Azimuth: The Elden Throne (New Version)

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/Silence/

The atmosphere was heavy, boulder heavy…

For the normal people, or those that couldn't feel it, the 2 that entered were just a pair of middle-aged people, not being unusual at all.

But for the trained warriors, that wasn't the case.

Tina was like cold and sharp ice pressed against their necks, her eyes seemed to release faint red light as she gazed at them silently.

While Testros' presence was like an iron grip, chaining them in place, weighting down on their chest.

Even Dale gave them a certain pressure, albeit he was completely overshadowed by the other 2, he seemed much more relaxed and carefree than them.

Despite not long having passed since they arrived,  some of them started to feel suffocated, it made them incapable of even moving or speaking…

/Drip.../

And beads of sweat slowly dropped onto the ground...

But then… The pressure vanished.

"You two are finally here, sit." Edimund said with a small smile, ignoring what had just happened

'Given Dale's expression, it seems it wasn't easy to bring them... Well, ever since she became like this, Tina has indeed become a bit more... Active?'

He knew what the two had just done, and he himself had asked this of them, he wanted to show these people from afar that they, the people of Resko, were the ones in control of this place, not them.

To say they wouldn't tolerate their past actions or whatever schemes they had in mind because here, they were the rulers.

And it was very effective, the guards on the side remained completely silent, not daring to move much…

Although… Be it now or before, they weren't moving or speaking at all…

So it felt quite bad to see those people suffer for nothing at all.

…

Dale and the duo sat on their respective seats near the others, and the meeting finally started as Misgurd said once more:

"... Well then, I don't think there's a need to do this all over again, but to make things simpler, those on the side are our friends from the Dragovier Services, and those sitting across the table are our friends from the Mercenary Guild."

Edimund turned his expression to look at Dale, Testros, and Tina.

"As for the ones who just arrived, you all already know this young lad, our youngest Elder, Dale."

"And respectively, we have Testros Palinar and Tina Eino, it may not look like it, but they are our two oldest Elders, they've been guiding us for a long time."

"!"

Everyone apart from a select few opened their eyes wide.

'Two oldest? But they look barely in their 50s!' Was what some of them thought

Disbelief was glued to their face...

And who can blame them? Perhaps if they had felt the raging energy displayed before, then maybe, they would've understood the implications of Misgurd's words.

It may seem ridiculous to consider, but from the 7 Elders and 1 Village head, at least 5 of them were Masters…

And Masters weren't beings found every so often on the Continent.

Tina Eino and her cold stare…

Testros Palinar and his Solid aura…

Edimund with his Heavy gaze…

Misgurd with his Brutal aura…

And Ophelia with her Gentle yet Sharp demeanor…

Even the other 3 Elders who specialized in other areas, seemed to be experts in their respective fields.

Not to say the young man clad in heavy armor, albeit he looked the most extreme out of everyone in the room, he seemed to blend in flawlessly somehow...

If these people were to know how much had changed in a short 2 weeks, they wouldn't believe their eyes…

"Now that everyone is on the same page, let us continue where we left off…"

Misgurd took the reigns of the conversation and looked at the two young ladies sitting opposite to Edimund.

The two nodded, getting up from their seat once more.

"... Firstly, I'm thankful for the warm reception." Erile said with an awkward bow

It seemed she wanted to do a formal and lady-like bow, but upon remembering something, she tried to do it a bit more roughly, only to mess up and almost trip forward…

But her guard was there to grab her.

She continued speaking though, ignoring her embarrassment:

"My name is Erile Lapiz, and this is my guard, Fey Mona."

"We came from afar with the intention of… Fulfilling a promise. Apologies for not sharing it as it's quite personal." She said as she turned to Dale

"Hm?"

'Why is she looking at me?... Is there something weird about me?'

While Dale processed this, Edimund said:

"It is okay, albeit, it would be for the better if you could share something with us in any shape or form as we are in quite the situation right now."

"... Is that so? I didn't know, in that case, allow me to explain it thoroughly at a later date."

Despite her words, Erile seemed somewhat aware that something was going on but opted to show ignorance as a way to build a relationship from the ground up.

With this, Erile bowed once more before sitting, her guard did not speak a word through the encounter, it seemed she wasn't a woman of many words.

Edimund nodded, he felt a bit bad for pressurizing her, even if a bit, but due to the recent events, he couldn't give in any ground for potential trouble.

This situation was already very odd, he needed to understand every single detail of it so he can prepare for any unforeseen circumstances.

So he started his explanation as everyone was done with the introductions:

"I imagine you all noticed that our Village is… Quite populated."

They nodded, it wasn't difficult to notice, a Village so far away in the South beyond a ruthless desert had so many people… It was as if this was a normal town like any other further North.

From their personal investigations, it would've been impressive for it to have 200 inhabitants, but here, they saw thousands…

"I'll explain it quickly as this matter is rather extensive, and I'm sure you all are rather tired from the long trip and your clothes seem quite uncomfortable…"

"In essence, recently, outsiders have started to gather in our Village."

"They came here with the intention of improving themselves and they claim to be Nomad warriors, not to be confused with Mercenaries."

"We are not fully aware of where they come from, and given everything that's happening, we have no time to confirm their origins."

"Their numbers are ever increasing, and it doesn't seem it'll stop anytime soon, and that's where the problem starts."

"Despite it all, most do seem to possess some level of Combat ability, with at least a few lacking any sort of combat experience."

"They'll do anything for money, and they are quite capable and reliable workers."

Edimund expression turned serious as he said in a deep tone:

"But the day they arrived, they immediately raided our Village."

"!"

Everyone was shocked by this revelation.

"Alright alright… I know what you're all thinking so let me cut the chase and say that yes, everyone is alright and no one was hurt, all thanks to Elder Dale."

"..."

Dale was a bit embarrassed, but thanks to his heavy armor and helmet, he could just remain still with his arms crossed to maintain his 'serious' persona.

"Elder Dale not only discovered their ploy, but he also successfully stopped their raid, the ones that survived are now in jail and they won't be leaving anytime soon."

"Because of this, we have taken a cautious approach to all newcomers, even though we are fully aware that all perpetrators have been captured, we cannot bring ourselves to trust them all."

His tone changed, almost commanding in a way…

"So I would request that you followed our wishes and kept any interactions with them to a minimum for now."

"I know this could decrease some of your profits, but we have already thought of something that should hopefully make everyone gain…" Edimund said as he looked at Dale

"And at the same time, avoiding potentially troublemaking clients would benefit you all as well wouldn't it?"

"..."

'I...Once again, me?'

'Why is everyone looking at me??'

[A Side Scenario has been triggered]

[Resko's behavior towards all Players is currently set at: Apprehensive Welcome]

[Due to this, the Caravan's perception of all players will also be set towards Apprehensive]

[Most NPCs belonging to the Caravans will abide by Resko's laws and limit contact with them as long as they don't meet the minimum requirements]

[During the next few days, the Caravans will settle near the Southern Entrance of Resko, those with positive Reputation Scores will be allowed to trade at greatly increased prices]

[Those with Reputation Scores of +5 and +10 will be able to trade without penalties and sell their items respectively, while those with +15 Reputation Score will be able to receive Scenario-specific Quests throughout the remainder of the Caravans in the South]

[DING!]

[Due to you being the Highest Reputation Player participating in Resko's development Questline you'll be given additional information]

[Merchants are profit-oriented beings, where there is profit, their hands will reach]

[Due to the exclusion laws currently in effect within Resko, a Secret market shall open]

[The Secret Market does not discriminate based on Reputation and Karma, it's up to you to keep it running or to shut it down]

[DING!]

[Due to your Reputation being currently at, Elder, extra information on the Side-Scenario is being displayed]

[* The Secret Market will automatically change ownership if it hasn't already before the end of the Side-Scenario]

[* It seems the Head of Dragovir Services, Ericvic, has something to discuss with you]

[* It seems miss Lapiz has something to discuss with you]

[* It seems that Zaw, Head of the Inspection team has something to discuss with you]

...

All of these messages played at once, so Dale was a bit overwhelmed.

But he kept his cool nonetheless, closing all of the notifications without batting an eye, hearing what Edimund had to say.

"... We can continue this conversation later, for now, I'll be here in case any of you wishes to meet me."

"Rest and familiarize yourself with our Village, and for my friends from the Dragovir Association, meet me here tomorrow morning so we can continue this conversation."

As he said this, everyone started to get up, chatting with each other.

Meanwhile, Edimund walked to the people of the Mercenary Guild, saying:

"I imagine I don't really need to say it, right? Just go to Misgurd, he'll do the rest."

"HAHA! Of course, it isn't my first time so there's no need to say it twice." Zaw replied with a hearty laugh as he slapped his chest 

"As for our honored guests, please rest well… And in case you have any requests, please proceed to Elder Dale." 

"... Me?"

'I don't mind but... I have things to do!'

'Can we leave it to later...'

"Yes? Who else?"

"I'm a bit occupied…"

"So is everyone Dale." Edimund said with a wink as he turned to face the people of the Dragovir services

"..."

'Why are you winking? You think you're doing me a good job by pushing the pretty girls to me huh?!'

'I'll tell you I…'

/Tug…/

Dale felt a small tap on his armor, he turned around, finding out that it was the beautiful red-haired girl, Erile.

"I'll be in your care." She said with a gentle smile

Her guard also bowed, showing her discipline.

"I'll be in your care."

"... No worries."

Dale felt troubled, but there was nothing he can do about it.

If it wasn't for the current circumstances, he wouldn't have minded escorting them around the Village, since in a sense, they owned them a large deal.

Who was the one that financed this Caravan, allowing it to be born?

Wasn't it her that set it all in motion?

In a sense, she was a high-priority girl that he definitely needed to build a connection with!

Resko would definitely benefit a lot from her actions, so he wouldn't have minded acting a bit more respectfully… 

In fact, he planned on meeting her eventually anyway...

But not so soon, he had so many things to now that the Event was nearing its end.

"?"

Suddenly, Erile pulled Dale close and whispered in his ear:

"If it's not troublesome, meet me in the Church at midnight."

"?????"

Before Dale even had the time to process this, Erile left with her guard in toll, leaving behind her flowing red hair that shone under the faint golden sunlight…

'What was that?...'

[Ding!]

[Intimacy Quest, Moonlit Promise has activated]

'The what now?'

[A meeting orchestrated by fate itself! A duty left behind from one generation to the other.

>Requirements:

Meet with the Saintess and find out what she wishes to discuss with you at Midnight

#Disclaimer: A certain Higher being gives you the thumbs up with an understanding gaze, as it is the fate of mortals to seek shelter with one another...

]

"..."

/Crack…/

This was the sound of Dale's reason shattering into a million pieces.

[Stable Emotions 3-Star has activated]

"Sigh..."

... And that was the sound of it coming back.

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Notes