The Achievement Junkie

Three more days passed without Jack leaving his bed. Eliza and Daliea were constantly at his side, either tending to him or chatting together. Maura would either be with Jack or sparring with Dirk and Maynard since she could use all the technical training she could get. Bowzer was also let out so long as he remained in Jack's room and stayed quiet enough to not be heard.

After three days, Jack was finally able to stand but he struggled to walk without wincing in pain every step.

They decided to wait another three days for Jack's body to readjust further, at least letting him walk and talk without feeling unnecessary pain. Once Jack was able to at least appear like his usual able-bodied self, Jack and Rydel planned to make their move the following day.

Three and a half weeks had passed since Jack had blacked out and they were finally moving on with step two of his plan to gain control of Trodar.

Rydel led the way as the two men left the hotel before midday. They wandered the streets in a way that seemed aimless, but they eventually reached an alleyway tucked away in a corner of the city that most locals wouldn't know existed.

Since it wasn't like before where Rydel was keeping his distance and trying his best to remain unseen, Jack entered the alley with a neutral expression as Rydel followed his lead.

"What's up?" The ninja was leaning against the back corner as he looked up at the two men approaching him. He turned toward Rydel and smiled. "Are you finally gonna buy something?"

"We're here to browse your wares," Jack answered for Rydel. "If you've got anything good, then I'm not leaving without cleaning you out."

"Well, what are you after? Common items? Peak-tier weapons?" The ninja casually faced Jack, proud to gain such an interested customer. "Or are you after custom and mythic-tier weapons?"

"You've got custom weapons? Show me."

In the blink of an eye, a spear appeared in the ninja's hand. "Here, check it yourself. If you like it, make me an offer."

Jack eyed the weapon as he tried to see through the ninja's level. However, since Jack failed to see through the man, he gladly took the spear that his system instantly recognized as the item of an ancient hero. "Where did you get this stuff?"

"I have my sources. Pay enough and I may say more," laughed the ninja.

Feeling that something was different about the ninja, Jack took out a moneybag and threw it to the ninja. "That should cover it, right?"

"Hardly," the ninja scoffed as he stored the moneybag away without even opening it. "That's just a down payment."

"You don't even know how much I've given you, how could you--"

"I know the difference in weight between platinum and gold, buddy. I'm no noob."

While Rydel was slightly confused by the ninja's choice of words, Jack's suspicions grew the more the ninja spoke.

"Then show me what else you got. I've got more to offer if you've got something better than this."

"Check these bad boys out." A pair of wristbands were thrown to Jack. "If you like those, then make sure to pay up properly. And don't think PK is an option for you, cause it's not."

Jack was happy to see the ninja willingly selling such items. The more items he had from ancient heroes, the more tombs and achievements he could get. In that short exchange, Jack had already gained three new achievements to find tombs, and two of them were to find the same tomb.

"I like them, but your prices are too high based on the spear," argued Jack.

"Are you kidding?" laughed the ninja. "Back in the day, those would've been must-have items! Each band boosts half of your stats greatly while slightly decreasing the other half. With both equipped, you'll give all stats a boost that outweighs and eliminates the debuffs."

"So what? They're only yin-yang bands. Back in the day, these were a dime a dozen. Everyone had them but only up to lv. 30. After that, it's better to just get custom armor made for you in sets," stated Jack, standing his ground with a smile on his face.

"You…" Staring deeply at Jack as if he had just been seen through, the ninja chuckled, "Who are you? You a summoned hero?"

"Maybe. And you?"

"Maybe."

Jack laughed as he extended his hand to the ninja, "The names Jack. What's yours?"

"The tag is Ghositrax, but Trax will do." The ninja happily shook Jack's hand. "You can keep those trash bands since you overpaid for the spear."

Though Jack's hunch was confirmed, something was still off. He wanted to know why this summoned hero still talked like a gamer, unlike the other summoned hero he'd met before. It was something Jack took a mental note of so he could ask Daruun about it the next time he got a chance.

Also, Jack didn't have time for it at the moment but, a notification popped up the moment Ghositrax shared his name.

"You said your name was Jack?" Trax's smile widened as if he was anticipating something.

"Yup, and this is my friend Rydel." Jack motioned toward the hunter beside him. "As you know, he's been following you around for a while."

"But that's it?"

"Well, I was technically the one who asked Rydel to--"

"That's it? It's just Jack?" Trax repeated.

Not sure what to say, Jack scratched his head. "What do you mean?"

"Jack? Your name is only Jack?" The ninja's smile started to fade as his shoulders drooped in disappointment.

"I don't understand what you're getting at," stated Jack.

"Nothing… I just thought I finally found who I was looking for…" Trax then turned around waved goodbye. "See ya, Jack. Good luck with whatever it was you're up to."

"Wait! Where are you going now?"

In a single leap, Trax was now on top of the roof overlooking the hidden alley. "Nothing, I've just got to get back to work. Sorry I don't have time to chit-chat."

"Wait, Trax!" Jack followed the ninja onto the roof. "What's going on? Why are you just leaving like that? At least sell me more stuff. If you come with me, I can bring you to a promising clientele that would--"

"Thanks but no thanks. I need my loot to find him." Not listening to Jack's offer, Trax dashed away across the rooftops.

"Trax!" Jack and Rydel followed after him, intent on at least completing the second step of his plan if they couldn't learn anything more from the ninja.

"Stop following me! You're drawing too much unwanted attention!" The ninja dove back into an alleyway, disappearing behind one of the winding turns of the back streets.

'Rydel, find him at all costs,' Jack relayed his mental message.

Without a word, Rydel dove after the ninja, testing his tracking abilities to the max to try and find even a hint of the ninja's trail.

Jack paused on the rooftop, quickly opening up his menu and checking his recent notifications. After passing over the three quests about ancient tombs, Jack was baffled by the final notification. It was anew achievement, one with an event reward.

[Fulfill Choron's Personal Request: in progress]

[Visit Choron and hear out his request. Fulfill it to your utmost ability. Event reward: 50 skill points; Special reward: determined by how effectively you fulfill Choron's request.]

There was little to no information given about what Jack would have to do to complete the quest, but the fact that it offered an event reward and involved Choron, the Ninja God, was all that Jack needed to bite the bait.

And since the event triggered the moment Ghositrax introduced himself, Jack wondered how the ninja and Choron were connected.