Morningstar

the end Morningstar receives: 5,022 EXP (Word Count [9367/10*5*1] + Field Boss [100] + 5% Advanced Training [239]) 53,815 col (2 pages [800] + Loot [52,262] + 15% P5 Reward [753]) 10 Materials (Dungeon [112] + Loot [6]) 1 T1 Consumable | Matriarch's Stinger T4 Rare Armor/Shield 218669 T4 Rare Trinket 219096a T4 Perfect Consumable 219096b T4 Perfect Weapon 219144a T4 Perfect Weapon 219144b T4 Perfect Weapon 219144c T4 Perfect Consumable 219145a T4 Rare Trinket 219145b T4 Rare Trinket 219146 T4 Rare Weapon 219147a T4 Uncommon Consumable 219147b T4 Rare Con

Oh, shit, the box was opening. Morningstar ignored the words of the Cinnabar pair, too focused on what they had set loose on the world. "Those were players, right? Not NPCs? And they dropped a fire elemental on us? Kind of rude, don't you think?" Cinders spurted from the bird's huge body, singing the grass below. Its wings launched them into the air with each flap as well. One landed on Morningstar's armor, charring the metal. He wiped off the ember with his glove and his blade emerged from its scabbard. "Probably best to warm up before the raid starts, right?" He said to Freyd, the

Skill(s) Being Dropped: Heavy Armor (R1-5), Searching (R5) Mod(s)/Addon(s)/Shift(s) Being Dropped: Impetus, Iron Skin SP Incurred Towards Limit: 38 SP Refunded: 48 Cost: 48,000

Identifications Item #211012c Item #211018b

2.18.2024 IDENTIFICATIONS EXP: ((3*3)+2)*8+(5*2)=98 COST: 3040*8=24320 col

Exhaustion came quickly, overtaking his body. Morningstar dropped but never felt the hardness of the floor. His friends had been quicker, catching him before he could crash. They sat him up, forcing health potions down his throat, and waited for his injuries to heal. King Halador of the Mountains had fallen. His final words were cryptic and without guidance. They spent some time scouring the castle, only to find nothing. Rather than return to Urbus on foot, they decided to use crystals. They stood in a dark alley somewhere in the city. Morningstar handed over the totem to Willow, who

Then, Earthshaker disintegrated. Morningstar gasped, his hand reaching for the gaping hole in his torso. His grip loosened, causing the Soulcursed Blade to slide out of Halador's chest. It clanged to the floor. This was it. Morningstar expected a final combination of attacks. Halador would reequip his lance and finish what he had started. One of the others would be forced to take his place in the duel, or they'd try to save him and end up dying alongside him in the process. But the attacks never came. Instead, Halador clapped. The dragons roared, flying away from the castle. The fig

"Halador," Morningstar's grip loosened, "who is it that you fight for? We saw no one else here. What about your people?" Halador's stern expression turned warm. "My kingdom spans from here to the edge of the mountains. My 'people,' as you put it, include all of the creatures that call them home. I fight for them. It is my duty to ensure that they are looked after and that their king remains worthy of the title." Morningstar nodded. Halador engaged, twisting his spear as he thrust towards his opponent. It caught Star off guard. His eyes widened as he watched the tip of the lance ram t

In response to the grave warning, Morningstar kicked up the blade and resumed the duel. His fighting was unclean and choppy; the pain in his head had weakened him significantly. Halador was also staggered, however, from both the stab wound and Star's static. In their weakened states, they remained even adversaries. The Lightbringer and the King of the Mountains danced, their blades flashing in the dim light of the throne room. Their clash of wills echoed in the enclosed space, sparks flying from metal. Tension hung heavy in the air as they circled each other, the outcome of their duel uncertai

In a flash, Halador pressed forward, creating a shallow fissure with sheer force. Earthshaker's tip scraped Morningstar's neck but missed any lethal spots. The Lightbringer clashed against it with reverberation and electricity bounced up its body. The static shocked Halador, breaking his poise. Morningstar took the opportunity to attack once more. He lunged, his blade breaking through the armor that covered the king's stomach. The Soulcursed Blade screamed in a high pitch that only Morningstar and Halador could hear. The blonde withdrew it from the king's body and dropped it to the ground

He raced towards Halador intent on testing the king's true power. There was something the old man had not advertised but was keen on using. He sliced and slashed until finally, another tile flew up. This time, Morningstar was ready. He smacked it out of the way, his gauntlet cracking it in half. The king reared back. Moments before the blade could touch him, rocks tore from the ground, ripping up the floor and forming around Halador. A tough shell, even harder than the elder rock dragon's scales, encased him, making it impossible to touch him. Spikes emerged from Granite Shield, stab

With a sigh, Halador focused. He charged forwards, his spear pointed at Morningstar's chest. The blonde lifted his blade just in time to adjust its angle. It left a dent in his shoulder plating but he had avoided being impaled. With the spear out of the way, Morningstar was free to strike back. His blade poised for Halador's throat, he stabbed; however, instead, he connected with a slab of marble. It shattered, dampening the blow and allowing Halador to block with his arm. Morningstar stared with wild eyes. They split apart. A perfect square was missing from the floor exactly where they h

Without stopping to think, Morningstar reentered the Earthshaker's range. He deflected a hefty swing, his riposte cleaving the plating on Halador's leg. It was the king who backed up now, without even looking at his new wound. "You fight well, swordsman," he said with a smirk. "What might your name be?" "Morningstar," the blonde replied. Behind them, the others whispered, plotting to enter the fight as well. Halador caught them. "You may take your turns if young Morningstar fails to defeat me. Until then, please be patient. Lily and Wilfred are hungry and tend not to care for ru

Morningstar, Willow, and Renflow entered the throne room. On each side of them, in the circular windows beneath the ceiling, perched a rock dragon. Their bodies were composed entirely of stone, just like the beast they had fought before. Judging by their size and appearance, they were young. He knew better than anyone what they would become, given the time. Goliaths. These, however, could still fit within the space of the throne room, if they so pleased. They were no bigger than a pair of elephants. Their gray scales and rocky jaws were meant to intimidate the Lightbringer. They did

The main entrance of the castle led the party through a gorgeously adorned hallway of jewels and crystals. Gold rimmed the edges connecting the walls to the arched ceiling. They could hear nothing but their own footsteps and voices now. "What is this place?" Renflow asked, rhetorically. "It screams dungeon," Willow said, eyeing the mural that followed the path of the ceiling. "What do you think that's all about?" She pointed up. The mural depicted the rough mountains as well as many of the animals, including the rock dragons, that inhabited them. "Cardinal's an artist, I guess."

Finally, they were within the walls of the city. Inside was much less than they had expected. They had imagined a city, bustling and beautiful, with NPCs much like those in Urbus or the Town of Beginnings. People who, perhaps, had never met players like them before. Instead, there were no people at all. It was quiet within the walls. Platforms and statues, as well as gardens and waterfalls that lead to pretty ponds, lined what could only be described as a really long staircase. At the very top, there was a castle. Much like the rest of the citadel, it was made from various types of stone, incl

They hugged the wall of the mountain, which was taller than the others in the area and, unlike many, ended in jagged points. Morningstar's armor clanked; however, it was not loud enough for the golem to notice. "It's working," Willow whispered, prompting a sudden hush from Renflow behind her. Upon reaching the wall they realized two things. First, it was unclimbable. It was perfectly flat and even if they had brought the tools for the job, there was little chance that they could have made it up without the guard taking notice. There was also the fact that none of them had the strength nor

They laid out their plan: sneak past the guard and find a way through the wall. Was it a good plan? Absolutely not. Was it all they had? Unfortunately, yes. They prepared their gear in case of emergency. Morningstar switched his climbing clothes to his heavy armor. It was the worst possible suit for a stealth mission; however, in the event that they were caught anyway, they decided that it was safer to be wearing their strongest equipment possible. The others were dressed in cloaks with their guild insignia printed on the backs. It was a black ball with engulfed by an orange flame. Mornin

Star could faintly hear the concoction of voices speaking from the alleyway but could not make out a word they were saying. Inside the bar, things were looking grim and out of his control. A woman had snuck out the back door and wrapped around the side to run for a guard. With no way to stop her while remaining a virtuous player, all he could do was shout, "no, don't," which wasn't of much use. "Star! Tell me things are under control in there!" He wished that he could, deflecting a wine bottle with the edge of his sword. He was careful and made sure to smash it to the side, afraid o

The valley between mountains was green, spacious, and wet. Little stirred aside from small critters and birds. A few messages had been sent back and forth between Morningstar and Willow, mostly updating each other on their whereabouts and planning out where they would meet next. She also sent him a photo of Renflow being headbutt by an ox, which he saved for safekeeping. Morningstar's trek was long but uneventful. He searched a few nooks for any loot or materials but found nothing of value. A plum tree offered him plenty of fresh fruit. The whole bunch of it became his lunch (although, he save

He grimaced upon realizing what he had done. He didn't bother to count out each NPC in the bar. It was obvious by looking that there were too many to take on injured. Besides, an accident wasn't worth going orange for. Freyd shouted for him to keep the patrons inside. It was a tall order. Morningstar inhaled nervously and exhaled through a deep bow. "Ladies and gentlemen," he exclaimed on the way up, "we apologize for our intrusion! We are the Actors of Aincrad, a group of traveling thespians who have stopped in Glyndebourne for the end of our tour! Your Lady Sally, a genius upon the stag

2.17.2024 IDENTIFICATIONS EXP: ((3*3)+2)*8=88 COST: 3040*8=24320 col

The game was evolving, he remembered himself saying. It wasn't the same as it used to be. In the past, it was "kill mobs and collect experience" on repeat. It was straightforward and things made sense. Ever since the twenty-eighth floor had opened and he'd been trapped in the manor, things felt off. A mob he had fought a million times before would adjust its attack pattern ever so slightly. An NPC with little to no sense of awareness would say something unexpectedly unique. And now... whatever this was. Morningstar was perplexed. The scene played out rather normally at first: a woman pulls the

He strained his forearms and back pulling himself up the mountain. The rope burned his hands the further he scaled. The alternative to the pain, unfortunately, was death. He had survived one fall and he was lucky for that. He wouldn't have made the second. At the top, a mountain goat stared at him with wild eyes. It began to chew on the rope. In a panic, Morningstar equipped the knife he used to cut his food and, holding it by the blade, tossed it at the animal. It stuck into the goat's head and he toppled over the mountainside, right past the blonde. It took his favorite knife with him.

Morningstar looked into the Redcoat's eyes as Freyd pummeled him. He didn't last a minute. His sword free from the man's shoulder, he refocused his attention to the last foe. On the opposite side of the fight, Freyd continued to evolve into an even more terrifying yet somehow beautiful form. The mob struggled to stand, let alone fight back. It was over. In one clean swing, Morningstar severed its head from its defeated body and watched as it disappeared from sight. He clutched his waist. "All in a day's work," he smirked, unwilling to admit to the obvious injuries. He could already feel t