Azimuth: The Elden Throne

I would like to make a few questions, regarding everything you read so far...

Hum... Instead of questions, it's more of a check-up for them.

I like feedback, be it constructive or not... Though I won't lie, I often tend to ignore the latter if they don't make much sense...

If you have a question regarding anything, I'll try to answer, be it romance or the end plot.

This also helps me because there are some things I haven't even started to think about, but for some readers, it may seem as if I already have everything figured out.

I don't want to oversell or underperform, I want to make a good story, but it's important to be yourself.

What was it huh... "The snow goose needs not to bathe to make itself white. Neither needs you to do anything to be yourself...?"

Was that how it went? Wait... Something's missing...

-Drake (XD)

Perfect, now the quote is completed.

Aside from that, Enjoy!

Link -> https://discord.gg/zpAgtPBAMK

.

.

.

------------

/Close to an hour later…/

Dale still sat on his bed, it seemed as if his position had not changed in the slightest...

But his hands were in constant movement...

(Ayo...)

"..."

'Hum… I see… So this is the Inner Catroid Vein?... And this is…'

Dale silently read his book about the Mana Circuits, trying out the theories within as he traced its diagrams with his fingers, memorizing as much as he could while also trying to understand it as he went on.

Sometimes he would touch his arms and legs, trying to have a better sense of where everything was located, but most of the time he remained still reading the book...

/Poof!/

He finally closed the book, but he wasn't satisfied, there was still a lot he didn't understand, and there was still a bit more to read...

Still, he closed his eyes and tried moving Mana around his body, following what he understood from the book…

Every once in a while he stopped, checking the book before continuing with his experiments…

All the way until…

[Status Effect, Injured Heart, has been released]

"Oh!"

He opened his eyes in surprise before checking his status.

"It's over."

'Finally… I'll have to say my thanks to Yumi later.'

Dale got up from his bed and stretched his arms and legs.

"Are you leaving?" David asked, opening his eyes

"Oh? I thought you were sleeping." Dale asked surprised

"I was resting a bit... Even I need to cool off from time to time. Regardless, are you sure you're good enough to walk around?"

"After all, you just recovered from your heart almost imploding and all of that... It wouldn't be strange if you decided to rest for an entire week... Or more."

Dale smiled slightly, he appreciated the concern, but he didn't have the luxury to stay put.

That was the same as waiting for death to come knocking on the door.

"Yes, in mostly fine now, not even my muscles hurt anymore"

"Besides, I won't learn much by staying put... If I could, I would rest and study at the same time, but at this rate, we won't be making much progress, at least any noticeable one."

'I feel like the world has slowed down due to how little has happened as I sat in my room... it's time to go back and see how everyone is doing.'

"Just like you said before, we don't have much time to spare..."

'There are a ton of things I need to do.'

'From seeing how the players are doing to continuing with my training, visiting the elders, training with Testros…'

'To even the current ongoing Event…'

'Since I choose Intensive Training, all of the villagers will train very hard and neglect the Crop fields for 2 weeks straight...'

'What will happen after is left for interpretation, but you don't need to be a genius to figure it out..'

'I have to find a way to maintain the Crops' and Animals' conditions so the Villagers can be at ease.'

'Even if they neglect the crops due to the influence of the Event, I don't doubt they might have second thoughts if things start going badly, it may even be a hidden condition...'

'So I must guarantee that nothing goes wrong so the only thing they have in their heads in training and studying.'

'Also, most of the books are still with me, Testros did collect some, but those weren't all… How can they study if they can't access them?'

'There's a need to find a proper place to store them all so all of the Villagers may use them and learn… And that's only the tip of the things I have left pending…'

"Hum... I can see that you're better than before, so it's fine." David said with a nod as he inspected Dale's body

"Well then, since we're done, on with it, I was getting a bit bored from staying still after our recent adventurers..."

'Tough... It's a shame that such heavy burdens need to be placed on this young man.'

'He's doing alright so far, but if this continues, he'll snap eventually.'

'Sigh... Really, what is happening at the main grounds?...'

...

/A minute later.../

Dale put on a pair of casual clothes and strapped David to his waist like always.

He left the room and immediately saw Illia who was cooking dinner for the kids.

Although it would still take a while for it to be done, Dale decided that resting a little was for the best, so he played around with the kids for half an hour until the food was ready.

It was a meaty rich soup made from the many creatures he hunted yesterday when he went to the Forest with Testros and Misgurd…

It feels like it was so long ago, but it was indeed yesterday… His shoulder got heavily injured, and he was blessed by a God before going on a rampage.

Then he healed, before going on an adventure to the Wall and running away for his life...

All of it done within the span of a single day... No wonder he felt it was so long ago.

Only a few days had passed, but his body was constantly changing.

…

"Thank you for the meal." Dale said with a smile as he grabbed a wooden spoon

(Image?)

"It's a pleasure dear, you were the one who did most of the work by catching these, I just cooked them." Ilia replied with a smile

"Meaaaat!" One of the kids screamed, his mouth all oily as he ravaged his plate

"Auntie, can I have another?" Asked a calmer child cutely, a blond girl wearing a white-yellow shirt

"Yes, sweetie…" Illia said as she turned around

/BUUUUUURRRP!/

One of the kids burped pretty loudly, startling even Dale…

/HAHAHAHA!/

Some of the other kids started to laugh, others cringed…

"Gross!" Said a young girl with black hair

"Have some manners Ygor!" Illia said with a helpless smile as she scolded a bald kid

Dale smiled, he was happy and accomplished that the little meat he hunted created this peaceful scene, but it was time to go.

He brushed his teeth and cleaned his face…

"..."

'Should I… Yeah, I will.'

For a moment, Dale considered if he should bring that massive sword with him, but it's best if it remains under his eyes at all times due to what happened previously.

Although it has become quite a bother to carry around, such a minor inconvenience is nothing compared to the potential trouble it could cause if it were to be left unchecked…

…

/Sometime later in the Guild.../

/Whispers…/

"Hm…"

'This place is oddly full…' Dale thought as he looked around the reception of the Mercenary Guild

In fact, he soon saw something rather interesting…

He didn't see Misgurd anywhere at all! Instead, he saw 5 pretty girls working behind the counter, accepting the players and filling up papers…

He saw several parties sitting around tables, many of them were drinking and eating, but it was clear those weren't provisions from the village, but things they brought with them from the Tutorial.

Others were checking the mission board, trying to grab a good quest…

But of course, there wasn't any good quest… Only the miscellaneous tasks…

Although there were several 'normal' ones, such as hunting and scavaging the forest for supplies, those were restricted to higher ranks and not meant for low-rank newbies like them...

And so they would remain for at least a few days until their Reputation rose beyond +10, or the one-week lockdown passed, only then would they be allowed to take the Promotion exam and go outside.

That's why there are so many Players grinding these repetitive Quests…

Even though they won't be able to rise in Rank with the Guild for at least a week, being able to hunt outside will already be a great boost for them.

"That guy..." Dale said with a thin smile

'It seems Misgurd used his brain, instead of working to the bone, he's using the players to do his job for him…'

'Normally, leaving a job like this to the players could be risky, after all, what if the players were to fake information for benefits?'

'It happens in real life quite often, why not in a game?'

'But since the scale of things is still small, I imagine it wouldn't be hard to detect any sort of corruption…'

'Especially since players work around Quests, if they don't fulfill its terms, they fail…'

Dale shook his head, walking towards the stairs…

As always, many players looked at him, his image was already very famous after all, and it was impossible not to recognize his iconic sword… And the shining golden head on his waist.

But for Dale, whatever they thought off, or the plans they hid in the back of their minds... None of it was of his concern.

…

/Knock Knock!/

Once he stepped into the second floor, he went to the Office, the only place he actually knew aside from the basement.

Now that he thought about it, he didn't know much about this Guild, having only visited a small number of rooms…

/Creak/

The door opened, and a tired voice came from within…

"Hm?... Oh! It's you, kid! Come inside!" Misgurd said with a smile

"Excuse me…" Dale said as he got inside the room

Inside, he actually saw Edimund, checking a large map on top of a table.

Dale was surprised, one of his objectives was to visit him, but it seemed it happened earlier than he thought.

"Dale? It seems you're better." Edimund said with a small smile

"The last time I saw you, you were in the training fields nearby... Bleeding quite a lot..."

"It wasn't anything serious, and thanks to Yumi and a few potions, I'm now mostly healed."

/Tap…/

Misgurd tapped his shoulder, nodding as well.

"It's great that you're here, we were waiting for you to come…"

Dale became a bit confused. <subtxt> . </subtxt>

"You were?"

"Yes of course!... Testros already told everything to us, about your 'Little adventure' to the Wall." Edimund replied with a smile

"Sigh… You truly are something Dale, every day you do something bigger… Quite the work you've been giving me."

"Haha… Sorry…" Dale said awkwardly as he scratched his head

"Don't say that, life was quite monotonous before you arrived, now I'm actually excited to see the sunrise…"

"I believe that slowly, life is starting to come back to this remote Village…"

Edimund took his attention off the map and approached Dale.

"Each day you do something I never ever dreamed of doing…"

"Such actions can't be left unrewarded, right?" He said with a smile as he looked at Misgurd

"There isn't a need to reward me that much… I've already gained a lot and my training is going smoothly…"

But Edimund shook his head.

"I wouldn't feel well if I were to leave you with just that…"

"Oi oi, you're putting too much pressure on the kid." Misgurd replied with a smile

"Am I? Hahaha! I was never good at this, the reason why I decided to be an Honorary Head instead of an Official one." Edimund replied awkwardly

So he turned to Dale and said:

"Dale, at this point in time, you've already become irreplaceable to us…"

He pointed towards the table and said:

"So why don't you join us?"

[You have been invited into the Inner Circle of Resko]

[You are now an Elder!]

[You have completed the quest, I'm an Elder?]

[+ 10% Level xp]

"What?..." Dale mumbled to himself as he looked at everyone

…

.

.

.

Notes