Conqueror

It was like something that came out of a fairy tale book. The two of us just wandering around the world and slowly falling in love with each other. We both began to understand that and accept the facts.

So we travelled and travelled all around the world. The both of us getting stronger and stronger. And then one day, we faced an enemy that we couldn't get over.

The only thing we did everytime we faced it was just run in but we just lost over and over and we just both teleported away just to survive.

"Do you really need to get there Zera?" Dahlia asked of me.

"...Yeah." I took a look at the emblem on my hand. It was pulsing. In a bright white light. I covered it with the gloves that Dahlia made for me. "Sorry for pushing you to fight with me in this stubborn journey."

"Wherever you go, I'll go with you and-"

"Whatever I do, you'll be there with me. I know." The both of us smiled at each other and laughed. I looked up at the ceiling of the bar and took a sip of the alcohol that was in front of me. "Maybe its time. To recruit more people." 

"Why aren't you recruiting people in the first place?"

"Well... I didn't want anyone getting in our way..."

"...Alright." She's too embarrassed to talk about it. "Who do you have in mind? Or do we just recruit some random people?"

"B..." I just remembered a word from my head and I remember those group of people. "Bladedge..?"

"Oh! That group! They were the ones who were saving people here and there right?"

"Yeah. And I briefly remember them from the fight that we did several months ago against the kingdom. Those players leading a kingdom were pretty aggressive. Good thing we drove them off before things escalated."

"That's the plan then!"

We spent the next week tracking their trails. It seems that they've also been going all around the world trying to find the Bladedge party. But a week in, we didn't come to them. They came to me.

It seems that they've also been tracking us and once they learned that we were finding them, they immediately stopped what they were doing and hunted for us.

Rafael, Rael, Lily, Lila and Tas. The five of them are a small party and has been spreading peace throughout the world. And it seems that we've inspired them to fight back or something according to them. 

I asked them to lend their powers to me and they all accepted pretty much easily. 

I wasn't expecting that quick agreement so I just revealed why I'm doing this.

Holy Sword of Arranca, the weapon that I currently have right now is just the first piece. Its the hollow existence of the sword. Its the sword. But its not complete. This is the same sword that was used to kill myself and head straight to this world. 

Its the same appearance but there's still a lot locked. Like around eighty or ninety more skills locked from this sword. So that's why I've been exploring the world finding the parts of the weapon. But this time, its guarded by a dragon. 

I've never been more excited in my life. I can finally face off a dragon. A level 993 dragon. And I'm fighting it with an incomplete weapon that's better than anything that I currently have right now.

Once I complete the sword, I know I'll be an unstoppable force and will bring peace to the world. And I'm completely ready for it.

Everyone understood my motive and what I was about to do. So they all agreed to do it. So a few weeks from now, we'll all head there. But I need to know them more so that I can trust them more. So I asked them a few things, "Where were you going to go if I didn't try and find you?"

Rafael was the one who answered, "We were going to Itz. Its far from here but we're there to meet an old friend. And check if he's still there."

"Old friend?"

"Yeah. Someone in our group picked a fight."

Lily then coughed, "Yeah, someone." And another cough. "Someone."

Everyone laughed except for Rafael. "I mean, the two of them just stole our prey! Anyway... we got into a fight that escalated and all of us lost against the two of them. 

"The five of you lost against two people?" I was just in shock of what they said. They're pretty strong seeing their feats right now.

"Yeah. One of them was a player. And the other one his companion. And that was one of the reasons we wanted to quit this adventuring thing. People were... getting stronger really fast. That man arrived not even a month or something and yet, our years of practice just disappeared like that."

"I never noticed that." I have been getting stronger incredibly quickly. And I didn't notice how difficult it was for people to get stronger. So those EXP boosts that the system was developing was real huh...

"But when you saved us from that kingdom, you helped us to get even more and more inspiration and to just follow what our dream is. To be the best adventurers out there."

"I didn't think that I did that much."

"You did. And we're all here thanking you about it."

"Alright, let's stop the serious talk. Let's get a drink!"

All of us went to the nearby kingdom and ordered any food and every drink that we can buy until each and everyone of us passed out. I was never an alcoholic guy but seeing how I won't die from it with the Drunkard skill that I discovered, I have no more worries.

A few weeks passed by and we all went to the dragon's den. An altar holding the fragment of the sword was there. And the emblem on my hand were pulsing even more, sending a burning and itchy feeling on my hand. "That's the real deal."

All of us fought the gigantic dragon. A fire breathing dragon who can summon several minions by his side. Apparently it was an Elemental Dragon so the fight was difficult.

Tas's durability was the key to this fight. He immobilized the dragon several times with his taunt skills or something which enabled us all to focus the fight. And with Lily and Lila helping us from the back, I didn't have to worry about anything.

The fight lasted for several hours but we all persevered. Somehow. I was all beaten up and tired to the point that after the fight, I lay flat on the ground. "That was exhausting."

After a few minutes of rest, I stood up and walked in front of the altar. Everyone was there watching me from the ground. I grabbed the fragment of the sword that was on the altar and put it close to the sword. It began to merge and... Memories in me began to flow...

"Epimetheus! Wake up! You damn mongrel!" Someone was yelling at... me? I looked in front of me but it was a face that I haven't seen before. "You and your wife opened the damned Pandora's box! Do you know how idiotic you both are!?" The man was incredibly angry. But I didn't know who he was and the people that was around him.

"It was a mistake! It was given to me by Zeus!" I was... talking? I don't even know if this is my body that was... talking.

"You go down to Pandir you stupid freak! Go with your damn wife!" The man who was talking to... this body? Kicked me off on what seems to be clouds. And I fell and it felt like hours... or maybe even a day. 

A voice then came to my mind. "Find it... Hephaestus' creation... Save... Pandora... please... save her. I left the fragments of the Holy Sword of Arranca all over the world of Pandir... Dungeon near the Tartarus... Dragon's Den in the artifact dungeon near the Tower of Babel and in the Elven Kingdom... Find it and save her."

I was snapped back to reality and I fumbled off the altar but I was saved from falling by Dahlia. I opened my eyes and looked around then asked, "How long was I out?"

Dahlia then responded, "You just touched it now."

"It felt like hours there... Or maybe even a day." I sat up and scratched the back of my head. As I opened my eyes, I saw that the skill list of the Holy Sword of Arranca is nearly all unlocked.

"What did you see there?"

"I don't know... but I know something now. I found the next fragment. But I don't know the location. But I know where its supposed to be found."

"Where?"

"Elven Kingdom or something. That was the voice that I heard inside."

"...I... I know where that place is."