Ye Ci did not expect the item that Tamra would hand to her was an arrow.
She was no stranger to the arrow, as she was in possession of one that was very similar. It was an arrow used by the Elven King Dau’er. But unlike Ye Ci’s Holy Arrow, the arrow that she received from Tamra was jade green.
Green smoke rose from the arrow as Ye Ci held it in her hand. The arrow was displayed as a Quest Item, with the name Venom Arrow, but the stats of the arrow was not available to Ye Ci.
This must’ve been a very powerful item. Thought Ye Ci. Even when she could not view its stats, and even if the owner of the arrow was not revealed, Ye Ci was certain that it belonged to the Elven King Dau’er. And an arrow that was used by Dau’er would naturally be a very powerful artifact.
Ye Ci set Ol’ Six to auto navigation as she sat on its back. Tamra was sitting opposite of her. The Elf was simply too frail. His robe was like a giant piece of cloth hanging on a tree branch. Tamra was so thin that he was like a walking corpse.
The old Elf had made the decision to return to his homeland with Ye Ci. He sat with his back straight as he rode on Ol’ Six, as if he was trying to maintain his dignity. Tamra sighed as Ol’ Six flew over the grave of Andriel, “I’m sure Andriel would like to go home as well.”
Ye Ci did not respond, and instead stared silently at Tamra. When Andriel’s grave was no longer in sight, the old Elf looked at Ye Ci and said, “Young one, please bring Andriel home as well if you have the chance…” and the Elf appeared to have grown even older.
Ye Ci could understand his sorrow. His lips were trembling as he spoke to Ye Ci, “I want you to bury him beside me.”
“Very well.” Ye Ci replied softly. She did not offer any consolation to Tamra. Perhaps the old Elf had already seen death as something that he must face, and his words were merely an unfulfilled desire that he hoped Ye Ci could complete in his stead.
“Thank you.” a sincere smile appeared for the first time on the face that was ravaged by time. Tamra laid on Ol’ Six’s back and looked up into the sky, “Ahhh.. I’ve never realised that the sky here is blue as well. It’s not as pleasant as the skies of our homeland, but it has a beauty of its own.
Tamra was ultimately not able to live to see his homeland. He closed his eyes forever on Ol’ Six’s back. When the system notification “Tamra has passed away.” appeared, Ye Ci’s heart was filled with sadness that she could not even begin to describe.
This was the first time she sang in the game, not with the assistance of the system, but with her own mouth in memory of the old Elf who could not see his wish fulfilled, and the many more that died on the battlefield. It was a song of their people, and a song to put their souls to rest.
“The lilies of the valley were waiting, the bards instruments have never stopped, oh my love. Where are you, in the chaos of war? Where are you? The creek in the canyons never ceases to flow, and the oriole are still singing. Oh my love, do not forget me, in the chaos of war, do not forget me. Time passes day and night, but I’ve always been waiting for you, oh my love. I’ve been waiting for you. Have you forgotten about me? Oh my love. The fires of war have died out, but where are you oh my love? Where have you been? The way home is here, Come home to me.”
She called up her Quest tab when Ol’ Six arrived at the Eastern Continent. Her quest description was already updated to “Bury Tamra”, along with a set of coordinates where the body should be buried.
It was a simple task for Ye Ci, as the burial site was designated at a newbie village. Even the grave was already dug by the system, and the only thing Ye Ci had to do was to carefully place the corpse of Tamra into the grave.
The ground was immediately covered and a tombstone appeared once Tamra’s corpse was placed into the grave. The words “Here lies a nameless hero” were written on the tombstone. Of course, the words were not written by Ye Ci, and were instead generated by the system.
Ye Ci stood before Tamra’s grave for a short while, and took a look at her quest description: “Fulfill Tamra’s final wish.” It was apparent that Ye Ci would have to move Andriel’s corpse back to the Eastern Continent as well.
She read through her quest log, and each stage of the quest was heavily related to Dau’er, but none of them mentioned anything about the Elven King’s death. It was apparent that she needed more clue to uncover the truth behind Dau’er’s death.
Tamra’s arrow was not entirely useless as well. Ye Ci brought the arrow to Natasha, and the Elf was shocked to see the arrow.
She stared at Ye Ci, then at the arrow, and finally at Ye Ci again before accepting the arrow from her, “I’ve thought that I’d never be able to see this thing again.”
Natasha was a good NPC. Of course, Ye Ci’s definition of “good” was not due to an NPC’s moral alignment. Natasha was good because she would always go straight to the point.
The NPC told Ye Ci about the history of the arrow, and that it had been with Dau’er in many battles. His Five Arrows had disappeared since his death, and it was the highest form of glory for the arrow to return to Elven lands once again.
Natasha had even given Ye Ci some advice, “The arrow is in good condition. I can even sense Dau’er’s aura on that thing. Not all of Naga’s minions have perished in the Great War. Many of them are still alive, and are looking for a way to resurrect the Dark Lord. The energy of this arrow is exactly one of the things they need. As long as this thing is in your possession, you will be hunted down by his minions. Be careful.”
Ye Ce attempted to ask about ways to avoid Naga’s minions pursue, but the system was apparently reluctant to let the players learn of such knowledge. That was why Natasha refused to divulge any information to Ye Ci.
Well, it seems that I’ll simply have to be real careful. Thought Ye Ci.
With her wanted period already over, Ye Ci decided to return to Hero City. Due to her condition, it was simply safer for her to remain in the Middle Continent.
She was no longer wanted by Hero City’s soldiers, but the NPCs in the city treated her even colder than before. They even pretended that she did not exist. She decided to head to the western district of the city, counting on the fact that the NPCs would still respond to her because of money.
But she was wrong.
There were things that could not be solved with money.
Despite their questionable morality, the NPCs of the western district despised anyone who dared harm the protectors of their city. None of the NPCs in the western city were willing to talk to Ye Ci.
You’ve got to be kidding me! Does it mean that I can only resupply in Red Lake City now?
This is ridiculous!
Ye Ci stood at a crossroads of the western district. She was deep in thought. Her access from public facilities have been cut off, and it meant that she would not be able to utilize the many services in the game that was run by NPCs. Is there no other way? There’s no way I can use the teleporter, but the people in Upwards Ho! can’t send me items as well because the courier will not talk to me.
Just then, Ye Ci felt a tug on her sleeve. She turned around and saw a beggar with dark skin standing behind her, “Hey adventurer, can you spare some coins? I haven’t had a proper meal for a long time.”
Ye Ci did not even think twice as she handed ten gold coins to the beggar. The beggar stared at her and left with a smile on his face after counting the coins.
Wait, wasn’t that guy an NPC? Why was he talking to me? A sudden realisation washed over Ye Ci as the beggar disappeared from her sight.
She studied her surroundings, but found no sign of the beggar.
She then immediately headed to the direction where the beggar and disappeared, and found herself in a maze of small alleys with the beggar nowhere in sigh.
“Heh, are you looking for me, adventurer?” Ye Ci heard the voice of the beggar when she was about to leave.
She turned her head to the direction of the voice, and saw the beggar appearing out of nowhere on the street that she had been searching.
“Why are you talking to me? Don’t you know that I’m a wanted criminal?” Ye Ci narrowed her eyes. The behavior of the NPC was very suspicious.
The beggar paid no heed to her warning. He chuckled and dashed into an alley, “Come with me if you want to find out.”
Curiosity killed the cat.
Ye Ci finally understood the true meaning of the idiom.
She could not resist the urge to follow after the beggar with peculiar behavior even when she knew that it could be dangerous. So what if I die? It’s just a game. I’ll only lose some EXP and maybe a few gold coins and my equipment.
She immediately followed after the dagger through the alleys.
The beggar stopped in front of a small tavern.
The Devil’s Horn.
A feeling of unease crept into Ye Ci’s heart. She had a feeling that she had fallen into a trap.
She walked into the tavern. It was empty safe for a waiter working by the counter. The beggar was apparently very familiar with the place. He gave Ye Ci a look that clearly said ‘Follow me’.
Ye Ci was not certain who the beggar was, but she followed anyways.
The duo walked into the kitchen. And there was a door that was tightly shut at the back of the kitchen.
The beggar knocked at the door with a certain rhythm that Ye Ci attempted to memorize. Just then, the beggar turned around and said to Ye Ci, “The fun begins now, Elf!”
