Chapter 36: Mythical Detective Case File, The Nightmare At Droom Village 3
1558 Words
‘Inhale, exhale, inhale…’
Grimm, without letting Pearl and the others know that he’d followed them, had come outside and took several deep breaths to calm himself down.
That was a close call.
It was just for a moment, but Grimm, after witnessing the tragedy that befall between Pearl and her sister, had almost set loose all those rage and hatred that he’d spent several years of control and discipline to suppress. His chest had pounded hard and fast and his vision nearly gone dim. And if it weren’t for the notifications that appeared before his eyes, enlightening him, he might have driven himself into something that he’ll surely regret.
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New Stat Acquired
Hatred (+10)
The most powerful and the most destructive emotion in existence.
Hatred Stat can only be created in a player who harbors a powerful resentment towards another living being.
When displaying hatred in battle, every point under Hatred Stat will intensify the Pain you inflict to your enemies by 0.15% and at the same time, if your physical and magic attacks will also endow Bleeding, Burn, Fear, and Curses, Hatred Stat will lengthen their durations.
Hatred does not rise through Level-up. Points under Hatred Stat will only rise through releasing the said emotion.
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New Gauge Acquired
Rage [0%|100%]
The emotion state for pure destruction, however, if not unleashed productively will surely cause the demise of its bearer.
Rage Charge Bar had been added underneath your Health and Mana Bar.
Rage charges every time you receive any form of damage.
Percentage added will depend on the damage received.
When Rage reached the peak of 100% or beyond, [Limit Break] will be automatically unleashed.
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[LIMIT BREAK]
After reaching the peak of Rage, ATK, MATK, Attack and Movement Speed, through the state of Limit Break will be tripled, while Defenses of all type will be cut by 50%.
Duration: 30 seconds
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He knows that he needed to get out and calm his heart down as soon as possible. But in his haste, he failed to leave undetected. Leroy noticed him leaving and therefore, followed after him.
“Hey, aren’t you the kid with Pearl earlier? I saw you leaving Mabel’s clinic just now. Did you follow us?”
Grimm nodded and immediately apologizes. “I’m sorry for my action, I didn’t mean to intrude. But when I saw how terrified Ms. Pearl is, I got worried and followed her.”
“So you saw everything?”
Grimm nodded.
“…Sir Leroy, what going on in this village? Seeing Ms. Pearl and Remy, I sort of had an idea of what’s happening but I still wanted to hear the whole thing from someone who knew all the details.”
Leroy’s eyes slightly widened, faintly giving off the same expression that Pearl gave earlier when he revealed his lack of awareness on the state of Droom. Grimm thought that he’ll have to explain the reasons all over again but thankfully, Leroy is more perceptive than Pearl and figured it out without the need of such introductions. And thus, he started talking.
Just as Grimm had earlier evaluated, in the past, Droom was indeed a prosperous village. Due to its location of being in the middle of two fine hunting grounds, the village had become a starting point for several adventurers and aspiring warriors as they walks the path of chasing their dreams. And with them staying in the village, revenues from shops, eateries, and inns increases abundantly and thus, making way to further profits through trades and importation of goods. So back then, not a single day would pass by where people aren’t busy doing something productive where even children as young as six years old can earn a gold coin or two day.
But around four year ago, just a few months before the Descent of the Outlanders, cases of people dying in their sleep began to rise. Initially, Droom dismissed it as a normal cause of death. But as time goes by, the number of such deaths rises in an alarming number. Realizing that something sinister is going on, they tried to uncover its cause and put an end on it. However, instead of finding a solution, an even greater calamity had befallen upon the village.
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Note: Descent of the Outlanders is the event equivalent to the mass first time Log-in of all the subscribers of Eternal Empire a day after its launching.
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When at first, the cases were only about people dying in their sleep, it eventually escalates into cases of people suddenly losing consciousness and then dying in their sleep too. Since then, adventurers and tourists ceased coming to Droom in the fear that they might meet the same fate. Many residents had also begun abandoning the village. They said that Droom is plagued with a curse and staying here will only lead to their deaths. And with them leaving one after another, the once lively and prosperous village had dwindled down into its current sorry state.
That, they could have accepted. But the nightmare didn’t end there. The incidents that cause the downfall of the village, the truth about it had not yet been confirmed. Yes, it could have been a curse, it could have been a disease, or it could have just been an unfortunate result of random circumstances. Which is which, they wanted to know and they wanted to get rid of it and save the village. So clinging to that last ray of hope, they used the village’s remaining funds to employ the assistance of the mercenaries from the city of Cleo to investigate and solve the matter. Unfortunately, most of those mercenaries just extort them dry and done nothing. They took whatever they want, harass them, and then leave while ridiculing Droom.
And even those who had honestly accomplished their jobs stated that they could do nothing about it too. Yes, through them they had finally confirmed that someone is really plaguing Droom with Sleep Curses but the method is random and is done individually, making it impossible to pinpoint the root cause and stop it. They said that if only the village was cursed as a whole, a Purification Spell would have sufficed. However, that was not the case and therefore, they could not be of any help.
“It had been four years. And because of our last desperate attempt to save the village, we sunk deeper into poverty. And without money, we could not leave Droom even if we wanted to,” Leroy looked down to the ground with eyes full of anguish as he continue explaining. “Day by day, we live in fear that it might be our last. We fear the night and the comfort of sleeping, dreading that we might never wake up.”
Ding!
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‘An anger with an intent to kill had been unleashed!
Your STAT had risen
Hatred has risen by 5 point (+5HATE)
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“Oh, I see. So that’s the whole story.” Grimm said with a calm demeanor despite the burning anger that’s eating him away. “Thank you for that enlightenment, Mr. Leroy.”
“Just call me Leroy,” he said. “And thank you for listening. Aside from Pearl and Remy, it’s been a while since I’d had a chat with someone who is not at the edge of despair. It’s kind of refreshing.”
“No problem. But if you don’t mind, can I ask for another favor?”
“If it’s something that I can then I would gladly.”
“Hire me.”
An awkward silence fell over Leroy. “….Eh?”
“For one more ray of hope, I would like to try freeing Droom from this nightmare. But to do that, I will need you to officially employ my service in taking this task. Compensation is not important. I simply needed someone who can make it into an official request for me.”
“B-but why? If you simply wanted to help, why apply it through that manner?”
“As you might have already known, I am an Outlander. And being such an existence, I possess some privileges unavailable to Avelonians. However, the ‘Voice of the World’ [Quest Notification] is still a great assistance when undertaking requests. And though I don’t necessarily need it to carry on, tapping into that privilege shortens the time required in completing tasks in which in our case is our biggest enemy. Therefore, we needed such support. However, the Voice of the World can only be accessed if a task is employed, that’s why I needed your help to officially make this into a request directed onto me.”
“Alright, I understand.” Leroy nodded and then complied. “Please, save Remy!”
Ting!
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NEW QUEST ALERT: THE NIGHTMARE AT DROOM VILLAGE
For four years, the once prosperous village of Droom had been plagued by an unknown curse that had taken the lives of so many of its residents. And today, a little girl named Remy had been its latest victim.
Difficulty: C+
Quest Requirement: Identify and eliminate the person who started the curse.
Reward: ???
Warning: Death will befall to the latest victim after 15 hours. If the culprit is not eliminated within that span of time, the victim will lose her life and the quest will result in failure.
Do you wish you accept?
[YES] [NO]
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‘YES!’
“And one more thing, Leroy.”
“Yes?”
“Keep this just between the two of us,” Grimm said. “Despite all the advantages, there’s no guarantee that I can solve this. I might fail and I don’t want to give anyone especially Pearl any false hope. So please, aside from us two, keep this investigation a secret.”
Leroy agreed. However, the reason he’d mentioned was only half of it. The other was to prevent the culprit from knowing their actions and hide the traces. He doesn’t have the leisure of time so he can’t afford to have that bastard on guard.
- Writer
