"The beast is dead!"
"Finally did it!"
"Hurry up, our friends are still fighting out there!"
[Bleary Mirage: Teams 5-12, take your members and support Final Fend. Don't let anyone enter the cave!]
[Flows: Got it!]
[Demolish Me: Roger!]
[Gnetic: On it!]
[Glorious Hotpot: Your wish is my command!]
Movement came into the guild. About half of the remaining players separated from the main team and rushed towards the exit. Their comrades outside had been sacrificing themselves throughout the fight. It was time to collect some interest.
It was uncertain, though, if any of the players opposing Dream Avenue still dared to stick around after the arrival of the reinforcements.
The players running at the back of the big group longingly glanced over their shoulders as they left the cave. Just then, a pillar of light suddenly shot towards the ceiling, originating from the dead world boss. It like a bursting piñata as items rained down, some dim, some dazzlingly brilliant.
"So much loot!"
Cyclone's eyes were sparkling like stars. She stood close to the boss, following the most dazzling items, knowing that those were of high rarity. Around her stood a group of people with similar expressions. In the guild they were jokingly coined loot goblins. The group didn't feel insulted. In their minds, others were simply pretending to be indifferent. Imagine Fate of Crunaboul didn't have any loot. How many people would still play the game?
"Guys, keep your eyes out for thieves!"
"Secure the perimeter!"
"Pay attention!"
Cyclone jolted. She remembered that time a few days ago, after Dream Avenue killed the second world boss of the week. A few audacious thieves actually managed to sneak up, stealing precious loot, even a unique item. Dream Avenue managed to kill three of the thieves but three more escaped. One even used a personal teleportation scroll, which, according to Liam, was more valuable than the item they stole.
Still, Cyclone would never be able to forgive these thieves. She specially made a list with Dream Avenue's enemies and placed the group of thieves at the very top. There was even a considerable gap to the likes of Star Gazer or GalanTen.
Dream Avenue learned from their mistakes. They realized that their name was not enough of a deterrent effect in the face of valuable items. They swarmed out, defending the world boss in all directions, their eyes vigilantly scanning the surroundings. The guild's thieves entered stealth and patrolled the cave. Shockingly, they did indeed fish out two thieves who somehow managed to bypass Final Fend's defence line. Fortunately, they discovered them in time.
Other than that, there was no other disturbance. As soon as the loot came in range, Dream Avenue began to collect it with fervent eyes. Up ahead was, of course, the Loot Goblin group.
"Boss! Boss! Look! So much gold!"
"Over here, three spell scrolls! All with big AOE effects!"
"A potion recipe for advanced health potions!"
"A unique spear!"
"I got a unique wand! Boss, perhaps it suits you!"
The excitement was almost palpable. With each joyous shout the others still securing the surroundings felt their fingers twitch. But they remained steadfast. They knew that should there be an item suitable for them, they had a fair chance to acquire it with contribution points.
The system was quite mature by now after continuous tweaking from Sun's Knight and his team. Every action contributing to the guild would be rewarded with points. The steadiest income, other than the monthly points which were part of the monthly wages, was earned by completing guild quests which helped push the guild towards rank 3 or by those quests which improved Greypine Town.
Other means to contribute were dungeons, bosses, guild wars, or even donations, mostly in the form of items. The current week where the guild hunted one world boss after another was a big windfall. Sun's Knight even feared that contribution points might get inflated. But by rotating players they were able to prevent that from happening.
Only Liam and his friends had more contribution points than they could ever spend but this couldn't be changed. As they were always at the highest levels, the items they found were worth the most.
But excluding Hotpot, the system was relatively fair and balanced. Therefore, no one was afraid of missing out. The guild's average equipment was improving steadily.
The loot fountain persisted for about thirty seconds, providing more than two hundred items. As it was the first time this particular world boss has been killed, the loot was even more generous. Cyclone couldn't stop smiling. She approached Liam with large strides and handed him three slimy sacs looking like organs. Fortune had to avert her eyes, feeling like vomiting.
Liam glanced at Fortune, chuckled faintly, took the item from Cyclone and let out a sigh of relief.
"Now there are only two items left.", said the veteran.
"So you'll soon be able to forge that legendary sword?", asked Cyclone uneasily.
"Far from it. I still need to advance as a blacksmith."
Now it was Cyclone's turn to let out a sigh of relief. Liam and the nearby Silver Blade, Fortune, and Radiant Shield couldn't help but laugh. Cyclone didn't really hide her thoughts. Everyone understood that she saw this as a competition. Cyclone wanted to loot the first legendary item before Liam was able to forge his sword. She had placed a lot of hope on the world bosses, only to ultimately get disappointed.
After the loot got distributed the guild finally left the cave. Only a scene of devastation remained behind. However, after about an hour the common beetles would respawn and after one week the world boss would also come back to life. Perhaps Dream Avenue would stage another visit at that point.
Outside there were only some stragglers left. Seeing that the entire guild was leaving the tunnel, they hastily tried to escape but only a few made it. The rest was eliminated by Dream Avenue as revenge for their fallen brothers and sisters.
To reach this place the guild had to take a difficult path through the Eastern Mountains, navigating complicated cave systems. Everyone was mentally prepared to retrace their path. But Liam showed them an easier way. Through a hidden tunnel they reached the dwarven city at the bottom of the abyss-like cave, taking the teleporter from there.
The guild returned to Greypine Town. Cyclone and Balm held a brief speech, thanking the guild members for their efforts during this week, highlighting the guild's achievements and advancements. Cheers sounded through the guild hall. Although everyone was feeling happy and accomplished, one could see the hints of fatigue in their faces. The last week was quite intense. Thus, no one found it strange when Cyclone told them to take it slow tomorrow.
Liam and his friends spent the rest of the day questing or working on their professions. Upon closer observation one could see the excitement but also nervousness in the air. Even Liam wasn't spared.
The day slowly came to its end. Those living in the guild house ate dinner together. Vulcan, or rather Chris, the outgoing 16-year-old talent, finished quickly before coming over to Liam and the others trying to hide the envy in his voice:
"You are really flying to another planet tomorrow?"
The first to answer was Serena. She was so excited, she could barely sit still. Her eyes had been shining brightly for the last few days.
"Not only another planet! Another star system. It's called… Orus!"
"Ah, well, congrats. You deserve it."
"Haha, would you like to come with us?", asked Quiana jokingly. But Vulcan immediately perked up:
"Can I?!"
An awkward silence followed. Silva looked at Quiana, jokingly raising her brow. The reason why Hotpot was travelling to the planet Orus located within the Orus Star System was because of Star Energy's invitation. The big company had issued a reward for the team achieving the first Hell Mode dungeon clear. After Hotpot claimed the achievement, Star Energy invited the guild to their headquarters to symbolically hand over a cheque.
Although the friends were somewhat confused why they had to visit the headquarters for this, they still agreed after a brief discussion. The opportunity to visit other planets was still rather rare in the current federation. Although Cyclone's family for example migrated to Falva Star, this didn't mean that they could casually fly to other planets, let alone other star systems.
Therefore, the friends agreed to take some time out of their busy schedule for this journey.
Liam didn't want to leave Serena alone and also wanted her to see more of the world. Thus, the guild negotiated with Star Energy. Fortunately, the company showed understanding and agreed to invite Serena along. It didn't make much of a change. Simply upgrading Liam's hotel room to accommodate an additional child was enough.
However, now Quiana with her joking question brought the group quite the predicament. Their leave was scheduled for tomorrow. It was too late to make big changes. But they also didn't want to disappoint their guild member.
Luckily, a few of the other members came over saving the situation.
"Yo, Chris, you're not a part of Hotpot. You think you earned to participate in their reward?"
"Right, if they took you along, wouldn't they have to bring the entire guild?"
"You're right. Sorry, I was too excited…", apologized Vulcan sheepishly.