Chapter 132: Gears in Motion (Part 3)

****** Meanwhile, in a High-Level Raid Dungeon…

Rita Carter challenged her concept of beauty after watching Astrid Bradford fight the 164-feet dragon. As Titan Hunter’s heavy hitter and Carry, Rita had always strived to be the best, constantly sharpening her skills and instincts, always getting the best gear… In short, she always tried to be as efficient in killing as possible.

She hated watching Battle Streams. For her, Users on camera could not be themselves, for they were always trying to impress their audience, striking cool poses or making unnecessary movements. She loathed that.

“Those aren’t true warriors,” she would often say every time one of her guild partners tried to show her the last viral video.

But this time, for the first time since she knew how to use a dagger, she understood what perfection could look like.

It only took three times battling the beast for Astrid to learn all of its attack patterns and finally challenge it solo. Her opponent was Dracoestrul, The Dragon Keeper of the Secret Teachings.

The magnificent mythical was infamous for his high Spirit ranking which allowed it to spam an extended amount of different offensive spells. And worst of all, it had the ‘Mana Drain’ skill. A successful raid against this boss demanded a considerable number of mages that could deflect and shield their team from Dracoestrul’s constant barrage of fire breaths and magic attacks and be aware that the monster could absorb their magical energy at any time. This is when a strike team would go into play. Taking advantage that Dracoestrul became vulnerable for a short amount of time, Users with high Vitality and Attack had to deal as much damage as possible at melee range.

And Astrid learned to do the two jobs on her own…

The Epic-tier staff in her left hand was something anybody could afford eventually. This one in particular, had been crafted by the Shooting Stars’ weaponsmith, with its Durability stat maxed out. A generic 90-level mage staff with an unimpressive name: ‘Grand Magus Staff’. And yet, with it, Astrid cast magic shields effortlessly and countered spells that deviated any incoming fireball or electric attack.

On her right fist, she wielded an Epic-tier item too, an oversized gauntlet that could squish the head of a grown man easily. Every time Dracoestrul tried to absorb Astrid’s mana, she would charge immediately and punch the dragon in the chest as hard as she could.

It took Rita three days to realize that something was off with the Golden Comet’s battle style.

“Do you see that, Ben? Normally, the dragon would use the stolen mana to charge its ultimate, but every single time it seems to fail. As if…”

“…Astrid didn’t have any mana to steal. I know.”

Benjamin yawned, making Rita frown.

“Since when do you know about this?” she asked.

“Didn’t you see my face when I saw her charge on her own the first time?”

“I thought you two were super close.”

“I’m closer to her First Officer… If you know what I mean.”

“Shut up.”

Benjamin sighed. “So what? Are you saying she’s cheating somehow?”

“Even if she was… I can’t avert my eyes from her. She doesn’t dodge; she blocks. She doesn’t run; she dashes forward. She doesn’t attack to lower the dragon’s HP; she strikes to kill… Defend and attack, block and strike, time and time again without making a single mistake. Sometimes, she doesn’t even look human. She’s more than that…”

“I get you,” Benjamin said as he crossed his arms. Watching Rita’s gaze fixated on the battle made him chuckle. “What do you think, then?”

“About what?”

“What we’ve been discussing.”

Rita turned to him, eyes wide open. “What? Do you want to do it now?”

“I’d make it official once we return to Londorus, but yes. I want her to answer now. But before I commit to it, tell me, am I nuts?”

“I thought you were joking when you told me about it last week, but now, seeing what she’s capable of…” Rita crossed eyes with him. “So yes, I support you. I’m in. And I promise you to kick the ass of anyone that may question your decision.”

“Wow! You have no idea how relieved I feel hearing you say that!” He whistled while bending down as if he was catching his breath.

“Are you going to be okay? Don’t you want to think it through? Maybe talk to the guild first.”

“No. No. This is what I want. Really.”

They turned their gazes back to the battlefield just in time to see the dragon turn into vanishing, gleaming pixels. Astrid reunited with them shortly after, carrying a large purple crystal the size of a basketball, a bone as long as her height on her shoulder, and a claw between her right armpit. Her usually golden, shining hair was covered by a darkish shade of blood.

“Take a look at this, guys!” Astrid’s dirty face lit up. “It dropped three materials this time. Cool, init?”

Rita stared at Benjamin until he noticed it, as if she was saying, ‘come on then, say it to her now’.

But Benjamin only chuckled. “G-Great! We’re closer to our goal! Are you hungry?”

***

This has been their routine for the last few days. Killing the dragon, resting, waiting for the monster to respawn, and start the cycle once again every 8 hours. It was repetitive, the waiting was tedious, and in the words of Astrid: “Quite relaxing, huh? This totally feels like a camping trip!”

Hearing that, Rita wondered if Astrid never had the time to sit down and rest. But asking her directly about it? Nu-uh. That was too much. At least, hearing that coming from one of the best fighters in all The Novus, makes me feel as if we’re doing something truly worthwhile.

“We’re low in water,” Astrid said quietly. “I may have to make a little trip to the nearest town. Do you guys want me to bring you something else? Any cravings?”

“Isn’t Galatov like, 40 miles from here? I can go,” Ben said, standing up. “You stay here, rest and heal up.”

“But…”

“I said I’ll do it,” Benjamin insisted sternly. “It’s not as if you need us around anyway.”

Those words made Astrid lower her gaze, which prompted Rita to alert her Guild Master in silence. Benjamin noticed it and cleared her throat. “I-I didn’t mean it that way. I’m sorry.”

“No, you’re right,” Astrid said softly, her eyes fixed on the bonfire in front of her. “Being here must be extremely boring to you. I’m sorry.”

Rita raised her hand as if she was in a class. “If you ask me, I’ve learned a lot from you. So I don’t mind hanging out. What about you, Ben?” She looked him directly in the eyes, asking him to lighten the mood.

Benjamin returned to his sitting spot and crossed his legs. “Astrid? Can I ask you something? You’re not doing this because of that wacko streamer that challenged you, are you? There’s something else…”

Astrid sipped from his coffee thermo first. “Maybe? It’s just that… something tells me that this period of peace we’ve been enjoying it’s coming to an end, Ben. The first sign came in the form of that two-headed dragon that attacked Londorus…”

Rita wrinkled her forehead in disbelief. What kind of conversation was that? Why did that have to do with anything?

“What do you mean, Comet?” Rita asked, giggling nervously, waiting for Astrid to reveal that she was joking, but the blonde’s gloomy attitude did not change.

Benjamin then gestured to Rita to be quiet. “I didn’t want to inform you until we got out of the cave, but,” he continued, “there was another attack. In Italina.”

“I see…”

“Tell me, Astrid. Is this all related?”

“I think so. Yes.”

“Is there something you know that you can share with us?”

“I don’t have the proof. But that won’t stop me from getting stronger. All of us should strive to do so in the near future. We have to be prepared. That’s what I’m sure of.”

“And when the time comes?”

“I’ll do everything in my power to stop it…”

Benjamin gazed at Rita before chuckling. “All right then! That’s what I wanted to hear.” He then kneeled in front of Astrid like a knight would. Rita did it too, immediately.

“What are you doing?” Astrid asked, astonished. “P-Please, stand up! A Guild Master should never–!”

Benjamin chuckled. “If you really believe that all of us should be stronger, then let’s do it together! What I mean to say is that I’m swearing my allegiance to you, Astrid Bradford. Let’s form a more powerful guild that can save the Novus community… as a team.”

Astrid pursed her lips and stood up, towering over him. “Are you sure about this, Benjamin Woods?”

“Yes. Please, accept the Titan Hunters under your ranks.”

“If you really mean it, I have two conditions. First, you’ll be my First Officer…”

“About that… I don’t want Tamara to…”

“Deal?”

“Sure. All right. And the second one?”

“The Shooting Stars’ guild name remains the same. That would be all.”

“Okay. Sounds good.”

“Raise, then, Shooting Stars’ First Officer. You too, Rita Carter.”

When the two new members of the guild rose up, they saw Astrid’s eyes watering down and a trembling smile crossing her face. The blonde then dashed and hugged Benjamin.

“I promise not to do something that’d make you regret this. I swear!” She quickly stepped back and embraced Rita too. “Let’s grow stronger! Together!”

Rita could not remember the last time someone hugged her like that… In a genuine manner. Holding her tears, Rita whispered, “Yeah. Let’s do this.”

***

**

*

But before the Shooting Stars and the Titan Hunters guilds merged, something else happened in the city of Aarmus three nights ago.

Something quite uneventful.

Bill Warren was watching the stars from the rooftop of a recently built house. His one hundred NPCs were resting all around the construction site, sleeping, drinking coffee or simply sitting in benches and logs, sharing silence.

Bill then heard the sound of footsteps approaching and sighed. Was that one of the residents wanting to ask when they would finish constructions for the tenth time that day? But as he continued hearing, he noticed that those steps were oddly calculated. Almost as those from NPCs… and yet, not quite the same at the same time.

Curious, he looked down to find a petite girl of brown hair looking up at him. Her eyes were green and glowing with light of their own and seemed to scan his face over and over again.

“Bill Warren,” she called him. It was not a question. She knew him.

“Yeah?” he asked cautiously.

“I have come to check on your progress. You have not forgotten about it, have you? Prompt Engineer?”

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