Chapter 44: A Fated Encounter

Not only what the NPC says is important in clearing a quest, but other things are also important.

This is because everything in the place where the quest starts can be a hidden hint to help the player.

Of course, it was up to the player to realize and use it.

‘Perhaps this was also one of the many paths to clear the quest.’

For example, a situation like the current one was a method that was possible because he had noticed the fact that ‘the spirits are here’.

Of course, even if you noticed, it was actually a little difficult to get help unless you were a spirit master!

In Paul’s case, it was possible because his related title and the [Nature Affinity] stat, which was unique to his race, were high.

Who would use a spirit as an errand boy?

The spirits living in this land were like mischievous seven-year-olds.

They were playful, picky, mischievous, had a strong curiosity, and were fickle.

Well, the personalities of the spirits varied, but… that was their general characteristic.

On top of that, wind spirits were particularly famous for being picky.

Ding!

[System: Congratulations! The deal with the spirit has been successfully made!]

[System: Please be aware that if you do not pay a fair price to the spirit in the future, you will receive the [Status Effect: Spirit’s Curse]!]

Since even a system message had arrived like this, the wind spirits would surely grant Paul’s request.

Now, after finishing the remaining business in Hwion, he just had to wait for Epin at the promised place.

“Alright, then… Khan!”

“Is it over?”

At that, the relieved Paul turned to Khan, who was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.

He rummaged through the bag he was carrying and took out a small necklace.

This was a reward for the chain quest he had just completed.

‘This.’

‘This is…?’

The thing Eclie held out to Paul, who was about to turn back after promising to meet later in front of the prayer room, was a necklace with a rather familiar jewel.

It looked plain at first glance, but the small jewel that held the sun was, no matter how you looked at it, a Rasis’s Breath.

‘Rasis-nim told me to give this to you, saying it will be necessary for your journey ahead. Paul, you can use it, or you can give it to that person.’

[Rasis’s Blessing]

Grade: S

Durability: ∞

Description: A necklace made by processing Rasis’s Breath. It prevents the wearer’s death just once.

(Transferable once) (Cannot be repaired)

As soon as he checked the necklace’s ability, Paul thought he should give it to Khan.

There was no next time for Khan now.

If he died once, that was the end.

So Paul resolved to give any items of this kind that he came across to Khan from now on.

After all, Paul would be revived right away even if he died.

He didn’t care about dying, unlike other people who were sensitive to level drops.

“Lower your head a little!”

“That… I don’t need it.”

“Huh? Huh? Hurry!”

“…I still think it would be better for you to have it.”

“Wow, wow. This necklace is so heavy! Oh my, my arm is going to fall off, it’s going to fall off~!”

Paul exaggerated and whined, shaking the hand holding the necklace, but Khan was unmoving.

He even turned his head away.

Khan thought he could protect his own body, so he thought it would be better for the weaker Paul to wear it.

In a way, it was a terribly arrogant thought.

“Aww…”

Seeing the surprisingly stubborn Khan, Paul lowered his arm as if giving up.

But who was Paul?

Paul was even more stubborn than Khan.

If he had given up so easily, the two would never have met.

“Hmph, alright…”

Pretending to be dejected, Paul lowered both his arms and stealthily approached Khan.

Khan, seeing Paul approaching him, felt a strange sense of foreboding and took a step back.

But how wide could a corridor be?

As he was standing with his back to the wall, Khan soon reached the wall.

Not missing that opportunity, Paul grabbed one end of the necklace in each hand and lunged at Khan.

Clatter.

Due to the much closer distance, their masks collided with a clatter.

While Khan was flustered, Paul quickly stood on his tiptoes and wrapped his hands around the back of his neck.

Click, the sound of the necklace being fastened was very loud.

Right after that sound, Paul quickly moved away from Khan.

And he shouted as he ran down the corridor.

“That’s non-transferable! That’s Khan’s now!”

“Paul…!”

Khan sighed at the sight of Paul, who had already gotten far away.

As he followed him, Khan pulled at the necklace fastened around his neck with his hand.

“Ah! That! It can’t be repaired if it breaks!”

But he was caught by Paul, who had just turned around.

Seeing Paul pointing a finger at him, Khan had no choice but to lower his hand.

The necklace swayed every time he walked.

“It’s annoying…”

If he pulled it with force, he could surely tear it off easily, but then Paul would dislike it…

In a situation where he could do neither, Khan clicked his tongue once.

He grabbed the necklace that was still dangling from his neck and tucked it inside his robe.

It seemed a little less annoying now that it was out of sight.

Paul, who had stopped running and was walking backward down the corridor, afraid that Khan would pull the necklace off again, was relieved only after seeing that.

He had been worried that he might just snap it off if he didn’t like it, so it was a relief.

Thud.

“Ah.”

“Oh.”

It was when Paul was walking backward down the corridor like that.

He ended up bumping into someone who suddenly popped out from around a corner.

The person behind Paul quickly caught him as he staggered from bumping his back against a hard armor.

“Are you alright?”

“Ugh, thank you!”

The flustered Paul habitually let out a word of thanks.

The person behind him let go of his shoulder only after Paul had properly regained his posture and stepped back.

“I’m sorry, I wasn’t looking where I was going.”

At that, Paul scratched the back of his neck and apologized.

The man in the pure white armor opposite him was smiling awkwardly like Paul.

Then, a look of ‘huh?’ flashed across the man’s face when he saw Paul’s face.

The man asked cautiously in a hesitant voice.

“Are you perhaps Paul-nim?”

“Huh? Uh, I am Paul, but… who are you?”

Paul, seeing the man who recognized him, unknowingly took a step back.

‘Who was he?’

“I knew it was you, Paul-nim! Don’t you remember me?”

At the sight of the man who greeted him cheerfully and strode towards him, Paul habitually put on a smile and searched his memory.

The man with naturally wavy light brown hair and the same light brown eyes had a friendly impression.

As he looked the man over, he certainly seemed familiar.

“This sword, do you remember this? You gave it to me, Paul-nim!”

Seeing that he didn’t recognize him at all, the man held up the sword he was wearing at his side.

A bastard sword with a gorgeous appearance came into view.

Paul blinked at the sight.

That sword… was familiar.

It was very similar to the sword he had broken while taking Khan out of the dungeon last time.

No, it looked exactly the same.

Paul, who had owned the same sword, knew that this sword was not a common item.

He rolled his eyes, feeling like he was on the verge of remembering something.

“Umm, so… so…”

“Um, why… do you remember the random box that was given out in Arcana Chronicles for Children’s Day last year? This is the sword that came out of it, and you gave it to me, saying you had another one!”

“Ah!”

Only after hearing that did he remember.

It was what happened on Children’s Day, May 5th of last year.

One might wonder what Children’s Day has to do with an adult game, but… anyway, on that day, the central square of Hwion was bustling with people who had gathered for the event.

At that time, Paul was sitting on the fountain, holding the 10 random boxes with a cute and adorable appearance but a not-so-cute content that were bound to his personal inventory upon login.

Because his favorite mask was mixed in with the list of items that came out of the event boxes, he remembered opening the boxes as soon as he logged in, which he would have normally opened late around the end of the event.

Although he said mask, it was actually a cute animal mascot head.

It was probably one of the many booby prizes, but since what he wanted was that mask, there was no hesitation in his hands as he opened the boxes, unlike other people.

On the contrary, the better the item, the more disappointed Paul was.

His hands, which had been repeatedly untying the ribbons, gradually slowed down.

Once again, with a ‘pop!’ sound and a fanfare, it was a win, and confetti scattered with a brilliant light.

[World] System: Paul-nim has acquired the [S] grade [Holy Light of Tainan].

As always, Paul’s nickname echoed through the world message.

This message could have been replaced with an anonymous one, but it was something that happened because Paul was so engrossed in opening the boxes that he failed to make it anonymous.

Thanks to that, Paul was soon surrounded by a crowd of people who had gathered to get even a small share of the spoils.

Even if that wasn’t the case, there were also people who were watching Paul, who was getting consecutive wins.

People would let out sighs of envy every time, but Paul himself was just dejected because he wasn’t getting what he wanted.

Even when the S-grade weapon named [Holy Light of Tainan], which had appeared for the first time in this event, came out for the second time, Paul was feeling anxious.

‘Surely the animal head won’t not come out in the end, right?’

He even prayed inwardly, ‘Please, please,’ as he opened the last remaining box.

The free ones were over, and the next boxes were paid.

It was when he had even resolved to pay if it didn’t come out here.