HC:Pacifist | Ch. 136 - The Dark Prince

Roth’s jaw dropped, and he stood dumbfounded, looking at the notifications. Fortunately, the ants were accommodating and bypassed him like a river running around a rock. He had discovered a new world region. How? He had only entered the ant’s lair! How was this a new world region?

He read the description of the new title he had unlocked.

Grand Explorer (Legendary)

Title description: You have broken through unexplored frontiers and have become a legendary explorer!

Title effects:

You have the [Search] skill;

You have the [Farsight] skill.

Conditions to unlock [Explorer]:

Be the first to discover a world region.

Farsight (Epic)

Description: You’ve seen many things and broken through many frontiers. Your vision has become keener, and you can see beyond what is obvious.

Skill effects:

Passive. Eye-sight radius doubled.

He loved the title. He specifically loved its grade. It was a legendary title! Legendary! He studied the new skill that he had unlocked. It was a very simple skill, but Roth could instantly feel its effects. He was suddenly able to see every individual hair on ants that were far away from him. Everything looked more defined. He could see further. It was as if he had just been given a pair of glasses. The enhanced vision was undoubtedly an excellent boon to his character.

His crafting would improve if he could see better what he was doing. He also thought of when he had escorted the sheep from Hilsford to the Green Woods. How many times had he been ambushed? With his vision enhanced, perhaps it would be easier to spot danger from farther away.

His eyes turned to the other notification. The question about having his name on the Hall of Fame still floated before him. What did this do? Hall of Fame. He had seen this before.  He remembered seeing it in the forums but couldn’t remember what it was for. Wasn’t Hall of Flame that big, flashy window on the forum homepage? He opened the forums and clicked on the ‘Hall of Fame.’ It was very easy to find it. He was immediately transported to a special section in the forums.

Hall of Fame

Adventurers, welcome to the Hall of Fame of AstroTerra. Only the mightiest heroes are deemed worthy of having their names written in indelible ink so that all those who follow know in whose footsteps they walk.

This forum post is linked to the Human Museum of the capital, where you’ll find the statues and inscriptions made in honor of these legendary champions.

Unknown, the DragonSlayer

Here lies a statement to a nameless hero who was the first to stand up against the legendary dragons that threaten the Fire Pits.

Bluefire, the Windtamer

Here lies a homage to PerseusLight, the player who saved the Sky Islands from the eastern hurricane.

The ‘Hall of Fame’ turned out to be a list of players. Only the most prestigious and high-achieving players had their names added to the list. He noted that the very first place was taken by someone who had chosen to withhold his name. He wondered what made that player make that decision.

As he looked at a few other entries, the first names that appeared belonged to players who had finished quests that had influenced the world of AstroTerra on a large scale. He found five such names in that section of the Hall of Fame.

Going down, he found a player who had entered the hall of fame with an achievement related to crafting.

IronForge, the Blacksmith

Here lies a statement to IronForge, who reforged the broken breastplate of the Dwarf Lord, Mirilnir.

Roth tried to wrap his head around what kind of god-tiered item this player had forged or repaired to enter this Hall of Fame. It was the only name he found that had secured a place in this achievement list through crafting.

As he scrolled down, he discovered an entry that made him sick.

Loki, the Dark Prince

Here lies a statement to Loki, who unsealed the entrance to the Dark Abyss and reopened the pathway between the continent and the dark lands.

Loki… Roth felt his muscles tense and the veins in his neck and forehead throbbing. All the hurt that he had just chosen to leave outside had been brought back so quickly. Loki’s achievement was related to finding a new world region, just like the achievement Roth was offered. He thought about all the people that Loki had chasing after him. Didn’t he now know that he was Pax? He decided it was time for some good old face-slapping.

Eat this, Loki. “Yes!”

World Announcement: Congratulations to Pax for discovering a new world region!

You’ve unlocked a new title: [Hero of Ages].

Hero of Ages (Epic)

Title description: You are a hero of humanity. Songs and legends will be told about your feats long after you leave this Earth.

Title effects:

The number of reputation points required to unlock [Adored] is lowered to 2000;

The number of reputation points required to unlock [Forever Beloved] is lowered to 8000.

Requirements to unlock [Hero of Ages]:

Have your name inscribed in the Hall of Fame.

Roth felt like dancing! This title was incredible! He checked the relationship status in his character’s sheet.

Positive relationships:

Badgers (1723/2000); Boars (1712/2000); Corvids (1803/2000); Cyborg Union (1100/2000); Dogs (207/300); Dwarf Exiles (214/300); Flock (242/300); Foxes (1788/2000); Snakes (3153/8000); Golden Mountain Inc. (1235/2000); Greenleaf Inc. (617/1000); Hilsford Garrison Soldiers (103/300); Oli, the Cat Burglar (1/100); Peace Corps (100/300); Ratans (3495/8000); Silkworms (10/100); Treeants (500/1000)

Negative Relationships:

Bears (-10/-100); Gazpachos (-1400/-3000); Grassland Wolves (-45/-100); Thadeus (-10/100); Timberwolves (-90/-100);

In one leap, he had gotten much closer to unlocking adored status with many of the factions with whom he already had a good relationship. In effect, it was almost as if he had received 1000 reputation points, no, 2000 reputation points, with one single move! Plus the 100 reputation points he had been awarded with every single faction in the woods after discovering the new world region. Even his reputation with the flock had increased. The only faction he hadn't gained any reputation points with after discovering Antioch was Oli, for some reason.

And the best part of this title was that it didn’t affect the point count for negative relationships. For example, he was still far away from getting into an even worse relationship with the Gazpachos.

He thought about the player who had chosen to hide his name in the Hall of Fame. Could it be that he hadn’t unlocked this title due to choosing anonymity? Roth shrugged. He was sure that whatever titles and rewards he had gotten from that achievement were well worth it, and they had their reasons.

His name had been added now to the other twelve in the Hall of Fame. For there to be only this many, among a population of millions of players, and after two full years of the game being online, filled him with joy. That meant that he was doing well for himself! How Roth wished that he could see Loki’s face right now. He clenched his teeth. Maybe that wasn’t something impossible.

*

Loki sat in the darkness of the globe. He wasn’t taking any risks. He was personally monitoring the 10th hatchling to ensure there were no mistakes this time. He communicated constantly with the patsy selected for the mission and made every single decision. He had even asked Zin and his team to be stationed in the city, just in case something happened.

World Announcement: Congratulations to Pax for discovering a new world region!

Loki felt his heart stop. He rubbed his eyes because he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Pax? The Slayer? The helpless vermin that he had surrounded with some of his best troops?

Pax’s achievement has been inscribed for eternity in the Hall of Fame.

The chronic pain in Loki’s back, which he usually just pushed aside, began throbbing and piercing his back like needles. But that wasn’t what hurt him the most. He rushed to the forums and opened the Hall of Fame. It wasn’t difficult to find it. It was right there in big, flashy letters once he opened the window.

He scrolled down and found Roth’s tag right above his.

Pax, the Pacifist

Here lies a statement to Pax, the first to discover the entrance to the lost city of the ancient treeant race.

The worst part was that Pax’s name was placed above his. Loki started coughing uncontrollably. He choked on his own saliva. He knew it! He knew it! He was trying to challenge him. He had come to this game with nothing and was trying to prove to Loki that he was better than him.

A notification appeared in his window. He blocked all unknown callers, but he could still see if someone tried to call. Seeing who was trying to reach him, his bloodshot eyes widened, and his thin lips twisted into a grin. He dismissed the call he had been on with his hatchling and answered Pax’s phone call.

A window opened. On the other side was the same player he had seen being tortured many times in the footage Gary had sent him. That was his only comfort after discovering that the IronIre squad had lied to him. Loki now knew that he had already had this vermin killed 1000 times and that it had hurt every single time.

“Hi, Loki.”

“Slayer…”

They just stared at each other for a few long, silent moments. Loki was looking for an inkling of terror. Whenever he closed his eyes at night, the only thing he saw was the red, angry face of this brute. Seeing that the Slayer wasn’t saying anything, he took the initiative. “You’ve been busy, Slayer.”

“So have you.”

Loki clenched his fists. He didn’t see any fear in the man. There was a different emotion there.

“For what is worth, Loki, I’m sorry for what I did to you. I lost it. Even though you did what you did, I should never have beaten you up like that. I’m sorry.”

Loki tried to speak, but he couldn’t. He thought the Slayer couldn’t make him any angrier, but he had outdone himself. The emotion he had spotted in his eyes wasn’t fear. It wasn’t hatred. It was pity. Pity!

“You IDIOT! Are you mocking me? Do you have any idea of how powerful I’ve become? Do you dare show me pity? Do you dare apologize? I’ll have you killed over and over and over until your brain turns to mush. I’ll ruin your family’s lives right before your eyes, and I’ll make you wish that you were never born. You can’t compete with me. I’m king in this game, and you are just a peasant. The empire I’ve built is beyond anything you dream of. I owe your sorry little life, Slayer. There’s nothing you can do! Just because you entered the Hall of Fame, do you think you are my equal? You are BENEATH. ME!”

Loki took heavy breaths. He knew that he had lost control. His rage for this man blinded him. At least he could direct it at the imbecile across the screen. He looked for a sign of fear at his threats. Anything that would reveal weakness. Instead, he found confusion. After a few moments, the Slayer spoke. “Actually, I’m above you in the Hall of Fame.”

“You…”

“Wanna bet?” Asked the Slayer.

“Excuse me?”

“You’re saying that we aren’t equals, yet from what I can see, I have accomplished in two months what took you two years to do.”

System Warning. Your heart rate is exceedingly high. A notification is being sent to the emergency services.

Loki dismissed the warning. He had never been so angry in his whole life.

“Maybe that’s the reason you want so badly to finish me. Because you can’t keep up?”

“You…”

“Wanna bet on who is better?”

System Warning. Your heart rate is exceedingly high. A notification is being sent to the emergency services.

“What level are you now?” asked the Slayer.

Loki spared a look at his character sheet. He had hidden his name from the ranks, but with all the experience his guild was funneling into him, he was level 63 now, the highest in the game. “49.”

“I’m level 23. First to reach level 100 wins?”

Loki drummed his fingers. Part of his anger had been transformed into amusement. “What’s in it for the winner?”

“If I win, you’ll promise you won’t go after my family or me. While the bet is still on, you promise not to go after my family.”

“And what if I win?”

“You will finally have proof that you aren’t beneath me.”

Loki’s anger returned in full.

“Also, I’ll be your personal slave. You can order me around like a dog or whatever else you can think of.”

Loki pondered. Roth was nothing to him. He couldn’t tell him what to do or not do. Loki would still go after him and his family and kill them all. But his dignity wouldn’t allow him to refuse the bet. Roth was just an ant to him. Nothing more. “Deal.”

Roth hung up.

Ch. 135 - Micromanagement

INDEX

Ch. 137 - Anthiochian Ripples