye, and the players exploded in a frenzy.

“Oh god! It’s really Demacia, that idiot!”

“It really is them! How did they manage to sit on the Oak Guardian’s shoulder?”

“So cool! I’m so jealous dammit!”

“…What happened to them?”

“Hey Demacia! Demacia! Can you hear me? How did you do it?”

In an instant, all the players within the vicinity paused what they’re doing and rushed over as they gathered around the Oak Treant with curiosity and excitement.

Looking at the envious and puzzled expressions around him, Demacia placed a hand and grabbed one of the vines that’s hanging down from Berserker’s head and stood up.

He placed both his hands towards his waist and tilted his head back before proudly proclaiming,

“Ha Ha Ha! Listen to me everyone, my team and I triggered the main questline!”

The main questline!?

As soon as these words were spoken, the already chaotic scene devolved even further.