Leave The Monster Alone

"I'll check" Mark opened his system to check. Alan kept an ear out for the intruders in the meantime.

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Hidden quest activated - Survival mode on (Chain 2)

Parameters: Gather three given herbs and reach the second checkpoint. These herbs will help you make the final product.

Prize: ????

Additional parameters: Gather three given herbs. More to be added.

Timer: Click to start. 

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"It says to gather some herbs. It had the name and description given for them and they are common. But I cannot say if it had to be the exact species of the genus would work as well" This was a confusing order for them.

It was not difficult to find these plants in this area. Mark could even see one from his present location but this one was a different genus but the same family of the given plant.

"There is no indication if we found the right one in the system?" Alan asked, looking over the given perimeters. There was not one yet but they had not started it at all.

"I'll start this round and then we can see" since there was no time limit given this time it might not matter at all. However, it was entirely possible that starting this quest would start the timer as well.

Mark still took his chances and pressed start.

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Mentha piperita: Found (0/15)1

Ocimum basilicum: Found (0/10)

Papaver somniferum: Found (0/20)

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The system gave specific names along with the species and the upper two were really easy to find as well. The problem would be the third one which was not something he wanted to expose his young ward to.

"Yeah, I don't understand these names at all. Do you know what they are?" Alan took one look at the list and gave it over. What kind of language was this? Witchcraft? Medical? Could they not have used the common names?

"They gave us exact plants to find. In easier words, we need to find mint, Tulsi and poppy" Mark made sure his voice did not break at the last word. This particular brand of poppy they were given had implications.

"They want opium? Why would the system want drugs like these?" Alan asked and Mark's body turned at a breaking speed toward the other. Had the other know what this plant was capable of?

"Well, movies and the internet did exist. And so do those bad kids" the last part was not something Mark was supposed to hear but he did anyway. He felt bad but he did not know for whom.

Then again, it did not matter in this context at all. What did matter was that - 

"Can you recognise the plant if you come across it?" they would likely have to split up if they wanted to cover all the area available to them.

"No. I think I can recognise Mint but I'm not sure. It looks similar to many other plants" yeah, this was going to be a problem for someone who never had to pick up these things. Mark could pretty much tell Mint off-site since he had a lot of practice in the kitchen but not this kid.

"Wear a pair of gloves and try picking up the plants. Hopefully, the system will tell us if we picked up the right thing or not" that was the advantage of having a system. It generally alerted them if their search was going right or wrong.

Alan gave a nod of agreement and got to work. He quickly picked up the plant Mark had recognised before and his system gave a 'ding'. 

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Mentha piperita: Found (1/15)

Ocimum basilicum: Found (0/10)

Papaver somniferum: Found (0/20)

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"It's working. Keep on picking up the plants that look like that" there was an area marked on his map which meant that everything was available inside there. It was not too large either, hardly spanning more than 500 meters on both sides.

Soonish enough they had everything available and ready to move on.

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Hidden quest activated - Survival mode on (Chain 3)

Parameters: Follow the instructions given. Any diversion from them would be considered a failure.

Prize: Entry to the underground locker. Need access keys to unlock. Available 2/1

Additional parameters: Eliminate the elite boss

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"Let's move on. There is a new message that has popped up" there was no timer this time but there was more information.

Mark was just surprised to see the reward line. The keys, those keys? He had almost forgotten about them but now he remembered. He was going to save them for the place where they had rescued Rika.

There had been a bunker there as well but Mark had been unable to open it due to the lack of these keys. He also had a key waiting for a reward once he completed this mission right? 

He would finally have 3 of them and he should use it then but this one was also a tempting offer to have. Not to mention, this sentence indicates that there were more keys to come. He could use one right here.

"Should we follow along?" Alan asked when Mark failed to answer. Mark could only look the other in the eye and knew the other was ready to follow his lead anytime.

"Let's go" the first instruction had been to reach the cave entrance. Unlike the cave their base was at, this one was a mud construction that went deeper into the earth's surface. It was also highly unstable which made it very difficult to navigate for the party. 

"I said to lighten the mint on fire and then throw it inside" Mark read the instructions, not sure how he felt about it at all. It would not really accomplish anything but the smoke might help.

Mark brought a lighter and smoked the mint along with some dry grass as he had been instructed and threw it down the hole. Once that was done, they retreated a few steps back as the message had said.

Nothing happened for a few seconds, just a sweet minty scent that emerged from down below. 

Then the buzzing sound reached their ears and the earth vibrated with an intensity they had never seen before. 

Insects poured out of the earth, millions of them in one go. It was a huge crowd of real insects and not monsters who flew away from the place as soon as they could. It was a chaotic and fearful display. If they stung anyone then that person was surely not going to survive.

"Hurry and hide" Mark tugged Alan near him and covered them in the protective skin. The insects buzzed around the pair for a while but then left. The huge cloud vanished into the sky and they were safe once again.

"There were so many of them. I'm so glad we did not just charge inside" it had not been luck but the instructions that had saved their lives here. Mark could not help but appreciate those instructions provided to them. 

The next set of instructions were a little confusing. It asked them to boil the basilicum and store it. There was no real meaning provided for it.

The 'ding' meant that they could move on further.

"Let's go inside now. Be careful of the monsters. Leave them alone if you can" Alan nodded and followed behind Mark. A few of the bees and other insects had gotten stuck in the side mud wall.

The party did their best to ignore those insects as they went even deeper. The floor was covered in a thick layer of insect remains and their boots made a crunching sound. The sweet smoke still clung to their throats and made them want to vomit.

"Here, drink this. You will feel better" that were the instructions provided to them so Alan did not complain. He took a huge gulp out of it and drowned it without tasting it. It turned out to be the right choice since he instantly felt better.

"I think it is neutralising the smoke inside me" Alan commented but Mark knew it was just his thinking. Either that or an influence of the game since there was no real health benefit of this drink other than digestion.

He was not going to tell the kid this though since he did not want to break his impression of this quest. He would clear this misunderstanding in another way.

"Let's go deeper. We are almost at the end of the tunnel. The gate should be closed by" this was likely the final part of this quest and it made Mark's heart punt in excitement. 

What would they find there? Would it help them out? Would it solve some mysteries they were faced with? Or would it end up in even more disappointment for them? There was no real way to know and then the door came.

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Unlock the area? - 2/1 keys available. Are you sure you want to use it right now? 

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And Mark entered the command for it to open.